Hypothetical Planets (in our solar system)

[Susano]

Throughout history, astronomers have observed heavenly bodies or some evidence of them that later “vanished”. Or did they? Hypothetical planets include:

* Vulcan, the intra-Mercurial planet
* Mercury’s Moon
* Neith, the Moon of Venus
* The Earth’s Second Moon
* The Moons of Mars
* The 14th Moon of Jupiter
* Saturn’s Ninth and Tenth Moons
* Six Moons of Uranus
* Planet X
* Nemesis, the Sun’s companion star

Of course, this being Pulp all of these could be real!

http://www.nineplanets.org/hypo.html

[Captain Obvious]

What's up with all the prolificity tonight? Not that it's not interesting...just a Susano avalanche all at once.

[Lawnmower Boy]

Plus Counter-Earth. But it's a silly planet. We won't go there.

[Susano]

What's up with all the prolificity tonight? Not that it's not interesting...just a Susano avalanche all at once.

I finally had some free time.

[BobGreenwade]

I finally had some free time.I was kind of wondering about that myself. :)

In any event, this information will certainly warrant some mention if there's a 6th-edition version of Star Hero. :thumbup:

[Vestnik]

Don't forget Yuggoth.

[FenrisUlf]

Of course, this being Pulp all of these could be real!

http://www.nineplanets.org/hypo.html

Ken Hite has a lengthy article on all of this in the second Suppressed Transmissions. And for real pulp flavor, you could do worse than to read David Hatcher Childress' book Extraterrestrial Archaeology. Grand weirdness all!

[Captain Obvious]

Don't forget Yuggoth.

Yuggoth is Pluto.



I just hope the Mi-Go aren't too upset about their home being downgraded. If they are, they should be showing up in the next few months...travel time, you know.

[st barbara]

Don't forget Pluto and Charon ! In an early (pre 1930) "pulp" campaign Pluto is only theoretical and Charon is unknown until WELL after the Pulp era.

[st barbara]

A Horbingeresque "ice moon" orbiting earth (especially for the nazi's to play on) is always fun !;)

[McCoy]

There is also Tiamat, the hypothetical pre-asteroid planet, and Orpheus, the rogue that struck proto-earth hard enough to knock off a moon-sized chunk.

[BobGreenwade]

I just hope the Mi-Go aren't too upset about their home being downgraded. If they are, they should be showing up in the next few months...travel time, you know.No doubt they'll start by attacking the corporate headquarters of Verizon Wireless (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verizon_Wireless_Migo). ;)

[BcAugust]

There is also Tiamat, the hypothetical pre-asteroid planet, and Orpheus, the rogue that struck proto-earth hard enough to knock off a moon-sized chunk.

Huh, bizzare. I've always heard the planet that was the prototype of the Moon called Thetis(Which fits much better, being the Titan mother of the Moon). You're only the second source I've seen of it called Orpheus. Where did you hear that?

[tkdguy]

Yuggoth is Pluto.



I just hope the Mi-Go aren't too upset about their home being downgraded. If they are, they should be showing up in the next few months...travel time, you know.
Don't worry. If I ever encounter a Mi-go, I'll run it down with my Yu-go. :winkgrin:

[McCoy]

Huh, bizzare. I've always heard the planet that was the prototype of the Moon called Thetis(Which fits much better, being the Titan mother of the Moon). You're only the second source I've seen of it called Orpheus. Where did you hear that?
Good question. Almost certainly had to be Discover or Scientific American, as that's where I get some 90% of my scientific reporting. The Wikipedia entry on the Giant impact hypothesis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_impact_hypothesis) gives Theia as the preferred name, with Orpheus or Hephaestus as variants, but does not give a cite.

Googling Orpheus and moon brings up several references to the Orpheus Mining Colony on Luna in the Star Trek Expanded Universe.

Agree Thetis does fit better.

What was the other source?

[Vestnik]

I thought Yuggoth was just inspired by the discovery of Pluto?

[BcAugust]

Good question. Almost certainly had to be Discover or Scientific American, as that's where I get some 90% of my scientific reporting. The Wikipedia entry on the Giant impact hypothesis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_impact_hypothesis) gives Theia as the preferred name, with Orpheus or Hephaestus as variants, but does not give a cite.

Googling Orpheus and moon brings up several references to the Orpheus Mining Colony on Luna in the Star Trek Expanded Universe.

Agree Thetis does fit better.

What was the other source?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyOyH9u4AdI

Actually, I find that whole album a lot of fun, but the song threw me. Admittedly, there's an interesting idea in there for a space game.

[McCoy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyOyH9u4AdI

Actually, I find that whole album a lot of fun, but the song threw me. Admittedly, there's an interesting idea in there for a space game.
Humm, in the closing credits they cited Rare Earth as an influence. Unfortunately, I do own Rare Earth, I'll have to check and see if they call the rogue Orpheus there.

[Captain Obvious]

I thought Yuggoth was just inspired by the discovery of Pluto?

I'm pretty sure Lovecraft wrote about Yuggoth before Pluto was actually discovered. Although they probably knew it was there, due to gravitational perturbations on Neptune, but hadn't actually seen it.

Lemme research...

EDIT: Nope, you're right. Pluto was discovered in 1930, and "The Whisperer in Darkness" came out in 1931.

[Susano]

Pluto is 1930... when was Fungi From Yuggoth?

[McCoy]

Pluto is 1930... when was Fungi From Yuggoth?
Looks like 1929. But yes, it was suspected that "Planet X" existed before Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto. Re-examining some photographic plates, Percival Lowell had actually photographed Pluto before his death in 1916 but failed to recognize his long-sought Planet X when he saw it.

Ironically, Voyager 2's 1989 flyby of Neptune proved that astronomers had overestimated the mass of Neptune by one half of one per cent. With the corrected figure plugged in the discrepencies in Uranus' orbit that had lead to the search for Planet X disappeared. Lowell had been searching a very large cellar for a black cat that wasn't there. Tombaugh found it.

[Cancer]

Tombaugh was such a gifted observer that it wasn't for almost 70 years that the next Kuiper Belt object was discovered, using much more advanced techniques than he had.

[Vestnik]

Looks like 1929. But yes, it was suspected that "Planet X" existed before Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto. Re-examining some photographic plates, Percival Lowell had actually photographed Pluto before his death in 1916 but failed to recognize his long-sought Planet X when he saw it.

I checked my annotated Lovecraft, and it seems that HPL joked with friends after the discovery of Pluto that "they have discovered Yuggoth!" It's in a letter to Bloch or somebody.