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| #acl Bryce:read | Iridia (Cohen 136 III, sometimes Iridia III when the name Iridia is used for the system itself as well) is one of the [[BTW/Allied Worlds|Allied Worlds]]. |
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| ==== Iridia ==== A terrestrial planet, Iridia III. Notable as the location of a metal ''mountain range'', the so-called Glories of Iridia, which is a core fragment of a differentiated body that struck the planet aeons ago after being captured into an unstable orbit of Iridia. |
==== Physical Planetography ==== Iridia is famous as the location of ''mountain ranges'' and plains of native metal, the so-called Glories of Iridia, which were formed when a the planet captured a metallic asteroid into a decaying orbit. |
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| Iridia is tectonically active, with violent volcanism. It has an atmosphere of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, water vapor and traces of sulfur volatiles, carbon monoxide and metal carbonyls at a pressure of 1.7 bar at sea level. The atmosphere is deadly poisonous because of the dangerous concentrations of nickel tetracarbonyl and iron pentacarbonyl. It has reasonable surface temperatures over much of the land mass (-15 - 70C), truly abundant mineral resources, convenient orbit and 0.85g surface gravity. The weather is often exciting and features acid rain. | Iridia is tectonically active, with violent volcanism. It has an atmosphere of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, water vapor and traces of sulfur volatiles, carbon monoxide and metal carbonyls at a pressure of 1.7 bar at nominal sea level. The atmosphere is deadly poisonous because of the dangerous concentrations of nickel tetracarbonyl and iron pentacarbonyl. It has reasonable surface temperatures over much of the land mass (-15 - 70C), truly abundant mineral resources, convenient orbit and 0.85g surface gravity. The weather is often exciting and features acid rain. The planet has a striking yellow color from diiron nonacarbonyl formed by the photodecomposition of the pentacarbonyl in the upper atmosphere. |
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| Thus, much like Australia, Iridia is a place with abundant natural resources that actively resists human inhabitation. However, the lure of the Glories was such that humans ''did'' come, thinking that Iridia could be made an industrial powerhouse, processing its abundant metals into all sorts of high-value products to export far and wide. The colonists learned to live with their temperamental planet, building towering sealed cities of gleaming precious metals - platinum-iridium is was cheap as aluminum on Iridia. They harnessed their planet's truly abundant wind and geothermal energy, and began to build industrial and transport facilities. A space fountain was built, and Iridia began to export its products, as hoped for, though perhaps not at such prices or in such volume as the founders of the colonial enterprise had hoped for. Unfortunately, scant decades later, the [[BTW/Renard's Atrocity|Susan wormhole was destroyed]], cutting Iridia and its neighbors off from the rest of [[BTW/Connected Space|connected space]]. | ==== Culture and History ==== |
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| In the turmoil following the collapse of the Empire, Iridia suffered a recession and population contraction, but it recovered relatively quickly, as it now had relatively little competition as an industrial center. The planet came to be one of the most dominant of the [[BTW/Ten Worlds|Ten Worlds]] economically and culturally, and founded a colony of its own on Iridia IV. It has a second colony on the Water Moon of Iridia V, which is complementary to an older Biran colony there which predates the settlement of Iridia III. | Thus, much like Australia, Iridia is a place with abundant natural resources that actively resists human inhabitation. However, the lure of the Glories was such that humans ''did'' come, thinking that Iridia could be made an industrial powerhouse, processing its abundant metals into all sorts of high-value products to export far and wide. The colonists learned to live with their temperamental planet, building towering sealed cities of gleaming metal - nickel-iron cost less than concrete on Iridia. They harnessed their planet's truly abundant wind and geothermal energy, and began to build industrial and transport facilities. A space fountain was built, and Iridia began to export its products, as hoped for, though perhaps not at such prices or in such volume as the founders of the colonial enterprise had hoped for. Unfortunately, scant decades later, the Susan wormhole was destroyed, cutting Iridia and its neighbors off from the rest of [[BTW/Connected Space|connected space]]. In the turmoil following the collapse of the Empire, Iridia suffered a population die-off and was abandoned for a century, before being recolonized by settlers from [[BTW/New Iridia|New Iridia]], a more hospitable planet in the same system. These new settlers inherited a great deal of repairable infrastructure, and Iridia has for centuries been an economic titan of the Allied Worlds. ==== Economy ==== Iridia is self-sufficient in food, but not in food people ''want'' to eat. Foods are imported from New Iridia. The planet exports metal products. It is not generally economically viable to ship raw materials on interstellar ships, but refined rare metals are also exported. Relatively simple manufactured goods (e.g. building materials) are exported within the Cohen system, so New Iridia also has many stately metal buildings (albeit not so overbuilt.) |
Iridia (Cohen 136 III, sometimes Iridia III when the name Iridia is used for the system itself as well) is one of the Allied Worlds.
Physical Planetography
Iridia is famous as the location of mountain ranges and plains of native metal, the so-called Glories of Iridia, which were formed when a the planet captured a metallic asteroid into a decaying orbit.
Iridia is tectonically active, with violent volcanism. It has an atmosphere of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, water vapor and traces of sulfur volatiles, carbon monoxide and metal carbonyls at a pressure of 1.7 bar at nominal sea level. The atmosphere is deadly poisonous because of the dangerous concentrations of nickel tetracarbonyl and iron pentacarbonyl. It has reasonable surface temperatures over much of the land mass (-15 - 70C), truly abundant mineral resources, convenient orbit and 0.85g surface gravity. The weather is often exciting and features acid rain. The planet has a striking yellow color from diiron nonacarbonyl formed by the photodecomposition of the pentacarbonyl in the upper atmosphere.
Culture and History
Thus, much like Australia, Iridia is a place with abundant natural resources that actively resists human inhabitation. However, the lure of the Glories was such that humans did come, thinking that Iridia could be made an industrial powerhouse, processing its abundant metals into all sorts of high-value products to export far and wide. The colonists learned to live with their temperamental planet, building towering sealed cities of gleaming metal - nickel-iron cost less than concrete on Iridia. They harnessed their planet's truly abundant wind and geothermal energy, and began to build industrial and transport facilities. A space fountain was built, and Iridia began to export its products, as hoped for, though perhaps not at such prices or in such volume as the founders of the colonial enterprise had hoped for. Unfortunately, scant decades later, the Susan wormhole was destroyed, cutting Iridia and its neighbors off from the rest of connected space.
In the turmoil following the collapse of the Empire, Iridia suffered a population die-off and was abandoned for a century, before being recolonized by settlers from New Iridia, a more hospitable planet in the same system. These new settlers inherited a great deal of repairable infrastructure, and Iridia has for centuries been an economic titan of the Allied Worlds.
Economy
Iridia is self-sufficient in food, but not in food people want to eat. Foods are imported from New Iridia.
The planet exports metal products. It is not generally economically viable to ship raw materials on interstellar ships, but refined rare metals are also exported. Relatively simple manufactured goods (e.g. building materials) are exported within the Cohen system, so New Iridia also has many stately metal buildings (albeit not so overbuilt.)