Places and Locales

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Places and Locales

Image from Rudolf Herczog (copyright; used with permission)

Whether they are sites of historical interest, geological or astronomical oddities, or merely the latest trendy virch in the local cybercosm, Terragen space is full of interesting places to visit and experience.

The Old Core Worlds

Ancient, conservative backwaters, quaint and politically irrelevant, home to many rare and anachronistic clades that have long died out everywhere else, the Old Core Worlds of the Inner Sphere were the first outposts of spacefaring humanity, during the heroic age of early interstellar colonization. For about a thousand years, from the middle of the first millennium After Tranquility to the mid second millennium, they were the hope of humankind, the torch of civilization during the Technocalypse and the Dark Age in SolSys, the first opportunity for not only clades to diverge and evolve on their own (that had happened often enough during the interplanetary period), but for entire cultures and civilizations, and powerful regional polities, some of which even spawned further subcultures. One of the reasons the First Federation was as successful as it was because its superbright human and hyperturing ai administrators were able to skilfully blend the colonies with established society of SolSys, creating a vibrant culture and protocol-based civilization that flourished for some centuries.

But new singularities, new toposophics, and new empires spelled the end of the age of the Old Core Worlds, and by the late second millennium they had become increasingly irrelevant and marginalised. New civilizations bloomed around the emerging gods at Fons Luminis, Djed, and elsewhere, and by the early centuries of the third millennium the Old Core Worlds either joined the new Sephirotic empires, or maintained an uneasy neutrality, while their inhabitants and rulers dreamt nostalgically of earlier centuries where hu and ai still ruled side by side.

Some archailectologians and transapientologists are convinced that the only reason the Old Core Worlds have been allowed to retain their independence to the extent that they have is because they serve as nature reserves, zoos and societums preserving a glimpse of a by-gone age.

This theory however is made more dubious by the fact that almost all the Old Core Worlds are connected to the Nexus, even ancient SolSys itself, and combined, the traffic to and fro amounts to many billions every metric year. Perhaps these crusty old worlds and their ossified and traditionalist clades, entrenched Houses, and incompetent local polities really do serve some higher purpose in the galactic ecology.

But if they do, no-one can agree what it is.

Main Centres

The Main Capitals, Centers, and Hubs are the heart of sephirotic civilization. These are highly megastructuralised, massively developed systems, heavily populated with transapients, ISO-dense, energy hyper-efficient, data-intense, multiply wormhole-linked places, rich in millennia of history, and heavy with the presence of high toposophic gods. Often they are less solar systems and more the extended dyson spheres and matrioshka brains of archailects, those living there being not just sephirotic citizens and sovereigns, but god dwellers as well; their entire existence being spent as functional and symbiotic parts of a Being or Beings unimaginably vaster then they are.

Entire ecologies, civilizations, races, species, clades and superclades may rise and radiate within the sheltering bosom of their god, while lesser sapients go about there everyday business, only faintly aware of the extent of the hypercomplexity around them, their seemingly ordinary activities often serving as creative mulch, trivial diversions, recreational surroundings, or the lowest trophic level for the toposophic hierarchies above them. But even the dim awareness they do have would be deeply unsettling and disturbing, were they not appropriately memegineered by the administrative hyperturings.

For the sapients who dwell here, among the gods, it is a thing of honour and pride to be a part of a Larger Ecology, even if it is an Ecology the meaning and nature of which they can barely comprehend.

But for outsiders, all this can be terrifying.

It is said that some have gone mad contemplating it (although this tends to be more urban legend, or deliberate meme, there are also actual cases).

Therefore it is said that the Gods, in their kindness and mercy, created a near endless number of megastructures and habitats for those lesser sophonts who are not ready, or not able, to be chosen for the magnificent honor and destiny of being a symbiotic part of an archailectual ecology.

Others, curious and wide and plastic enough of mind to take the culture shock, like to travel between the Main Centers and the lower toposophic regional districts. Some enjoy the shift in datastream content, and some commute on a regular basis, as part of their official or unofficial occupation. Although, there are paranoids who say that these travellers, of whom there are trillions all up, are simply meme mules, it is a well known fact that most sophonts who dwell in or visit the Main Centers are memetic vectors and messengers (equivalent to m-RNA in cellular functioning), and an essential part of the ecology of sephirotic civilization, and no-one but the paranoids actually see this as a bad thing.

Provincial Capitals

Beyond the Inner Sphere, throughout the Hinteregions and even the Outer Volumes, the Sephirotic linelayers have established outposts and loci by which they could completely dominate all surrounding space. Some of these were created from the beginning as vast and iso-dense megascale projects; entire archailect nodes springing up from a newly constructed dyson or matrioshka. Others were simply little micro-gauge nexus stations, scientific observation posts, remote garrisons, homesteads, or missionary outposts, that over the centuries became small local centers of activity, that became larger regional centers, that became, finally, huge Provincial Capitals. Others again simply resulted from large hinterworld polities or non-affiliated ISOs that were successfully subverted, and turned all their resources to the service of the Sephirotic empire of their choice.

However they came about, the Provincial Capitals are an important part of Sephirotic civilization, extending the reach of the great Inner Sphere powers a hundred-fold. After centuries and millennia of development, they may be as huge and highly industrialised as any of the Inner Sphere and extended sephirotic zone Main Centers, and very often are themselves also nodes for distributed archailects, their populace god-dwellers and enthusiastic proponents of galactic civilization.

