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[…] The Galileo Deep-Space Observatory, originally founded by Hecate and Artemis as a scientific research assistance project under Trismegistus Translation & Transportation before separating from the company in 2057, is a large lunar facility located approximately 50 kilometers outside the bounds of Galileo. The GDSO's primary purpose is the discovery, documentation, and research of paranormal phenomena observed outside of the Solar System. As its apparatus was constructed using advanced paratechnology extrapolated from VNP-2154 by Phoenix Technologies personnel, the GDSO is capable of observing numerous galaxies in a state coinciding with the time of observation, bypassing the limiting factor of the speed of light.
The GDSO is a frequent collaborator with Vanguard. Following the 2062 Scranton Prize for Chemistry being jointly awarded to its two founders and Vanguard Xenochemist Paulo Da Silva for their discovery and classification of eleven new elements located on LR-7435-C, the two organizations decided to split custody over the installation. As of 2064, the Observatory is a hub for interstellar research conducted by both the now-separated TTT sub-company and the Vanguard Deep Space Exploration Initiative.
Provided below is a series of excerpts of particular interest from its archives of extrasolar phenomena, as appended by GDSO research staff, attached alongside relevant documentation. […]
— Excerpt from "Introduction to Deep-Space Observation" by Prof. David Hunt (Vanguard Deep Space Exploration Initiative, 2064)
Entry Template
Identification: Anachron
Distance: 10 520 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a star that experiences the passage of time backwards. Extra-temporal observations reveal that it has begun its life as a white dwarf and, in spite of the general flow of chronons around it, started turning back into a red giant and then into a regular star. As of writing, the phenomenon is experiencing its main sequence period of existence and is acting as the center of a three-planet star system. The phenomenon is expected to collapse back into a nebula in approximately two million years.
Further Details: The phenomenon's nature does not affect the spacetime around it and seems to be limited just to its own surface. Still, according to research, the phenomenon's past does seem to indeed match the expected future of reality around it. So far, observation of its past composition has allowed for the examination and confirmation of the already-expected fates of several celestial bodies in its proximity.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Back to the Future: Regarding Time Beyond Reality" by Dr. Ilse Reynders, PhD²⁷ and Dr. Harold Blank (Micheals-Reynders University and Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2061)
Identification: Kalmaktama
Distance: 2406 LY
Description: Phenomenon is an exoplanet organism consisting entirely of living flesh. Its surface is ridden with numerous organs that appear similar to gigantic eyes, veins, arteries, and muscles, all of which are in a constant state of agitation but are incapable of reaching outside of the planet's equivalent of the Kármán line. Its atmosphere consists of a mixture of oxygen and carbon dioxide, both of which are created and excreted by the megaorganism. Barring the structural irregularities, the phenomenon behaves as expected of any unremarkable celestial body.
Further Details: In spite of its nature, the organism displays no signs of sapience or actual intelligence. Whether or not it even is sentient is still debated by scholars worldwide. No matter the answer, it is noteworthy to point out that the phenomenon excretes a passive aura of EVE radiation observable in its atmosphere, which regularly triggers a series of naturally occurring thaumaturgic rituals of unclear purpose. Current hypotheses state that the workings are simply the result of the aura interacting with other parts of the planet's irregular weather and geographical patterns, released due to the lack of a clear intelligence that would control it.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "On the Flesh Moon, the Second Coming of Ion, and Yaldabaoth at Large" by Klavigar Nadox (The Siberian Institute of Nälkä Heritage, 2060)
Identification: Ten-Ninety
Distance: 90 187 LY and 764 816 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a planet that through approximately 90% of its orbital period circulates one celestial object. Upon the completion of this stage, it encounters a naturally occurring fold in the ontokinetic fabric of reality, and passes through it only to come out in an entirely different star system, wherein it completes the remaining 10% of its orbital period, encounters another fold, and appears back in its system of origin.
