In the year 2490 the Class-AAA trade-freighter Lambda set off for a week-long voyage from Martian Spaceport to its destination: Ganymede (Jupiter III). The freighter carried a mammoth shipment of explosives, food and other sundries en route to a long-established mining colony on Ganymede. Lambda was mysteriously lost in transit, although it had made the journey at least a dozen times prior to its disappearance. Unsurprisingly, there was intense backlash from the Merchant's Guild of Mars which demanded to know the whereabouts of their vessel, lest mining activities cease on the mining colony, and by extension cause severe loss in profit for the Martian people. Greed is an excellent motivator and for the financially-struggling Martian colonies, a loss of one substantial shipment can mean starvation for many.
Upon the request of the Merchant's Guild and the Martian Spaceport, the financiers of the Lambda voyage demanded their shipment, along with their freighter, be retrieved and delivered to Ganymede by any means necessary. The commanders of the Spaceport hired a mock crew of rogue space-cowboys to do their bidding, in the hopes that they would be required to pay them a smaller sum of Credits than if they hired professionals. 3 weeks after the Lambda's departure, a second spaceship was sent out into deep space to rendezvous with the Lambda, wherever it may be, and you are one of the crew members aboard this second vessel.
[Known Locales In Our Solar System][Mercury:]
First planet from the sun, named after the Roman god of mercantilism, travel and trade.
Climate: Because it used to have almost no atmosphere to retain heat, Mercury's surface experiences the greatest temperature variation of all the planets, ranging from 100 K (−173 °C; −280 °F) at night to 700 K (427 °C; 800 °F) during the day at some equatorial regions. The poles are constantly below 180 K (−93 °C; −136 °F). Has a surprisingly strong magnetic-field for a large planet.
Atmosphere: Low-CO2 and Low-Oxygen. Strong Solar Winds are known to blow the Mercurian atmosphere away every 11 years, so spacesuits are still recommended, but not necessary if Atmosphorming has been activated.
Colonized: Year 2270
Colonies: 1, “Solaray Observatory“ (Monitors activity on the Sun and relays the information back to the other planets and colonies for highly accurate and updated weather information and patterns.)
[Venus:]
Inhospitable. Only suitable for machine-mining.
Climate: Extremely-High-Pressure, Hotter than Mercury, runaway Greenhouse Gas Effect, Acidic Clouds prevent most metals from passing through its atmosphere unscathed. Flat terrain with very little surface features.
Atmosphere: Extremely-High CO2, SO2 (Sulfur Dioxide), Sulfuric-Acid-Rain, No-Oxygen.
Colonized: Not colonizes, as far as we know.
Colonies: 1, Goddess Venus Plant (Sulfur-extraction Chemical Facility, all work is automated and done by machines comprised of Einsteinium-Uranium alloys.
[Earth Mk. II]:
Destroyed in 2240, Earth clings desperately onto its rich cultural past and as the birthplace of all humans, it was rebuilt sometime in 2280. The unofficial “religious capitol “of the Solar System, next to Calypso, which also enjoys a very pious presence. Most of those who live on Earth Mk. II practice a religious philosophy known as “Atlantism” of ancient Eastern (Hindu) and Western (Catholic) traditions. In 2190, a treasure trove of religious documents by the Marcionite Church (which was condemned as Heresy in 144 A.D. by the Catholic Church) were discovered in a cave in ancient Slavic territory. Many of these religious writings resonated with Earthlings after the destruction of their planet and so it became adopted in all of society.
Climate: Semi-Tropical, regular monsoons and annual flooding occurs on a world-wide scale. Human settlements are on high-altitude plateaus and steppes or in the mountains.
Atmosphere: High-CO2, High-Nitrogen, Moderate-Ozone, Moderate-Oxygen, various industrial solvents and gaseous plastics
Colonized: ~300,000 B.C.
Colonies: 140. Population: 12,000,000,000+
Capitol of Earth Mark II: New Bethlehem, formerly Mt. Everest.
Moons & Moon-Colonies: 1, Luna/Moon. 1 colony.
