Science Time! --- The Sun, Moon, and Planet this all happens on

[Evilshy 5,093]

We all know how Celestia and Luna keep the celestial bodies in motion. There have always been myths to this effect, the ruler of a civilization being regarded as a God and keeping the Sun and Moon in motion, but in Equestria, they actually do. There have been many theories as to how this works, so lets examine a few.

 

A common one is simply that the Alicorn sisters just keep them in motion with...

 

 

Pretty straight forward, and honestly, it would make sense in universe. But I've never liked it; it would require massive amounts of energy to move things of such mass over such distance enough to significantly effect things. Also, if the Sun and Moon have to be moved, what about all the other stars? We know that the stars move, but I have a hard time believing that either the Sisters are controlling the entire universe, or that each star has a planet in orbit around it inhabited by being powerful enough to keep it going. Also, the planets never would have formed if the random chunks of rock floating around in space hadn't been orbiting around each other and eventually been pulled together through sheer gravity.

And anyway, if they have that kind of power, Discord and Chrysalis should have been total pushovers

 

Another is that the Sisters keep the planet spinning and take turns out of tradition (and because I'm sure it's tiring). Again, the energy required to keep a planet rotating would be massive. Not to mention the fact that planets naturally rotate anyway.

 

And here's and interesting one I found from one of our members. To boil it down, the Sisters enact minor changes on the Moon and Planet to keep the orbits from getting all messed up:

http://mlpforums.com/topic/27530-how-celestia-and-luna-raise-the-sun-and-moon/

 

That last one is the closest to my personal thoughts.

 

So, minor changes in the tilt of a planet can have huge impacts on the climate of the planet. In fact, if the Earth didn't have such a stable orbit, the seasons and therefore climate would be so messed up that life couldn't exist in it's current form. In fact, most life would probably be microscopic, since smaller, less complex creatures thrive in more extreme environments. The tilt can also make the day or night last for far longer than normal in certain places (for example, the poles have "days" and "nights" that last for months during certain seasons). This would screw up a lot, such as the temperatures (Equestria being at freezing temperatures for months at a time does not bode well for the ponies). The tilt would also effect how the inhabitants of the planet see the celestial bodies, such as the Sun and Moon.

Anyway, I think that the Sisters make minor changes to the tilt of the planet. They don't actually move the Sun or Moon at all, they just keep the planet stable. It's just much easier to say that they raise the Sun and Moon than to explain it all to the average pony. Also, it probably keeps some tradition from the ancient times, when the Unicorns kept everything going. A scientifically primitive culture such as that would certainly not know what was actually happening, and would likely just say "the Unicorns keep the Sun and Moon rising and falling".

Another thing I've thought of... It should be noted that, at least for us, the Moon and the Earth stabilize each other, so maybe the Sisters combine their power to keep the Moon in orbit. Our Moon is actually slowly moving away from us (at a rate of a ~4 centimeters per year). Depending on the orbit, the pony Moon could be moving away at a much faster rate, not so much that it's destroying the solar system, but enough that it could be problematic in a few hundred years or so. The Sisters are enacting small changes to the Moon's orbit prevent it from getting out of hand.

[--Thunder Bolt-- 534]

I think the most parsimonious explanation is that Equestria is a simulated environment--either a giant Truman Show, or a Matrix.  This explains "magic," Pegasi being able to fly in defiance of physics, some ponies being able to stand on clouds while others can't, Pinkie's unusual abilities (she's The One ), and the juxtaposition of the odd cosmology with apparent knowledge of real physics (relativity equations on blackboards behind Twilight, Pinkie using the word "galaxy" in one of her songs, I don't recall which offhand).  The Princesses (and during the Hearthswarming Eve era, the unicorns working in concert) are able to control the "sun" and "moon" because they can basically pull the levers of the general simulation to a greater degree than most.  The EG HumanWorld is another simulation running within the same system, which is why Twilight and Spike are able to upload their minds into completely different "bodies" (which would, realistically, have very different neurology) and have that actually work.

 

Or, you can just use the MST3K Mantra.

