The Leclerc System and Bayard

I'm still in the process of defining much of this and it's subject to change, but my current thinking is that the Leclerc system constitutes the following planets:
  • Corbarans: A hot, rocky, vacuum planet
  • Bertrand: A proto-Venus
  • Fierebras: A hot planet with a tar-like fluid covering the surface
  • Bayard: The inhabited planet
  • Otuel: A small Jovian
  • Aigar: An icy, vacuum rockball
These planets orbit a K0V star with .76 of the mass of Sol and nearly half its luminosity and cooler, coming in at 5,062K. (FYI, I haven't yet determined which system of the Wolf cluster Leclerc actually is--I do know I'll override one of those...probably one of these: Ross 486, DM+0 2898, or Gamma Virginis.)

Bayard sits at .66 AU from Leclerc and has a diameter of 11,203.2km (6,961.3miles). The planet rotates slowly compared to Earth. One Bayard day is 1,572 hours or 65.5 Earth days, and it orbits Leclerc every 9 days (or 216 Earth days). Its axial tilt is 27.35%.

The atmosphere consists of:
  • 76% nitrogen
  • 18% oxygen
  • 3% argon, carbon dioxide, krypton
  • 3% water vapor
  • .0075% sulphur dioxide
This means that despite the near normal levels of oxygen, the citizens of Bayard require the use of filters when outside. Buildings are, as a matter of course, sealed--though seeing cabinets and hooks with filter masks available near all exterior doors and in rooms with windows is not an uncommon sight.

The sulphur dioxide is from volcanic activity that at one time was widespread. The last known event occurred approximately 3,700 BCE produced a giant caldera, called the Haute Caldera, in the eastern part of Sorel Oriental.

Bayard does not possess a satellite, though it has a ring, which is mostly invisible to people planet side. Every few weeks, however, the rings are captured in the light of Leclerc and shimmer in the sky in a brilliant display that lasts for several hours before fading back to invisibility. The current theory is that Bayard had a two or three satellites that collided and the remnants now make up the ring.

The planet has a significant southern polar ice cap, and the surface is 30% water with a lower salinity level than Earth. No permanent northern cap exists. The planet consists of eight continents (though Sorel is often divided into Sorel Occidentale and Sorel Oriental for geographic depictions). High mountains, swamps, rainforests, savannah, deserts, and badlands all exist.

Due to its axial tilt, Bayard sees more significant seasonal differences than Earth--the winters are colder and the summers are hotter overall, but nothing outside normal human tolerances or counteracted with air-conditioning or heating. While plants and animals are edible and nutritious to Earth derived life, many are also toxic and the rest are unpleasant at best due to the sulphur dioxide in the atmosphere. Sea life, however, tends to be more appetizing, when not toxic. Farming is carried out under large domes that ensure a more Earth-like diurnal cycle and filter out the sulphur dioxide. Soil for farming is used from Bayard, but it is processed by injecting nitrogen, removing sulphur dioxide, and all around making it more Earth-like.


Did I get something wrong? Is my math messed up? Let me know in the comments.

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