Star System
The Atlantia system is a sparse, evolved planetary system centered around a white dwarf star, the remnant core of a once sun-like star. The system is notable for its extreme orbital scales, with surviving planetary bodies confined to distant, stable trajectories far from the stellar remnant. Most of the system’s original inner planets are believed to have been lost during the star’s red giant phase.
Today, the system is dominated by a single massive gas giant, Atlantia A, whose distant orbit allows it to persist largely unaffected by the white dwarf’s intense gravity and radiation. The low luminosity of the central star results in a cold, dim environment, giving the system a subdued and ancient appearance.
Artist Concept of the Atlantia System seen from behind Atlantia A.
Artist Concept of Atlantia A.
The central star of the Atlantia system is a white dwarf, the dense stellar remnant left behind after a Sun-like star exhausted its nuclear fuel and shed its outer layers. Roughly Earth-sized yet comparable in mass to a main-sequence star, Atlantia emits a faint, bluish-white glow, providing minimal illumination to the surrounding system. Its radiation output is stable but weak, creating an environment dominated by darkness and extreme cold at large orbital distances.
During its red giant phase, the progenitor star is believed to have engulfed or destabilized any inner planets, leaving behind only distant survivors such as Atlantia A. Since collapsing into a white dwarf, the star has slowly cooled over billions of years, preserving the system in a long-term, low-energy state. The presence of a massive gas giant in a distant orbit suggests that Atlantia A migrated outward or avoided catastrophic interaction during the star’s violent evolutionary transition.
Artist Concept of Atlantia*.
Atlantia A is a massive gas giant orbiting at a great distance from its parent white dwarf, well beyond the region destabilized during stellar collapse. Its atmosphere exhibits a soft blue coloration, produced by Rayleigh scattering in the upper atmospheric layers and the absorption of longer wavelengths by deeper cloud structures. The planet’s appearance is calm and diffuse, lacking the sharp banding seen in warmer gas giants.
A prominent single ring system encircles the planet, composed primarily of ice particles and fine debris. The ring is broad but relatively uniform, forming a pale, luminous band that contrasts gently with the planet’s blue atmosphere. Under the weak illumination of the white dwarf, the rings reflect light subtly, contributing to the planet’s ethereal visual presence.
Artist Concept of Atlantia A.
Moons
Atlantia A is orbited by two major moons, each markedly different in composition and appearance, providing stark contrast to the planet’s soft coloration. Both moons are believed to have formed from material captured or redistributed during the later stages of the system’s evolution, rather than from a primordial circumplanetary disk.
One moon appears dark and rocky, with a heavily cratered surface and minimal reflectivity, while the other is brighter and ice-rich, reflecting what little stellar light reaches the system. Together, the two moons create a visual and physical counterpoint to Atlantia A, emphasizing the planet’s tranquil appearance against the harsher, more irregular nature of its satellites
Artist Concept of Atlantia A with its moons.
Thalassa
Thalassa is the innermost major moon of Atlantia A, characterized by its dark, rocky surface and low reflectivity. Its composition is dominated by silicates and metal-rich material, giving it a charcoal-gray appearance that absorbs most incoming light from the distant white dwarf. The moon’s surface is heavily cratered, indicating an ancient crust that has remained largely unchanged for billions of years.
Gravitational interactions with Atlantia A contribute to mild tidal heating within Thalassa’s interior, though insufficient to drive active volcanism. Subsurface fractures and fault lines suggest past internal stress, possibly linked to orbital migration following the white dwarf’s formation. Thalassa’s stark appearance provides a sharp visual contrast to the soft blue atmosphere of its parent planet.
Artist Concept of Thalassa.
Eirene
Eirene is the outer and more reflective of Atlantia A’s two moons, composed primarily of water ice and frozen volatiles. Its surface appears pale and luminous, scattering light efficiently even under the weak illumination of the white dwarf. Subtle surface variations indicate layered ice deposits, likely shaped by slow sublimation and redeposition processes over long timescales.
The moon’s low density and smooth terrain suggest a relatively gentle formation history, possibly from material redistributed during the late stages of the system’s evolution. Eirene’s icy composition and high albedo make it the most visually prominent satellite in the system, forming a striking contrast with both the dark surface of Thalassa and the muted blue glow of Atlantia A.
Artist Concept of Eirene.