[~StatesTheOblivious~ 1,795]

My explanation was always that sun and moon, in fact, are moved around by Celestia and Luna with magic, but that is because they are not just simply using their own powers to do so, but that they draw a huge amount of energy from those celestial bodies themselves.

 

In my headcanon, they are connected to them, they do not simply control or manipulate them or other forces. That could also explain their apparent immortality and the design changes of Luna between season 1, season 2 and the second arc in the official comics,if their ethereal manes, for example, are a symptom of their immortality, or at least extreme longevity. In some way, they might have a symbiotic relation. They maybe even "are" sun and moon in some way.

 

And maybe the planet Equestria is located on and its whole solar system are something like a singularity caused by magic. If magic is an additional natural force like in several other fictional works, it could also come from physical objects themselves, hence I think Celestia and Luna draw their powers from the sun and the moon.

 

But that's just my idea and it could be an explanation that is (partly) maybe even close to what might be canon some day. We might never know.

 

But I can also understand why you try to give a more realistic/scientific reasonable explanation.

[Gamer_Luna27 77]

All i could think of when i read the other topic was-

'Brain...melting....intelligence...fading......science.....hurting....'

 

Then my brain does what it always does and kicks into overdrive. 

Using Mattlight's physics alone isn't going to be enough to keep 'Terra' from spinning out of control-if Celestia and Luna used telekinesis, the royalty they have acquired would seem pointless, as any unicorn can use telekinesis. I think that in order to get to the crux of the problem is to marry Mattlight's theory and Zachary H. Comstock's. 

 

Using the power from the sun and moon to move the planet would make a little bit more sense then trying to find enough energy within oneself to push it away. 

[Declen 118]

Good idea, and well explaned. Not that it would make me abandon my headcanon,,,

But still, it's one possibility.

 

 

(she's The One )

Hey! That's what I sayd!

[spacestorm 183]

That's how I've tried to explain to myself how this sun and moon controlling thing works - stabilizing orbits or other abnormalities of those celestial bodies.

It's a very good theory, but unfortunately there are some things that refuted it. In first two episodes returned Nightmare Moon caused eternal night - like she stopped or hidden the sun during this time. In "The Return of Harmony" Discord played with day and night extremely increased their movement or planet rotation speed.

 

@'s theory is more likely to be true.

Celestia and Luna can be somehow bonded with the celestial bodies which they represent. They can also be avatars/embodiments of the sun and the moon. Thats why Luna/NMM was banished in the moon, not on the moon.

Edited August 31, 2013 by spacestorm

[Scootalove 10,689]

I think that not only do Luna and Celestia use their magic to control the Moon and Sun, but they probably use the scientific basis of orbits to rotate the Sun and Moon. They both represent both the Sun and Moon, not only by their magic also with their appearances but through their actions.

[Argumedies 1,748]

I think its one big royal government cover up to keep the populas in check.

 

They don't control anything. Just like the Ever free forest. Its just that over the years, lies become facts.

[Untitled Goose Q 5,138]

It seems to me that Celestia and Luna do indeed control the motions of the Sun and Moon, as Nightmare Moon managed to keep it night time, which would not have happened if they moved on their own. Of course, there is also the fact that the moon seems to bring night-time, as you never get it out during the day, which happens in our world. This implies to me that the celestial bodies work rather differently there than they do here. Seeing how Celestia raised the moon for a thousand years also, in my mind, prevents the connection between the Princesses and their respective celestial body (if there is such a connection) being the reason for them to be able to be moved. I like the idea of drawing power from the sun/moon to be able to move it, this would mean that any unicorn with the knowledge could do it, although it may only be Alicorns who can do it solo.

 

Really, we do not have enough information.

Edited September 3, 2013 by Questioner

[Galen 1,354]

I would believe in the theory if not for the events in the first two eps of seasons 1 and 2. Bear in mind that this is still a show aimed at little girls so there's no reason to think too hard about the physics of Equestria. It is a simple matter of Celestia and Luna representing night and day respectively and thus have the ability to control each one together.