Krypton

*"Krypton is doomed."*
―Jor-El to Lara Lor-Van[src]
**Krypton** was a planet in the Rao System, orbiting a red star known as Rao. It was the homeworld of the advanced civilization known as Kryptonians before internal pressures in the planet's volatile core led to its destruction. Nearly all Kryptonians were killed in the implosion, except for Kal-El, Kara Zor-El, Krypto, Dru-Zod, the Sword of Rao, the citizens of Argo City, and the residents of the shrunken city of Kandor.

When Krypton was destroyed, however, fragments from the planet went into outer space, creating a harmful, radioactive substance known as Kryptonite.

## History

### Prehistory

Orbiting a red dwarf star about 27 light-years distant from Earth named Rao, the planet **Krypton** formed over 8.7 billion years ago. Cellular life's development led to the Kryptonians' creation and evolution.

Krypton's primordial era produced some of the most dangerous organisms in the universe. For this reason, 250,000 years ago, Bertron chose Krypton to create Doomsday through forced evolution. However, until its destruction, many dangerous animals, including ferrophage moles, still existed on Krypton. As a result, Kryptonians had to use their advanced technology to survive.

Over 100,000 years ago, Krypton had already developed scientific advancements far beyond present-day Earth and, within a few millennia, had conquered disease, learned to delay the aging process, and perfected cloning. Vast banks of non-sentient clones held multiple copies of each living Kryptonian so that replacement parts were always available in case of injury. As a result, all Kryptonians were effectively immortal, "with all the strength and vigor of youth maintained," and enjoyed an idyllic, sensual existence in an Arcadian paradise.

Their culture began exploring other galaxies 18,000 years ago and even set up colonial outposts on other planets. However, the Kryptonians eventually abandoned their colonies and began genetic cultivation, artificially engineering newborns for pre-determined societal roles.

### Destruction

*"Krypton itself soon followed. Vast tectonic plates buckled, venting mountainous sheets of glowing ejecta into the upper atmosphere and beyond. Continents crumbled and seas boiled over, as the planet’s contaminated core built to a critical mass. A series of global detonations overcame the tremendous gravity that held the planet together. And then Krypton blew apart in a final, apocalyptic paroxysm that could be seen from light-years away. Doomsday had come."*
―Krypton is destroyed[src]
But as Kryptonian civilization flourished, the planet turned towards isolationism. Kryptonians abandoned space exploration as Krypton quarantined itself from the surrounding galaxy.

For thousands of years, Krypton's core grew more and more unstable. It was at this time that Krypton began suffering from geological disturbances. Jor-El discovered that the planetary core had been setting up a repetitive cycle of "chain-impulses," increasing in pressure exponentially, making Krypton's core dangerously unstable.

Jor-El also conducted geological surveys of the planet's subterranean layers and concluded that Krypton was unstable and on the verge of a catastrophic seismic implosion. Finally, Jor-El presented his data to the Kryptonian High Council, warning them of the planet's impending destruction. However, they dismissed his conclusions as outlandish and a vehicle of paranoia and discord.

The High Council even threatened Jor-El with exile to the Phantom Zone if he were to make public his predictions of their planet's imminent doom. So, he decided to create a star-drive ship designed for his only son, Kal-El, to escape Krypton and its people's fate.

Within a short period, Jor-El's worst nightmares came to pass. Massive ground quakes erupted across the planet, and Krypton shook in its death throes with huge, exploding streams of green energy bursting through the surface of Krypton. Then, mere minutes before Krypton exploded, Jor-El infused the Growth Codex of Krypton into his son's cells, hoping to preserve the Kryptonian race. Then, bidding goodbye to baby Kal-El, Jor-El and his wife, Lara, placed their infant son into his rocket ship and sent him toward Earth.

The explosion culminated in a chemical/geological reaction that imbued the remaining fragments of the planet with a specific radiation level that proved harmful and ultimately fatal to Kryptonians. Several of these fragments found their way to Earth, where they would be known as Kryptonite.

## Geography

Krypton is portrayed as having had an Earth-like terrain composed of canyons and oceans that ran between the massive continents of frozen plateaus. However, its gravity was much more significant than Earth's, and its atmospheric composition differed to the extent of being unsuitable for humans. Krypton featured many crystalline cities and towering metropolitan areas surrounded by walls and towers.

Krypton had a sidereal revolution of 474 days and a rotation period ("day") of 26 hours and 59 minutes, compared to Earth's standard. So for Kryptonians, their year was six months or 483 days.

The planet was tidally locked to its star, creating a limited sweet spot where life could form while the rest of the planet was forever untouched by the light of Rao. This means the Kryptonians didn't have a night cycle, as Rao was always in the same place in the sky. Krypton's climate was cold and still. It is unknown how far Krypton was from its red sun, but it had to be close enough to sustain life and water.

### Moons

* Mithen
* Wegthor

The planet is orbited by four moons, including the destroyed Wegthor. Wegthor, was accidentally destroyed by the Kryptonian scientist Jax-Ur, who was experimenting with a nuclear missile that was diverted from its intended destination. The disaster killed 500 inhabitants of the moon and Jax-Ur became the first and only criminal to be banished eternally to the Phantom Zone. This disaster also prompted the Science Guild of Krypton to ban space flight completely.

## External Links

* Krypton on DC Database
* Krypton on Wikipedia