Ilve

Ilve and its moons, Cal and Sern

**Ilve** is the 3rd of the 5 planets orbiting Kirb. It is known as the largest habitable rocky planet so far discovered, with a whopping 3.87 times the gravity of Kerbin. Because of this, life has only just developed on land, and will likely not rise to the height, both literally and figuratively, of land life on Kerbin.

## In-game Description

"*The largest rocky planet to be ever classified as Kerbin-like, Ilve is a whopping 1.7 times the size of Kerbin, making any return trip from this planet very difficult. The high surface gravity means that most multicellular organisms except small moss-like plants and tiny creatures cannot live on dry land. However, life is abundant and plentiful in the seas, making this place a great place to colonize as long as the kerbonauts are fine with all the gravioli."*

## Physical Characteristics

From a distance, Ilve appears like Kerbin but without land life. However, the habitability is pretty much the only thing this planet has in common with Kerbin.

Ilve's surface is mostly covered in deserts dotted with patches of lichens and small animals. The seas are mostly locked and surrounded by land, the reverse of Kerbin.

## Atmosphere & Climate

The climate on Ilve is constantly chaotic like that of early Kerbin. This is because of the near lack of plant life on the surface stabilizing the climate.

The climate Ilve has is primarily controlled by the large seas and dense cloud bands on the planet. The bands block out a lot of sunlight reaching the surface, creating lower temperatures more suitable for kerbals.

Another aspect of Ilve is the high amounts of clouds covering much of the surface. Scientists point this to a possible fact that Ilve is becoming a more inhospitable world and will turn into a more Eve-like world in the future. However, many scientists agree Ilve will continue to be habitable for a few hundred million years.

## Life

Ilve's massive size is the main driving force for life to stay away from the surface. If Ilve ever develops complex life on land comparable to Kerbin, plants will be significantly shorter. It would also lead to a lack of flying creatures seen on Kerbin. Land life on Ilve would have to be very complicated for survival.

There is life on the land of Ilve, despite all the gravity that presses against it. Most of the plant life is composed of hardy moss and lichens, but a few short bushes and trees have been observed. The animal life on the surface is mostly composed of arthropods, like small bugs that feed on the lichen. There are a few species, however, with dense bones structured unlike bones of animals on Kerbin, and are proving to be very successful. Many creative kerbals are already making concepts of fully-fledged life on the surface with these big bones.

Ocean life on Ilve is thriving easily despite the massive surface gravity of Ilve. Because of Ilve's age, ocean life is almost as complex as that on Kerbin, composing mostly of bony fish-like organisms, with a few differences like the orientation of their tails. There are a lot of species that will breed in the water, but lay their eggs on land. Some species even go as far as having the larvae be built to live on land, as there are few creatures that would prey on them, and return to the water after a metamorphosis.

Ilve lacks any flying organisms, and will likely not have any in the future.

## Moons

* Cal (Volcanic, Pol-like moon)
* Sern (Eve-like moon)

## Biomes

* Water
* Inland Water
* Shores
* Lowlands
* Midlands
* Highlands
* Mountains
* Polar Regions

## Trivia

* The fact that Ilve's landmasses are mostly uninhabited and that the oceans are relatively small means that Ilve is classified as "subhabitable" by the Kerbin Astronomical Society.
* Some scientists believe that Ilve might be slowly transforming into an Eve-like state due to the haze and lack of large oceans.
	+ This theory is unlikely, though, since Ilve is at a stable temperature. If it turns into a massive Eve-like world, it would not be for a couple billion years.