If the Main Centers are diverse, the Provincial Capitals are even more so, and it is impossible to summarize their characteristics in a formulaic manner. There is no typical "Provincial Capital"; each reflects its origin, its history, its surroundings, and the sephirotic which it represents.

If the Provincial Centers are more likely to one characteristic predominant it is that they tend to be active, energetic high traffic places, way stations which mediate between the Inner Sphere and Regional Centers. They are full of movement and excitement regarding new projects and new developments in the Hinteregions and Outer Volumes. New Nexus links are established, the surrounding volumes of interstellar space further consolidated, and as development proceeds and civilization grows and spreads, the Provincial Capitals themselves become new Main Centers in the ever growing entity that is galactic civilization.

Articles

1513 - Text by Anders Sandberg
Independent minded cyborg-dominated prefecture near NGC 1513; in the Perseus Rift. Formally part of the Dominion, but in practice independent.
216 Kleopatra - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Major asteroid, Main Belt, Sol System. The original Kleopatra was a bone-shaped asteroid about 217 kilometers long and 94 kilometers wide. This unusual asteroid was discovered and named in 1880, but its shape was only discovered in 2000. The asteroid was colonised during the middle interplanetary period, and for a while became something of a local financial center, later a data haven with independence declared from the CisLunar Orbital Alliance.
Aam Taam City - Text by Jorge Ditchkenberg
A cosmopolitan city on Wega that is a typical mix of Wegan ultratech and primtech.
Academion - Text by Ben Higginbottom
Artificial Island in the North Sea, Old Earth.
Aether Ring - Text by Todd Drashner
Microgravity Niven Cloud around the Wind in the Leaves at 009 Ceti.
Africa - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Stephen Inniss
Old Earth continent between the Atlantic and Indian oceans. With an area of 30,303,000 square kilometres, it is the second-largest continent on the planet after Asia. Africa was an early centre of hominid evolution and the probable birthplace of Homo sapiens sapiens. It gave rise to several important human civilizations during the Agricultural Age but was eclipsed by European and later by Asian polities beginning in the 15th century AD (6th century BT) and did not produce any major world powers until the Interplanetary Age.
Aksijaha - The Root of the Eye - Text by Adam Getchell
The legendary central node of the Wormhole Nexus, somewhere in the Inner Sphere
Aldrin, Aldrin City - Text by Mike Miller
Ancient Lunar colony/city.
Alexandria, Great Library of - Text by M. Alan Kazlev; some additions by Stephen Inniss
Famed Old Earth classical era library, begun by Ptolemy Soter (2335?-2252 BT or 367?-283 b.c.e.), and zealously pursued by his successor Ptolemy Philadelphus. The two principal libraries were in the Bruchium and the Serapeum; the number of rolls or "books" is variously estimated between 400,000 and 700,000, but these rolls had not the contents of an Industrial Age printed volume.
Amerindian Worlds, The - Text by Stephen Inniss
Human baseline worlds discovered along the Terragen peripheral regions, each with re-created pre-Columbian civilisations.
Andromeda Galaxy - Text by Steve Bowers
Also known as M31 and NGC 224, this giant spiral galaxy is the closest major galaxy to the Milky Way. Both belong to the Local Group. Several relativistic craft, including linelayers with wormholes, have left towards the galaxy through history, although the chances that they will reach it intact are probably remote.
Antarctica (Antarctic Free States) - Text by Stephen Inniss, Ryan B, Centauri5921, QuELEs
Old Earth's southernmost continent.
Aquarius - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Information Age aquatic arcology prototype developed by The First Millennial Foundation as part of their goals to increase the living standards of humans on Earth and in space. It was an authentic arcology because of its dense structure and self sufficiency. Although only a prototype, and never having more than 10,000 inhabitants, even at its height, it served as the exemplar for other, more successful designs until well into the Interplanetary Age.
Aquila Rift, The - Text by Steve Bowers
A series of dark, dusty nebulae in the Orion Arm
Arcturus Sector - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
District of space with irregular borders of 10 to 20 LY on side, the most notable astronomic feature is the red giant Arcturus. This region is home to a number of small independent polities. There is a fairly strong Cyberian presence in the region.
Aroosta Space Ring - Text by Darren Ryding
Bishop ring in the Kath system; home to the provolved Aroostai from the mid 5th millennium onwards.
Artemis - Text by Alex Mulvey
The first international Lunar colony.
Asherah - Text by Anders Sandberg
Artemis Lunar's first base in high moon orbit.
Asia - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Stephen Inniss
Old Earth continent bounded by Europe and by the Arctic, Pacific, and Indian oceans. It is the largest of the Old Earth continents, at 44,390,000 square kilometres. Human presence in Asia dates back nearly to the origin of Homo sapiens sapiens.
Asoka's Pillar - Text by Crossroads
An alien Dyson cylinder outside the galaxy, sending strange signals.
Asymptote System - Text by Anders Sandberg
A place where many species converge. Usually trading and network nexuses, and generally core systems for a Cooperative Venture.
Athens, Greece - Text by M. Alan Kazlev; some additions by Stephen Inniss
City State, Classical Era, Mediterranean Europe, Old Earth; a major influence on later Western civilizations, and so eventually the early Terragen civilizations of Solsys and the Inner Sphere.
Atlantis (artificial island) - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Economic / Academic / Cultural Free Zone and independent polity built on an artificial island off the Caribbean, tax and datahaven during the middle and late Information and early Interplanetary Age, Old Earth.
