A chemist has explained what Star Wars’ most iconic lightsaber colors would mean in the real world. When the original Star Wars movie, later reтιтled A New Hope, first premiered in 1977, audiences were wowed by the magnificent blue and red laser swords wielded by Obi-Wan Kenobi, Luke Skywalker, and Darth Vader. Though the meaning behind each lightsaber color seemed relatively simple following A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi changed the game by introducing Luke’s green lightsaber.

Since then, lightsaber lore has become an integral part of Star Wars’ overall worldbuilding, as the franchise introduced additional colors – Mace Windu’s purple lightsaber in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones was as much of a surprise as Luke’s second green blade – new color meanings, the kyber crystals that power lightsabers, and the ability to bleed, corrupt, and purify them. Lightsabers have come a long way since they were first introduced on screen by Obi-Wan Kenobi, but what would their colors mean in the real world?

Different Elements Glow Different Colors When Heated

As explained in celebration of Star Wars Day 2024 by Professor Alex Baker, a chemist with the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, flame test experiments reveal how varying real-world elements produce different colored flames when heated. This explains how we see an array of colors in fireworks. The colors are created when the elements most commonly found in salts are heated and produce light, reminiscent of how a kyber crystal’s color is revealed when a lightsaber’s power grid is ignited.

“Elements commonly found in salts are used in these flame tests. They’re responsible for the colors in fireworks, so the Star Wars universe could use similar science in lightsabers. The colors are created when the elements are heated, causing them to release light in different colors, from bright blues to deep reds. The atoms of these elements house even smaller, negatively charged electrons.

When these elements are heated, such as by someone lighting a firework with a flame, the electrons become excited. This means they have increased energy resulting in them jumping from their original location (known as a ground state) to another excited state location within the atom. As electrons drop back down from their excited state, they release the energy they initially absorbed—in the form of heat and light. What is particularly interesting is each electron drop, and the release of light, is unique to each element.”

This Real-World Explanation Brings Meaning To Jedi Vs. Sith

Professor Baker also explained that, on an atomic level, blue and violet light are highly energetic, while red light is less energetic. “This means that a Jedi’s blue lightsaber is higher energy than a Sith’s red lightsaber.” That’s an interesting way of looking at these iconic lightsaber colors, especially because, in Star Wars canon, Sith and their acolytes cannot forge a natural bond with a kyber crystal. Instead, they’re forced to steal in-use crystals from Jedi or other Force-users and pour their hatred and malice into them, essentially “bleeding” the kyber crystal until it turns red.

The process of corrupting a kyber crystal could, theoretically, mean that the kyber crystal is “less energetic,” because it’s been forced to become something it’s not. Bleeding alters a kyber crystal’s natural state. Though there’s no suggestion in Star Wars lore that this makes red lightsabers inherently less powerful, Baker’s science provides an interesting idea for consideration.

The Star Wars Explanation Is Vastly Different… Yet Also Similar

A Sith’s red lightsaber isn’t a naturally occurring phenomenon. A kyber crystal has to be infused with the dark side to become that color. Meanwhile, a Jedi’s lightsaber color reflects the wielder’s spirituality, temperament, and their connection to the Force. As far as we know, the elements within a kyber crystal have no bearing on the color wielded by a Force-user; Star Wars’ explanation is much more mystical, which is fitting for the franchise’s genre. And yet, Baker’s real-world science does provide a new perspective.

The Force is a living, breathing thing – it surrounds the galaxy and binds all life-forms together. The Jedi and other Force-users affiliated with the light commune with it; they become a part of it. As Chirrut Îmwe beautifully says in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, “I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me.” They conduct the Force and move within it. That might explain why, if we accepted Baker’s real-world explanation, their lightsabers would be “higher energy.” They’re channeling the Force’s energy in the purest sense. They are the embodiment of light, and light is a form of energy.

Dark siders, on the other hand, manipulate and bend the Force to their own will. Yes, the dark side is a natural part of the Force, but Sith take, take, and take; they are never satisfied with their power. They’ve moved away from the light, the Force’s purest energy, and so the power channeled through their lightsabers is less energetic, sluggish. It represents the dark side’s inherent selfishness and lust for more. Though there is still plenty we don’t know about Star Wars’ lightsabers, Professor Baker’s real-world explanation is intriguingly eye-opening.

Source: Phys.org | University of Warwick