Further Details: Although the gravitational pulls of the two celestial bodies the phenomenon orbits around differ widely, this fact does not seem to affect the planet itself, which appears to ontokinetically re-balance its course to be identical in both cases. Prior to the discovery of this mechanism — as well as the discovery of the naturally occurring folds that allow for the phenomenon's teleportation to even happen — it was believed that only sapient beings could affect the fabric of reality in such a way that it bends. Though previously theorized by some, the confirmation that this can also be achieved by inanimate phenomena was a major breakthrough in the field of ontokinetics.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "On Naturally Occurring Folds in Spacetime Stability" by Dr. James Micheals (Micheals-Reynders University, 2063)
Identification: Fáfnir's Maw
Distance: 8012 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a massive, unknown organism with an appearance vaguely similar to the European depiction of a dragon. Its outer scales are composed of hard, crystalized rock and ice. In place of its head is an array of sharper stones and jagged remains of meteorites, organized in a fashion reminiscent of an arched crown. The phenomenon is coiled in on itself in apparent hibernation at the center of the star system Fáfnir. All celestial bodies of the system orbit it as they normally would a star, though they are geologically dead and lack any atmospheres.
Further Details: It was originally believed that the system of Fáfnir was focused around a red giant. Investigation has found that the internal composition of the phenomenon is similar to that of the core of a star, and is undergoing nuclear fusion, albeit at a very slow rate. It is unknown whether this is simply how the organism has evolved within the void of space or if it's evidence that the organism had, in the past, consumed the original star of Fáfnir.
Since discovery, the temperature of the phenomenon has dropped considerably, with its "wings" having both shifted approximately 40 000 kilometers from their point of initial discovery.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Out There Be Dragons: An Observation Report on Fáfnir" by Dr. D. Draws (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2060)
Identification: Starberry
Distance: 12 918 547 483 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a binary star. The positioning and distance between its separate bodies are identical to that of the Epsilon Boötis within the Boötes constellation. The phenomenon's larger star consists entirely of strawberry ice cream, complete with chunks of gargantuan strawberries located within the mass. The second star is entirely unremarkable.
Further Details: The ice cream does not seem to be affected in any way by the light and heat emitted by the unremarkable star. Although under normal circumstances it would all melt, the celestial body remains unaffected by any such events and continues existing without any issues. Further research into the system, as directly funded by Chaz Ambrose of Ambrose Restaurants, is currently awaiting approval.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "A Glitch in the Matrix: On The Ontokinetic Breakdown Of Reality Nearing Its Edges" by Dr. Robert Madden (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2059)
Identification: YOUR MOTHER
Distance: 2 131 745 650 LY
Description: YOUR MOTHER is a red supergiant with a radius of over 3000 solar radii. YOUR MOTHER is so large that its size exceeds theoretical predictions for upward limits of stellar mass and size. YOUR MOTHER is the largest known star in the universe with a correspondingly large gravitational pull.
Further Details: YOUR MOTHER is affected by a semantic anomaly that requires that SHE be referred to as YOUR MOTHER. All attempts to bypass this effect by Vanguard Department of Miscommunication personnel alongside Fae name-mages have been met with failure.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "No, We Cannot Do Anything About YOUR MOTHER. We Have Tried." by Dr. Eli Forkley (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2067)
Identification: Koń-stellations
Distance: 78 611 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a herd of small, mobile organisms that appear to exist entirely as electromagnetic waves and do not possess any actual, corporeal bodies. As far as observations have shown, they do not require any sustenance that physical beings would need for continued survival and are entirely unaware of the existence of the physical world, by which they mostly remain unbothered.
Further Details: The entities do not seem to possess sapiency, sentiency, or any other form of intelligence known to mankind. In spite of this, they continue their existence and journey across the stars without any issues. Whether or not they are truly alive is still a subject of debate. All attempts at contact with the entities have been met with no results; whether by their choice or due to their nature remains unknown.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "A Few Words About Extrasolar and Extrauniversal Fauna" by Amber Wilson (Wilson's Wildlife Solutions, 2071)
Identification: Peephole
Distance: 267 917 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a distortion in the fabric of space-time that bends reality around it in such a way that it connects its surroundings with a point in space located approximately 600 000 kilometers away from the Earth's surface. With the exception of light, no phenomena — including matter, energy, and thaumaturgic workings — are capable of traversing the breach.
