Natural Solar and Planetary Phenomena

I'm not a programmer or anything, but something in our solar system really compelled me to suggest this...


You see, two of Saturn's moons, Janus and Epimetheus, are Co-orbital. This means, as some people may know, that they travel around Saturn on almost exactly the same path. They are so close together that they would crash into each other. Instead, their gravity make them swap orbits. This happens every four years, when the moon closer to Saturn catches up with the other one. Their combined gravities pull them around in a circle and they switch. The one closer to Saturn becomes the one further away while the one further away becomes the one closer.

Now, if there were to be something like this in Thrive, it would be AWESOME. It's kind of like how in Spore, they had things for you to find in space, like proto-planetary disks, wormholes, and binary star systems. Just because Thrive will be the new Spore doesn't mean we have to start from scratch.

Basically, I'm suggesting that we put some natural phenomena into the game. Like co-orbital moons (Janus and Epimetheus). And tidal locks (The Moon). Double planets (Pluto and Charon). Things like that.

Here is a list of odd formations of everything we could add to the game:


Space Formations

Galaxies

-Spiral
-Barred
-Unbarred
-Elliptical Centered
-2 Armed
-3 Armed
-4 to 9 Armed
-10 Armed

-Elliptical

-Irregular
-Ring Galaxy
-Lenticular Galaxy
-Barred Lenticular Galaxy

-Starburst

-Dwarf
-Spiral
-Elliptical
-Irregular

Stars

-Protostars

-Supergiants

-Hypergiants

-Wolf–Rayet Stars

-Binary

-Ternary

-Quaternary

-Black Dwarves

-Brown Dwarves

-Red Dwarves

-Neutron Stars
-Magnetars
-Pulsars
-Quazars (May be Neutron Stars, may not)

-Hypervelocity Stars

Terrestrial Planets and Moons

-Co-Orbital

-Tidally Locked

-Tidally Locked Binary (Always Facing Each Other)

-Binary

-Ternary?

-Quaternary?

-Planets with Odd Orbits
-Extreme Ellipses
-3D Orbits
-Tilted orbits

-Resonances

Gas Giants

-Binary
-The two would orbit the
sun and themselves,continually
pulling gas from each other, making
a bar of connecting gasses in the
middle. Also, this creates a center
of gravity in the middle, allowing
moons to orbit vertically.

-Co-orbital?

-Gas Giants with Odd Orbits
-Extreme Ellipses
-3D Orbits
-Tilted orbits

-Resonances

Other

-Black Holes

-Black Holes with Companion Stars

-Rogue Black Holes

-Supernovas

-Hypernovas

-Nebulas

-Proto-Planetary Disks

-Wormholes

-Dark Matter

-Biological Planetoids
-Made by God Tools, these are
gigantic creatures without much of
an ability to think, communicate,
or do just about anything other than
get rid of waste and breathe in their
own atmosphere. They also orbit
stars. Humongous insects that are
normally microscopic live on these.
Altogether Biological Planetoids are
smelly, ugly, stupid, and disgusting.
The ground is skin. But these can only
be made by use of God Tools, and
nothing else.

Surface Formations

Rocky Planets and Moons

-Arches

-Bridges

-Helixes

-Loop-De-Loopz

-Spires

-Unstable Rock Stacks

-Land Masses Floating on Liquid

-Cracked Ground


-Weird Rock Formations
-Giant's Causeway and Alike
-Kjeragbolten-like Rocks
-Weird Balancing Rocks

-Fault-Block Mountain Ranges

-Faults
-Strike-Slip
-Normal
-Reverse

-Folding

-Folded Mountains

-Domed Mountains

-Volcanoes
-Composite or Stratovolcanoes
-Cinder Cone
-Shield
-Lava Plateaus
-Hot Spot

-Mid-Ocean Ridges

-Deep Ocean Trenches

-Mid-Land Ridge? (Mid-Ocean Ridge on Iceland)

-Geysers, Hot Springs, and Other Geothermal Phenomenons Caused by Hot Spots

Gas Giants

-Clouds

-Storms

Suns

-Sunspots

-Prominences

-Solar Flares



Finding the solar phenomena in the Space Stage could help your civilization research certain technologies. You could learn more about physics and then be able to build different physic-based technologies, like Anti-Gravity. Yes, you will already be able to get these, but finding these formations will allow you to research them quicker, or get to them faster. Instead of researching ten different technologies to achieve Anti-Gravity, you could research three (Is that how the research tree works? I'm too lazy to read it...).

