Say you're on a World that's near a Nebula or Dust Cloud and every once in a while the dust or whatever skims the atmosphere of the World. What would it look like? A constant non-stop meteor shower? Or something else?
A Nebula Shower?
- Thread starter Spinward Scout
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Timerover51
SOC-14 5K
I have been thinking about this, Kelly, and I keep coming up with a combination of one spectacular meteor shower along with an incredible "aurora borealis" effect. It would be incredible to see it.
Probably not much of anything at all. Nebulae are so diffuse, that they are virtually vacuum.
The first 2 paragraphs of the Wikipedia article sums it up fairly well:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebula
(Personally I have always found this intensely disappointing; I like to think how cool the night sky would look either from orbit or the surface of a world close to a nebula - until I remember that if I were close to one it would still be virtually invisible. Those cool images are due to long over-exposure of photographic plates or the modern electronic photo-multiplier equivalent).
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I guess it may be like the Perseids in Earth (arround August 12th each year), and seen as meteor showers.
Enoki
SOC-14 1K
Since nebulae are the remnants of supernovae or condensing stellar gas, they would consist not only of "dust" but that dust would mostly be charged particles, a good portion being radioactive.
I'd think a world that got periodically swept into a nebula would experience a massive aurora borealis and a serious increase in radiation hitting the planet.
So, while it would be incredibly brilliant and spectacular in lighting up the sky, it would also likely be pretty seriously deadly.
I'd think a world that got periodically swept into a nebula would experience a massive aurora borealis and a serious increase in radiation hitting the planet.
So, while it would be incredibly brilliant and spectacular in lighting up the sky, it would also likely be pretty seriously deadly.
G. Kashkanun Anderson
SOC-13
Well, if the planet were orbiting a typical (main sequence) star, then I would imagine that the stellar winds would clear the local astrosphere of any gas or dust from the nebula. So there wouldn't be necessarily any more shooting stars than what we see here on Terra. Depending on the activity level of the star, however, there might be visible interplay in the form of bow shock between the nebula and the edge of the astrosphere; I imagine that might look something like a brighter and more diffuse version of zodaical light. Or perhaps like a subtle aurora that never noticeably moves, except in timelapse photography.
On the other hand, a planet in orbit around a star that was in the process of making its own nebula (like an AGB star or a very recently formed planetary nebula) would be bombarded with stellar debris on a continual basis, and as long as the planet still had some sort of atmosphere and/or magnetic field to interact with, you ought to be treated to some rather spectacular and regular aurorae and/or shooting stars.
On the other hand, a planet in orbit around a star that was in the process of making its own nebula (like an AGB star or a very recently formed planetary nebula) would be bombarded with stellar debris on a continual basis, and as long as the planet still had some sort of atmosphere and/or magnetic field to interact with, you ought to be treated to some rather spectacular and regular aurorae and/or shooting stars.
So, if it gets past the stellar wind:
1.) spectacular meteor shower
2.) massive aurora borealis
and
3.) seriously deadly
Well, 2 out 3 ain't bad.
"Mom! Dad! Can I watch the Dust Shower tonite?"
"Only if you take your Rad Pills and wear your Hazard Suit."
"Awwww..."
Thanks everybody!
1.) spectacular meteor shower
2.) massive aurora borealis
and
3.) seriously deadly
Well, 2 out 3 ain't bad.
"Mom! Dad! Can I watch the Dust Shower tonite?"
"Only if you take your Rad Pills and wear your Hazard Suit."
"Awwww..."
Thanks everybody!
BRJN
SOC-12
For dramatic purposes, you can fudge the physics a bit.
Half the time during the year, there is a dramatic display that covers a big chunk of the sky, the nearby nebula in question as lit by the star's light. Pick something from an astronomy website and always prop a picture on the table when your group is in that system.
Night to night, there is a likelihood of a few 'shooting stars', nothing large or dangerous, to be seen if you look up at the sky for a while. They seem to be coming from a bit off-center to the nebula.
The system will not have a major starport if rocks are flying around at random.
You might want to have a local adventure that involves replacing an eroded nose cone, from the dust and pebbles flying around the system.
Half the time during the year, there is a dramatic display that covers a big chunk of the sky, the nearby nebula in question as lit by the star's light. Pick something from an astronomy website and always prop a picture on the table when your group is in that system.
Night to night, there is a likelihood of a few 'shooting stars', nothing large or dangerous, to be seen if you look up at the sky for a while. They seem to be coming from a bit off-center to the nebula.
The system will not have a major starport if rocks are flying around at random.
You might want to have a local adventure that involves replacing an eroded nose cone, from the dust and pebbles flying around the system.
