How Do White Walkers Shatter Swords?

For Game of Thrones fans winter is finally here, and with it comes the long foreshadowed White Walkers. These foes have proven to be a dangerous threat for many reasons, but one of the biggest is their seeming imperviousness to the average weapons of the Seven Kingdoms. We’ve witnessed firsthand what happens when one goes up against a White Walker’s icy weapon, but is it really possible for steel to shatter under extreme temperatures the way it’s seen on the show? Kyle takes on the black and heads beyond the wall for answers in this week’s Because Science!

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Learn More:
CHEMISTRY OF SWORD CREATION: https://www.tf.uni-kiel.de/matwis/amat/iss/kap_8/backbone/r8_4_1.pdf
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES IRON AND STEEL: https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Introduction_to_Inorganic_Chemistry/Metals_and_Alloys:_Mechanical_Properties#_7.4_Iron_and_steel
INTRO TO MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING: HERE
QUENCHED STEEL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tempering_(metallurgy)#Quenched-steel
BCC AND FCC: https://www.tf.uni-kiel.de/matwis/amat/iss/kap_4/backbone/r4_2_2.html
EFFECTS OF LOW TEMPERATURE ON STEEL PERFORMANCE: http://www.spartaengineering.com/effects-of-low-temperature-on-performance-of-steel-equipment/

#becausescience #GameofThrones #HBO