Finding the surface formations in the Society or Industrial stages will allow your race to research Geology and Planet Science more quickly, especially if the home planet is (Which it most likely will be) tectonically active. Your race will make breakthroughs in these more quickly than if the home world had none or was tectonically inactive. Drills and similar things are examples of inventions that can be improved due to researching these formations.

Tell me what you think.

Interesting fact, although this does probably belong in the space section..

Hopefully we will include phenomena like this in Thrive, the physics engine should let it happen anyway, tidal locks and binary planets anyway, but otherwise it could be procedural.

I knew it belonged somewhere else...

Co-orbital moons are the most interesting of them all, that's why I suggested them. Of course, that probably would take a bit of programming...

If I move this to the Space section I could probably add in other things like Black Holes, Quasars, Pulsars, Neutron Stars, Black Dwarves, Supernovas (Brighter than the center of the Galaxy every time!), Binary Systems, Ternary Star Systems, and Quaternary ones...

But how do I do that? Or is it like in the Sporum, where the mods can move it?


Also, on an unrelated note, what does the 'Thank' button do when some one posts on my thread? The one on the top right corner of the other person's post. This one:




Now that I think about it... Can somebody lock this so I can move it to the Space Section?

Dudeman wrote:

I knew it belonged somewhere else...

Co-orbital moons are the most interesting of them all, that's why I suggested them. Of course, that probably would take a bit of programming...

If I move this to the Space section I could probably add in other things like Black Holes, Quasars, Pulsars, Neutron Stars, Black Dwarves, Supernovas (Brighter than the center of the Galaxy every time!), Binary Systems, Ternary Star Systems, and Quaternary ones...

But how do I do that? Or is it like in the Sporum, where the mods can move it?


Also, on an unrelated note, what does the 'Thank' button do when some one posts on my thread? The one on the top right corner of the other person's post. This one:




Now that I think about it... Can somebody lock this so I can move it to the Space Section?

In answer to your questions:
You can't move your own threads, the moderator of this section does it, or a global moderator. It doesn't need to be locked or anything, just moved.
I wouldn't know whether it is similar to the Sporum, I didn't really use it, but it sounds like it works the same way.
As for thank topic (the topic isn't very visible, but it's there), I asked the same thing when these forums had only recently been made. It gives the user you thank a... Well, a thank. It doesn't have anything to do with the topic. If you were asking a question and someone gave a good answer, thanking them would give them a good rating, showing they are the people who will probably know more stuff. Of course, we don't really use it here. I'm not sure why we have it at all. But if you want to know how many thanks someone has received (probably through people experimentally pressing that button), click their username and go into statistics and you'll find it there.

And I think these kinds of mistakes happen a lot, because the section is called 'planet'. It is under 'editors', but people seem to miss that. I think if ADMIN put editor after the subforums of editors it would make it clearer.

Oh, I knew it was under the editor section, I just was already here and not sure where to put it.

And thanks for the help.

This is a good place for this to be.

~sciocont wrote:

This is a good place for this to be.

Well, can you move it anyway? If you do that I can talk about other natural space phenomenons, instead of just planetary ones.

Also, what will we do about weird natural foration, present on the ground? Arches, spires, etc. Stuff that weird forms of erosion has made? Will they we coded in or should we just take the Spore route with pre-made models?

I don't know, I'm just suggesting. But I'm going to set up a list on the OP for kinds of weird things in space and on planets.


I read that post again, and I would guess coded, because pre-made models don't change or look natural. Coded ones, on the other hand, are randomized and realistic.

Dudeman wrote:

~sciocont wrote:

This is a good place for this to be.

Well, can you move it anyway? If you do that I can talk about other natural space phenomenons, instead of just planetary ones.

Space section is about gameplay0 this is about envirnments so it stays with the editors-planet editor also includes placing stars as well as making planets and their sattelites.

~sciocont wrote:

Dudeman wrote:

~sciocont wrote:

This is a good place for this to be.

Well, can you move it anyway? If you do that I can talk about other natural space phenomenons, instead of just planetary ones.

