 February 3, 2013 - 3:27am | The Frontier's highest mountain Was walking home in bitter cold and spent time reviewing in my head an article I've been working on just to pass the time. So I'm curious, what might the geological process be that made Mt Spire so tall? Volcanism or plate techtronics? I checked for earth and the tallest volcanoe is only 22,000 fet and there are over 100 mountains over 23,000 feet with Everest being 29,000. However the trully tallest volcanoe if measured from the sea floor to its peak is taller than Mt Everest. Its kind of important because it determines what you describe as the terrain for mount spire. if its from techtronics then it would be logical for Mt Spire to be in a mountain range like the Himalayas but if volcanism them it could be part of a volcanic chain or a solitary mountain. From a image stand point I think that Mt Spire being analogous to the "Lonely Mountain" presenting a daunting solo peak rising above the jungle canopy has a lot to be desired. Another question that also occured to me that is sort of related: Is plate techtronics to be universally expected on alien worlds? I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 February 3, 2013 - 2:34pm | Well the largest mountains in the solar system, both on Earth (Mauna Kea) and Mars (Olympus Mons and the Tharsis Ridge mountains) are all the results of hot spot vulcanism. In the case of Mars, there is no tectonics and so the mountains are huge (20+ km for Olympus Mons). The Haw'aiian Islands arent' bigger because of tectonics as the plate shifted over the hot spot and created a string of islands instead of just a simple volcano. (The chain actually runs all the way up to Alaska but most of them are now submerged). The Himalayas were formed by the Indian plate smashing into the Asian plate and crumpling everything up (and they are still growing taller). And in this case you have a whole part of the planet raised up, not just a single peak. So I'd say if you want a really big single mountain, go with a hot spot volcano without any plate tectonics. You'll get a really tall moutain that covers a huge area (The base of Olympus Mons covers an area the size of the state of New Mexico). As for the prevalance of tectonics, Earth has them, Venus sort of does, and Mars and Mercury don't. It's belived to be related to the size of the planet and the amount of water present. It is belived that Venus would have them but there is no water. Mars and Mercury are too small. It all has to do with cooling rates of the planets and trapping of internal heat. The short answer is that if the planet it roughly earth sized and has a sizable water fraction, it probably should have tectonics but we really don't know so anything is possible. Plus even with tectonics, if the plate is relatively stationary for a long time over the hot spot you could still get a big mountain. Ad Astra Per Ardua! My blog - Expanding Frontier Webmaster - The Star Frontiers Network & this site Founding Editor - The Frontier Explorer Magazine Managing Editor - The Star Frontiersman Magazine |
February 3, 2013 - 4:15pm | I'm guessing hot spot vulcanism and a moutain base the size of new mexico works best for Mt spire. I dont have access to the planet's gravity right now but we've gone with substantial water on Lossend in the past so combining that with what is probably something close to 1 g in gravity then we should expect plate techtronic. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 February 4, 2013 - 4:58am | It also has to do with the size of the planet and the density and convection of its atmosphere. Mars has very little atmosphere (and thus next to no atmospheric disturbance or weight) and is half the size of earth. This allows mountains to rise higher than on earth. The larger the planet, the smaller the variances of its mountains. Inversely, the smaller the planet, the greater the variance of its mountains. However, smaller planets/planetoids have less likelihood toward vulcanism unless close to a stellar body or Jovian planet or else has a high rotation speed relative to its stellar body along with relatively low core density. In that case, the plate tectonics is likely usually very severe, reducing mountains before they can grow to any size. It would thus seem that a planet the size of Mars, without plate tectonics, located in the habitable zone of a solar system is the ideal place for finding such tall mountains. View my profile for a list of articles I have written, am writing, will write. "It's yo' mama!" —Wicket W. Warrick, Star Wars Ep. VI: Return of the Jedi "That guy's wise." —Logray, Star Wars Ep.VI: Return of the Jedi Do You Wanna Date My Avatar? - Felicia Day (The Guild) |
 February 3, 2013 - 9:07pm | I read a trilogy once, IIRC, by Allen Dean Foster, where this alien empire was at war with another and somehow a human got involved. Humans came from a very active, tectonically, planet. Most other races came from planets that were much less so, if at all. Humans were very(are) very warlike and it was believed that this was a result from coming from such an active planet. I can't remeber why the evil empire race was bad and warlike, but the more peacefull races were glad to have humans on their side. This discussion brought to mind the story. |
 February 3, 2013 - 10:33pm | Yes the trilogy was by Alan Dean Foster. The Damned novels. The enemy were the Ampliture, a slug like race with telepathic ability far beyond any other race. They thought that they were superior and thus obliged to civilize all other races. Those that did not cooperate just needed more persuasion. This could be part of the sathar's thinking. Concerning mount spire. I have always imagined a solitary mountain with hills surrounding it and African like savanna and jungle around it's base. The climate has a full dry season so it doesn't have rain forest jungle near mount spire. -iggy |
February 4, 2013 - 5:03am | Also, I would think a lack of plate tectonics would preclude the presence of oceans, as oceans lend to plate tectonics. Thus, in these considerations, the highest mountain in the Frontier is most likely not the most scenic, and is likely to lack any sustainable ecosystem. It would be a barren waste requiring artificial environments or EVA suits. View my profile for a list of articles I have written, am writing, will write. "It's yo' mama!" —Wicket W. Warrick, Star Wars Ep. VI: Return of the Jedi "That guy's wise." —Logray, Star Wars Ep.VI: Return of the Jedi Do You Wanna Date My Avatar? - Felicia Day (The Guild) |
 February 4, 2013 - 9:45am | Personally I always figured that the "tallest mountain" thing was more like "tallest mountain on inhabited UPF member planet." There are probably taller mountains, but Spire is the tallest you can get to and climb with a minimum of special equipment. |
February 4, 2013 - 7:48pm | Definitely the top of mount spire is cold, barren, snow covered, and requires an environment suit to visit. The height alone makes the oxygen too thin for open breathing. If it is too high would any frozen water evaporate? The mountain could look like a white haired bald man. -iggy |
