Neil deGrasse Tyson answers Game of Thrones’ most burning question (and it spells trouble for Westeros)

Game of Thrones season 7 (opens in new tab) left us with a few more questions (opens in new tab) than solid answers, especially a big, fiery dragon related one. Thankfully, nitpicker-in-chief and all-round brainbox Neil deGrasse Tyson has the answers. Watch out Westeros. Spoilers for Game of Thrones season 7 follow.

Game of Thrones season 7, episode 7 (opens in new tab) concluded with the resurrected Viserion laying waste to The Wall with a blue flame. Some thought it was super-cool but deGrasse Tyson knows his stuff: it’s super, super hot.

Intriguing Thermal Physics in #GameOfThrones: BlueDragon breath would be at least a factor of 3X hotter than RedDragon breath pic.twitter.com/RvpBkqJ1sw24 September 2017

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Remember when you were told to stay away from the blue flame in science class? That’s why. Unfortunately, the citizens of Westeros are probably only going to find that out the hard, molten-y way. Sorry, guys: this stuff is three times at hot as normal dragonfire. The Tarlys may have been burnt to a crisp but, trust me, they got off easy.

While deGrasse Tyson cleared the air on all things dragon breath, he had a bone (or should that be a chain?) to pick with how Viserion was lifted from his watery grave. Those chains should have been far straighter, according to the astrophysicist. Remember that for next time, yeah?

Bad Physics in #GameOfThrones: Pulling a dragon out of a lake? Chains need to be straight, and not curve over hill and dale. pic.twitter.com/VIJlIuDz3L24 September 2017

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The physics of Thrones aren’t all bad though. He’s given a big thumbs-up to the aerodynamics of Dany’s dragons. Their wingspan and gait are all a-ok which is good because, in a show about resurrected Starks and zombified Mountains, I was getting a bit antsy about whether the dragons could realistically fly.

Good Bio-Physics in #GameOfThrones: The Dragon Wingspans are sensibly large, as their body weight would require for flight. pic.twitter.com/gzD5wI38u524 September 2017

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Be sure to check out our full Game of Thrones season 7 review (opens in new tab) in addition to one of the show’s directors addressing the show’s big timeline complaint. (opens in new tab)

Image: HBO

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