And if we're talking "Lost In Space," then, yeah, a lot of scientific liberties were taken, as well as dramatic and literary ones as well. Even in it's first season they didn't pay much attention to that stuff - it was an family-friendly action show that they just stocked with scifi cliches, and Alpha Centauri was the closest "star," so, done. It was an Irwin Allen production, after all, but then, all sci fi suffers from using whatever theories are "current" which then get outdated by newer dicoveries, or just the passing of time. "2001: A Space Odyssey" is still a great movie even if moonbases, AI and the return of Nehru jackets didn't happen in 2001.
Anyone want to buy some PanAm stock I have?