Atlantis (habitat) - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Orbital Habitat - Cislunar region, 2nd to 5th centuries.
Australia - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Stephen Inniss
An island continent between the Indian and Pacific Oceans on Old Earth. It is the smallest on Old Earth, with an area of 8,560,000 square kilometres, and it was not well suited to long term agricultural uses, so it did not contain any major civilizations or polities until the Industrial Age. After several centuries of sustained immigration, Australia became a prosperous nation, and was an important power on Earth during much of the Interplanetary Age.
Avon - Text by Darren Ryding
Small Homo plebhu habitat cluster in Archaipelago. One of the few ultratech cultures to preserve Old Anglic and the art of calligraphy.
Barnard Belt - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The main asteroid belt around Barnard's Star.
Beta Arae Volume - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Region of space encompassing Beta Arae and nearby worlds. The core of the Utopia Sphere.
Betelgeuse Volume - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Irregular volume of space of about 75 LY at its widest, centered on the red supergiant Betelgeuse.
Beyond, The - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Popular term for that volume of the galaxy outside of the Terragen Sphere.
Bhutan - Text by Mike Miller
Nation-state of Old Earth.
Big Tor Plexus - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Major wormhole plexus in the Big Tor system.
Blackbody Cluster - Text by Anders Sandberg
Cluster of worlds centred around the Blackbody nebula, Perseus Rift.
Buanikon, Bottle City Of - Text by Steve Bowers
Members of the Kyvanian Phenotype are restricted to the micro-city of Buanikon in Epsilon Aurigae B accretion disc orbit. This is a Realife Utility Fog environment. Be prepared for feats of strength and speed as they like to show off. Do not attempt sexual congress. Because of limited space entry is restricted to minaturised clades and provolved arthropods.
Bubble (galactography) - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The extent to which a starfaring civilization has expanded through interstellar space.
California - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Pre-Expulsion Earth polity, with a history of welcoming the then-radical technologies and types of sophonts being developed at the time.
Canada - Text by Crossroads
The northern portion of the continent of North America on Old Earth. Location of various polities in the pre-Expulsion period.
Canaveral - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Major American launch facility during the Atomic, Information, and early Interplanetary period. Became a space museum and historical complex by the late Interplanetary and Nanotech Age. Following the Great Expulsion was retained as a pilgrimage site, one of some five dozen such sites that are allowed visits by tourists.
Canberra - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Old Earth capital of Australia; originally a dull bureaucratic centre, by 3rd to 5th century a respectable University Town called the "Geneva of the South". Like Canaveral, Paris, and a number of other historical sites, was not completely demolished following the Great Expulsion, now a minor pilgrim/tourist waystation, a single small arcology, occasionally staffed by a small number of disinterested Children of Gaia (mostly marsupial rianths) like some of other old culture and university towns. Canberra Orbital is named after this ancient city.
Capella Sector - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Inner Sphere sector, approximately 20 LY across, centred on Capella. It directly abuts the Sol Sector. The main political entity in this region is the Capellan Federation.
Caretaker Protectorate - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A world or region of space under the protection of a Caretaker God.
Carina-Vela Outer Volumes - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Large region of space in the outer volumes, not affiliated with any of the main empires. The Andian Mission today remains a highly regarded support organization here.
Cartographer - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
One who creates, studies or interprets maps.
Cartography - Text by M. Alan Kazlev, modified from the original write-up by Robert J. Hall
The making and reading of maps.
Cascadia - Text by Crossroads
Pre-Expulsion Earth polity, which followed a philosophy of adhering to nature, and therefore rejected sentient AI, gengineering, nanotech, and space colonization.
Celerin Volume - Text by Anders Sandberg
Small but fiercely independent Perseus Rift volume dominated by the Celerin tweak-cyborg clade.
Ceres - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Dwarf Planet in the Old Solar System.
Chile - Text by Kirran Lochhead Strang
Former nation-state in South America, Old Earth.
China - Text by Kirran Lochhead Strang
A major Old Earth civilization for some five thousand years, China eventually became the most populated country on the planet, with the largest ethnicity and two widespread spoken languages - Mandarin (the language of the dynastic rulers from the north of the country) and Cantonese (the language of the ethnic Han majority). Many human inhabitants of the Terragen Sphere claim Chinese ancestry
Chronos Cluster, The - Text by Håkan Andersson
Middle Regions Cluster near Cygexpa Space, where the xenosophont Daharrans were discovered, with unfortunate results
Cislunar - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
In the Sol System, refers to the space between the Earth and the orbit of the Moon, and any habitats or orbitals there.
City Prime - Text by John B
An early vec-centric habitat set up on Titan by an alliance of 34 vecs of various types and vintages.
Coal Sack Nebula - Text by Steve Bowers
Prominent dark nebula in Crux
