Pandora,
the largest moon of Polyphemus is a unique balance of perilous and beautiful.
Its landscape includes trees as tall as Earth’s buildings, able to grow because
of the rich volcanic soil (Pandora has over 3000 active volcanoes) and the
CO2-rich atmosphere. Floating mountains cover the moon, kept aloft by the
superconductive element Unobtanium, which is abundant in the core and mantle of
Pandora. The tropical continents are small and island-like, largely because of
the immense amount of tectonic activity, fueled by Pandora’s proximity to its
planet, Polyphemus, and seven other moons. Acidic rain and radioactive
thunderstorms are among the most extreme weather conditions. The rapidly
cycling crust, mantle, and core yield an ever-changing landscape, as do the
immense weathering, erosion, and material transport.
 |
| The tropical scenery typical of Pandora. |
Pandora
in a Thousand Years
The
floating mountains of Pandora are what will most notably change within the next
thousand years. As the Unobtanium on Pandora itself shifts with plate movement,
so does the magnetic field it creates. As we have earthquakes on Earth, there
are on Pandora. However, when two plates on Pandora rapidly converge, a plate
with large amounts of molten Unobtanium can subduct, shifting its magnetic
field. Should there be a piece of land aloft in that magnetic field, it could
be moved, dropped, or even thrown , to land quickly on the moon below. This happens with a fair amount of consistency,
and will shift much of Pandora’s landscape in the next thousand years.
Pandora
in Ten Thousand Years
Within ten thousand years, many continents currently on
Pandora will have begun to drift apart (though this will ultimately be a slow
process to complete). The accelerated tectonic processes on Pandora allow the
tectonic plates to shift roughly five times as fast as those on Earth. After
ten thousand years, a noticeable difference will be seen in the continental
layout of Pandora, particularly around fault lines and large coasts. Additionally,
Pandora’s largest active volcano, Ram’txep,
is due to erupt within four thousand years (according to geologists from
Earth). Should this happen, Ram’txep (twice
as large as Vesuvius) will create massive ash cover and immense wasting that
will devastate hundreds, if not thousands, of miles.
more severe scale with the eruption of Ram'txep.
Pandora
in a Million Years
Within a million years,
the molten Unobtanium inside of Pandora will have almost completely cycled
through its stages of being within the core, then the mantle, then surfacing as
a floating land mass. When this happens, the continents on Pandora will begin
to resurface as larger, continuous continents as the tectonic plates shift
together, eventually to be further broken into smaller ones. Additionally, the
largest hotspot in Pandora will create anywhere from three to seven new
volcanos, as the plate slides overtop the hotpot at its accelerated rate.
Pandora will likely always maintain its mostly tropical climate, but will
continue to fluctuate in mountain size and form.
Sources
Images from
Info from
Avatar: An Activist Survival Guide by Maria Wilhelm
