Auphelia

Overview

Template:!World Infobox Auphelia is a semi-arid desert planet located in the northern Inner region of the Paleas Arm, Florathel. The planet is The planet is home to a variety of arachnid and avian species. The climate is hot and dry, with little rainfall. Auphelia is orbited by a single moon called Taral.

Environment

Auphelia's environment is very hostile to numerous life-forms. The planet's high temperatures and lack of natural precipitation makes it difficult for humans and crops to survive for extended periods of time. With the planet's unforgiving climate, combined with its large sprawling deserts, most major cities have been established near its oceans. It is the only place where rainfall and moderate temperatures can be found. Various large and smaller unincorporated settlements are also located inland, where oases provide the only source of water for miles. These oases are vital to the survival of any life on Auphelia, and are heavily guarded by the settlements that live nearby. Traveling between settlements is dangerous, and often requires special equipment and vehicles to cross the desert.

Cities

Titan Coast

The planet's capital, Titan Coast, or officially the Capital City of Titan Coast has been constructed around the Thetyus Ocean. The city itself spans five hundred miles along the coast and inland for fifty more. It is a bustling eperopolis with over 8.5 billion people calling it home. Most of its residents live in high rise buildings along the water's edge or on floating residences that bob on top of the waves like giant lily pads . It also boasts one of the largest ports in all of Minbar, which allows ships to travel up and down its length with ease, taking advantage of trade routes along its shores. There are several other major cities similar to The Hedge, dotted across the Auphelian continent, but none come close to matching its size or population density.

Ahketun

Officially known as the Ahketun Eperopolis (AEP), or Ahketun for short, is the second major city of Auphelia, and home to 6.85 billion people, the city is one of the largest trade ports of Auphelia, and the only one with a major spaceport in the centre of its metropolitan area. The city is located on the eastern coast of Auphelian continent, the city also receives a moderate amount of rainfall annually.

The city also hosts numerous large number of regional businesses, financial institutions and major galactic corporations, as well as the Auphelian Stock Exchange. The city is also home to a large number of immigrants across the Palean Arm, who come seeking work and opportunity.

The Ahketun Eperopolitan Spaceport Authority (AESPA) is located in the centre of the Ahketun metropolis, and is considered to be one of the busiest in the Palean Arm. The spaceport is measured to serve over 5.2 billion passengers monthly, and over 62.4 passengers annually.

Letes

Letes is the third largest major city of Auphelia, officially known as the Greater Letes Eperopolitan Area (GLEA), the city also neighbors Ahketun.

Natural Satellites

Auphelia only has one natural satellite; Taral, which orbits closest to Auphelia and thus appears larger in the night sky. Taral experiences tidal locking and has only one permanent side facing Auphelia. The day length on the light side of Taral matches that of Auphelia's (39 hours); however, the dark side experiences an eternal night which never ends. The two planets are also tidally locked to each other; so both planets will always face each other with their same sides, and neither planet ever rotates around its own axis. Many Auphelian natives refer to Taral as "the satellite" or simply "satellite". In some native languages, it is called by different names; in Valkari it is known as Umrao Leilé ("The Great Moon"), while in Ravaïtau it is referred to as Revuri Hulka ("The Night Planet"). The Kitrani name for Taral - Gosara Si'at- translates roughly into "mother star" or "star mother".