Update: Pressure/Wind maps for fantasy world "Bartokamous"

[Peter Toth]

Hello cartographers,

I've updated my latest project, Bartokamous. First of all, I've decided on a planet size, mass, axial tilt, and insolation level; unfortunately, due to my absent-mindedness I forgot to save that data to my flash drive and it will have to wait for the next update. I can only estimate the planet is 7% larger than the earth and somewhat less massive to provide a comfortable 0.96 gees of gravity. Axial tilt is similar to Earth, as is the insolation from the parent star, which, of course, will also be developed during the course of this project.

Below is a topographical map showing altitudes, the colour coding of which should be self-explanatory.

CytheriaGIMP.jpg

Then, we move onto a pressure chart for the northern winter month. I neglected to quantify the isobars, so just assume Earthlike values. (Atmospheric pressure is very close to the Earth's).

January.jpg

Next is the northern summer month:

July.jpg

In my next update, I'll include a climate map, although I know some of you could probably guess those details already!

And, since I'd never presume to be an "expert" so early in this hobby, could you please critique these diagrams? Have I made any errors in representing the pressures and wind directions?

I appreciate all your feedback, and will see you next time.

Peter

[Charerg]

Do you plan to eventually expand the continent into an actual world map? These kind of global phenomena like pressure systems and wind patterns tend to be the easiest to figure out on a global scale, due to their nature. Aside from that, I'm curious if you're using Geoff's Climate Cookbook as a tutorial, or are you working off one of the climate tutorials around in the Guild?

Oh and btw, it would be good to have some idea regarding the intervals of the elevation map. It's easy to figure out which areas are mountains, and where are lowlands, but just how high are the brown areas or the white areas?

[Peter Toth]

For this particular map, I only intended to develop this one continent to experiment with placing pressure zones, wind vectors, and climatology, which I don’t have a great deal of experience with. I figure one day, when my process is fully refined and I’m able to produce convincing geographical features, I will progress to developing an entire planet’s surface not restricted to one single continent. In determining the climatology of this map, I simply placed it on an “equirectangular” white rectangle (2x1 aspect ratio), carefully selecting the map’s size and position, knowing the approximate climate zones I desired for each part of the map. I have read Geoff’s Climate Cookbook, but for this project I relied on an actual meteorology textbook acquired at a thrift shop, as I considered the latter a bit more authoritative (although, admittedly, Geoff’s is easier to understand.) And yes, I admit I should have included a legend for the topographical map, to help with developing the climatology; I’ll be sure to do so in future projects. Thank you for your interest, and by the way, I’ve always wanted to visit Finland. You have spectacular fjords, dazzling aurora borealis, and the finest vodka on the planet. Maybe one day, when my cartography becomes a profitable business, I’ll visit your beautiful country.