Overview
An encyclopedia of life on the fictional alien planet of Morsa has been under construction since early 2015. Whether this project evolves into a book or remains simply a collection of illustrations of alien lifeforms remains to be seen.
Morsa is an exercise in speculative biology, a field of art and fictional writing that uses biology of existing organisms to imagine new designs for strange, yet conceivable lifeforms, either on Earth or another planet. Speculative biology is often nothing more than a form of entertainment, but it can be highly scientific and educational. The goal of Morsa is to push the boundaries of nature, dreaming up organisms vastly different to those we know here on Earth, yet still rooted in their environments as a product of their evolutionary history.
A special thanks goes to Aidan Mulaokar, with whom this project first began years ago. Though the project has long since strayed from our original ideas, its beginnings remain valuable and inform my current work.
Morsa is an exercise in speculative biology, a field of art and fictional writing that uses biology of existing organisms to imagine new designs for strange, yet conceivable lifeforms, either on Earth or another planet. Speculative biology is often nothing more than a form of entertainment, but it can be highly scientific and educational. The goal of Morsa is to push the boundaries of nature, dreaming up organisms vastly different to those we know here on Earth, yet still rooted in their environments as a product of their evolutionary history.
A special thanks goes to Aidan Mulaokar, with whom this project first began years ago. Though the project has long since strayed from our original ideas, its beginnings remain valuable and inform my current work.
Morsa: The Dead Planet
Morsa gets its name from mors - Latin for death. The name is nothing short of a misnomer, as the planet's characteristic dark black ring is actually a result of abundant vegetation. Indeed, barren as it may seem, Morsa is not at all dead - it is teeming with strange alien organisms that push the boundaries of what was previously thought possible in nature.
Morsa is a tidally locked planet, meaning its period of rotation is the same as its period of revolution around its sun, so the same side always faces the sun. One day and one year are the same length of time on Morsa - 88.4 Earth days, or about 2.9 months. Our moon is the most familiar example of tidal locking - though in this case, the moon is tidally locked to the Earth, not the Sun. Tidal locking is no happy accident - the result of a body just so happening to have equal periods of rotation and revolution. Instead, gravitational forces can cause tidal locking to occur even if the rotation and revolution periods of the body are initially different. Tidally locked planets tend to be closer to their host stars, and as expected Morsa is only 0.26 astronomical units (AU) away from its sun - approximately 24 million miles compared to Earth's 93 million. Yet despite being much closer to its sun than Earth, a tidally locked planet could remain habitable if it were to orbit a cooler star, like, for example, a type M star - and in fact, tidal locking is most likely around small stars, like red dwarfs. A tidally locked planet is, in and of itself, not impossible or even especially unlikely, but life developing on such a planet would be faced with unique challenges.
Firstly, liquid oceans like those we see on Earth would be highly unlikely, for Morsa would experience extreme temperature differences between its light and dark sides. The side that faces the sun would be scorched dry by the blistering sunlight, evaporating away any hope for liquid oceans, while the side that faces away would be far too cold to sustain life. Such immense temperature differences between the halves of the planet would lead to high winds and frequent storms, which are made all the more powerful by Morsa's dense atmosphere. Only in a narrow band between the scorched and frozen sides of the planet could moderate temperatures and "warm" liquid oceans be sustained - though Morsian oceans are made of ammonia, not water.
Secondly, red dwarf stars (like Morsa's sun) are unstable, and their radiation levels can oscillate dramatically. A magnetosphere, or magnetic field, is likely necessary to protect life on a planet orbiting a red dwarf star from its volatile radiation. Tidally locked worlds like Morsa do rotate, but more slowly than Earth, which is a hindrance as far as magnetic field strength goes. But tidal locking and a strong magnetosphere are not mutually exclusive - indeed, Jupiter's moon Ganymede is tidally locked to its host planet and yet has a strong magnetic field. Through a combination of a thick atmosphere to protect the surface from solar radiation and a convective molten core that generates a powerful magnetic field of its own, Morsa does adequately protect its life-forms from the dangers of its unstable star.
Firstly, liquid oceans like those we see on Earth would be highly unlikely, for Morsa would experience extreme temperature differences between its light and dark sides. The side that faces the sun would be scorched dry by the blistering sunlight, evaporating away any hope for liquid oceans, while the side that faces away would be far too cold to sustain life. Such immense temperature differences between the halves of the planet would lead to high winds and frequent storms, which are made all the more powerful by Morsa's dense atmosphere. Only in a narrow band between the scorched and frozen sides of the planet could moderate temperatures and "warm" liquid oceans be sustained - though Morsian oceans are made of ammonia, not water.