Moon/Luna
The Moon, known by many Earthlings as Luna, was the first outer-Earth colony and has always been viewed as somewhat of a prestigious and elitist locale. Many of Earth Mk. II and Mars's most wealthy reside on the small, brown-grey moon. Terraforming on the Moon was remarkably simple, and within a year of terraforming, an atmosphere had begun to appear. Even more remarkable, a small reservoir of pure ground-ice was discovered and as the small Earthling moon grew warmer and trapped in greenhouse gas, this ground-ice melted giving way to small rivers and lakes on the surface of the moon. The airy, porous soil on the moon proved to be a challenge for vegetation growth, and still today, wild animals do not roam anywhere on Luna, however, most vegetation and animals are imported from Mars, Titan and Earth Mk. 2.
Colonized: 2180
Colonies: 2, Luna-R (Helium-3 mining colony)
Luna-S (Residential area) Population: 80,000,000
[MARS:]
Named after the Roman God of War. The bulk of the human population in the Solar System is stationed on this planet.
Moons & Moon-Colonies: 2, Phobos and Deimos. 0 Moon Colonies.
Martian Colonies: Hundreds, with more popping up every few years. Population: 25,005,000,000
Colonized: 2195
Climate: Mars is approximately 53% the size of Earth Mk. II, but contains more than twice the population. Mars is temperate, leaning towards warmer. It is somewhat desert-like in that humidity on Mars is scarce, occurring mostly during Spring, the “rainy” season. There are only 3 seasons Winter, Spring and Summer. The hottest months are in June to September. Winter comes around October January, but snow is quite rare on Mars. It is more likely to be far windier in Martian Winter than it is colder. February to May are quite warm as well and bring the Spring rains, allowing vegetation and cattle to prosper freely on the Martian surface.
Atmosphere: Low-CO2, High-Ozone, High-Oxygen, Low-Nitrogen, various industrial gases.
[Jupiter:]
Gas-Giant, no solid surface to stand on, inhospitable.
Moons & Moon Colonies: 67, (4 Colonies on: Io/Jupiter I, Europa/Jupiter II, Ganymede/Jupiter III, Callisto/Jupiter IV)
Colonized: Jupiter not colonized, moons were colonized in 2321.
Colonies: 0, 4
GanymedeClimate: Ganymede has a core of metallic iron, which is followed by a layer of rock that is topped off by a thick crust of ice. Ganymede’s surface is made up of primarily two types of terrain—about 40 percent is dark with numerous craters and 60 percent is lighter in color has grooves that form intricate patterns to give the satellite its distinctive appearance. The grooves, which were likely formed as a result of tectonic activity or water being released from beneath the surface, are as high as 2,000 feet and stretch for thousands of miles. Only 2 seasons exist on Ganymede – Winter and Summer. Temperatures on Ganymede are temperate, with a short “winter” season occurring around July to September and pleasantly warm long summers from October to June.
Jupiter’s moon Ganymede/Jupiter III is the largest satellite in the solar system. Larger than Mercury and Pluto, and only slightly smaller than Mars, it would easily be classified as a planet if were orbiting the sun rather than Jupiter.
Atmosphere: Moderate-CO2, High-Oxygen, Low-Ozone
[Saturn:]
Large Rings comprised of ice and rock around the equator, Gas-Giant, no solid surface.
Extremely fast winds, pressurized gases of hydrogen, helium and ammonia.
Moons & Moon-Colonies: 63. Disputed # of moon colonies, Mainly on Titan.
Titan
Colonies: Titan/Saturn VI
Colonized: 2352 Population: 4,000,000,000
[i]Climate: Titan is 5,150 kilometres (3,200 mi) across, not counting the large, dense atmosphere. The weather is hot all year round. The entire moon of Titan has a slight sulfurous scent and walking on its surface without a spacesuit has been possible for sometime now, however many Titanites prefer to wear filtration-masks to mask the rotten egg smell of their world. Combustibles are FEDERALLY-FORBIDDEN on this highly-flammable moon. The smallest flame could ignite an area several dozens of kilometers wide. Terraforming Titan proved to be one of the most difficult projects known to humanity, but after 2 decades, the nitrogen was reduced to safe levels and ozone was established. The egg-smell was an unintended side-effect of Atmosphorming. Titan is also known for its famous Hot-Springs, and the tectonic activity on the planet provides enough internal heat to create vents where pressurized water is superheated, but doesn't evaporate.
