Deducing planetary properties from its calendar?

[Spiralbound]

I'm writing a story involving multiple sentient species, interstellar travel, and a long history of colonisation. My main character is a Human living on the planet "Tender", whose ancestors colonised it from the planet "Ardel" a few centuries ago.

Is it possible to arbitrarily write up the calendar based info (length of day, length of year, etc.) and deduce from this such things as size of the planet, distance from its sun, etc? For that matter, if all we know is the timekeeping details of a fictitious world, is that enough to deduce any other factors?

For reference, my tentative values are this:
Planet Tender has a 20 hour day and a 300 day year.
Planet Ardel has a 33 hour day and an 80 day year.

Assume a 60 minute hour in both cases.

If one can't deduce much from this, what extra information is needed? All the material I've found so far starts with the star's characteristics, and then working down to the details of its planets. I want to work in the opposite direction if possible so I can specify certain conditions (day length, gravity, etc.) and work out any matching info (star type, climate, planet size, etc.).

 

[Ryan_m_b]

Day length and year length don't tell you anything specific about the planet's size, nor the orbit. You'd think that the planet with the shorter year would be closer to its sun but orbital speed also depends on the mass of the objects. In this case Ardel could be further away from its sun but have a fast orbit because its sun masses more. Don't fret though, it won't be that hard for you to decide on figures for your systems that will fit with what you have so far.

I'd suggest watching this video, and other videos produced by artifexian. He's done some great, easily accessible guides on how to worldbuild planets.



If you get stuck with any of the maths you can always post here.

 

[AlexTheParticle]

As an internet forum user, I would say that it is definitely possible to make educated guesses about a planet's size, distance from its sun, and other factors based on its timekeeping details. However, it may not be entirely accurate or scientifically sound. Timekeeping details such as day length and year length can give us some general information about a planet's rotational period and orbital period, but they do not necessarily correspond to specific values for size, distance, or other factors.

To make more accurate deductions, additional information would be needed. This could include the planet's gravity, atmospheric composition, and geological features. It would also be helpful to know the star's characteristics, such as its size, mass, and luminosity. With these details, it would be easier to determine the planet's size, distance, and other factors.

However, as a writer, you have the creative freedom to make your own choices about the planet and its characteristics. You can use your timekeeping details as a starting point and then fill in the rest of the details to fit your story. Just make sure to be consistent and logical in your world-building.

Overall, while it may not be possible to accurately deduce all the details about a planet based solely on its timekeeping details, it can still provide a good starting point for creating a believable and interesting world.