Nemaea: The Inner Orbital Realm by Chipka
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No AI - This artwork was created entirely by hand or with traditional digital tools.
Description
As with any stellar system, the principal component of the central Nemaean System is its star. Mu Leonus (Ras Elased Borealis ) comprises the bulk of all system mass; indeed, Mu Leonus accounts for 99.80% of this particular mass.
The inner system is dominated by two gas giants, and three Earth-mass “terrestrial” type worlds, the third of which is Nemaea itself. In many ways, the Mu Leonus System is a twin to the Sol System. It contains nine major planetary bodies, though their orbital arrangement is skewed away from the Sol System norm. Gravitational interactions between the two gas giants have scoured the near vicinities of open space clean of asteroidal, cometary, and microparticle debris. Both gas giants are orbital migrants; they formed in the outer reaches of the system and spiraled inward early in the earlier stages of stellar system formation.
Mass/gravitational interactions between the gas giants and the central star itself have shaped the four-dimensional fabric of local space into a complex play of forces. Ships traveling within the Nemaean gravitational well must contend with these forces, as do the human occupants of every planet and moon. Just as comet/asteroidal debris has been swept away by the “Hoover Effect” of the massive gas giants, the small, outer planets of the system have also been displaced from their original orbital positions and inclinations by the migrant gaseous planets.
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I've become almost obsessively fascinated with old maps, and well...equally obsessed with writing, especially in the fictional universe of Nemaea. Though I've designated Mu Leonus as the Nemaean Home Star, the actual Mu Leonus is not known to possess planetary companions, at least none massive enough to cause "wobble" or "lens" effects, and so the above text takes a few creative liberties.
I wanted to create a star system map, as someone in the 14th century might have, and this is the result. The entire piece of work is done in Photoshop and The Gimp.
Please zoom, as there are texture details that emerge at full resolution.
Comments (17)
This is spectacular--a truly wonderful version of ancient charts--wow!!
FANTASTIC and WONDERFUL !!! GREAT SciFi !!!
Very cool image!!
WOW!
as a maker of 'abstract' maps, I love any artist who plays with maps...but you've done much more: You've created—with painstaking detail—a true "old-new" map, with the graphic lines & sepia tones of old cartography, and yet with the precision of modern maps. (I love the shadow you achieved in the lower left key, and of course the geometric weaves of old etchings, etc.). But beyond that, you're a writer who cares greatly about detail that's at once imaginative and yet true-to-life: Your universes could wholly exist; and your linguistic universes—many word roots, many implied vocabularies—coupled w/ your imaginative histories (stuffed with archives & all kinds of backstories) leave us tantalized for whole new visionary worlds. Visually & literarily, a wonderful piece...You know, you're gonna have to be granted at least 1000 years, because you have too many stories in you for one lifetime. I'll put in a word when I meet the gods...A fav; and I like the scientific data too!
I am reminnded of a Gallileo sketch or maybe a Leonardo one. Its all been said on te post above! So I won't repeat. Excellent! Dave
Everything you do makes this world my real and more intriguing. CC
Another piece of the whole story falls into place; you are a master!
Very successful work! It does look ancient. I thought it was a photo of some map before read your description.
You obsessed with writing???? nawwww :o) .....this is super cool, Chip, and love the Olde World map look/feel....most excellent ! *** H u g s ***
Just when I think there are no surprises left ... here you come with this map! Wow. This is way cool. What can I say ... you rock!
I'm only an amateur astronomer, Chip, but it all works for me! (tho the star is actually Mu Leonis)
Fantastic creation Chip!
great work.
Cool detailed map of the Nemaean star and inner planetary system, Chip. The coloring makes it look ancient.
Great work on the map, How cool to make your own. It looks old.
You create some wonderful speculative fiction and I like how you've been carefully crafting these alternate universes. There is an article in the recent Astronomy magazine which goes into the complex interplay of gravity amongst the planets in our own system. They create a kind of cosmic ocean current which NASA mission specialists are now starting to exploit to cheaply (though more slowly) send probes to the farthest planets and back again.