I have not come up with a name for this world. It is roughly the size of the Earth, but it orbits a Saturn-sized planetary body which sits in roughly the same orbit to its star as the Earth is to the sun. This world is at about the same distance to its parental planet as Titan is to Saturn, but it completes an orbit (in tidal lock) at the dizzying speed of one day (I might change this to Titan’s roughly 16 day orbit). It crosses into its parental planet’s shadow for about 20 minutes at the “noon” of its day (or for 6 hours if we follow Titan’s schedule). Unlike Titan, it has this eclipse every day, not just during certain seasons (for simplicity’s sake).
Basically, this means that on the far side of the world (which perpetually faces away from the parental planet) there are tales of larger, constant large ringed “moon” in the sky and the regular eclipses that it causes. The people there would also only have heard rumors about the other inner moons that circle the parental planet. Meanwhile, their climate is also substantially harsher with its day getting millions (2 ½ million) of kilometers closer to the sun than the day on the other side of the world. Similarly, its night is millions of kilometers farther from the sun than the night on the other side of the world. It also doesn’t notice the eclipse, except that it seems to get 20 minutes (or 6 hours) of a “deep night” when the world passes into the parental planet’s shadow.
Basically, one side of this world experiences days and nights like our own (from their vantage point–even if the outer moons and their own orbit make things a little weird–and harsher days and nights. Meanwhile, the closer side of the world is a more temperate, but also a more fantastical place with the ringed parental planet always visible in the sky, growing brighter at night and darker during the day (although its rings might have the reverse effect) as well as the daily eclipse, plus the movements of the inner moons who put on light shows of their own as they move through the parental planet’s radiation belt. They would also have glimpses of the outer moons from time to time, making for some complicated astronomical models and concepts.
How much will this have to do with the story? Maybe nothing, but I like the concept.
Basically, this means that on the far side of the world (which perpetually faces away from the parental planet) there are tales of larger, constant large ringed “moon” in the sky and the regular eclipses that it causes. The people there would also only have heard rumors about the other inner moons that circle the parental planet. Meanwhile, their climate is also substantially harsher with its day getting millions (2 ½ million) of kilometers closer to the sun than the day on the other side of the world. Similarly, its night is millions of kilometers farther from the sun than the night on the other side of the world. It also doesn’t notice the eclipse, except that it seems to get 20 minutes (or 6 hours) of a “deep night” when the world passes into the parental planet’s shadow.
Basically, one side of this world experiences days and nights like our own (from their vantage point–even if the outer moons and their own orbit make things a little weird–and harsher days and nights. Meanwhile, the closer side of the world is a more temperate, but also a more fantastical place with the ringed parental planet always visible in the sky, growing brighter at night and darker during the day (although its rings might have the reverse effect) as well as the daily eclipse, plus the movements of the inner moons who put on light shows of their own as they move through the parental planet’s radiation belt. They would also have glimpses of the outer moons from time to time, making for some complicated astronomical models and concepts.
How much will this have to do with the story? Maybe nothing, but I like the concept.
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