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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Aexalon" data-source="post: 3581815" data-attributes="member: 16283">So, 0.7 AU from Alpha Centauri B ... that varies the intensity of Alpha Centauri A between 4.6 and 7.3 magnitudes lower than the "sun", and the energy input when closest is some 1.2% higher then when furthest. I have no idea how bright street lights are (not on a scientific level, I mean), but 1.2% of variation over an 80y period is going to have some climatological effects (to compare, since the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maunder_minimum" target="_blank">Maunder Minimum</a> in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Ice_Age" target="_blank">Little Ice Age</a> some 300y ago, physicists estimate the increase in solar output between 0.1 and 0.6%).Magnetically, Garden is entirely dependant on the gas giant it orbits. In keeping with the Jupiter analogy (which has a vast magnetic field with a strength of at least 10 times that of Earth), I'm far more worried about radiation coming from the planet, than about radiation coming from any of the system's stars. So, while I don't need the Worldtree to deal with the stars, I probably do need it to deal with the planet.As stated above, since this is not a hard sci-fi project, we're capable of fielding spelljammer physics, where each of these small worldlets nevertheless maintains reasonably strong gravitational fields (varying between 0.5g and 1.5g) on their own, with an abrupt cut-of point some 5km above the surface of the worldlets. The worldlets share a common atmospheric envelope, but due to the dimensionally fractured nature, atmospheric attenuation is comparable to that of Earth.The basic timekeeping premise is 60 seconds per minute, 60 minutes per hour, 60 hours per day, and 60 days per year. We could go into details about the siderial and synodical periods of the various components, but only the latter are apparent to the inhabitants (so what if Garden orbits the planet siderially 61 times per year ... synodically that's 60 times, presuming everything spins the same way around). So far I've remained aware that the match between the day/night cycle and the planet's phases is entirely dependant on the longitude of the observer on an individual worldlet, and that the planet's phases make for an excellent Garden-wide timekeeping tool (as opposed to the solar cycle), greatly facilitating navigation on the side facing the planet.</blockquote>

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