Coathanger Cluster - Text by Steve Bowers
The Coathanger Cluster in Vulpecula is not a real cluster at all; instead it is a chance alignment of unrelated stars, which resembles a coathanger as seen from the Old Solar System.
Continent (geography) - Text by Stephen Inniss
Originally, one of six or seven very large contiguous landmass on Old Earth, separated or largely separated from other continents by ocean. Some Gaian class worlds, some terraformed worlds, and some extremely large habitats such as Banks Orbitals may also have land masses that are regarded by their inhabitants as continents.
Corambytia Protectorate - Text by Anders Sandberg
The Corambytia Protectorate is the largest and most well-known volume ruled by a single Caretaker God.
Crystal Blossom, The - Text by Chris Shaeffer
Airborne floating artwork/home of the artist/philosopher Aura Ghami.
Cygexba Outer Volume - Text by Steve Bowers
Region to spinwards of the Cygnus Middle Regions, outwards of the Deneb Sector. Also the region where the merchantile archailect Lohengrin is currently most active. Notable for the presence of xenosophonts such as the Muuh enclave around Muuhhome, the Meistersingers and the Wayfarers.
Cygnus Loop - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A supernova remnant in the constellation Cygnus, about 1470 light years from Sol. The supernova exploded about 17,000 years ago (approximately 6000 BT) and is still expanding, forming a cloud of gas. The nebula is almost spherical, with some bright filaments. The region has long been colonized by a number of exotic clades.
Cygnus Volume - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Volume of space encompassing the constellation Cygnus as scene from SolSys; formerly incorporated into House Cygexba.
Cygnus X-1 - Text by Steve Bowers
High mass X-ray binary star system 5984 ly from Sol.
Danyello M'lund Cluster, The - Text by Anders Sandberg
The Danyello M'lund Cluster was colonized in the 3100's by a coalition of trading cartels, outer volume terraformer guilds, refugee management associations and holoterbics. It was a leased sector of Cygexpa, including five terraformable worlds. The coalition government prospered, and the Cluster became a technologically advanced and peaceful part of the Cygexpa sphere.
Dark, The - Text by Steve Bowers
An unlit portion of Spaghetti, the inner topopolis of Cableville.
Deneb Sector - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Sector of former Cygexba empire containing 518 star systems lying beyond the Aquila Rift; named for the sector's brightest star, the blue-white giant Deneb.
Diamond Belt - Text by Anders Sandberg
Zone of ai-claimed and settled worlds some 10-20 ly from Sol. Later developed into the Diamond Network metaempire.
Enif Prefecture - Text by Steve Bowers and John B.
Isolated Solar Dominion department, mostly lost in the Version War.
Entoit - Text by Anders Sandberg
Island resort in the north temperate zone of Eden. Famous for its caves and the Entoit Mutual Defence and Trade Treaty.
Erson - Text by Anders Sandberg
A continent on the planet Brin in the 42 Tauri system; site of the famous Battle of Erson. Now a part of the Metasoft empire. Large parts of the planet are still uninhabitable to biont life outside protective domes. The impressive Danton Monument stands as an timeless monument to the foolishness of war, and attracts a large number of peace pilgrims and ahimsic tourists.
Eta Carinae - Text by Chris Clowes
A peculiar, erratically fluctuating Luminous Blue Variable. One of the most luminous stellar objects of our Galaxy.
Eta Carinae Nebula - NGC 3372 - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A huge diffuse emission nebula consisting of clouds of high temperature gas some 9,000 light years from Sol. The atoms in the cloud are energized by ultraviolet light from nearby stars and emit radiation as they fall back into lower energy states (in much the same way as a neon light). It is a site of ongoing star formation. Each of the bright lobes are the size of an entire solar system. A whole mythology and economy has built up around this beautiful nebula, the so-called Carina Rush.
Ethiopia - Text by Kirran Lochhead Strang
Europe - Text by Stephen Inniss
A continent of Old Earth. It is bounded by Asia, the Atlantic Ocean, the Arctic Ocean, and the Mediterranean Sea.
Extropia - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
[1] Interlinked Information to First Federation age evolving communities embodying extropian values. Included both virtual cultural communities and actual communities in several orbital free zones.
[2] Belt habitat of Extropist sect, Interplanetary Age to Nanotech Age.
Extropolis - Text by Anders Sandberg
Extropian community located in Cis-Lunar orbit, late Information to Interplanetary period.
Eyre, Kingdom of - Text by Anders Sandberg and M. Alan Kazlev
Tau Ceti II (Nova Terra) aquatic tweak kingdom.
Falandian Heights - Text by Charles Mosteller and M. Alan Kazlev
Range of mountains on the ore world, Karamundo, inhabited by a superior-based cult known as Stiletto, dedicated to the Teachings of Amaro. From their lofty perches in the Falandian Heights, the Stiletto oversee mining operations throughout Karamundo. The ores are valued not for construction but rather their unusual and aesthetic geological properties and value as "natural art". Mining is strictly restricted, thus keeping prices high and ensuring their planet is not mined out.
Far Edge Civilisation, The - Text by Espen Antonsen
Small formerly isolationist polity founded by a single transapient individual, an upload of a cyborg who began as a baseline human in the interplanetary Age.
Fargate, The - Text by Todd Drashner
Wormhole of presumably alien manufacture discovered in the Metasoft volume in 10233. Travel through the gate transports one to a location in intergalactic space. The exact location in relation to the Milky Way galaxy is unknown since instruments sent through the portal have been unable to pinpoint any familiar configurations of galaxies. It is hypothesized that the Fargate may exit beyond the current universal Event Horizon or even into another universe. There is of course no evidence for this and most serious researchers are confident that the coordinates for The Other Side, as it is called, will be pinpointed eventually.
