Questions tagged [science-based]
For questions that require plausible (better than suspension-of-disbelief) answers based on Real World science that are not necessarily constrained to the known limits of Real World science. Contrast with the hard-science, science-fiction and internal-consistency tags. This tag may not be used alone. This tag may not be used with the science-fiction, hard-science, or internal-consistency tags.
9,513 questions
1
vote
1
answer
531
views
Life on a planet in a binary star system that is orbiting a black hole, how would it work?
I’m working on a fantasy novel and trying to keep the underlying science internally consistent so obviously i have some questions since im not a science person.
How possible is it for a planet in an ...
2
votes
7
answers
986
views
What measurements might scientists take to verify the existence of an incorporeal, invisible being? [closed]
Let us assume that there exists a human-sized, incorporeal, invisible being at a particular location. Scientists are trying to verify the existence of this being. What measurements might they take ...
4
votes
3
answers
1k
views
How would a plant go about harvesting a storm?
I'm trying to make a plant (calling all autotrophic beings plants) that harvests energy from storms in an area of my planet within my speculative biology project.
The area is the entire equator, which ...
5
votes
5
answers
1k
views
How could a low-gravity world keep its atmosphere?
I am currently creating an exoplanet for my hard sci-fi novel, and I have been encountering a bit of an issue.
The main pretty much non-negotiable aspects of this planet are:
It has a low gravity (0....
1
vote
1
answer
87
views
Tidally locked, low-gravity world orbiting 61 Cygni A: plausibility and life probability
I'm building a planet for a hard sci-fi novel set in the 61 Cygni system and want to stress-test the physics before I commit to the worldbuilding. I've done my own calculations (shown below), but I'd ...
12
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Could we spot an alien ship entering the Solar System?
Would it be possible to spot an alien ship with modern telescope technology if it was entering our Solar System?
More specifically a starship using a Magsail-type system to decelerate from ~90 percent ...
8
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Total energy production of a neutrino powered generator
I wanted a beamed powersource that could go anywhere. So I thought of a generator that fires off a beam of neutrinos at a target location where it is caught using technomagic.
A sphere is used (so the ...
12
votes
7
answers
1k
views
How could an egg survive below freezing temperatures for long periods of time?
In my speculative evolution project, the South Pole contains a giant ice sheet with semi-regular snow storms near the coasts. Due to the planet being closer to its star, it’s warmer than earth ...
3
votes
0
answers
59
views
“Mushroom Breeding” to produce building materials for a species underground [duplicate]
I will try to keep this question mostly short and simple.
Details
I have a tribe of sorts settling underground in a musty, high humidity cave. The cave has water in it, and is humid pretty much all ...
-3
votes
2
answers
462
views
Can a Fridge allow you to survive the Big Crunch?
Recent discoveries in real life have cast into doubt the previously held almost certain belief that a cold heat death would happen, and that the possibility of a future 'Big Crunch' would happen - ie. ...
10
votes
5
answers
2k
views
Does being bipedal set a hard limit on the size of herbivores?
In my speculative evolution project, the primary group of animals was a clade of 8 limbed “vertebrates” that evolved from an aquatic boney fish that left the water. They left the water through a ...
4
votes
6
answers
528
views
What armor can be ISRUed (In situ resource utilization) in a Saturn like environment?
Scenario: There is small fleet of warships (3 320m long frigates and 2 600m cruisers with an FTL carrier that serves as the command center/tanker/tender for the warships, in addition to bringing them ...
-2
votes
3
answers
258
views
Is a -10 to 25 C or higher temp range feasible for a swamp?
I’m trying to write a city in a swamp or some form of wetland. I’d like it to be -10 C or colder in the winter and 25 C or warmer in the summer. Is that at all feasible for a swamp? I know that it’s ...
0
votes
4
answers
241
views
how high does a planets atmospheric pressure need to be to break human bones?
How high would a planet's atmospheric pressure have to be to break the average human's bones? I'm trying to create a planet that consists of extremophiles.
14
votes
6
answers
2k
views
Will opening a portal by the power of my mind suck the solar system into unfettered chaos?
Behold! I have the ability to open portals by the power of my mind! And this is potentially very useful because super villian Ernst Stavro Blofeld® has built a lunar city on the dark side of the moon ...