Kernim System

Kernim System

The Kernim System is a planetary system located in the Nova Kirbani System. It is centered around a red dwarf star with spectral type M6V. The system hosts five planets and one moon, as well as an asteroid belt.

## List of Bodies

### **Kernim**

* **Dalne**
* **Erel**
* **Iain**
* **Narath**
* **Dunem**
	+ Um

## History

The Kernim System is the second oldest in the Nova Kirbani System, with an age of about 4.85 billion years. It is likely the Kernim System formed separately from the other 2 systems. A few billion years ago, likely after Kelin's capture, Kernim was captured into the Nova Kirbani System. Due to its farther distance from Kirb compared to Kelin, it is likely that Kernim suffered far less severe changes in its system. Because of this, the system is probably as stable as it was before the capture.

Like any other star system in KSS, the Kernim System began as a slowly collapsing disk of dust and gas. Because Kernim is a red dwarf star, the first billion years of the Kernim System's history was spent in the protostar stage as the star slowly accumulated mass and fuel. It is thought that the Kernim System began with the same number of planets as it contains today, but they were drastically different at the time of their formation. Dalne and Erel once had thick atmospheres filled with plenty of volatile elements, Iain was a fully-fledged gas giant (albeit a very small one), and Narath was an ocean world home to unicellular organisms (which gave rise to the red and black algae on Narath today). However, things rapidly changed within the first billion years of Kernim's history. Extensive solar activity combined with close orbits caused every planet to lose large chunks of atmosphere and volatiles to space. Dalne and Erel lost almost all of their atmospheres, Iain became a gas dwarf, and Narath's super-kerbin atmosphere was slimmed down, carrying a good portion of its water with it. Tidal locking also took place rapidly after the formation of the star system within two billion years for Dalne and Erel, and three billion for Iain and Narath. The loss of rotation also meant the loss of potential past moons of Iain and Narath (the moons would have experienced degrading orbits due to negative tidal forces resulting from lack of rotation) and the lock-up of most Narath's water in a permanent nightside ice cap. Sometime around 500 million years ago, Narath's continents arranged themselves into the one supercontinent we see today, and the first multicellular life appeared in its oceans. 300 million years ago, the first plant-like organisms branched off from the animals, and creatures began to populate the surface. The planet has been teeming with life since. The only planet in the Kernim System that hasn't changed much since its formation is Dunem, the only one that still has not been tidally locked and retains its own moon. The forces of gravity are relentless, however. Given the extreme longevity of red dwarf stars, it is safe to say that Dunem will eventually become tidally locked within the lifetime of Kernim and lose its moon, Um, to tidal forces.

## Properties

The Kernim System is one of the smaller systems near Kerbol. It is one of the most famous systems, mostly because it is the nearest star system to Kerbol. It is also unique because it has managed to keep an asteroid belt, something not usually found around a red dwarf, as the debris is either ejected or it condenses into a planet. It is also unique because it is one of the few red dwarf systems that is still host to a moon, Um.

## Habitable Worlds

The Kernim System contains only one habitable world and one organic world. Narath is the only planet that resides in the habitable zone.

* Narath (Subhabitable)
* Dunem (Organic)

## Trivia

* The Kernim System is the least changed star system in KSS.