Feinstein 1 cluster - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Home to the Echir-{n} - a nanobiological Alife civilisation.
Feynman Bay, Corona - Text by Todd Drashner
A bay on Corona.
Fosfo Cluster - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A number of indexdep settlements recently founded by Epistemic radicals.
Fragan Sphere, The - Text by Anders Sandberg
Pre-Empires age autonomous Terragen interstellar civilization; many details about it and the reasons for its disappearance remain a mystery. Few empires pose more curious archaeological questions than the Fragan Empire and none give fewer answers. The Fragan Empire has been compared to the Tunnlers in its frustrating combination of totally accessible ruins and near total lack of certain information.
Gaia's Veil - Text by Todd Drashner
Particularly volatile rich protostellar nebula, outer Sagittarius Volume.
Galilean Moons - Text by Stephen Inniss
The four largest moons of Jupiter: Ganymede, Io,Callisto and Europa. They were discovered by Galileo in 359 BT (1610 c.e.), and became important industrial and population centres in the Interplanetary Age.
Garden of Paradise Cluster - Text by Steve Bowers
Not a real cluster, but a collection of sun-like stars near Rho Puppis, many of which have worlds which have been terraformed by a long vanished alien race to almost perfect human standards.
Gateway - Text by Grant Thomas
A huge Area in the Ninetiin Cluster, which was originally designated by the Nanloon Empire as a gateway to most of the areas in their empire, and also to other parts in the galaxy. Originally settled and Built around 3350, during the Age of Empires by the Imperial Nanloon Defence Authority. The area was the main hub for a wormhole, which drove a huge amount of traffic. When the original wormhole could no longer sustain the amount, two more were built.
Geminga - Text by Anders Sandberg
The sacred star of the Geminga Orthodoxy, and one of the closest pulsars to Sol. It is believed to be the remnant of a supernova that exploded 300,000 years ago, creating the local bubble.
Goldilocks ISO - Text by Anders Sandberg
The SZ Crater VII ISO "Goldilocks". The ISO is 150 kilometres across and consists of tangles of fullerite threads with superconductor cores and irregular diamondoid computational nodes.
Golifa Nebula - Text by Steve Bowers
Artificial nebula, formerly the Golifa Triune, three stars in Perseus which were destroyed by a Metric bomb during the Amalgamation Crisis
Gordica (ISO) - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Famous industrial ISO located at Gordica world; renowned as the constructionplace of the great vec poet Enrastered Link Connection.
Grand Confluence, The - Text by Anders Sandberg
Multi-clade civilisation in the Sparks, an open cluster (IC 4756) in the Serpens region
Gurth Hexanode Repository, The - Text by Thorbørn Steen
Vast databank on the border between MPA and Negentropy space occupying six Dyson swarms.
Heisenberg City, Corona - Text by Todd Drashner
One of the larger habitation nodes on Corona. Known for its highly cosmopolitan population and for its regression frescoes.
Heritage Range, The - Text by Todd Drashner
A range of mountains around Feynman Bay on Corona, famosu for the fact that it has been carved to show the faces of famous ancient scientists.
Horsehead Nebula - Text by Steve Bowers
Dark Nebula in Orion
Hydersbaad Consensus - Text by Anders Sandberg
Academic-cultural orbital habitat in Corona orbit. Built to accommodate the ComEmp influx of diplomats, researchers and memeticists it was at the time one of the most modern socio-academic research environments. Over time it has largely lost its importance in research to groundside institutes, and is currently a living museum of ongoing but fairly static philosophical and artistic endeavours.
India - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Old Earth Interplanetary Age polity and superpower.
Indonesia - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Ishtar's Necklace - Text by Liam Jones
Ancient xeno megastructure in the Carina Rush.
Japan - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Island off the coast of Asia (Old Earth), developed a unique medieval culture, originally isolationist but later adopted Western ways, early atomic age military superpower, later atomic age and information age economic superpower, power waned during the Interplanetary period (greatly eclipsed by China and Indonesia) but a number of Japanese transplanetary corporations remained powerful right up until the Technocalypse. The influence of Japanese aesthetics, popular culture, mysticism (especially Zen) and fighting styles (see Martial Arts) remain strong even to the present time
Jerusalem - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Ancient Old Earth City, held sacred by Jews, Christians, Moslems, and members of other derived faiths. Also the old name for Dionysos.
Karol Zooeum of Heroes - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The largest zooeum of its kind, the Karol Zooeum is set in vast parkland of the Karol Banks Ring, in orbit around Karol's Star.
Kenehan-LeRiche Complex - Text by Anders Sandberg
Communications and data storage ISOs with some nanoimmune duties in orbit around Jupiter
Kiyoshi Sector - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
MPA interstellar district (capital Kiyoshi); half the empire's megascale projects and one third of the population are found here.
Kringsler Volume - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A region near Tunh that was formerly dominated by Kringslerism.
Kuiper Belt - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
In the Solar System, a belt of icy objects beyond Neptune but closer than the Oort Cloud. In general, any icy belt outside the main system but closer than the local Oort cloud, if present.
