Planet
A World or Planet is an astronomical body located in the void, usually orbiting a star.
- The IISS also uses these astrographic terms near interchangeably.
Library Data Referral Tree[edit]
Please refer to the following AAB Library Data for more information:
- Charted Space Observation
Description (Specifications)[edit]
The term world refers to the various bodies that are contained in a stellar system; it encompasses planets, satellites, and asteroid belts. For example, the single most important world in a system may not be a planet; it could be a satellite of a gas giant, or it could be a planetoid within an asteroid belt. [1]
Planets possess a vast variety of identifying characteristics and can be categorized in many different ways. Some of the most common ways include: size, composition, exotic, and special natures.
Basic Planetary Types (Composition)[edit]
- Borean World (Ice Ball)
- Jovian World (Gas Ball)
- Terrestrial World (Rock or Iron Ball)
Type | Nickname | Composition | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
Terrestrial World: Silicate world | Ice Ball | Icy or rocky world. Ice or light silicate rock. | Density of 1.3 to 3.0 gm/cc^3, Borean World. |
Terrestrial World: Low Iron world | Rock Ball | Rocky world. Heavy silicate rock, light metals. | Density of 3.1 to 4.5 gm/cc^3 |
Terrestrial World: Medium Iron world | Rock Ball | Rocky world. Moderate mixing of iron and denser metals with silicate rock and lighter metals. | Density of 4.6 to 6.0 gm/cc^3. Terra is a Medium Iron world. |
Terrestrial World: High Iron world | Iron Ball | Metal world. Mostly iron and denser metals with a few silicate rocks. | Density of 6.1 to 7.0 gm/cc^3 |
Terrestrial World: Metallic world | Iron Ball | Metal world. Entirely iron and other dense metals. | Density over 7.1 gm/cc^3 |
Jovian World | Gas Ball | Mostly gases & some solids. | Typically Gas Giants. Technically means huge world. Satellites of gas giants are known to have moons that can be habitable to conventional life. Jupiter is a gas giant. |
Basic Planetary Types (Size)[edit]
Type | Code | Size | Atm | Hyd | Pop | Gov | Law | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tiny World | None | 0RD | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | (Dwarf World, Planetesimal, Planetoid, etc.) |
Small World | None | S12 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | (Planetoid, Protoplanet, etc.) |
Meso World | None | 345 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | (Mesoplanet) |
Macro World | None | 678 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Roughly Earth-sized. |
Big World | None | 9AB+ | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | A Super-Earth... |
Gas Giant | SGG | SGG | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Small (SGG) gas giant. |
Gas Giant | LGG | LGG | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Large (LGG) gas giant. |
- Please see AAB article Planetary Size for more information.
Exotic Planetary Types[edit]
These are Strange Worlds:
- Double World (Double Planet)
- Rosette World
- Doughnut World (Toroid World)
- Ellipsoid World
- Mobile World
- Ring Moon
- Ring World
- Rogue World
- Sphere World
- Tent World
Type | Code | Size | Atm | Hyd | Pop | Gov | Law | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Double World | None | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Double-planet mainworld. |
Doughnut World | None | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Toroidal world. A world with a hole in the center... |
Ellipsoid World | None | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Egg-shaped world. |
Mobile World | None | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Mobile world, whether natural or artificial, with added engines. Planetoid starships exist at TL-15. |
Ring World | None | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Artificial ring world. Megastructure. |
Rogue World | None | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Extrasystemic world. Thought to be very rare. |
Sphere World | None | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Artificial planetoid. |
Tent World | 0-2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | A tented & paraterraformed world. Artificially constructed using Paraterraforming. |
Special Planetary Types[edit]
Type | Code | Size | Atm | Hyd | Pop | Gov | Law | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Locked World | Lk | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Locked close satellite. Gravitational relationship. |
Main World | Mw | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Socioeconomic center of a system. |
Satellite World | Sa | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Satellite or moon. Gravitational relationship. |
Twilight Zone World | Tz | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Twilight Zone. Orbit 0-1. Gravitational relationship. |
History & Background (Dossier)[edit]
Scientist argue about a variety of celestial objects and are constantly defining and redefining what is and isn't a planet:
- Planetary-Mass Object (PMO)
- Planemo
- Planetary body
- Dwarf planet
- Protoplanet
- Small Solar System Body (SSSB) [Minor planet]
The Solomani are particularly contentious in this area and the IAU (International Astronomical Union) definition of planet has fluctuated many times over the millennia.
Physical Planetology[edit]
This planetary grouping organizes by physical characteristics:
- Asteroid Belt World
- Big World
- Cold World
- Desert World
- Fluid World
- Frozen World
- Garden World AKA Terran Prime World
- Hell World
- Hospitable World
- Hot World
- Ice World
- Inferno World
- Inner World
- Inhospitable World
- Locked World
- Meso World
- Ocean World
- Outer World
- Panthallasic World
- Planetoid Belt World
- Rad World
- Small World
- Storm World
- Temperate World
- Tiny World
- Tropical World
- Tundra World
- Twilight Zone World
- Vacuum World
- Water World
- Worldlet
Socioeconomic Planetology[edit]
This planetary grouping organizes by socioeconomic characteristics:
- Agricultural World Series (Foodstuffs)
- Colony World Series (Subjugation)
- Industrial World Series (Manufacturing)
- Population World Series (Sophonts)
- Socioeconomic World Series (Wealth)
- Technology World Series (Tech)
- Low Tech World
- Average Tech World
- High Tech World
Biological Planetology[edit]
This planetary grouping organizes by bioplanetological (life-bearing) characteristics:
- Barren World
- Die Back World
- Garden World
- Home World
- Hospitable World
- Inhospitable World
- Reserve World
Bioplanetological Sciences[edit]
Science | Actor Scientist |
Remarks |
---|---|---|
Xenobiology | Exobiologist | The study of creatures, pre-sophonts, or lower intelligent lifeforms.
|
Sophontology | Sophontologist | The study of sophonts or intelligent lifeforms. Includes Proto-sophonts |
Terraforming | Terraformer | A planetary engineering process which, over many years, converts a hostile world (Inhospitable World) into a livable one (Hospitable World). |
Planet vs. World[edit]
What are the technical differences between the terms planet and world? In common usage, they are used interchangeably, but how do IISS scouts use the terms?
Term | Remarks |
---|---|
Planet | Denotes an astronomic and astrographic meaning and applies to all of the bodies in a system. |
World | Denotes a socioeconomic and sophontilogical meaning and mostly applies to those bodies with sophont populations, usually main worlds or satellite worlds. |
References & Contributors (Sources)[edit]
- Marc Miller. Worlds and Adventures (Game Designers Workshop, 1977), —.
- Marc Miller. Scouts (Game Designers Workshop, 1983), —.
- Marc Miller. T5 Core Rules (Far Future Enterprises, 2013), —.
- Martin Dougherty. A Guide to Star Systems (Mongoose Publishing, 2015), —.
- Beowolf's Libary Data Website dead link
- Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science
- ↑ Marc Miller. Worlds and Adventures (Game Designers Workshop, 1977), 6.