📖 Time Stories
Explore our collection of planetary time stories—science fiction vignettes that imagine what life might be like when time works very differently. From birthday parties on Mercury to careers on Jupiter, experience time across the solar system.
What Are Time Stories?
These are short, immersive stories that help you feel what it might be like to live where time works differently. Each story is grounded in real science but explores the human side— how relationships, work, celebrations, and daily life might change when days last months or years last centuries.
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The Birthday Party Paradox
Planning an 8-year-old's birthday party on Mercury becomes a mathematical and emotional journey when sunrise only comes every 176 Earth days.
The Long-Distance Relationship
A couple navigates love across planets as seasons drift out of sync and video calls become increasingly challenging to coordinate.
The School Year That Never Ends
An elementary school teacher spends 7.4 Earth years with the same first-grade class, exploring the gift of time in education.
The Communication Delay
Mission control deals with life-or-death decisions when every message to Neptune takes 4 hours each way.
The Historian's Perspective
A historian on Neptune explains how human civilization fits into seasonal cycles that last longer than most human lives.
Working Hours on Jupiter
A mining facility worker adapts to Jupiter's 10-hour days, experiencing multiple sunrises and work shifts in a single Earth day.
The Twin Experiment
Identical twins live on different planets for 10 years and discover they've experienced time very differently despite aging identically.
The Generation Ship Paradox
A generation ship uses Neptune's calendar for a 165-year journey, completing exactly one "year" when they arrive.
Retirement on Saturn
A 65-year-old retiree moves to Titan and experiences exactly one complete seasonal cycle in his lifetime.
The Missed Birthday
A researcher visiting Mercury for 6 months misses her Earth birthday as measured in Mercury years due to timing.
📚 Perfect for Education
These stories are designed to be educational tools. Each one includes accurate scientific information while exploring the human impact of planetary time differences. Great for classroom discussions, creative writing inspiration, or just satisfying your curiosity!