Well, here's a few quick questions I was hoping someone could maybe answer.
1) Planet A has no axial tilt (thus no seasons), however it has an orbit that is quite elliptical. Would this lead to 2 summers and 2 winters (or the equivalents there of) per year?
2) Would it be possible for Planet B to have one giant continent cover one hemisphere and a giant ocean to cover the other hemisphere? The continent's elevation would generally increase as one drew closer to the pole (possibly with many mountains, though not necessarily).
3) Could Planet B have numerous 'sea-levels'? One for the ocean, and others for any inland seas at a higher (or lower) altitude.
Thank you in advance for any answers to these questions which are hlting a work in progress of mine.
A few quick planet related questions.
Thurlor wrote:1) Planet A has no axial tilt (thus no seasons), however it has an orbit that is quite elliptical. Would this lead to 2 summers and 2 winters (or the equivalents there of) per year?
No - there would be one summer and one winter per year. The sun is located at one of the foci of the ellipse, not at the centre. To get an idea of what is going on, take a look at the planet of 16 Cyg B in Celestia.
cel://Follow/16%20Cyg%20B/2006-09-27T20 ... 38839&lm=6
Thurlor wrote:2) Would it be possible for Planet B to have one giant continent cover one hemisphere and a giant ocean to cover the other hemisphere? The continent's elevation would generally increase as one drew closer to the pole (possibly with many mountains, though not necessarily).
Earth had a similar situation in the past, e.g. at the end of the Permian/early Triassic, when the continents were assembled into one "supercontinent" called Pangaea.
Thurlor wrote:3) Could Planet B have numerous 'sea-levels'? One for the ocean, and others for any inland seas at a higher (or lower) altitude.
Not too sure on this one, but I'd guess that any inland seas in the middle of a supercontinent would receive very little rainfall, so might be at a lower sea level than the main ocean. Not sure what would happen in an ocean basin trapped in the inside of a supercontinent though (this situation may occur in the future - Pangaea Ultima, one of the possible future supercontinent configurations may enclose an ocean).
Thank you muchly for the answers chaos syndrome.
Though to clarify (and expand on) those questions.
1) I'd forgotten about how an ecliptical orbit is off-centre. Anyway, is there ANY possible way for a planet to have 2 summers and 2 winters per year? Now that I really think about it I can't see how it would be possible. Can someone please give me some suggestions?
2) I know about Pangea, which is very similar to my idea, but I was actually trying to describe a planet where the super continent sits centred on a pole and bulges out significantly.
3) I understand that inland there is quite often less rainfall than over/near water, but wouldn't large inland seas/oceans create their own weather conditions (rainfall comes from the sea/ocean, to which it flows)? So for Planet B, rainfall (or lack thereof) is not a problem.
If anyone has trouble figuring out my explanations, I might post some pics to help.
Once again thanks in advance.
Though to clarify (and expand on) those questions.
1) I'd forgotten about how an ecliptical orbit is off-centre. Anyway, is there ANY possible way for a planet to have 2 summers and 2 winters per year? Now that I really think about it I can't see how it would be possible. Can someone please give me some suggestions?
2) I know about Pangea, which is very similar to my idea, but I was actually trying to describe a planet where the super continent sits centred on a pole and bulges out significantly.
3) I understand that inland there is quite often less rainfall than over/near water, but wouldn't large inland seas/oceans create their own weather conditions (rainfall comes from the sea/ocean, to which it flows)? So for Planet B, rainfall (or lack thereof) is not a problem.
If anyone has trouble figuring out my explanations, I might post some pics to help.
Once again thanks in advance.
Different seasons could be considered periods of different temperatures. If a tilted planet is in a nearly circular orbit, like the Earth, then the local temperature is primarily controlled by the amount of light reaching a given surface area. Summer is when the sun is directly overhead (as determined by the planet's tilt), with vertical light rays providing the most illumination per area. When the North pole points more toward the sun, our Northern hemisphere has summer while the Southern hemisphere has winter.
If a planet is in a highly elliptical orbit, then the amount of light reaching the surface is also determined by how far the planet is from its star.
Depending on how the planet's tilt is relative to its location in its orbit will affect how warm it gets. If the North pole points more toward the star at periastron, the Northern hemisphere has an extremely hot summer and the Southern hemisphere has a warm winter.
The Southern summer will be cold, since the planet will be far from the star.
It might be possible with an appropriate orbital eccentricity that the Southern fall and spring would be warmer than its summer or winter. This might be considered to be providing similar seasons twice a year in that hemisphere.
If a planet is in a highly elliptical orbit, then the amount of light reaching the surface is also determined by how far the planet is from its star.
Depending on how the planet's tilt is relative to its location in its orbit will affect how warm it gets. If the North pole points more toward the star at periastron, the Northern hemisphere has an extremely hot summer and the Southern hemisphere has a warm winter.
The Southern summer will be cold, since the planet will be far from the star.
It might be possible with an appropriate orbital eccentricity that the Southern fall and spring would be warmer than its summer or winter. This might be considered to be providing similar seasons twice a year in that hemisphere.
Selden
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Captain Nephilim
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Thurlor said:
How about a nice G type primary a bit warmer than the sun, with a smaller partner like a brown dwarf in a somewhat eliptical orbit, taking it from say 4 AU to 7 AU from the primary. A terrestrial planet around that brown dwarf could orbit close enough to the dwarf for warmth, but would regularly have another seasonal cycle from its approach to the primary G. If its axis were tilted, you'd get a fairly complex seasonal cycle. You might be able to get it close to the "two summers and winters per year" you're looking for.
But then, the concept of a year might occur in the minds of any people growing there much differently than it does in ours.
1) . . . Anyway, is there ANY possible way for a planet to have 2 summers and 2 winters per year? Now that I really think about it I can't see how it would be possible. Can someone please give me some suggestions?
How about a nice G type primary a bit warmer than the sun, with a smaller partner like a brown dwarf in a somewhat eliptical orbit, taking it from say 4 AU to 7 AU from the primary. A terrestrial planet around that brown dwarf could orbit close enough to the dwarf for warmth, but would regularly have another seasonal cycle from its approach to the primary G. If its axis were tilted, you'd get a fairly complex seasonal cycle. You might be able to get it close to the "two summers and winters per year" you're looking for.
But then, the concept of a year might occur in the minds of any people growing there much differently than it does in ours.
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Captain Nephilim wrote:How about a nice G type primary a bit warmer than the sun, with a smaller partner like a brown dwarf in a somewhat eliptical orbit, taking it from say 4 AU to 7 AU from the primary. A terrestrial planet around that brown dwarf could orbit close enough to the dwarf for warmth, but would regularly have another seasonal cycle from its approach to the primary G. If its axis were tilted, you'd get a fairly complex seasonal cycle. You might be able to get it close to the "two summers and winters per year" you're looking for.
But then, the concept of a year might occur in the minds of any people growing there much differently than it does in ours.
Problem is that the earthlike planet would probably be tidally locked to the brown dwarf, so one side would perpetually face the brown dwarf... you wouldn't get variation that way.