Atmosphere: Extremely-high-Nitrogen. Moderate-Ozone, Low-Oxygen, Moderate-SO2.
[Uranus:]
Gas-Giant, no solid surface, inhospitable. High-pressure nitrogenous compounds and Ammonia-ice.
Moons: 27
Colonized: Not Colonized
Colonies: 0
[Neptune:]
Gas-Giant, no solid surface, inhospitable. High-pressure hydrogenous compounds and methane ice.
Moons & Moon-Colonies: 13 moons, 2 colonies.
Colonies: 1, Triton & 1, Nereid (Moons) Population: 800,000,000 and 100,000, respectively
[hider=Triton & Nereid]
The settlements on Triton and Nereid are Desalination-Colonies. Triton has a surface of mostly frozen nitrogen, a mostly water ice crust,an icy mantle and a substantial core of rock and metal.The core makes up two-thirds of its total mass. Triton has a mean density of 2.061 grams per cubic centimeter (0.0745 lb/cu in)and is composed of approximately 15–35% water ice. Nereid is the third-largest moon of Neptune. It has a highly eccentric orbit and is only about 110 miles/170 km across. It has an almost identical physical composition to Triton, except is much smaller. All Desalinated Water leaves the Neptunian EWSRsystem from the shuttle at Nereid. There are NO docking bays on Triton, only small shuttles which run in between Nereid-Triton run every half-hour.
[PLUTO:]
Once relegated to the inferior status of a “Dwarf Planet,” once highly radioactive ore was discovered just a few meters under the surface of Pluto, its status as a regular Planet was regained.
Climate:This frigid and unforgiving world is named after Pluto, the Greek god of the underworld. In addition, it was recently discovered that somehow, plant-like seeds and spores have made their way to the Plutonian system and have been detected in all of Pluto's satellites. How these plants survive the low-sunlight and low-temperatures of Pluto, has not been elucidated yet.
Atmosphere: Low-CO2, High-Ozone, High-Oxygen,
Moons & Moon Colonies: 5 Moons - Charon, Nyx, Styx, Cerberus and Hydra. 1 colony.
[i]Colonies: 1, Pluto, 1, Charon (Moon)
Population: 500,000,000 and 250,000, respectively.
[Techno-Logos:] A Word on TechnologySpace Travel: Space Travel has been routine since about 2180, but wasn't fully modernized until as late as 2200. Prior to 2200, spaceships were quite clunky and the voyages regularly took more than a year. Planning for year-long trips was a financial horror for all involved, and acquiring enough fuel to power such a long voyage is another challenge in and of itself. Prior to the advent of
Quad-Core Ionization Thrusters and
Hyperdrives, space travel could be compared to riding a thoroughbred horse at max speed versus riding a sports car at a leisurely speed. Current spaceships have a minimum speed of 500,000+ MPH/800,000+ KM/H, but depending on modifications done to the engine, acceleration and thrusters of a vessel, speeds of over 1,000,000 MPH/1,600,000 KM/H have been achieved. However, instability is more likely to occur the faster a ship is moving.
Hyperdrive: Finicky modules that allow for temporary NEAR-LIGHT-SPEED-TRAVEL (NLST). Class AAA and Class A ships are generally not equipped with Hyperdrives, due to instability. Class-A ships and escape pods generally have a Stasis Chamber for longer voyages, as opposed to a Hyperdrive. Only 1 Federal Class-AAA ship is equipped with a Hyperdrive in the known universe. However, Class-B ships always possess Hyperdrives. Do not even think about using the Hyperdrive without first receiving proper Navigation Charts from the nearest Astro-Input (simple wavelength relay system used for hyper-long-distance communication throughout space) unless you wish to collide your spaceship with the force of several Hiroshima bombs into an asteroid the size of your fingernail. When travelling in the vacuum of space, it's important to know when to speed up and when to put on the breaks, although traffic violations (fortunately) do not exist in the dark abyss. Most people follow Hyperdrive rules since their lives, and costly ships, depend on it.
