Biospheres

The main bulk of the Ark is made up of its 37 biospheres, each of which is a flat-bottom dome 30 km in diameter containing an independent ecosystem and community. Each biosphere is designated by a Greek letter and a number, e.g. Β5 ("beta-five"). There is no interaction between biospheres. In general, people cannot leave their home biosphere – the exit doors (to adjacent Service Areas) are locked and very strong. Passkeys do exist but they are very rare. Even knowledge about other biospheres is very limited, by design to keep each biosphere as its own community. Biosphere residents have only basic info about the Ark, including when it is scheduled to arrive at Tau Ceti. Each biosphere has its own Tech Level (maximum 7B).

Geography

A biosphere has artificial gravity, air, temperature control, and limited weather. There is a fake sun that moves across the dome. The sky is blue. There can be clouds and rain. The “ceiling” of the dome is not generally noticeable. The biosphere’s environment is maintained by non-computerized fail-safe systems that were not affected by the general computer system malfunctions. Travelling across a biosphere from one side to the other takes about 4 hours at a walking pace over roads or flat, open ground. Double that for rough ground. Hustling can halve the time, but a PC may not be able to hustle the whole distance. (ref. N.E.W. p. 165) Travelling through a biosphere from one Service Area portal to another takes about 2 to 4 hours, depending on the locations of the portals.

Fauna & Flora

Each biosphere is a closed environment containing flora, fauna, and human inhabitants, with a variety of different ecologies and societies. A biosphere may contain a single large city, a collection of smaller towns, farmland, wilderness, or a combination of environments.

Type

Megastructure

Location under

Earthship Ark

Included Locations