Space section is about gameplay0 this is about envirnments so it stays with the editors-planet editor also includes placing stars as well as making planets and their sattelites.

OH. Ok, that's fine then.

Any suggestions to add to that list up there would be nice.

I figured out a few diffeen types of orbits for planets in multi-star systems a while ago. Let me see if I can find it...

Spoiler:

Another astronomical phenomenon that should be in here that I haven't seen yet is something called Orbital Resonance. Basically, two or more bodies (planets, moons, asteroids, etc.) orbit whatever it is they orbit (sun, planet, etc.) in whole-number ratios to each other. For example, Pluto is in a 2:3 resonance with Neptune - for every 3 orbits of Neptune around the Sun, Pluto goes around twice. These resonances have a huge impact on the orbits of bodies, especially small ones - there are gaps in the asteroid belt caused by certain unstable resonances with Jupiter.

I don't know if this is too complicated to include, but I think it'd be cool to find a star system with planets in, say, a 1:2:4 resonance or something like that (An example of this in real life - The Gliese 876 planetary system).

More information on orbital resonances - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_resonance

R136a1 wrote:

Another astronomical phenomenon that should be in here that I haven't seen yet is something called Orbital Resonance. Basically, two or more bodies (planets, moons, asteroids, etc.) orbit whatever it is they orbit (sun, planet, etc.) in whole-number ratios to each other. For example, Pluto is in a 2:3 resonance with Neptune - for every 3 orbits of Neptune around the Sun, Pluto goes around twice. These resonances have a huge impact on the orbits of bodies, especially small ones - there are gaps in the asteroid belt caused by certain unstable resonances with Jupiter.

I don't know if this is too complicated to include, but I think it'd be cool to find a star system with planets in, say, a 1:2:4 resonance or something like that (An example of this in real life - The Gliese 876 planetary system).

More information on orbital resonances - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_resonance

If it's exact, doesn't that mean that two planets with a 3:5 resonance would line up every 3:5 orbits, 6:10 orbits, and 12:20 orbits?

I'm a little confused...

I found an orbit for a binary system that appears fairly stable, and Scio didn't mention. It's like a fish. The planet orbits one of the stars, gets close to the middle and is hurled away from the stars, from the middle, gets pulled back through the middle, stops again, returns, and circles the star, before flying away again. Like a fluer-de-lis, but it only goes round one of the two stars.

The Uteen wrote:

I found an orbit for a binary system that appears fairly stable, and Scio didn't mention. It's like a fish. The planet orbits one of the stars, gets close to the middle and is hurled away from the stars, from the middle, gets pulled back through the middle, stops again, returns, and circles the star, before flying away again. Like a fluer-de-lis, but it only goes round one of the two stars.

Like this?


|0

Dudeman wrote:

R136a1 wrote:

Another astronomical phenomenon that should be in here that I haven't seen yet is something called Orbital Resonance. Basically, two or more bodies (planets, moons, asteroids, etc.) orbit whatever it is they orbit (sun, planet, etc.) in whole-number ratios to each other. For example, Pluto is in a 2:3 resonance with Neptune - for every 3 orbits of Neptune around the Sun, Pluto goes around twice. These resonances have a huge impact on the orbits of bodies, especially small ones - there are gaps in the asteroid belt caused by certain unstable resonances with Jupiter.

I don't know if this is too complicated to include, but I think it'd be cool to find a star system with planets in, say, a 1:2:4 resonance or something like that (An example of this in real life - The Gliese 876 planetary system).

More information on orbital resonances - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_resonance

If it's exact, doesn't that mean that two planets with a 3:5 resonance would line up every 3:5 orbits, 6:10 orbits, and 12:20 orbits?

I'm a little confused...

Yes, that's pretty much what it means. Also, sometimes the resonances stabilize the orbits (like in the case of Pluto - the resonance means that it can cross Neptune's orbit without ever getting very close to it), and sometimes they destabilize the orbits (like the gaps in the Asteroid Belt I mentioned earlier).