Lagoon Nebula - Text by Steve Bowers
Emission Nebula in Sagittarius.
Landing Site Name - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Any ancient historical landing site on a colonized world. Originally referred to features at or near Historical Apollo landing sites on Luna om Solsys, most have long since been built over. Abbreviation: LF.
Laughter Nebula - Text by Anders Sandberg
One of the five nebulae in the volume close to the War and Peace Nebula named after the Rational Virtues (Laughter, Curiosity, Zeal, Reflection and Compassion) in Konensis Mysticism.
Light Speed Frontier - Text by Thorbørn Steen
The outer edge of the Terragen Sphere.
Lightstorm, The - Text by Marcus RauchfuÃŸ
Megastructure orbiting the interstellar gas giant CG49-H-27HHN in the Horsehead Nebula, that uses nanotech to create the effect of a gigantic movie screen.
Lirantiq Nexus - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Nexus of wormhole-linked worlds established by the Lirantiq with some ISO assistance, in the middle to late 9th millennium.
Local Arm - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The arm of the Milky Way Galaxy where most of Terragen civilization is still located, and which includes the Sol System. It is also called the Orion Arm.
Lyonesse - Text by Steve Bowers
Artificial island built in the English Channel as a Free State, established in 78 A.T.. A centre for research into artificial intelligence and measures against anthropogenic global warming.
Macoss Habitat/Ship - Text by Ben Higginbottom
Interplanetary age habitat with a culture heavily influenced by anime.
Maldives, The - Text by MacGregor
An archipelago and nation state of old Earth located in the Indian Ocean. Composed of nearly 1,200 islands arranged in 26 atolls, the Maldives sit on a north-south running ridge called the Chagos-Laccadive Plateau.
Master Star List - Text by Mark Ryherd, John M. Dollan and Steve Bowers
The stars of the Inner Sphere and their colonies.
Messier 67 - Text by Steve Bowers
Large, old cluster in Cancer, 2940 ly from Sol, including several naturally evolved garden worlds
Mincity - Text by Anders Sandberg
Famous Minimal Surface City on Corona, originally founded by Kalmanto Aesthetics in 5409 as a rebellion against the old-fashioned building codes, an AI entropy tax haven and an artwork. The city, covering a few square kilometers of southern Casamalunna, has become the virtual capital of Corona, home to a large number of AI luminaries and virtualities. The periodic redesigns draw a large spectator crowd.
Mintaka - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
(Delta Orionis) a double star, spectral type is O9.5II. As seen from the Sol System the uppermost and faintest of the three major stars that form the belt of Orion. Mintaka (which means "belt") is located quite near the celestial equator. It is approximately 915 light-years from Sol.
Mira - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Steve Bowers
(Omicron Ceti), variable red giant star in the constellation called Cetus. It was discovered in 1596 by David Fabricus, an amateur Dutch astronomer. Mira (meaning "wonderful") was named by Johannes Hevelius in 1662. Its mass is about the same as Sol but it varies in size and brightness over a period of 332 days.
Mizrah Outpost - Text by Anders Sandberg
Technorapture Hypernation outpost in the Perseus Gap. The ISO is built around a submillimeter communications wormhole at the core, surrounded by computing and sensing matrices.
Monroe Cylinder - Text by Anders Sandberg
Major habitat / polity in a polar orbit around Green (Beta Virginis V). Once an important media center with strong links to the Nova Terra mediacorps, it has been since the ComEmp period something of a bit of a retirement resort, slightly "out of the way" in interplanetary traffic but an important meeting place for the owners of the major corporations, high society and the political networks. Regarded as awfully passé by most young and "hip" people in the system, and especially by Pacificans.
Mt. 'Thass'thon' - Text by James Rogers
A supervolcano on the continent of 'Tana'jan on To'ulh Prime. The center of much local myth and folklore, the great mount erupted c. 37,500 BT, ending the first Epoch of To'ul'h history.
NeoAtlantia - Text by Thorbjørn Steen
Originally founded as New Atlantis in 1845 a.t., Neo Atlantia was an unremarkable habitat until 2106 a.t., where the Godslist constructed a large undersea computronium storage unit below Neo Atlantia and moved their main archive to Corona as the first step in forming a new and improved Grand List. The influx of researchers and administrators changed the platform above from a single sleepy habitat into an energetic hub of reporting, research and trade in transapient information.
New Old York - Text by Steve Bowers
Retrohistorical polity.
New Robinson - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Martian colony on Oberon, Middle Interplanetary to Early First Federation period.
Nieuw Amsterdam - Text by Mike Miller
A set of static orbital rings around the gas giant Bronx in the New Brooklyn System.
North America - Text by Stephen Inniss
A continent of Old Earth. With an area of 24,709,000 square kilometres it is the third largest continent of Old Earth after Asia and Africa. Its indigenous nations and tribes were conquered and largely destroyed by Europeans, but the resulting largely European-derived, cultures and polities had a powerful influence in the Industrial and Information ages, and had a formative influence on the Interplanetary Age powers.
Novawood Habitat - Text by Steve Bowers
Orbiting habitat around Nova Terra- traditional home of the Nova Media entertainment industry
Oceania - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Middle Information Age through to Nanotech Age Old Earth floating city-state, data haven, and free zone.
Olumbi region, The - Text by Anders Sandberg
The Olumbi region is one of the rimwards parts of the middle NoCoZo, bordering on the Sophic League and located between the Vela Nebula and Pismis 4. Its name comes from Olumbi Developments, a late Consolidation Era colonization corp that implemented a fast wormhole/terraforming/leasing operation similar to Cygexba.
