Remus

Remus is a very large city-station orbiting Procyon A in the Procyon system, counter to Socrates at the Socrates-Procyon L3 point. It is the sister city of Romulus, though Remus is slightly larger both in physical volume and population. The station is run by HOMER, one of the first true artificial intelligences created by humans, and due to his habitual historian nature Remus is renowned as a vast repository of knowledge in addition to its status as a key transit hub.

Demographics

The vast majority of Remites are humans; either descendants of the first station crews or more recent tenants. However, due to Remus' academic significance to the historical and scientific communities, there are an appreciable number of permanent ziirb residents. The rest of the population is split fairly evenly between skae, shyxaure, and rimor. As of 2800, only five Calypsians reside on the station, in a small specialized section that serves as their embassy.

Government

Thanks to highly efficient automation, the station runs as a classical Athenian democracy in most circumstances, though there are two stipulations to this mechanism of self-governance:

1. HOMER, as the managing AI, is allowed to nullify a collective vote if he perceives the outcome to be detrimental to the station, its inhabitants as a whole, and/or their livelihoods;
2. Since the station is a member of the United Nations of Humanity, it houses one of the core bases of the United Nations Aerospace Coalition, who can commandeer the station (under the watchful eye of HOMER) for a limited time in extenuating circumstances, provided that the population and/or HOMER himself permit such a temporary takeover.

Industry & Trade

While Remus does have a prominent shipbuilding industry, its primary economic function is fuel supply and goods trade-off. The station orbits a star rich in antimatter, which is necessary for warp drives, and is in relatively close proximity to a number of other colony systems (including Luyten's Star, bearing Echosian grain and produce.)

Infrastructure

Remus' power supply comes from two different sources: the primary power grid is supplied by the station's massive solar arrays that gather energy from Procyon, supplemented by a set of auxiliary fusion reactors that can be activated rapidly in the event that the station requires an excess of energy not sustainable by solar arrays alone.

History

The settlement of the Procyon system was precluded by the long-duration Odyssey mission of 2200-2227, in which the eponymous probe Odyssey itself was sent to study the Sirius and Procyon systems. Aboard this probe was HOMER, one of the first truly sapient artificial intelligences constructed by humanity. At the end of the mission, HOMER and his probe entered dormancy for almost two decades before being rebooted and integrated with the newly arrived UNAC vessel, bearing the first humans to enter the Procyon system. Remus as it is known today started in 2348 as the prototypical UNSS Remus, expanding over the centuries from a small research outpost to a thriving hub of trade, academia, and shipbuilding.

Archive Data

ORBITAL CHARACTERISTICS

System

Procyon

Central body

Procyon A

Aphelion

2.52 AU

Perihelion

2.5 AU

Semi-major axis

2.51 AU

Eccentricity

0.02

Inclination

0.11°

Orbital period

1186.2 days

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Total mass (structure)

6.8e+11 kg

Station type

eumodular/worldshell

Station generation

Constellation

Station class

Jericho

HABITATION INFORMATION

Population

2.7 million

Demonym

Remite / Procyonese

Administrated by

HOMER / Reman Democratic System

Member of

Ecumenical Democracy of Procyon

Characters in Location

• HOMER