Sulph

Sulph

(1.478 x Mun)

**Sulph** is the second and most exotic moon of the Mirn System. Unlike moons like Laho or Taythe, Sulph's seas and oceans are comprised of water mixed with sulfuric acid rather than water or methane.

## In-game Description

"*As one of the two moons of Mirn that exhibit liquid oceans and river systems, Sulph has always been an interesting destination for successful space programs. However, unlike it’s sister moon Taythe, Sulph’s oceans are not made up of water but instead liquid sulphur compounds originating from beneath the moon’s crust. It may be possible for exotic and alternatively based life to exist here, but that is still a subject of great debate and controversy among the scientific community. It is advised that Kerbonauts should not take off their helmets at the surface of the moon due to the strong odor of sulfur, which may cause a loss of appetite."*

## Physical Characteristics

Sulphs is a rare exotic moon with a surface driven by sulfuric acid rather than water. As a result, it has an extremely yellow appearance, leading to some scientists referring to it as a "big yellow balloon". Sulph's surface is coated in sulfur compounds, to the extent that the seas are made of sulfuric acid. Its temperature is at a good spot to where it can allow a "sulfur cycle" rather than a water cycle. As a result there are clouds loaded with sulfuric acid, similar to the haze on Eve. As a result it will rain acid on most of the surface, so any crafts on Sulph will have to be prepared to melt, or just make expeditions very short.

The surface of Sulph is covered in sulfur-based compounds. It has an active surface similar to Kerbin, with seas, lakes and even rivers of sulfuric acid. It's been reported that there is water diluted in the seas and some rivers, as well. The surface is a brownish-yellow, mostly silicates combined with the large sulfur deposits on the surface. The surface is mostly flat plains, but there are mountainous regions dotted around, likely from volcanic activity.

One of Sulph's major features is its intense floodplains, which are caused by tides on Mirn. Mirn has such a tidal effect on Sulph's seas that it will flood entire regions, making them very flat and prone to erosion.

## Atmosphere

For a moon of this size, Sulph has a thick atmosphere being 1.55 times as dense as the atmosphere of Kerbin and it's composed out of a rich variety of gases, but the three most notable gases scientists have detected is nitrogen (N2), oxygen (O2) and sulfuric acid (H2SO4). Scientists believe that the oxygen could be a result of some sort of anaerobic process, but they also haven't ruled out the possibility of life. There are also trace amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and other gases. Sulph experiences weather just like on Kerbin, where it rains and snows sulfuric acid.

## Possibilities of Life

Sulph has been stated to be possible to harbor sulfur-based life on the surface. The original hypothesis for sulfur based life was replacing oxygen atoms with sulfur atoms. However, the hypothesis was quickly debunked because CS2, the replacement for CO2, would end up being a liquid, and S2 (replacing O2) would become a solid, making respiration somewhat of a challenge, not including more complex biological processes requiring oxygen.

However, an alternate, more efficient form of chemistry replaces water with sulfuric acid, what the oceans are made of. In this case, animals would breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide, just like life on Kerbin. In this case, life would be much more possible, as it just replaces water with sulfuric acid as a solvent. Plants would use sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) to produce thioacetic acid (CH3COSH), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and oxygen (O2) using the following balanced equation below:

4 H2SO4 + 4 CO2 + energy → 2 C2H4OS + 2 SO2 + 9 O2.
Animals would use a similar equation, breathing in O2 and breathing out CO2, while drinking sulfuric acid.

As of right now, the leading theory is that if life exists on Sulph, it would have arrived by panspermia from Taythe, which has plentiful ecosystems on the surface. Because of the different chemistry of Sulph, it is likely that any life that could have survived on the surface would take a long time to develop. Scientists have already ruled out the possibilities of lush ecosystems after realizing that the surface is barren. It is likely any life on the surface would either consist of hardy bacteria and small plants, having just gained the ability to thrive off of the seas. Ocean life is questionable because of the concern of sulfuric acid burning through any organisms, but if land life can survive ocean life should too.

## Biomes

Sulph has 10 biomes:

* Sulphidic Acid Seas
* Sulphidic Acid Rivers
* Sulphidic Acid Lakes
* Flood basins
* Lowlands
* Midlands
* Highlands
* Volcanic mountains
* Shores
* Polar Terrain