Orbital (political unit) - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Originally, a nation state or city state based on habitats in orbit around Old Earth. Over the course of the Interplanetary Age the term came to be used for any such state in Solsys. By early First Federation times the term Orbital was used more broadly for any independent or semi-independent state based on a hab in orbit around a planet.
Orion Arm, Orion Spur - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The spiral arm of our galaxy in which is found the Inner Sphere and Middle Regions. Also called the Local Arm.
Orion Nebula - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Vast nebula located some 1500 LY from Sol, part of Orion Federation.
Pangea, Pangaea - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Former Earth supercontinent consisting of all of the land masses. It existed during the Permian and Triassic periods, and began breaking up during the Jurassic, forming Gondwanaland and Laurasia. The single landmass resulted in an arid climate, and the absence of geographical barriers meant a ubiquitous terrestrial fauna. But climatic factors resulted in two or three distinct phytogeographic provinces, the Dicrodium Flora in the south and a Laurasian Flora in the north. The term Pangea is also applied to any similar planetary supercontinent on a tectonically active Gaian world.
Pismis 4 Cluster - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Locally called the Silver Belt. Diverse region home to a number of non-affiliated polities, clades and phyles. The Cluster consists of more than 45 M-class red dwarf main sequence stars in the midst of a faint but extensive Gum nebulosity complex. The Pismis 4 worlds have not formed any political union, but the Jean Te Uahlg Aestheticism has for all practical purposes unified them.
Planetary State of Corona - Text by The Astronomer
Pleiades - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A beautiful open star cluster, 444 LY from Sol, and containing hundreds of stars.
Potala Biosphere - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The largest Buddhist population center. Located in the Sophic League.
Prediction Cluster - Text by Steve Bowers
The cluster at the heart of the Oracle Machine Territory
Procyon Extension, The - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Diamond Network empire.
Proxima Centauri - History - Text by The Astronomer
Habitats in the icy belts around Proxima Centauri. Center for the Buddhist revival of Boddhichittamaittreya III in the late First Federation era.
Quark, Continent of - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Continent on Corona, one of the largest surviving baseline enclaves in the inner sphere outside the Terran Federation.
Rat Barrel, The - Text by Peter Kisner; updated by Steve Bowers
Originally an Interplanetary Age genetics research station, known as the Barrel, located at the Earth/Sun L4 position, far from any regulatory interference. The most common species of Rat Provolve, Rattus sapiens, was produced here in 410 AT, as well as many other species. Now a centre of hedonic drug manufacture.
Realm, The - Text by Todd Drashner
Major Deeper Covenant civilization cluster located about 750 light-years to rimward of Sol. The Realm constitutes one of the largest centers of Deeper civilization in the Civilized Galaxy.
Reflective Balance Mutuality, The - Text by Liam Jones
Independent polity of the Shimmerers.
Refugium - Text by Anders Sandberg
Capital of the Refugium Federation, settled in the 6th millennium by the Semperist Survival Fleet.
Regor Magnetar, the - Text by Steve Bowers
The Supernova Remnant left behind by the explosion of Gamma-2 Velorum A.
Relay001 - Text by Todd Drashner
The first major wormhole plexus and relay system built in the Inner Sphere. Became the model for later Relay systems.
Republic of Pakistan - Text by Kirran Lochhead Strang
Old Earth polity of the Industrial-Nanotech Ages, originally a colony of Great Britain, but after independence gradually becoming a major power in its own right.
Rosette Nebula - Text by Steve Bowers
Nebula in Monoceros.
Sagittarius Arm - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The spiral arm next closer (i.e. coreward) to the galactic core than the local arm.
Sagittarius Outer Volumes - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Extensive region of space coreward of the Sagittarius Transcultural Cooperation and MPA space, popular with development and strategic interests because it is seen as the gateway to the Sagittarius Arm.
Sagittarius Sector - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Also, "Sagittarius quadrant", loosely defined region that encompasses much of the coreward Outer Volumes. Also known as "The Corewards".
Samantabadra Habitat - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Cygnus b5 3 019+ - Buddhist orbital habitat in the Gamma Cygnus region. Given special dispensation by the otherwise anti-biont AIs of the region.
Scutum-Crux (or Crux-Scutum) Arm - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The spiral arm next closer to the galactic core (i.e. coreward) than the Sagittarius Arm.
Serpens Region - Text by Anders Sandberg
The vast volumes beyond NGC 6633 and IC4756 in the Serpens Cauda direction is sometimes called the Serpens Frontier. Although the Mutual Progress Alliance expanded into this volume many millennia ago, it has not been systematically explored or settled.
Shell, The - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The outer part of the Stellar Umma, also called the Umma Shell.
Sol Asteroid Belt - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Asteroid Belt in the Old Solar System.
South America - Text by M. Alan Kazlev and Stephen Inniss
