Weird Question Time!

[oloriel]

Sooo!

If, hypothetically speaking, I were making a Helcaraxë painting, yes?
With, you know, Elves walking over the grinding Ice and all that.
And I were thinking about perhaps maybe including some St. Elmo's Fire.
Would that make sense?
I mean, it's high up north and there's icebergs and they're carrying spears and all. Also it would be cool.
On the other hand, I know little about the science behind it. I mean, I know there wouldn't be any Northern Lights seeing how there's no sun yet and thus no solar winds, but I think I understood that St. Elmo's Fire was a completely different matter?
Someone with mad physics knowledge help me.
Or tell me that it would be cool enough to ignore whatever scientific stuff would be necessary, because what the hell, we're talking about a fictional flat world anyway.
Heh?

[Poll #1029949]

Comments

[elfy.livejournal.com]

Also ich versteh es hier (http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmsfeuer) so, dass nur ein Gewitter notwendig ist. Beachte:

Aufgrund der starken Potentialdifferenz, die bei Elmsfeuer herrscht, stehen Menschen oft auch die Haare zu Berge. (Hahahaha :D)

[coppertone.livejournal.com]

Definitely cool enough to disregard the science, I'd say. Not that I know any of the science, but. It would be gorgeous and physics shouldn't get in the way of that.

Vaguely relatedly, the real St. Elmo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erasmus_of_Formiae) went through so much hell so often that I sometimes think he ought to've been a Tolkien character. Not that that has to do with anything.

[oloriel.livejournal.com]

Well, there was an elf called Elmo... actually I read a fic about that once.

[coppertone.livejournal.com]

About Elmo-Thingol's-brother being Saint Elmo? Poor thing, but that'd be pretty cool.

[oloriel.livejournal.com]

Not exactly. But about St Elmo's Fire having to do with Elmo Thingol's brother. (http://www.henneth-annun.net/stories/chapter_view.cfm?stid=4439&SPOrdinal=1)

[coppertone.livejournal.com]

Oh, that is pretty. I rather love ghost-type Elves.

[hrymfaxe.livejournal.com]

I think that is a very good idea! I recently wanted to do a Helcaraxë drawing with a view of icebergs and vast expanses of ice - until I remembered that there was no light! *facepalm* So I ended up doing one elf, with a lantern, surrounded by complete darkness... I wish I had thought of something so cool as St Elmos fire - which from what little I know has nothing to do with the sun. The same way you can see lightning in the night, I imagine you can see this fire. So go for it!
And I see you are already aware of the ghost story, I was going to point out to you

[allie-meril.livejournal.com]

When I saw you mention St. Elmo's Fire, I thought at once, "OMG. Must rec Marnie's fic to her!!

[ex-casteylan314.livejournal.com]

From a little bit of research and from what I already know of the science, I'd say yes. It's electrical, caused by ionisation of nitrogen & oxygen, doesn't rely on the sun at all. It just needs an electrical field (ie a thunderstorm). My only doubt is that without a sun, would there ever be sufficient warming of the atmosphere to make thunderstorms?

On the other hand, maybe Feanaro's ranting made enough hot air for that.

*grin*

[idunna.livejournal.com]

Always disregard science in the name of artistic awesomeness.