Ɬiʔa/Conworlding

System

d: the wet eye with depths

An reasonable approximation of d's appearance

From the outside, d is a "wet eye" just outside the habitable zone. It is a water world, twice the mass of Earth, 1.4 times the radius, tidally locked. The substellar point is the only place without surface ice. However, it is better to think of the planet top-to-bottom.

The atmosphere is tenuous, less than 0.2 bars. It is thin, N₂-rich with traces of H₂O, NH₃ vapor, and transient geyser outputs. It is highly UV-irradiated, and Mars-like in its inability to retain volatiles.

Next, there is a surface ice shell, ~20 km of thick Ice I. Swirling currents beneath have cracked continent-sized ice plates, similar to Europa's crust. It is permanently frozen except at the substellar furnace. It accumulates chemical stains, mineral deposits, and cryovolcanic eruption plumes. Accumulations of complex hydrates—like methanol clathrates—precipitate out and form false reefs, rising like coral from beneath. Transient thermal vents push hot plumes into the thin air, freezing instantly and snowing down crystals that form mineral spires.

The subglacial ocean is hundreds of kilometers thick. It is super-pressurized liquid H₂O mixed with NH₃, CH₃OH, H₂O₂, and trace salts. The movement is slow, planetary-scale currents originating from the Furnace and Coriolis force. Strong layers exist: the surface is oxidized; the abyssal layer is reducing.

A new "surface" is next. The Ice Mantle is solid Ice VI and VII. There are massive, slowly shifting "sub-oceanic continents". It is periodically fractured and resurfaced by cryoquakes and brine-driven eruptions. Some regions have developed elevated domes or ridges, continental “shelves” under the ocean.

Finally, underneath is the core. Temperatures exceed 2000–3000 K locally. Pressures range from 100 to 300 GPa. The core is rich in heavy elements. This makes radiogenic hotspots, localized magnetic eddies. Heat gradients + ion flows = thermoelectric currents. These make magnetic storms within the ocean itself, not the sky. When uranium-rich corium pods shift or explode upward through the mantle, their heat and conductivity disturb the local magnetic field, generating geomagnetic quakes. These pulse through the ocean, creating short-lived magnetic lenses. These interact with atmospheric charged particles above the Furnace, giving rise to transient magnetic halos visible from orbit—false auroras without a sunstorm.

Planet C

• With an albedo of 0.2, the global average temp is 263ºK. Because of modest greenhouse effects, surface temperatures are higher, on the sun-side.

1. Mass: 1.5M⊕
2. Gravity: 1g⊕
3. Radius = 1.225⊕, or 7805km

Terminator Zone

1. +/-30º: 1.28 E8 km² (slightly less than all the land of the Earth)
2. Escape velocity is 12.4km/s, 11% higher than Earth
3. Orbital velocity is 8.79km/s

Atmosphere

Water content is low because

• Water vapor is a potent greenhouse gas; vast surface water can trap too much heat, especially near the substellar point.
• Water leads to climate homogenization
• Lack of exposed silicate rock: Necessary for carbon-silicate weathering feedback, which stabilizes climate on geological timescales.

Earth has ~1.4 billion km³ of water. In our habitable zone, we have no more than 10% of that, or 100 million km³, though there is much more on the night side, both liquid and ice.

Factor	Ɬiʔa atm	Ɬiʔa %	Earth atm	Earth %	Notes
Total Pressure	1.6 atm		1.0 atm		Enhanced convective heat transfer, increased IR trapping
Nitrogen (N₂)	1.00	62.50%	0.7808	78.08%	Reduced; still inert, still dominant
Oxygen (O₂)	0.21	13.13%	0.2095	20.95%	Earth-normal partial pressure
Argon (Ar)	0.40	25.00%	0.0093	0.93%	Major heat distribution enhancement, inert
Krypton + Xenon	0.005	0.31%	trace	trace	High molecular mass → improved heat retention, still safe
CO₂	0.005	0.31%	0.004	0.04%	slightly elevated; sub-greenhouse threshold
H₂O vapor	0.015	~1%		0-4%	Maintains greenhouse without excess moisture

Atmospheric Effects on Clouds

1. Increased Pressure (1.6 atm) compresses gases, raising the dew point at which water vapor condenses. Clouds form closer to the surface, and are denser than similar altitudes compared to Earth.
2. Low Water Inventory (~20% of Earth's): less frequent and less massive cloud systems than on Earth, but still present—especially over "hotspots" on the day side.
3. Tidally Locked Climate: Cloud formation concentrate along the substellar point, where warm, moist air rises and cools.
   • A permanent “eyewall” storm system has formed at the subsolar point, like a giant hurricane.
   • As air rises and is advected to the night side, thin cloud bands or ice hazes form as it descends and cools.

