No Man's Land (planet)

The name or term "No Man's Land" refers to more than one concept. For a list of other uses, see No Man's Land (disambiguation).

No Man's Land is the planet that the story of Trigun takes place on. The name is only used in the manga and Stampede continuities. The planet is unnamed in the 1998 anime continuity, though due to a misunderstanding is often called "Gunsmoke".

Characteristics

No Man's Land is a large, rocky planet with a solid surface. It has at least five prominent natural satellites in orbit around it, and so could reasonably be assumed to be somewhat larger than Earth (perhaps a super-Earth). It is in a circumbinary orbit around a binary star system, as evidenced by the two suns (or stars) present in its sky during the "daylight" portion of the planet's rotation. Its rotation can be assumed to be similar to that of Earth, with a 24-hour day/night cycle. However, it is unknown how long one revolution of the planet is: though characters and locations do make reference to the names of Earthly months, it's unknown if there are any additional months in the calendar year.

Atmosphere & Climate

The atmospheric composition can be assumed to be similar to Earth's, based on the way characters are able to do things like start fires, use guns, and breathe without apparatus/go outside unprotected. The source of all of the free oxygen is a mystery, however, as the planet does not have any large, plankton-containing surface oceans the way Earth does. In fact, No Man's Land is almost entirely a desert planet consisting of sand, rock, and little else. There is evidence of underground water sources such as aquifers, as many towns in the series are able to drop wells successfully.TRUTH OF MISTAKEUNDER THE SKY SO BLUE Though there is little surface water at the time of the Trigun series, the underground aquifers suggest that perhaps sometime in the past, the planet was wetter and only dried recently (in geologic time).

Due to the lack of surface water, the climate of No Man's Land is very dry, much like the Sahara Desert or the southwestern United States on Earth. Humidity and rain are practically non-existent, though at times it can become very windy. Sand storms are relatively common and can form storm systems akin to hurricanes or typhoons on Earth.HANG FIRE The temperature is high during the day and low at night without much water to regulate it. It is unknown if No Man's Land has official "seasons", as nothing has been said or shown in the series (yet). It is also unknown if there are different climate zones or if there is ice at the planet's poles.

Geology

Trigun Stampede appears to show a planetary surface that has landmasses similar to continents surrounded by a sand "ocean". There are many canyons and crevices spread across the rocky continents, likely carved by the actions of sand and wind. Tall, jagged, rocky scarps and spires are common, though it isn't known if there are any mountain ranges akin to those on Earth (the series has not depicted anything like plate tectonics yet). The sand "ocean" is simply a large, miles-deep area of relatively loose sand. It is still solid enough at its surface to be traversed by animals, cars, trucks, or other special craft built for that purpose.

Mineralogically, the planet is mostly composed of quartzREM SAVEREM, and probably contains a mantle and a core similar to those of other known terrestrial planets. It is probably safe to assume that it contains deposits of things like iron and nickel as well, though the series never officially states this. It is unknown if the planet contains any petroleum deposits, though it's not completely unlikely.

Flora & Fauna

See also: Animals

No Man's Land appears to utterly lack any native vegetation of its own, as evidenced by the fact that Meryl did not recognize things like flowers and trees when she was presented with them in Stampede. However, the 1998 series shows that the soil can be made to grow vegetation with effort, either by traditional methodsLOVE&PEACE or with the help of a geoplant.LITTLE ARCADIA

There are a number of notable creatures, or fauna, on No Man's Land, but the most notable are the worms. Although they only appear in one episode of the 1998 series, they have a much more prominent role in Stampede. Apparently, the worms have evolved to fill almost every niche on the planet and form most, if not all, of its ecosystem. There are microscopic species at the bottom of this ecosystem that perform photosynthesis, and this is likely the main source of the planet's free oxygen (at least in Stampede).

There are also the toma/thomases, which are strange birdlike creatures used as pack and draft animals by the humans who've come to inhabit the planet. The 1998 series gives them claws, while the original manga gives them hooves. Stampede goes in its own direction by making them look like blue emus.

All three series also suggest or imply that humans have brought their own plants and animals with them as well, which would make logical sense from the perspective of terraforming.

Cities & Culture

See also: Locations (anime) and Places (manga)

The humans who originally crash-landed onto No Man's Land founded many settlements. The biggest of these settlements arose around the ruins of crashed colony ships that hadn't been too badly damaged in The Fall. There are seven large cities dotting the desert plain, each named after a month of the year: May, July, Augusta, September, Octovern, November, and December. The 1998 anime only makes mention of four of them, while Stampede has only developed lore for three of them at this point (Studio Orange twitter).

In addition to the seven major cities, there are also numerous other small settlements and towns such as Jeneora Rock. A settlement is usually built around a Plant or two, as the human population of No Man's Land has become almost entirely reliant on them to bolster the meager living that they are able to eke out. If a settlement is not built around a Plant, then it is likely built at the crossroads between trade routes or on the "coast" so that it has access to sand steamer visits.

Culturally, the people of the planet draw much from the American Old West, including styles of architecture and clothing.