JOURNEY OF A COMMANDER PART 35
04 Apr 2024Ni6h70wl
24.06.3308 - Novara Expedition Day 274
The Novara reached the system Byeia Thoea CA-A d2 and thus the DSSA Carrier Andromeda Calling (JFH-GXB), the data that our ship had reached Star One had to be handed over. Nevertheless, all other exploration data must remain on the ship, as the plan is to make the data available to Li Yong-Rui and thus receive three times the amount. Over the past five days, I have had discussions with my first officer (and wife) and the rest of my crew about what we should do with the credits.
After a thorough calculation and the preparation of an initial prognosis, a sum in the lower two-digit billion range is expected. The decision was therefore made to invest the income in a mega ship of the Nautilus class, a so-called fleet carrier. We also considered which activity we should pursue after our return.
This question was answered on board the Fleet Carrier, through the faster subspace transmission I came into contact with the Prismatic Imperium, the faction of Her Royal Highness, Princess Aisling Duval. They are looking for more active supporters for the cause. I asked for time to think about it, because another group was asking for our help.
The Independent Explorers Association, or IEA for short, led by Richard Fluiraniz, contacted explorers and squadrons across the galaxy and asked for help in the search for a lost treasure.
The story went like this:
7 years ago, CMDR Kelly Eldridge discovered a remarkable find that everyone now knows about: the rare and elusive green gas giants. No one had ever seen anything like it before, and many CMDRs wondered in awe if there were more planets like it somewhere in the galaxy. Unfortunately, for reasons unknown, the discovery was lost to time, mainly because Kelly Eldridge herself perished in the brief but deadly Cerberus plague, which coincidentally took place immediately after her return on a badly battered ship that had no means of communication...
Throughout Elite's history, numerous expeditions and attempts have been made to discover this elusive planet. Most of them have been unsuccessful; however, we have come into possession of two crucial items that could make all the difference in the search for the gas giant:
A map of the region where CMDR Kelly Eldridge travelled before she returned to the Bubble and met her end. She is mainly located in the region now known as Vulcan's Gate.
A high-resolution photo of her discovery. With celestial object references, this image can make this search possible in the eye of the experienced explorer.
However, compared to previous efforts, Richard Fluiraniz brought together many experienced explorers from across the galaxy who have proven themselves worthy of this task on the Magellan Experience and survived to tell about it.
This will be a concentrated regional expedition with no long routes or perseverance slogans.
Each group can bring their Fleet Carrier and set up a home base on the POI map we will provide.
If you don't have a group, don't worry. You can always explore as an independent representing all explorers without being subordinate to a squadron. Just sign up to the roster and you'll be part of the expedition.
The following squadrons took part in the expedition:
Azura Initiative; Canonn; Celebration of Early Astronomy; Cosmic Broadband Telecom; Deep Space Network; Ed's 38; Geriatric Squadron; Independent Explorers Association; Intergalactic Astronomical Union; Landstrider Legion; Open Pilots Initiative - Exploration Division "At the Eldritch Gate"; Radiant Ruby Control Cooperative; Sidewinder Syndicate; Stellanebulla Project; Stellar Cartographers Guild; The Fatherhood
And as I am part of the Stellanebula Project squadron, I also took part in the quest "At the Eldridge gate", especially as it was on the way home.
With our paintwork restored, we set course for the search area.
25.06.3308 - Novara Expedition Day 275
It wasn't long before we jumped into the Blu Eup AT-U d2-5 system, a special system in several aspects. Firstly, the system contained an Earth-like world with an orbiting moon in the habitable zone. There was also a terraformable water world and two terraformable high metal content worlds in the habitable zone. Planet 9, a high metal content world with a mixed atmosphere of helium, neon and hydrogen, particularly caught my eye. Strangely enough, crystal shards are growing on this planet, even though there is no other star in the system.
According to initial assumptions, crystal shards seem to grow regardless of the number of stars, as long as the distance to the main star is at least 12,000 light seconds. Whether the distance can also be shorter is still the subject of research.
After I had collected all the necessary data, I continued my journey towards the search area "At the Eldrige Gate".
29.06.3308 - Novara Expedition Day 279
Still en route to the search area, the Novara reached the Bleae Euhn CW-E d11-11 system, and once again crystal shards were found on the main star, at a distance of 24,400 light seconds. This discovery alone once again supports the hypothesis of my exobiological research lab. The crystals growing there were secreting the G4 material antimony, but as the store in my ship was already full, only the genetic samples were taken.
On the same day we discovered our 36th Earth-like world in the Stralee OG-Y d8 system. On average 12 Kelvin warmer than on Earth, half the pressure and a third less gravity. All the data on this planet was documented and recorded in our database. The rest of the system was then mapped and explored.
30.06.3308 - Novara Expedition Day 280
The very next day, Earth-like world no. 37 in the similar-sounding system Stralee SQ-P c5-2 followed. Apparently, this region is particularly favourable for the development of life. This planet has a pressure of 1.56 atm with an oxygen concentration of 10.28%. This means that due to the increased partial pressure, the available oxygen on this planet, although lower than on Earth, is not as drastically reduced as the percentage alone might suggest. The effects of the increased atmospheric pressure partially help to compensate for the lower percentage oxygen content. An oxygen partial pressure of 0.163 atm might still be sufficient to support some forms of life, including humans, however adaptations or aids (such as additional oxygen supply at higher altitudes on Earth) would likely prove necessary, especially for long-term residence or habitats.
After the mapping of this world was completed, we left the system again.