Astarons

The sun is the largest object in our solar system. 99% of all the mass in our solar system is in it. The temperature at its center is 20 million degrees Celsius and this is hot enough for hydrogen atoms to fuse together to create helium. The sun is producing so much energy it shines brightly to heat the solar system. It can also at times become violent and active, ejecting solar flares that cause the solar wind to become strong at which time can interfere and damage terrestrial artificial satellites and space probes. When the solar wind hits a planetary magnetic field, it interacts and causes aurorae in the planet’s atmosphere.

Lucan is linked via the sun to all the planets in the solar system. He is the one that gave them all their warmth and light. But due to the active nature of the sun he must always be vigilant to make sure the surface of the sun does not become unstable.

Mercury is the smallest planet and is the closest planet to the sun. Mercury is made mostly of iron and rock and has the shortest orbital period, flying around the sun in only 88 days. Despite being the closest planet to the sun, Mercury has cooled so that it has a completely solid center. Mercury therefore has no volcanoes or earthquakes, meaning that its surface retains a record of every impact by an asteroid on its surface. Having no atmosphere means that while the day side of the planet bakes with a temperature of 427 degrees Celsius, the night side is a freezing -173 degrees Celsius. Mercs is just like his home, small, dense, tough and mixture of metal and rock. His surface is lumpy and scarred just like Mercury. He can also change temperature rapidly from incredibly hot to numbing cold. He’s also the fastest Astaron and can zip around the solar system in no time at all.

Venus is one of the most inhospitable planets in the solar system. The surface of Venus is coated in a dense atmosphere that is 100 times denser than that of earth’s atmosphere. Venus’ dense atmosphere acts like a blanket to keep the entire surface at a sweltering temperature of 467 degrees Celsius. Venus is also still volcanically active. The surface has only a few impact craters that tell us it must be continually refreshed, as well as being eroded by winds and weather on the surface. Nessa can rejuvenate herself whenever she is injured just like her home. She is hot tempered and quick to act. She can send out dense dusty winds, sometimes mixed with acid as part of her defense.

Earth is the cradle of life in the solar system. Its distance from the sun and its thick, but not too thick, atmosphere means that over the surface the temperature is just right for water to exist as a vapor and liquid. This makes for ideal conditions for carbon-based life to exist. The earth is also rich with resources and energy. It also has hidden power, which is released in weather events such as tornadoes/typhoons and lightening storms. Artha is able to tap into earth’s resources and to use different elements as needed or even various chemicals as required. Her greatest resource is water that can be split to provide hydrogen and oxygen. She understands all living things and has an innate ability to sense harm and be able to repair damage.

Mars is a smaller and colder world than earth. It is the furthest from the sun of all the terrestrial planets and the coldest. Mars has a very rarified atmosphere, a hundredth as dense as earth's atmosphere. Mars’ atmosphere provides only a slight warming effect but it allows for enormous dust storms to occur that can cover the entire planet’s surface. Mars is close to the asteroid belt and so it would have had plenty of interactions with the asteroids over its formation. Mars’ two moons are also probably captured asteroids rather than moons that formed there. Mars is also not geologically active, it has no earthquakes or volcanoes, however when younger Mars was able to grow the biggest volcano in the solar system, Olympus Mons, 25 kilometers tall. Reddo’s dust storm ability comes from the intense dust storms that are possible on his home planet. He is old and experienced from many battles he had during his early years with the asteroids in the asteroid belt.

Jupiter is the biggest and most massive planet in the solar system. All the terrestrial planets could fit inside its volume many times. Jupiter is a gas giant so has no solid surface. Jupiter’s gaseous atmosphere is all clouds and storms. The largest storm is the Giant Red Spot which is the same size as two earths. Jupiter’s mass gives the planet a strong gravitational field that enables it to have more than 60 moons. The same strong gravity is also why the asteroids in the asteroid belt were never able to form a planet and remain as individual asteroids. Jupiter also has the strongest magnetic field of all the planets of the solar system. If we could see Jupiter’s magnetic field from here on earth, it would be 5 times the size of the moon on the sky. J-Ter is the biggest and strongest Astaron. He is able to use his moons as weapons as well as using magnetic fields to attack and defend himself. His one eye reflects the singular storm on the surface of his home and while he can normally keep himself in check when angered he can become like the tempestuous surface of his home.

Saturn is called by some the jewel of the solar system. Slightly less massive than Jupiter it still has many moons but also has a fantastic ring systems that orbits around it out to more than twice its radius. The rings are made up of small ice particles from the size of snowballs to small trucks. The surface is also much calmer than that of Jupiter with fewer storms leaving a much plainer surface. However there is a magnetic field similar to that for Jupiter showing that conditions within the planets must be similar. Ringz is a calm and calculating being. He has a unique position in the solar system being able to look inwards towards the other planets but also look outwards toward the less known parts of the solar system which he wishes to explore. His main weapons are his rings. He also has strong magnetic fields and many moons.

Uranus and Neptune are colder versions of the gas giants of Jupiter and Saturn. These ice giants have much more methane in their atmospheres, and the methane absorbs red light, providing some of the blue tinge of colour to their visible surfaces. The wind speeds in the atmosphere of are the fastest in the solar system. The lower temperatures mean there is less energy for winds to be turbulent and slow down so they just race around and around the planet. Both planets also have ring systems of ice and their moons are cold and icy too. Uranus also rotates on its side with either its north or south pole pointing at the sun. This is probably because it had a big collision early in its formation. Uranus appears a blank disk in the sky, with very few features visible on its surface. Nass can create strong supersonic winds at will and can also channel his icy temperatures into them. Like his home rotating differently to the rest of the planets he is slow to change his mind and has a different view to most of the other Astarons. Like his blank surface, his true intentions are hard to read. Also being far away on the edge of the solar system can make him feel separated from all the Astarons (except his sibling Tunn).

Neptune has the fastest winds in the solar system, almost reaching supersonic speeds. We can also see clouds in Neptune’s atmosphere, and the top of a massive cyclonic storm (the Great Dark Spot). Tunn can create strong supersonic winds at will and can also channel his icy temperatures into them. Like his sibling Nass, being far away on the edge of the solar system can make him feel excluded. As he is on the very edge of the solar system he is close to the Kupier belt so frequently meets with the trans-Neptunian Objects (TNOs).