Questions tagged [hard-science]
REVIEW THE WIKI BEFORE USING THIS TAG! For questions that require unequivocal proof that answers are correct through the use of equations, empirical evidence, scientific papers, etc. Compare to: science-fiction, science-based and internal-consistency. This tag may not be used alone. This tag may not be used with the science-fiction, science-based, or internal-consistency tags. Flag your question for moderator attention once posted.
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Long term viability of a human population with super healing that causes female to male sequential hermaphrotism [closed]
This question starts with a conversation I had with friends about the implications of super healing ability of Marvel comics characters like Wolverine, Deadpool, Hulk, and more. How would a person ...
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Exploring the Feasibility of Laser-Based Ram Scoops Powered by Micro Black Holes [closed]
Ram scoop ships are a well-loved element of hard science fiction, typically employing magnetic fields to harvest interstellar gas. However, this concept often grapples with practical issues like drag ...
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Would you be able to look directly at the Sun if it were a red giant?
For the moment, let's ignore the fact that the Sun is theorized to swallow Earth when it does decay into a red giant. We will pretend that it gets big enough to eat Venus, and stops there.
It will ...
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What would happen to the sky colour if SO2 made up 95% of the atmosphere? [duplicate]
Because of the Rayleigh scattering phenomenon, I'm interested in how the G2V-type star light would interact with this composition, especially how it would change the colour of the sky. What kinds of ...
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What is the longest possible (current material science) for a human weight-bearing 3” thick, 5’ wide slab attached to a wall on one end?
For my story, I need a cliff face with a slab sticking out of the middle of it, like an inflexible diving board. I need it to be 5 feet wide (exact) and 3-to-6 inches thick (thinner is better). I need ...
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How long can nuclear power plants last without the power grid and humanity? [duplicate]
Here is the question: "Following an immediate, irreversible collapse of the power grid and the medium-term (few decades) disappearance of humanity, would would happen to nuclear power plants?&...
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Sky color other than blue
Is it possible to have a planet where humans can survive for >30min outside, where the sky color is anything but blue?
In anime and sci-fi, there are planets with a purple / green /red / yellow / .....
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Stealth In Space Calculator
I want to make a calculator that can determine the range at which spaceships will be detected against an infrared detection system.
Figuring out how "stealthy" a ship is is mostly a matter ...
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How to calculate the tides for lake?
Assuming I have a lake on Earth shaped simply like an oval or circle with a consistent bottom slope and of otherwise arbitrary dimensions, how do I figure out what the resultant tidal range will be?
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Could a Luna-based colony successfully revolt against Earth? [closed]
Let’s say that a colony established by humans on Earth’s moon was, for whatever reason, entering a revolutionary war with Earth for its own long-term sovereignty as a planet/nation. Mars has also been ...
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What are the orbital perturbations needed to destabilize a system to the point of taking some bodies out of resonance and kicking out another?
I have a gas giant with a mass of $1.63314\times10^{27}kg$ and a radius of 66,559.052km and orbiting it are 4 moons.
It orbits a star with 0.86M☉ at a distance of 5.03AU
My question is what ...
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What is the largest fraction of Earth's sky that an astronomical object could take up (visually) before ripping Earth or itself apart?
I know the Roche limit limits how close another planet could get to Earth. Closer than that limit, and either it breaks apart or Earth breaks apart.
I don't care what size it is, if it's a super-...
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Global warming in an apocalyptic future?
In my world, there's a global apocalypse that wipes out humanity, but I'm wondering how global warming might continue even with the lack of additional greenhouse gases. If emissions suddenly stopped, ...
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How much better would metallic hydrogen be than conventional explosives?
How much more effective (if at all) would metallic hydrogen explosives be against armored targets?
In this setting metallic hydrogen can be cheaply manufactured and contained in a metastable state ...
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Readily available MIR refracting material
I am looking for a material that could serve to do the following: build a 5m x 5m wall that looks pretty normal (not necessarily during construction) but has the ability to transmit and refract MIR, ...
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