Carolia

A slower-than-light ship first probed and colonized the planet in the late 23rd Century by old reckoning, after a long journey taking it from system to system through that region of space. Carolia is named after the binary star system it was found in, Cor Caroli.
The planet offered the colonists a garden paradise, easily nudged to earth-like perfection with minimal terraforming.

Geography

The binary stars have an interesting effect on the seasons. During summer, both stars are up during the day, though α¹ Canum Venaticorum is barely visible near α² Canum Venaticorum. Though sometimes at sunrise, or sunset α¹ Canum Venaticorum can bee seen on it's own when it's companion is below the horizon.
During the winter months, Carolia is between the two stars. Due to the gravitational field of α¹ Canum Venaticorum the planet gets pulled a little bit further from it's host star. The companion star is very bright when Carolia is between the two stars, nearly 4 times brighter than Earths moon. Though the other star is much smaller in the sky. This produces warmer nights, and helps provide additional nutrients for the plants that grow here. This helps contribute to why they are so much different than plants on earth.

Fauna & Flora

The white-blue star that Carolia orbits is part of a binary pair. The increased light energy, especially in the UV spectrum, makes the plants on Carolia different compared to plants found on Earth.
The leaves are thicker and are also a darker green than most Earth-plants. The stems are tougher, and very flexible, rarely breaking unless the surface has been somehow damaged. Trees as high as 150 to 200 feet can be common, and coniferous trees, commonly called "evergreen" trees, are rare due to the binary stars. The deciduous trees don't often lose their leaves due to the amount of light they continue to get, even during winter months.

History

Settled in the late 23rd century by humans from earth, the fledgling Carolians adopted strong, worldwide democratic traditions that they have maintained with only minor interruptions over the intervening 600 years.

Type

Planet

Location under

Cor Caroli

Inhabiting Species

• Carolians

Climate

The climate is quite warm due to the binary stars. Summer daytime temperatures average in the high 20's Celsius. Winter overnight lows are often in the low single-digits. Only dipping below freezing a few nights a year. Snow tends to only last for a few days each time it falls, but will fall a few times each month during the winter.