My Worlds Atlas example

[zhar2]

Quick update

canvas-b3-3.jpg

[zhar2]

Hello everyone, its been months since I've been on the forums, but my project is still alive and kicking (life just gets in the way). most of the final mapping for the atlas has slowed down as there are topographical changes as a result of more refinement and current maps need some updating, but I'm working to output all the terrain data ive created to a resolution of 100 meters per pixel (300 GB of data in total) and place it on a 3d simulator for viwing andit will be public (so far it has taken 6 months but the owners of the simulators are assisting with the arduos procress). ill attach a example of the over all planet texture.

texture2.png
The seas are not beige thats just the sand and silt underneath the ocean, for the sim there is no need to colour the ocean as water is a separate geometry.

I have modelled to some degree of certainty ocean currents https://youtu.be/sfLF7vSqtvQ, the weather as a result too (but may refine it further if there cause to do so, I have no idea how to model the effects of a day that is 5.333 earth days long), I have developed a time system and even a cog mechanism for a clock that will tell the planets time (im looking to assembling it as soon as i complete my masters thesis), have worked more on more lore, nations, history, religions and ethnic groups.

I do need some help with tectonics, this is my best guess so far but i find it lacking, what do you guys think?

base-tectonics.png

Also my seasons are sort of odd as the world is actually a moon whose parent planet has an orbital period of 6.260 years long and an axial tilt of about 20 degrees.

[Ilanthar]

Interesting land shapes... and I'm gonna let the experts speak about tectonics.

[Charerg]

Right, so tectonics.

First of all, you should consider that tectonic maps are usually created for the purpose of determining landforms and elevations. Because both of these are heavily influenced by tectonics, it's not really possible to "shoehorn" tectonics into an existing map, at least not without some major modifications. So, if you already have an existing world map that you're happy with and with high-res elevations as well, you need to think hard about whether you want to incorporate tectonics. Because at this point, you'd essentially be creating "tectonics for the sake of tectonics" rather than creating "tectonics to help you with continent shapes and elevations".

With that in mind, the only way to make a tectonics map for your world without starting a major remake would be to essentially draw the plate boundaries and movement directions in a more-or-less arbitrary manner. At which point you might ask what is the point of doing the tectonics in the first place. For example, if you pick two continental landmasses from your map and decide that they once constituted a single continent, then broke apart, you'd have to adjust the coastlines to make them match. And if there is a place where oceanic crust is being subducted, then you'd expect mountains to form there, which would mean altering the elevations.

So, just you are aware that it really isn't possible to effectively throw the tectonics in as an afterthought. Or rather, you could make the plates and borders arbitrary, like I mentioned, but that's probably not worth it. And of course plate tectonics are by no means a necessity for a fantasy map.

If you want to incorporate tectonics in world-building, the process is something like this:

1. Initial draft of continents, ideally with some ideas about continental movements
2. Create the tectonics map
3. Revise coastlines to match
4. Create an elevation map [I'm still here personally]
5. Create a climate map
6. Profit (if you ever make it here)

It's sort of a linear process, where you kind of have to "go through the steps" in the right order for this method of world-building to work. So just be aware that you're probably in for a vast amount of extra work, if you want to incorporate tectonics. Sorry that I can't offer more heplful feedback, but I feel this point needs to be made.

Now, with that disclaimer said, if you really want to go the tectonics-route, you could start off with some landforms you really like, and think about how they came to exist. Is this mountain chain the result of two continents colliding and so forth? Then it's basically doing a lot of reading about plate tectonics and a lot of sketches about plate movements on paper until you get something you're happy with.

Either way, I wish you good luck with mapping your world!

[zhar2]

Thank you! thats really detailed, since restarting would basically throw away 2 years of work it's not really desirable and there are further complications to take into account, my world isn't a natural earth-like world and was terraformed around 120,000 years from the present and as such I think that its prior state would dictate its geology and ofcourse the age of the system.

The most massive star in the system is an A8 star with 1.7688 solar masses and a lifespan of 2.433 billion years, currently around 1 billion years old. that being the case the original state was not a fully evolved planet like either venus, earth or mars and more likely a hottish Archean like moon with a thinner crust and now that I think about it most likely plate tectonics are just developing and crust dynamics would more likely resemble those of venus (depending on the original ocean depth, im envisioning that water was brought in to some degree from a neighbouring moon.

venus___map_of_craters_by_atlas_v7x-dbbudfs (1).jpg

Superficially my coastal complexity is more reminiscent of something that could be found on venus, large landmasses with complex mountain shields are most likely zones of crust crumpling and subduction, these might be some forming subduction zones in certain places and most melting zones would be crushed by the ocean and might be more remeniscent of earthlike zones.

venustectonics.gif

https://www.geosociety.org/gsatoday/...173-16-7-4.pdf

Any thoughts?

[zhar2]

Also in my setting earth makes an appearance, but as a result of the lore it's now around a nearby M Class star, the planet has suffered the severe cataclysm of being transported and the actual climate change induced by its new star and todal locking now looks rather different. I will map it to some extent but it will just be one single clobal spread map.

earth 1.PNGearth 2.PNGearth 3.PNG

the redish tinge is due to the stars light.

Hope you guys like it.

[Charerg]

Thank you! thats really detailed, since restarting would basically throw away 2 years of work it's not really desirable and there are further complications to take into account, my world isn't a natural earth-like world and was terraformed around 120,000 years from the present and as such I think that its prior state would dictate its geology and ofcourse the age of the system.

The most massive star in the system is an A8 star with 1.7688 solar masses and a lifespan of 2.433 billion years, currently around 1 billion years old. that being the case the original state was not a fully evolved planet like either venus, earth or mars and more likely a hottish Archean like moon with a thinner crust and now that I think about it most likely plate tectonics are just developing and crust dynamics would more likely resemble those of venus (depending on the original ocean depth, im envisioning that water was brought in to some degree from a neighbouring moon.

Superficially my coastal complexity is more reminiscent of something that could be found on venus, large landmasses with complex mountain shields are most likely zones of crust crumpling and subduction, these might be some forming subduction zones in certain places and most melting zones would be crushed by the ocean and might be more remeniscent of earthlike zones.

https://www.geosociety.org/gsatoday/...173-16-7-4.pdf

Any thoughts?

That sounds interesting. Tbh, I'm not sufficiently well-versed with Venus-related geology to provide any meaningful ideas. Which probably means that essentially no one can say you're doing something wrong or that "X is implausible" (unless they've studied Venusian geology, that is).

Although from my meager understanding it seems that the mountains/highlands on Venus seem more likely to form "blobs", like you mentioned, rather than linear chains (not that you should bother changing it at this point).

[acrosome]

Yeah, Venus doesn't really have "mountains." It has "really high spots" instead, formed from immense shield volcanoes. High plateaus would be pretty easy to justify. But if you want Earth-like mountains you have to posit some form of climactic erosion. In my pathetic project I'm including a period of forced erosion in the terraforming process.

[zhar2]

Well its not completely venus like, more like an early Archean earth sharing elements from both venus and earth, its more of an average between both.

[Azélor]

You think you understand geology til you look at Venus or Mars and you are completly lost.