Question: In the many shots of the sky above Pandora, we see a variety of seemingly nearby moons around the planet. I'm no astrophysicist, but it seems to me that many orbiting objects would result in a chaotically unstable situation which could not be expected to long endure. Any astrophysicists out there?
Answer: Not an astrophysicist, but to be clear, Pandora is not a planet. It's one of 14 moons orbiting a gas giant (Polyphemus). Thus, it would be the planet and the sun's gravitational pull that would most affect Pandora, in terms of tides. Since the other moons aren't in orbit of Pandora, their pull would be significantly less and would have minimal effect, but would presumably cause more eclipses than what we have on Earth. Pandora also has an atmosphere, which helps provide stability and allowed for life to develop. There are moons in our solar system with atmospheres and bodies of water, which in theory could support life. But it's unlikely that the reason life hasn't developed on these moons is because of some chaotically unstable situation.
Question: When the humans are "sleeping" and in their avatar form, if they pass away as a human, do they also die in avatar form, or is their soul transferred to the avatar since there's a connection?
Answer: Only the human would die. The Avatar is nothing more than a vehicle they inhabit and drive. Only by going to the Na'vi ritual do you give up your human body and permanently become a Na'vi.
Question: Do the Na'vi actually think Jake is one of them from a different "tribe" or do they know he's an Avatar? He shows up speaking English with human clothes, obviously not a native yet they allow him to stay (albeit after some resistance). Why is this?
Answer: Yes, they know he's a human, there were others before him. He said he was there to learn their ways and customs. They felt if he could become one of them, it comes to an understanding and stop the invading machinery. The Tom Cruise movie, "The Last Samurai," has the same plot.
Answer: My bad on the planet/moon thing. You make excellent points, but again, those other moons in Pandora's sky are huge and appear very close. Gravity effects would have to be substantial and disruptive on the entire moon system. Thanks for correcting me.
stevewaclo ★