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Loco has dry, comfortable winters followed by a brief, warm and rainy spring with daily afternoon thunderstorms and downpours (ALL of its precipitation comes during this time frame) and then the HOTTEST summers (hotter than anything recorded on earth before) and early falls you can ever imagine followed by just regular "hot" weather in late fall and a finally a return to comfortable weather again in winter.
Fou is what I'd imagine inland Antarctica to look like if there was a valley going down to sea level in the midst of the 10,000 feet plateau. It has extremely brutally cold winters, even colder than the real Vostok BUT it also has a thaw with comfortable warm and dry weather every summer. All the precipitation falls in spring as snow in a 2 month window creating a snowpack that melts in the short summer that follows meaning that this is officially a "tundra" rather than an icecap climate, even though the winter temperatures get colder than anything ever recorded before.
One thing- you'd be living inside domed communities in both with all the amenities provided for, but in Loco's summers, you'd be able to get into your car in your air conditioned garage and drive into air conditioned malls where you'd park in their air conditioned garage and move around in the community that way. Being outside for more than a few minutes during the day in summer is deadly though so you'd have to stick to the great indoors for half of the year. In Fou, it's so cold that cars CAN'T be driven outside in winter and neither can flights get in and out. All fuels freeze instantly as in the real Antarctica. You'd still be able able to go outside very briefly wearing protective gear, but wouldn't be able to venture very far from the base without risking severe frostbite and death from cold. Also don't forget the 6 months of total darkness.
Both communities receive 90 percent of all the possible sunshine during their "comfortable" period as all the clouds and rain come during their 2 month precipitation window. Loco's summers are completely cloud free with 100 percent of sunshine and humidity levels in the single digits. Fou also gets 24 hours of daylight during 6 months of the year so there are blackout shades on every window to insure a good night's sleep.
Last edited by AdriannaSmiling; 06-02-2013 at 02:54 PM..
I'm an extreme heat-hater but I'd still pick Loco for the freedom to move around in the community in the air conditioned cars/garages/buildings. Fou would be too confining and dark in the winter as there would be "no way out" as in real bases in the South Pole.
Fou. There is reasonable conditions 5 months of the year, 2 months in Loco. The snowfall stats in Fou however are unrealistic. If snow was falling at that low of a temperature, snow to water ratio would be 75:1 or even greater. I could expect about 225 inches of extremely dry, powdery snow in September. Maybe more. Next time you make fictional climates, take into account the temperature when the snow is falling. If the temperature is 0F, the snow to water ratio would probably 25:1, maybe up to 30:1. If the temperature is, say 33-34F, the ratio would be about 6:1, because the snow is so wet.
Fou. There is reasonable conditions 5 months of the year, 2 months in Loco. The snowfall stats in Fou however are unrealistic. If snow was falling at that low of a temperature, snow to water ratio would be 75:1 or even greater. I could expect about 225 inches of extremely dry, powdery snow in September. Maybe more. Next time you make fictional climates, take into account the temperature when the snow is falling. If the temperature is 0F, the snow to water ratio would probably 25:1, maybe up to 30:1. If the temperature is, say 33-34F, the ratio would be about 6:1, because the snow is so wet.
Thanks for the tip- I have limited experience with snow so only know about the 10:1 conversion and NOT the differences that the temperature creates in this rate. I was thinking of making the snow fall in early fall and creating a long snowpack but then moved it to mid-spring so that it would melt in the summer thaw that followed. That way, there would be a long, brutually horrific cold winter but not much snow to enjoy- more horrible "dry ice" I guess...
I don't think I could survive in either year round without an Environmental Suit...
You would be in your domed community which would have all the necessities inside (food cooked onsite, some entertainment, your workspace office, etc.) so no need to go outside but I'm assuming you'd want to step out on occasion. Which community would offer you the larger percentage of the year where you can go outside comfortably. In the height of winter in Fou and the height of summer in Loco, it's out of question. However, during the shoulder seasons, it differs from person to person.
You would be in your domed community which would have all the necessities inside (food cooked onsite, some entertainment, your workspace office, etc.) so no need to go outside but I'm assuming you'd want to step out on occasion. Which community would offer you the larger percentage of the year where you can go outside comfortably. In the height of winter in Fou and the height of summer in Loco, it's out of question. However, during the shoulder seasons, it differs from person to person.
I think I'll go with Loco then as there are 6 months I could go outside without an Environmental Suit. Even in Fou, the record lows are really cold in the most comfortable time of year, so there is a chance it would not be very pleasant even then.
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