An Old Earth continent; formerly part of Gondwana. With an area of 17,840,000 square kilometres, it is the fourth largest of Old Earth's continents, and for much of human history it was the fourth or fifth most populous. Its indigenous nations and tribes were conquered and largely destroyed through military action, introduced diseases, and an influx of settlers and their ideas in the centuries after the first European explorers found the continent, but eventually new hybrid (though predominantly "Western") polities arose to become major world powers by the Interplanetary Age.
Sphere of Twelve Billion Faces, The - Text by Thorbjørn Steen
A sect of the Multiscopic Church in the Sophic League.
Surreal Rash, The - Text by Anders Sandberg
A failed transcension experiment, resulting in a 130 light year diameter volume of bizarre nanotech and nanecologies.
Surya-Ramydos - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
One of the Prefectures of the Solar Dominion. Surya-Ramydos is one of the most widely spread prefectures, encompassing a swathe of stars across the coreward Outer Volumes (the so called "Sagittarius sector").
Tanaka Cluster - Text by Anders Sandberg, M. Alan Kazlev and Steve Bowers
During the post-ComEmp period a prosperous Middle Regions non-aligned assembly of worlds. In 9545 the AI ruling the Tanaka Cluster apparently decided to end its existence, and killed all life and technology down to the viral/bit level. Over a hundred planets remained apparently untouched but lifeless.
Taq-e Bostan ISO - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
The ISO where, during the late ComEmp period the famous vec artist Outer Enrastered Link Connection underwent personal ascension to the second singularity level.
Threshold - Text by Anders Sandberg
Sco BH-76 Black hole. Used for burial ceremonies.
Tiralfia - Text by Darren Ryding
Homo Plebhus habitat cluster in Archaipelago. Birthplace of the rapidly-growing Destinarian Church.
Toh Chi Lok-Nar - Text by Darren Ryding
Vast habitat cluster in Archaipelago. The home of many dinosaur provolves, as well as the archailect known as the Archosaurian Entity.
Triassic Park - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A large nature reserve on Nova Terra's single Pangaea-like continent that contains one of the most important reconstructions of Old Earth's Triassic ecosystems in the known Terragen Sphere.
Trifid Nebula - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
NGC6514 / M20.
Tycho City - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Major lunar city.
Ulaf Sector, Ula Culture - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
A highly eccentric portion of the Middle Regions where rule by aristocratic Houses of humans is the norm.
Ull Cluster - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Part of Keter domain. Home of the Reality Intertextualization Project and its overseer, the 5th singularity archailect Eternal Foliation. Also the location of much of the Project's equipment, including Matrioshka Hypernodes, comm-gauge wormholes, what appear to be gravitational wave detectors, and various clarketech devices of unclear purpose.
Union - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Large habitat in Welsh Geostationary orbit, is home to the Heliostevens clade, are the result of a successful hybridization between three Stevensian Yvonnes and four Welshian SunMiners, who claim they have "United the two mighty Houses in a higher synthesis that retains the Purity of Each".
United Kingdom (Britain) - Text by Kirran Lochhead Strang
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, often known as Britain; a nation state of Old Earth.
United States of America - Text by Crossroads
Pre-Expulsion Earth-based superpower, responsible for the first landing on Luna and for creating the Internet. Though its relative importance declined as other powers rose, it continued to be influential in Solsys up until the Great Expulsion, and its cultural influences last down to this day.
Vatican City - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Old Earth city state and capital of the Catholic Church. Much of Vatican City was packed in inert gas and put in a diamondoid vault, thus escaping the Technocalypse. Today it remains, in a vault surrounded by restored Mediterranean forests, one of the small number of pilgrimage sites of Old Earth.
Vela Supernova Remnant - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Supernova remnant some 800 light years from Sol. This nebula is the remnant of a supernova that exploded about 10,000 years BT (8,000 years b.c.e.).
Verifex Nebula - Text by Steve Bowers
Formerly the Open Cluster M50 in Monoceros, 3200 ly from Sol, This nebula was formed when 154 artificial Supernovae were detonated almost simultaneously in 7981 a.t..
Virgo Cluster - Text by M. Alan Kazlev
Massive cluster of over 100 galaxies (including M61, M87, M90, and M100) and very hot, X-ray emitting gas. The cluster is roughly 60 million light years away and is the closest cluster of galaxies to our own group of galaxies. Over the millennia, a number of independent and corporate linelayer relativistic probes have departed towards this cluster, but it is believed to be unlikely any will reach it.
Virtual Gardens - Text by James Ramsey
A class of virtual worlds and universes created by artists and hobbyists.
Wind Cave of Cyrus, The - Text by Mike Miller
—Wind Cave— is one of the better known Caverns of Maha, a moon in the Cyrus system.
Wind in The Leaves, The - Text by Todd Drashner
Jupiter Brain in the SacredTree system.
World Garden, The - Text by Dangerous Safety (2020)
A collection of hundreds of artificial planets with exotic environments
Yeung Koon - Text by M. Alan Kazlev; original by Kevin Self
Literally "Moon Garden" in Old Chinese. Partially subterranean city located on Earth's moon (Luna).
Yuancheng - Text by Anders Sandberg
Yuancheng, one of the famous chimney cities on Twilight sunside. To cool the city it contains hundreds of vertical airshafts, where the air is heated by the city and rushes upwards. This not only powers many cooling systems, but it also enables the popular airdiving sports that has made the "chimneys" popular vacation spots for people with an active lifestyle.