Secondly, red dwarf stars (like Morsa's sun) are unstable, and their radiation levels can oscillate dramatically. A magnetosphere, or magnetic field, is likely necessary to protect life on a planet orbiting a red dwarf star from its volatile radiation. Tidally locked worlds like Morsa do rotate, but more slowly than Earth, which is a hindrance as far as magnetic field strength goes. But tidal locking and a strong magnetosphere are not mutually exclusive - indeed, Jupiter's moon Ganymede is tidally locked to its host planet and yet has a strong magnetic field. Through a combination of a thick atmosphere to protect the surface from solar radiation and a convective molten core that generates a powerful magnetic field of its own, Morsa does adequately protect its life-forms from the dangers of its unstable star.
Life Without Water
Though there is some water in Morsa's atmosphere, Morsian oceans are made of ammonia (NH3).
Could ammonia really serve as a substitute for water in alien lifeforms elsewhere in the universe?
As far as we know, it is certainly within the realm of possibility. Ammonia is abundant in our universe and has often been proposed as a theoretical alternative to the solvent that all Earth based life relies on - water. Like water, ammonia is capable of dissolving many organic compounds - a necessity for supporting the complex processes required to sustain life - with the added advantage of being able to dissolve certain metals. Water has a handful of ammonia analogues (like the ammonium ion, an analogue to the hydronium ion formed by the acceptance of an H+ ion), suggesting the possibility that there could be ammonia-equivalent versions of the complex molecules required for life.
Disadvantages like its reaction and flammability with oxygen, decreased surface tension, weaker hydrogen bonds, and much lower liquid temperatures cannot be ignored; but the Morsian atmosphere is low in oxygen and of much higher pressure than Earth's atmosphere, allowing ammonia to remain liquid at closer to Earth-like temperatures. There is, of course, still much left unknown about the feasibility of a carbon-ammonia biochemistry, but it remains among the most plausible known alternatives.
Could ammonia really serve as a substitute for water in alien lifeforms elsewhere in the universe?
As far as we know, it is certainly within the realm of possibility. Ammonia is abundant in our universe and has often been proposed as a theoretical alternative to the solvent that all Earth based life relies on - water. Like water, ammonia is capable of dissolving many organic compounds - a necessity for supporting the complex processes required to sustain life - with the added advantage of being able to dissolve certain metals. Water has a handful of ammonia analogues (like the ammonium ion, an analogue to the hydronium ion formed by the acceptance of an H+ ion), suggesting the possibility that there could be ammonia-equivalent versions of the complex molecules required for life.
Disadvantages like its reaction and flammability with oxygen, decreased surface tension, weaker hydrogen bonds, and much lower liquid temperatures cannot be ignored; but the Morsian atmosphere is low in oxygen and of much higher pressure than Earth's atmosphere, allowing ammonia to remain liquid at closer to Earth-like temperatures. There is, of course, still much left unknown about the feasibility of a carbon-ammonia biochemistry, but it remains among the most plausible known alternatives.
How might the substitution of ammonia for water as a solvent affect Morsian life?
The most striking difference may be the deep, rich, metallic brown color of the ammonia oceans - the result of the metals from the planet's crust that have been dissolved into the liquid. These dissolved metallic particles make for a conductive ocean prone to electrical storms even within the liquid when lightning strikes from the clouds above. Though these storms can be deadly, certain organisms, known as electrovores, actually harness this electrical power. Beyond the color, since ammonia ice is denser than liquid ammonia, there would be no ammonia icebergs - solid ammonia would sink to the bottom of the ocean and form sheets of ice on the ocean floor.
Interestingly, ammonia's ability to dissolve metals would also mean it could carve rivers and canyons even more easily than water, making for some dramatic cliffs and peculiar geological features.
The most striking difference may be the deep, rich, metallic brown color of the ammonia oceans - the result of the metals from the planet's crust that have been dissolved into the liquid. These dissolved metallic particles make for a conductive ocean prone to electrical storms even within the liquid when lightning strikes from the clouds above. Though these storms can be deadly, certain organisms, known as electrovores, actually harness this electrical power. Beyond the color, since ammonia ice is denser than liquid ammonia, there would be no ammonia icebergs - solid ammonia would sink to the bottom of the ocean and form sheets of ice on the ocean floor.
Interestingly, ammonia's ability to dissolve metals would also mean it could carve rivers and canyons even more easily than water, making for some dramatic cliffs and peculiar geological features.
Climate
The drastic temperature differences between Morsa's halves results in an nearly ever-flowing wind from Morsa's permanently lit "pupil" towards its dark side. This wind sucks away any moisture from the pupil, creating an enormous, barren desert, scorched by the unrelenting sun and nearly devoid of ammonia.
