Game of Thrones
We only know a little bit about what to expect for Season 8 of "Game of Thrones." Pictured are Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) and Jon (Kit Harington). HBO

For a story based on magic and dragons and the undead, you wouldn’t ordinarily expect someone to analyze it from a scientific point of view. But what if that someone happened to be both a “Game of Thrones” fan as well as an astrophysicist? Cue Neil deGrasse Tyson.

The well-known scientist took to his Twitter account Sunday to post some comments about some of the science in the show, complete with screenshots from episodes, leading to hundreds of reactions.

First on deGrasse Tyson’s list of things to talk about — the only example of bad physics he cites, in fact — were the much-talked about chains that the White Walkers used to drag Viserion’s body out of the lake, after it was killed by the Night King and before being resurrected. Unlike many others who, when the episode aired, were wondering where those heavy-duty chains came from, deGrasse Tyson questioned the physics behind the use of chains to pulling something — a dragon out of a lake, in this case — as shown in the episode.

The scientist seemed quite content with the dragons themselves though, at least insofar as their wings are concerned.

And speaking of wings, he also turned a critical eye on the cherubs often shown in Renaissance-period art.

He may also have provided a scientific explanation for why the now-undead dragon Viserion, now spitting blue fire instead of the usual red-and-yellow, had such an easy time bringing down the Wall which had stood the test of time for however long it had been standing there.

The science ended there, but Twitter users had a multitude of reactions to the posts — ranging from those engaging with them scientifically to those dismissing them as being out of touch with magic, and to the usual funny ones.

And there was at least person who said George R.R. Martin, the author who wrote the books the show is based on, would likely be very interested getting the science right.

So while you wait for the next, and last, season to unfold next summer here’s something to think about.

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