British scientists from the University of Bristol and Sheffield, using modern methods, analyzed the climate of the planet Arrakis, the main setting of Frank Herbert’s science fiction novel “Dune” series, and works based on them. This has been scientifically reported portal Speech.
Arrakis is a desert planet with a very hot climate, inhabited by giant sandworms and a small number of humans adapted to the harsh conditions of their home world. In the past, 91% of it was covered by oceans until an ancient disaster dried out the surface. Powerful forces fight for control of Arrakis as Earth remains the only known source of “spice”, a substance without which interstellar travel is impossible.
Researchers created the virtual environment of the Dune world using climate models used to make weather forecasts on Earth.
As calculations show, Frank Herbert described a plausible climate system in a fictional world long before the invention of climate models. According to the analysis, it is stated that life on Arrakis is possible in subpolar regions, while in the mid-latitudes and at the equator there are unbearable temperatures above 70 ° C for most of the year.
Scientists also found what Arrakis looked like before it became a desert. If the Earth were once again covered with water, the average global temperature would drop by 4°C due to moisture evaporating into the atmosphere. The planet will be covered by clouds that will reflect some of the energy of the nearest star back into space.
Additionally, aquatic Arrakis would become 86 times wetter than desert Arrakis, allowing vegetation to thrive.
But in such a climate, the tropics would be subject to severe hurricanes, as huge warm oceans would provide most of the energy and moisture needed to create powerful hurricanes, the researchers noted.
Climate modeling of the fictional planet shows desert worlds are more likely to be habitable because their dry atmospheres are more stable than water planets, scientists said.
“If humans colonize other worlds, they will likely face many of the same challenges as the characters in Dune,” the report said.
Previous scientists studied the sound of the languages of elves, orcs and Klingons from various works of science fiction.