by aichip » Sat Apr 28, 2007 3:45 am
Given the size and mass for this planet, we can see that it would have about 2.2 times our surface gravity. This would mean that it can still hold a thick atmosphere in all likelihood, even if it were an old world.
It also probably has a large core and would have volcanic activity that would replace gas lost to space, so this would provide some shielding to radiation and even if it were tidally locked (which is very likely, considering) then it would still have atmospheric heat transport to help even out the temperatures.
It might be a world where a perpetual band of sunset surrounds the planet while one face is hot and the other very cold. Glaciation on the back would then be the order of things, and most of the life, if any, would probably be most at home in the ring of twilight.
Imagine a place where the sun was a swollen, dim red ball about ten times the diameter of the full moon, where it was always evening, and winds circulated away from the day side in large storms. This would be a world where everything was dragged down under the pull of gravity, and spectacular, stormy skies would be normal, if there is indeed any significant water.
The other possibility for its diurnal cycle is that it is in resonance, giving a day that is actually a couple of weeks long, and daylight would march around the world, thawing the ice and bringing things to life in a brief period like the rains in the Kalahari, or spring in Alaska.
Of course, this is pure speculation, but it brings some spice to the science of astronomy to see where such worlds might actually exist.
Given the size and mass for this planet, we can see that it would have about 2.2 times our surface gravity. This would mean that it can still hold a thick atmosphere in all likelihood, even if it were an old world.
It also probably has a large core and would have volcanic activity that would replace gas lost to space, so this would provide some shielding to radiation and even if it were tidally locked (which is very likely, considering) then it would still have atmospheric heat transport to help even out the temperatures.
It might be a world where a perpetual band of sunset surrounds the planet while one face is hot and the other very cold. Glaciation on the back would then be the order of things, and most of the life, if any, would probably be most at home in the ring of twilight.
Imagine a place where the sun was a swollen, dim red ball about ten times the diameter of the full moon, where it was always evening, and winds circulated away from the day side in large storms. This would be a world where everything was dragged down under the pull of gravity, and spectacular, stormy skies would be normal, if there is indeed any significant water.
The other possibility for its diurnal cycle is that it is in resonance, giving a day that is actually a couple of weeks long, and daylight would march around the world, thawing the ice and bringing things to life in a brief period like the rains in the Kalahari, or spring in Alaska.
Of course, this is pure speculation, but it brings some spice to the science of astronomy to see where such worlds might actually exist.