-Atlantism (Religion): You didn't
actually believe that religion would ever disappear, did you? One of the most ancient technologies, religion in 2490 still holds many devout followers. However, much of the dogma and persecution of religion of yore has been stamped out or is considered antiquated and primitive – concepts such as racism, sexism and homophobia are a thing of the past, even among the most pious. The primary religion of the solar system is Atlantism, a mixture of Marcionite-Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Shamanism, Animism, and Christian influences. Atlanteans, as the followers are called, are currently highly worried with the pathos and general feeling of dread throughout the solar system. Atlanteans believe that a “divine force” gave rise to the laws of the universe, but that this deity-like being does not interfere in the lives of mortals. They see science and physical matter as direct evidence of this Creator.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gospel_of_Marcion
-Terraforming: Refers to the practice of creating an adequate climate and terrain for agriculture, vegetation, oxygen-production, cattle-herding/breeding, and human colonization. Usually this is done by pumping groundwater into the soil and planting low-oxygen plants, in combination with Fossil-Fuel-Factories, which produce CO2 and create premature, but adequate atmospheres and activate the process of Photosynthesis in low-oxygen plants.
-Atmosphorming: (Atmospheric-Terraforming.) Not all planets and moons have adequate oxygen or other gases vital to human respiratory systems, even
after the planetary body has been terraformed.. In such cases, additional Atmosphorming may be necessary to create an artificial atmosphere and reduce/eliminate the need for spacesuits.
-Mining Colony: Settlements devoted to extraction of ore and precious rocks, crystals and gems. Miners are contractually-obligated to live on a Mining Colony for about 12 months to 3 years in some cases.
-Desalination Colony: Colonies devoted to extraction of groundwater and surface-water from a planetary body, in addition to its shipment to all corners of the solar system. The biggest importers of water are Mars and Pluto.
-Class-AAA Ship: A ship measuring approximately 2 miles/3.2 Kilometers in length and about 0.5mil/0.8km in width. Most of these are used as Federal-Martian cargo ships to carry ore and other supplies. They are big, lumbering giants and can not travel as fast as Class-B ships, even if their cargo load is empty.
-Class-B Ship: A ship measuring approximately 1 mile/1.6 kilometers in length and about 0.25mil/0.4km in width. They are often used as military fighters to carry large numbers of infantry soldiers or, for the more wealthy, as single-person/single-family vessels. The Testament is a Class-B vessel.
-Class-A Ship: The most common method of space-transportation and the most humble, only large enough for 2 people max. Surprisingly agile and quick, they are also required by Space Law to contain a Stasis Chamber for long voyages. Have a tiny cargo load, but like all Class vessels, come with water purification systems and the bare essentials.
-Testament: Our beauty, the Testament, is a Class-B ship decked out with quad-ion thrusters capable of achieving a top speed of 603,000+ MPH/1,112,000+ KM/H. All Class-B and Class A ships are equipped with a Hyperdrive,
[MISSION BOARD]1. Lambda Locomotion
Relative Distance:
Mars <--> Ganymede: 334,400,000 Miles (535,040,000 Km) = 0.6 Martian Years, without Hyperdrive
Earth <--> Ganymede: 390,400,000 Miles (628,300,000 Km)
Objectives:
[X]-Take off from Martian Spaceport and fly Space-North towards Ganymedian Mining Colony
[_]-Retrieve the Lambda vessel and its cargo.
[_]-Deliver the cargo to Ganymede Mining Dock.
[_]-Return to Martian Spaceport with a slip from Ganymedian Mining-Overseer: Bradwallace Jones.
-PAY: [25,000 CREDITS] per crewmember remaining alive at end of Mission
More to be added...
Name/Alias:
Age: (18+)
Gender:
Occupation: Acting-Captain of the Testament, Sheriff of Martian Colony Delta-420
Origin: (Limited to our Solar System)
3 Strengths and Weaknesses:
Appearance: Photo/description