Morsa's dense atmosphere means its winds pack a punch, and the high conductivity of large bodies of ammonia results in an extremely electrically active atmosphere. The result: frequent and powerful storms that often obscure vision for days or weeks at a time - yet another reason that infrared vision was a necessary adaptation for many Morsian organisms.
The density of Morsa's atmosphere also makes flight relatively easy; while atmospheric drag is higher than it would be on Earth, it is also easier to generate lift, and the lower gravity also means there is less downward force opposing that lift. The result is an amazing biodiversity in avian species far exceeding that seen on Earth.
Most Morsian regions experience a nearly constant temperature and exposure to sunlight at all times of day (and year). This means the circadian rhythm that terrestrial organisms are familiar with would simply not exist on Morsa, as there would be virtually no way to tell time of day or year in most regions of the world. Sleeping as we know it on Earth would be fundamentally different for most animals, as without a prolonged period of darkness, most organisms would not simply shut down for hours at a time in broad daylight; this would leave them too exposed to predators, with the exceptions of burrowing or nesting organisms. Instead, many organisms "sleep" with a part of their brain at a time, allowing for rest and repair while remaining alert to potential threats; this is known as unihemispheric sleep, and it is exhibited on Earth by whales, dolphins, and some birds.
But while it is simplest to imagine Morsa with one permanently illuminated side and the other permanently shadowed, the reality is that there is a somewhat narrow ring that does in fact experience "day" and "night." This is due to orbital perturbations - slight deviations from a perfectly circular and uniform orbit (Morsa, like all celestial bodies in orbit, orbits its host star in a slightly elliptical, not circular, shape). Some regions therefore do see the Morsian sun rise and set below the horizon a few times per orbit. (This is why we can actually see a fraction of our Moon's surface that is slightly larger than 50%.) Morsian life in regions like these may be the most similar to that with which we humans are familiar, exhibiting something closer to a circadian rhythm.
Despite the fact that one side always faces the host star, Morsa does experience extremely mild "seasons" due to its orbital eccentricity; since Morsa does not orbit its host star in a perfect circle, it is sometimes closer and sometimes farther away than usual, and this fluctuating exposure to sunlight causes global temperature fluctuations throughout an orbit.
Morsa's dense atmosphere means its winds pack a punch, and the high conductivity of large bodies of ammonia results in an extremely electrically active atmosphere. The result: frequent and powerful storms that often obscure vision for days or weeks at a time - yet another reason that infrared vision was a necessary adaptation for many Morsian organisms.
The density of Morsa's atmosphere also makes flight relatively easy; while atmospheric drag is higher than it would be on Earth, it is also easier to generate lift, and the lower gravity also means there is less downward force opposing that lift. The result is an amazing biodiversity in avian species far exceeding that seen on Earth.
Most Morsian regions experience a nearly constant temperature and exposure to sunlight at all times of day (and year). This means the circadian rhythm that terrestrial organisms are familiar with would simply not exist on Morsa, as there would be virtually no way to tell time of day or year in most regions of the world. Sleeping as we know it on Earth would be fundamentally different for most animals, as without a prolonged period of darkness, most organisms would not simply shut down for hours at a time in broad daylight; this would leave them too exposed to predators, with the exceptions of burrowing or nesting organisms. Instead, many organisms "sleep" with a part of their brain at a time, allowing for rest and repair while remaining alert to potential threats; this is known as unihemispheric sleep, and it is exhibited on Earth by whales, dolphins, and some birds.
But while it is simplest to imagine Morsa with one permanently illuminated side and the other permanently shadowed, the reality is that there is a somewhat narrow ring that does in fact experience "day" and "night." This is due to orbital perturbations - slight deviations from a perfectly circular and uniform orbit (Morsa, like all celestial bodies in orbit, orbits its host star in a slightly elliptical, not circular, shape). Some regions therefore do see the Morsian sun rise and set below the horizon a few times per orbit. (This is why we can actually see a fraction of our Moon's surface that is slightly larger than 50%.) Morsian life in regions like these may be the most similar to that with which we humans are familiar, exhibiting something closer to a circadian rhythm.
Despite the fact that one side always faces the host star, Morsa does experience extremely mild "seasons" due to its orbital eccentricity; since Morsa does not orbit its host star in a perfect circle, it is sometimes closer and sometimes farther away than usual, and this fluctuating exposure to sunlight causes global temperature fluctuations throughout an orbit.
