Re: equinox

Pablo Flores wrote:
> I once began to think, just as an exercise, about how the seasons would go
> on in a planet with two or more suns. The idea is fascinating in the field
> of language too -- how would call the Sun(s)?
Most likely there'd be one major sun, and one or more minor ones.  For
example, my conlang is spoken on a planet orbitting Alpha Centauri A.
Alpha Centauri B contributes very little in the way of heat or light,
tho there'd be enough light to probably hide all the stars at its
perstellon (closest approach).  Seasons (temperature-wise) wouldn't be
much affected.  However, it could be used for a calendar of some sort.
My conculture has a very holy day on the Day of No Night, when B rises
at the same time that A sets.  The Humans named the planets and suns on
a Norse motiff, just as our planets are a Roman motiff.  The suns are
Odin (A) and Frigga (B).  There's a third sun, but its a red dwarf that
is so far off that its magnitude would be 4, that is, a dim star!
Anyways, I don't know what that would be called.  Now, the divisions of
the day (I don't have words for them yet, so I'll use English)
1. Odin-Day: Only Odin is in the sky (Odin-rise begins the day)
2. All-Day: Both suns are in the sky
3. Frigga-Day: Only Frigga is in the sky
4. Night: There is no sun in the sky

Starting with the Day of No Night, one set of seasons is thus (there are
three sets of seasons):
1.  Odin rises with Frigga already in the sky (2-1-4-3), night and
all-day lengthen
2.  Same order, night and all-day combined are longer than Odin-Day and
Frigga-Day combined
Day of Two Suns - when both suns rise at the same time
3.  Odin rises with Frigga not in the sky (1-2-3-4), night and all-day
shorten
4.  Same order, night and all-day combined are shorter than Odin-Day and
Frigga-Day combined

Thus this set of seasons is based on the order of the four sections and
the relative length of the sections.

The other two sets are basically the same as our seasons, one is based
on Odin's time in the sky (just as ours are based on the Sun's length in
the sky), and the other is based on Frigga's time in the sky.

There are also three moons, the second of which is used for
time-keeping, just over twenty-four cycles to a year.

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