Dream meaning
Travelling to another planet
The short answer
Dreaming of travelling to another planet or universe usually reflects a wish for escape, adventure or a completely new perspective. It can also come when you feel alien in your own surroundings.
12.3% of people in the study had had this dream. No. 45 of the 55 typical dreams · Nielsen et al., 2003
What does a dream about “Travelling to another planet” mean?
What psychologists say
These dreams belong to the imaginative themes in the Typical Dreams Questionnaire. Researchers link such dreams to the brain's loose associative mode during REM sleep, and to films and books. They are more often reported by men, though the study's authors flag low-prevalence differences as uncertain.
Nielsen et al., 2003; Zadra & Stickgold, 2021
The Jungian reading
A Jungian reading treats space travel as a journey into the unconscious: unknown territory far from the ego's familiar ground. Landing on a strange world can mean meeting new parts of yourself.
Jung, 1964
In history and folklore
Celestial journeys in dreams appear in old texts, such as Cicero's Dream of Scipio, where the dreamer sees Earth from the heavens and understands how small human ambition is.
How common is this dream?
12.3% of people in the study had had this dream. From a survey of 1,181 first-year university students in three Canadian cities. No. 45 of the 55 typical dreams.
Common versions of this dream
What if I can't get back to Earth?
Being stranded matches feeling cut off from your usual life.
What if the planet feels like home?
A welcoming world suggests a part of life where you feel more yourself.
What if I'm alone in space?
Solitude in space can reflect loneliness or a need for distance.
Dreams that often come with it
Had this dream? Tell it to Oneiros.
Oneiros reads your own dream, not a dictionary entry: what it was about, how it felt and what it may mean for you, and it notices when it comes back.
Oneiros offers reflective readings for self-discovery and entertainment. It is not a medical or psychological service.
Sources
- Nielsen, T. A., Zadra, A. L., Simard, V., Saucier, S., Stenstrom, P., Smith, C., & Kuiken, D. (2003). The typical dreams of Canadian university students. Dreaming, 13(4), 211–235. doi:10.1023/B:DREM.0000003144.40929.0b
- Zadra, A., & Stickgold, R. (2021). When Brains Dream: Exploring the Science and Mystery of Sleep. W. W. Norton.
- Jung, C. G. (Ed.) (1964). Man and His Symbols. Aldus Books.