More About Morsa
Other interesting facts about Morsa:
Mass: 2.93e24 kg (0.49 times the mass of the Earth)
Average Equatorial Radius: 4969 km (0.78 times the radius of the Earth)
Acceleration Due To Gravity (at the surface): 7.90 m/s^2 (0.81 times that of Earth, or 0.81g)
Average Surface Pressure: 129.1 psi (about 8.9 times Earth's atmospheric pressure)
Average Surface Temperature: -48 - 61 degrees Celsius (-54 - 142 Fahrenheit)
At 129.1 psi, ammonia evaporates at approximately 21 degrees Celsius, or about 70 Fahrenheit. Thus, liquid ammonia (which most Morsian organisms need to survive) can exist only in the regions of the world with temperatures lower than 21 Celsius.
Sun: Red Dwarf
Mass of Morsa's Sun: 5.967e29 kg
Gravitational Parameter of Morsa's Sun: 3.98e10 km^3/s^2
Distance from Morsa's Sun: 0.26 AU (24 million miles, or 39 million kilometers)
Period of Orbit: 88.4 Earth Days (about 2.9 months)
More details on the planet of Morsa and its biology are in the works and will be updated soon. For now, enjoy my early concept art that will largely be abandoned.
Mass: 2.93e24 kg (0.49 times the mass of the Earth)
Average Equatorial Radius: 4969 km (0.78 times the radius of the Earth)
Acceleration Due To Gravity (at the surface): 7.90 m/s^2 (0.81 times that of Earth, or 0.81g)
Average Surface Pressure: 129.1 psi (about 8.9 times Earth's atmospheric pressure)
Average Surface Temperature: -48 - 61 degrees Celsius (-54 - 142 Fahrenheit)
At 129.1 psi, ammonia evaporates at approximately 21 degrees Celsius, or about 70 Fahrenheit. Thus, liquid ammonia (which most Morsian organisms need to survive) can exist only in the regions of the world with temperatures lower than 21 Celsius.
Sun: Red Dwarf
Mass of Morsa's Sun: 5.967e29 kg
Gravitational Parameter of Morsa's Sun: 3.98e10 km^3/s^2
Distance from Morsa's Sun: 0.26 AU (24 million miles, or 39 million kilometers)
Period of Orbit: 88.4 Earth Days (about 2.9 months)
- Morsa has no moons. The presence of a moon could destabilize Morsa's orbit around its host star; it is thus no surprise that Morsa, a tidally locked planet, has no natural satellites.
- Since Morsa is much closer to its host star than we are to the Sun, the Morsian sun appears much larger in its sky.
- Just like on Earth, Rayleigh scattering is responsible for the colors we see in the Morsian sky. Higher-frequency light is scattered more so than lower-frequency light, resulting in our familiarly blue sky on Earth and, due to the different atmospheric composition, a violet sky on Morsa - at least, in the regions that experience permanent day. And just as we experience red sunsets here on Earth, so too does the Morsian sky redden; the closer to the edge of the illuminated half of the planet, the more atmosphere light needs to pass through before reaching the surface - meaning the more high-frequency light is scattered away to leave a lower-frequency (redder) sky. This means that regions at the edge of the twilight band experience blue skies, with the sky becoming green, then yellow, then orange, and finally a familiar red as we approach the eternally dark side of the planet.
- Geological activity could make fairly warm (or at least liquid) oceans possible even on the dark side of the planet. Life need not be constrained to the warm side of Morsa.
- Morsa's ammonia ocean along its twilight band helps regulate the temperature of the regions near the ocean shore, just as Earth's oceans regulate our terrestrial climates. This expands the habitable ring significantly.
More details on the planet of Morsa and its biology are in the works and will be updated soon. For now, enjoy my early concept art that will largely be abandoned.
Early Concepts - Geography
The first concepts of Morsa as a planet were quite similar to Earth. Several large continents were surrounded by one large sea, with a key difference being that Morsian life is ammonia-based, not water-based. Thus, ammonia seas would be a deep, rich, metallic brown color, since ammonia is able to dissolve certain metals quite well.
However, as the aim of the project is to speculate just how different life could be from Earth life, these designs for geography were eventually abandoned in favor of a far different world that is still under construction. It involves a planet in tidal lock–meaning the same side always faces the sun–with an ocean "ring" around the planet between the hot desert side facing the sun (a red dwarf star) and the frozen tundra facing away. In and around this ocean and the island continents it contains, life can thrive.
Early Concepts - Organisms
Early designs for lifeforms were mostly quadrupedal. These designs were ultimately abandoned; the anatomy of these creatures seemed too similar to that of organisms on earth.
Quadrupedal designs gave way to a new method of terrestrial locomotion. Most Morsian "animals" are tripedal, and their limbs work as somewhat elastic springs to propel them forward. Typically, a powerful hind limb serves to launch the animal forward with a large force, and two smaller front limbs serve to cushion the impact and stabilize the movement.
Below: completed designs for terrestrial Morsian organisms.
Here, we experimented with aerial designs.