Ginga Tetsudô 999
— Kieta Taiyôkei —

“Ginga Tetsudô 999 — Kieta Taiyôkei —” (Galaxy Express 999: The Disappearance of the Solar System) is a planetarium program produced by Minolta Planetarium. The content features an original story set in the Fantasma Solar System, and depicts one of the episodes of the journey of Tetsurō on the Galaxy Express 999. Screenings at Planetariums equiped with Minolta system began in 2001.

This work is not produced by Toei Animation but instead is a series of slides. Unlike regular animated works, it doesn't contain much moving images, and viewers might find it similar to a traditional Japanese kamishibai (picture-story show). However, some footage includes CGI animations of the 999 and incorporates the latest celestial imagery.

The screening time is approximately 30 minutes, followed by a live explanation by a commentator (about 20 minutes), who explains visible planets and stars at that time. Combined with the planetarium show, the total duration is about 50 minutes.

Leiji Matsumoto provides the supervision and story ideas, as well as the creation of a new character. Minolta Planetarium handles the production, while Nippon Broadcasting Sound Design is responsible for audio production.

In the future, humanity can mechanize their bodies to obtain eternal life. Few people still have organic bodies, and Tetsurô is one of them.

Tetsurô heard about a planet far away in space that would give mechanical bodies for free, and boarded the Galaxy Express 999 with a beautiful, mysterious woman named Maetel. Although the 999 looks like a steam locomotive, it's a high-speed passenger train incorporating the latest technologies, including computers.

Their current position is 750,000 light-years within the galaxy. For the past few days, Tetsurô had been bored just gazing at the stars shining outside the window. To such a Tetsurô, Maetel gently says, “No two stars are the same. Just like how each of human faces is unique.”

Suddenly, a flash of light streaks through the train. What appears is an android named Eternal who has teleported from the Planet Chronoluna. It is said that the people of Chronoluna entrusted all the DNA information of every life form living on their planet to Eternal before they perished. What exactly happened to the Planet Chronoluna?