Appearance:

• The presence of noble gases (Ar, Kr, Xe) and higher pressure enhance Mie scattering, making clouds appear whiter and more silvered, especially at sunrise/sunset boundaries.
• Night side clouds are thin, high-altitude icy sheets, glowing faintly in aurorae or thermal emissions.

Sky Color

Life near the terminator

The color of the sky is shaped by Rayleigh scattering, which depends on:

1. Molecular composition: Heavier gases like Ar, Kr, and Xe scatter light less efficiently than N₂.
2. Spectral output of the star: the red dwarf emits predominantly infrared and red light, with very little blue or violet.

Consequence:

• Even with atmospheric scattering, there is insufficient blue light in the stellar spectrum to produce a blue sky.
• Day sky would likely appear:
  • Dark peach, dusky rose, or reddish beige near zenith,
  • Grading to deep salmon or mauve near the horizon,
  • A slight metallic sheen due to noble gas content and high pressure.

Twilight & Limb Scattering:

• The terminator (twilight zone) sees a diffuse, ruddy light, scattering through haze and clouds into luminous reds, purples, and copper tones.
• Aurorae are spectacular on the night side, especially since stellar flares are frequent.

Sound Propagation

Sound is profoundly affected by atmospheric pressure and composition.

Compared to Earth:

• Higher pressure → greater air density → faster transmission of sound and less attenuation.
• Argon and Xenon are heavy gases, which:
  • Lower the speed of sound relative to air at the same pressure (despite the pressure increase).
  • Shift resonance frequencies downward, resulting in deeper, rounder sounds.

Consequences:

• Voices sound subtly lower-pitched and richer, especially for consonants and low vowels.
• Ambient sounds (wind, water, animals) would carry farther and sound more muffled or sonorous.
• Music or speech would resonate more warmly, especially indoors or in enclosed spaces.

In short: it sounds like it’s wrapped in velvet.

Heat Transport to the Night Side

Mechanisms:

1. Thick Atmosphere (1.6 atm) increases:
   • Advection efficiency: Warm air masses can move more heat horizontally.
   • Radiative time constant: The atmosphere holds heat longer before releasing it.
2. Noble Gases (especially Kr/Xe):
   • High molecular mass → more IR opacity → trapping and radiating heat more evenly.
3. Slow Rotation / Tidal Locking:
   • Global Hadley-like cells dominate circulation, carrying warm air from the day side to the night side and descending it there.

Result:

• The night side is not so freezing. Temperatures differ by tens of degrees, not hundreds.
• There are still ice caps and a cold deserts at the anti-stellar point, but not a glaciated wasteland.

Magnetosphere

• Larger mass --> larger iron core, generating more internal heat
• Larger radius --> Vigorous convection in the core
• Tidal Flexing --> still drives magnetic activity

1. Aurorae at lower latitudes
   1. higher magnetic rigidity, wider magnetotail, and greater reconnection energy.
   2. Combined with a higher flux of stellar particles, this means:
      1. Auroral ovals expand, reaching mid-latitudes sometimes equator.
      2. The skies are alive with rippling green, violet, and crimson aurorae, especially on the night side.
      3. Daily auroral activity occur during stellar flare cycles.
2. Compasses
   1. compasses respond more sharply, with:
      1. Faster alignment.
      2. Greater resistance to local perturbations.
   2. However, frequent magnetic storms from stellar activity cause sudden declinations, reversals, or local anomalies. In short, lots of aurorae equals dead compasses at the same time.
3. Magnetic Field Strength > 100 μT
4. Electromagnetism is more basic than chemistry or almost any other natural philosophy

Substellar Point

The maximum incoming flux is very nearly the same as Earth's solar constant (≈1361 W/m²), but concentrated over one point rather than averaged over a rotating sphere. Temperatures should be above 500ºK most of the time.

The magnetic north is also here. The thick atmosphere prevents too much loss here, but

• Charged particle influx
  • Maximized at the substellar point—intense auroral and energetic particle precipitation
• Atmospheric ionization
  • Constant production of high-energy ions and NOx compounds—UV fluorescence in upper sky
• Localized heating
  • Augments already extreme temperatures—600–700 K surface

Artificially Tethered Moon

• 670,000 km up
• 7805 km in radius = same as the planet
• 1.33º of the sky, same as the sun

A network of tethers/tension lines from the moon to multiple anchor points on the planet’s surface (a tripod or hexapod structure), woven like hair

• Uses active tension management and orbital station-keeping to stabilize the moon
• Counterweights and inward-pointing mass drivers on the moon to oppose drift

The tethers are not bearing the full weight, but merely damping drift, providing restoring force, and enabling long-term stability through active compensation. The moon

• Blocks the worst of the heat
• Blocks the worst of the solar radiation

The moon has

• low mass
• high albedo - enormous reflectivity
• scatters charges particles, UV, X-rays, auroral flux tubes
• sunward - crazy hot, high emissivity
• earthward - crazy cool, low emissivity