Gemini planet Kirov

[dls]

New to the forum, so hello.

I was hoping I could get a little help with a feature in a book I'm writing (intending to publish on Lulu). I'll add thanks for any help given here at the start of the book. Really I write for my own cathartic reasons, so don't expect to see your name in lights and read by millions, but anyway...

 

I have a fundamental grasp of physics from the work I've completed thus far on my science degree. But planetary and astrophysics is something of a tricky area for me.

 

The planet in my book is called Kirov and its a 'gemini planet'. The world's rotation matches with its solar orbit so that one side is permanently facing space, the other permanently facing the sun, a mirror of the way the moon orbits the Earth.

 

I see this planet as ferociously hot on the sunward side, and permafrost on the other. A narrow band called the vignette zone encircles the polar circumference and this enjoys moderate climate at the dead centre, graduating to extreme heat and freezing temperature at either edge. At the polar ends of the world there are probably widening regions of relatively habitable temperature.

 

So, what would the atmosphere be like? Would there be an atmosphere? If so what would the main elements be. What would the two horizons look like from the centre of the vignette zone and what would the vignette zone look like from the hot and cold hemispheres respectively? What would the whole thing look like from space? What would the geology of the planet be like? Meteorology? The sun is virtually the same as our own sun and Kirov is about the same distance away as the Earth, to make things simpler. The planet revolves on a vertical axis, with no tilt, so probably no seasonal changes and the hot side would rarely have a chance to cool down, just like the cold side would never have a chance to warm up. Then again, would there be a transfer of heat around the planet as a result of coriolis effect etc?

 

I look forward to seeing what you make of it and thanks in advance for any advice. Would prefer posters stick to topic and not provide advice on the pitfalls of Lulu or the futility of writing ones own sci-fi etc. cheers.

 

Dave

[Moontanman]

I would think "the vignette zone" would be a place of constant storms as the air from the cold and hot sides mixed, possibly permanent hurricane like storms, lots of tornadoes, rain snow, heat and cold as the two completely different air masses mixed.

[CaptainPanic]

[...]

I see this planet as ferociously hot on the sunward side, and permafrost on the other. A narrow band called the vignette zone encircles the polar circumference and this enjoys moderate climate at the dead centre, graduating to extreme heat and freezing temperature at either edge. At the polar ends of the world there are probably widening regions of relatively habitable temperature.

There is no reason at all that this moderate area widens at the polar regions. It would be just as wide or narrow as anywhere.

So, what would the atmosphere be like? Would there be an atmosphere? If so what would the main elements be.

Looking at the planets in our solar system, you can pretty much choose an atmosphere. Unless you plan to write the entire history of the formation of your fictional solar system, there is no reason to have anything different that earth.

 

However, I would propose that you assume the presence of a magnetic field. Theories I have heard for the existance of Earth's atmoshpere are closely linked to the magnetic field. Mars has no magnetic field, and nearly no atmosphere.

 

What would the two horizons look like from the centre of the vignette zone and what would the vignette zone look like from the hot and cold hemispheres respectively?

You only have 1 horizon, and it goes 360 degrees around you (unless it's blocked by something).

It will look the same as any twilight here on earth. One side has the sun, and some light. Other side is already quite dark.

 

The thinner the atmosphere you choose, the more abrupt the transition will be.

And you cannot see the Vignette zone from the hot or cold hemisphere... just like you cannot see further than about 30 km on earth... the rest is over the horizon.

What would the whole thing look like from space?

Like any other planet. One side dark, one side bright. Depending on where you are in space, you can see more of the dark side, or more of the bright side.

You can choose the colors yourself...

What would the geology of the planet be like?

I dunno. Hidden under a giant ice cap on one side, with glaciers extending from it I guess?

You can choose if you want plate tectonics (continents moving, creating volcanoes and earthquakes)... or to have a more calm place.

Meteorology?

This is an interesting one.

One side will have huge cooling. Like our poles. The other side massive heating.

On the hot side, air (or whatever gas is in the atmosphere) will heat up, and rise. If there is any water, this will condense, and you will get rain - most likely lots of it. In the center of the hot side, there will the the rain forest kinda weather... except that you don't get the rain in the afternoon, but all day long.

 

On the other side, it will cool and drop down. Clear skies where you can see the stars (since it's the dark side).

 

In between those two areas, you can have multiple transitions from wet to dry, like here on earth... with those zones getting colder as you move closer to the dark side.

 

And I would think it's likely that you get very stable weather types... easy job for the weather man.

 

In the Vignette zone, it's probably windy all the time. Not sure if it's wet or dry.

 

I wonder if you would have any coriolis effect with such slow rotation of the planet... Storms may just be linear winds with turbulence... and randomness.

The sun is virtually the same as our own sun and Kirov is about the same distance away as the Earth, to make things simpler. The planet revolves on a vertical axis, with no tilt, so probably no seasonal changes and the hot side would rarely never have a chance to cool down, just like the cold side would never have a chance to warm up. Then again, would there be a transfer of heat around the planet as a result of coriolis effect etc?

I doubt there is any coriolis effect at all. But there will be winds / storms which transfer heat from the hot to the cold side...

 

Further answers can only be given if you sketch some oceans and continents. And even then, weather is amazingly difficult to predict, so it would all be guesses.

I look forward to seeing what you make of it and thanks in advance for any advice. Would prefer posters stick to topic and not provide advice on the pitfalls of Lulu or the futility of writing ones own sci-fi etc. cheers.

 

Dave

 

[edit]

Thanks for editing, lol. Mods, can my post be moved too? (I'll report it to the mods.)

And can this thread then be closed and/or deleted?

[VedekPako]

Well, your planet sounds more like a Yin / Yang type world than a Gemini. I imagine a Gemini planet to be two plants of similar mass orbiting each other as that would appear more like a twin rather they night / day, black / white type of world.

 

There's a few TV shows that depict life on a world tidally locked to a Red Dwarf star.