R136a1 wrote:

Dudeman wrote:

R136a1 wrote:

Another astronomical phenomenon that should be in here that I haven't seen yet is something called Orbital Resonance. Basically, two or more bodies (planets, moons, asteroids, etc.) orbit whatever it is they orbit (sun, planet, etc.) in whole-number ratios to each other. For example, Pluto is in a 2:3 resonance with Neptune - for every 3 orbits of Neptune around the Sun, Pluto goes around twice. These resonances have a huge impact on the orbits of bodies, especially small ones - there are gaps in the asteroid belt caused by certain unstable resonances with Jupiter.

I don't know if this is too complicated to include, but I think it'd be cool to find a star system with planets in, say, a 1:2:4 resonance or something like that (An example of this in real life - The Gliese 876 planetary system).

More information on orbital resonances - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_resonance

If it's exact, doesn't that mean that two planets with a 3:5 resonance would line up every 3:5 orbits, 6:10 orbits, and 12:20 orbits?

I'm a little confused...

Yes, that's pretty much what it means. Also, sometimes the resonances stabilize the orbits (like in the case of Pluto - the resonance means that it can cross Neptune's orbit without ever getting very close to it), and sometimes they destabilize the orbits (like the gaps in the Asteroid Belt I mentioned earlier).

Ah, that's cool... I'll add it.

What's the resonance for our solar system? Or can it only be between a couple of orbits?

Dudeman wrote:

R136a1 wrote:

Dudeman wrote:

R136a1 wrote:

Another astronomical phenomenon that should be in here that I haven't seen yet is something called Orbital Resonance. Basically, two or more bodies (planets, moons, asteroids, etc.) orbit whatever it is they orbit (sun, planet, etc.) in whole-number ratios to each other. For example, Pluto is in a 2:3 resonance with Neptune - for every 3 orbits of Neptune around the Sun, Pluto goes around twice. These resonances have a huge impact on the orbits of bodies, especially small ones - there are gaps in the asteroid belt caused by certain unstable resonances with Jupiter.

I don't know if this is too complicated to include, but I think it'd be cool to find a star system with planets in, say, a 1:2:4 resonance or something like that (An example of this in real life - The Gliese 876 planetary system).

More information on orbital resonances - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_resonance

If it's exact, doesn't that mean that two planets with a 3:5 resonance would line up every 3:5 orbits, 6:10 orbits, and 12:20 orbits?

I'm a little confused...

Yes, that's pretty much what it means. Also, sometimes the resonances stabilize the orbits (like in the case of Pluto - the resonance means that it can cross Neptune's orbit without ever getting very close to it), and sometimes they destabilize the orbits (like the gaps in the Asteroid Belt I mentioned earlier).

Ah, that's cool... I'll add it.

What's the resonance for our solar system? Or can it only be between a couple of orbits?

Most bodies don't have any notable resonances, only certain ones do. Some examples I can think of off the top of my head in our solar system are pluto's 2:3 resonance with Neptune, three of Jupiter's moons' 1:2:4 (Ganymede, Europa, and Io, respectively) resonance, and another type of resonance where Mercury rotates 3 times for every 2 orbits.

An extrordinarily eliptical orbit? That sounds like fun.

Mysterious_Calligrapher wrote:

An extrordinarily eliptical orbit? That sounds like fun.

I'm adding that and some more sub-sub-sub categories. Does anybody thing Biological Planetoids are possible?

You mean places like pluto that are habitable to life? I'm not certain, but it's been speculated that Europa is a good place for simple life. (Europa is bigger than Pluto.)
The main problem with pluto and it's Kupier belt friends is that it's too far out and too cold. Bring it in near the goldilocks zone and it might not be able to hold an atmosphere, and it might be too warm for protective ice like on Europa.
Categorically, probably not, but there's probably a hypothetical perfect storm that would allow one to be.

No, I mean planets that are actually creatures the size of planets. Big enough to have their own atmosphere.

The Uteen wrote:

I found an orbit for a binary system that appears fairly stable, and Scio didn't mention. It's like a fish. The planet orbits one of the stars, gets close to the middle and is hurled away from the stars, from the middle, gets pulled back through the middle, stops again, returns, and circles the star, before flying away again. Like a fluer-de-lis, but it only goes round one of the two stars.

Nice work.

Dudeman wrote:

No, I mean planets that are actually creatures the size of planets. Big enough to have their own atmosphere.

I don't see how a living creature could actually get that big and still transfer nutrients. It also would need to feed on something.