Further Details: Although observation of the phenomenon with regular GDSO apparatus simply results in the viewer observing the Earth in its current time, utilizing regular technology that does not bypass the limiting factor of the speed of light ends with the results showcasing the Earth in its past, as seen during the Fae Empire era. All resultant observations match the recorded history of the planet. Notable however is the fact that all observations of the Fae Empire city of Arlande, which still exists in the observations, showcase a single sidhe figure standing atop the city's tallest spire, staring directly at where the breach is located.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Peeking Through Time" by Dr. Ilse Reynders, PhD³² (Micheals-Reynders University, 2076)
Identification: Sodacannon
Distance: Consistently 3 LY away from the Kuiper Belt
Description: Phenomenon is a roughly spherical 100 km^3 mass of carbonated liquid. This liquid is ingestible by most sapient species.6 Its taste has been reported to be sweet and "similar to apples." Any liquid removed from the sphere is replenished through unknown means.
Further Details: Upon the phenomenon's initial discovery in 2070, research staff were surprised to find that a series of structures had already been set up around it. Though initially thought to be potential signs of extraterrestrial life, upon further inspection, the structure was revealed to be a fully automated production plant owned by the Coca-Cola Company for their "Space Orchard" drink range — a beverage that had existed since the early 2040s.
Identification: Beholding
Distance: 951 842 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a collection of sixteen objects resembling stars, which remain in a stationary position to the direct east of the galactic center. Referred to as the Hydra Star Cluster, the objects do not match the exact traits of any known classification of stars despite several attempts to do so finding them to possess most traits associated with late-stage red supergiants.
Further Details: Individuals who view images of the phenomenon for prolonged periods of time report feelings of intense dread, paranoia, and "being watched." Further research is pending.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Lovecraftian Nonfiction: What Exists Out There? (And Why What Doesn't Should Worry You)" by Badab Kryptman (SkyMarshall, 2063)
Identification: Agua
Distance: 5836 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a nebula within which all movement — including that of light, matter, energy, and thaumaturgic workings — is altered to behave like it would under standard underwater conditions on Earth.
Further Details: All celestial objects present inside the phenomenon were observed to have physical makeups consistent with that of seashells, seaweeds, high salt-content seawater, and other Earth-based aquatic phenomena. In spite of this, they appear to function as regular stars, moons, and planets normally would.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "The Evolutionary History of Proteoarchaeota Stellaris" by Robert Siwiatło (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2067)
Identification: Blackbox
Distance: N/A
Description: Phenomenon is a complete void, absent of all light and planetary bodies; a hollow abyss amongst the stars.
Further Details: nevermind we left the lens cap on — Intern Astrologist Vincent Bohart
Attached Documentation: N/A
Identification: Leaflet
Distance: 2 867 750 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a Euclidean plane that partially intersects with a region of the Triangulum Galaxy. Its shape roughly matches that of a square with a width of 6 LY.
Further Details: Impressed upon the "Leaflet" there exist sections of what seems to be a binary star system. The image includes the two stars of the system (a blue main sequence star and a red giant), six exoplanets (three terrestrial planets, a super-Earth and two gas giants), their moons and two asteroid belts. All objects impressed upon this Euclidean plane seem to be unnaturally elongated and still emit and reflect light, but aren't affected by other laws of physics.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "The Triangulum Galaxy anomaly: 2D spaces in our 3D universe" by Cheng Xin (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2068)
Identification: Papilio
Distance: 6 918 372 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a gigantic nebula that appears to take on the general shape of a butterfly. In spite of not actually possessing any "wings," parts of the phenomenon that bear resemblance to the wings of the pretend-butterly move every three months, imitating flight.
Further Details: All Fae individuals who view the phenomenon — be it through photographs or live observation — report feelings of tranquility and "warmth." Each studied subject has additionally reported the sudden re-awakening of previously though-to-be-forgotten memories of their deceased loved ones within 24 hours of observing the phenomenon. The recovered memories do not fade with time.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Where We Go When We Fade, Fade Away" by Olivié Gwyneth (The Sidhe Lounge, 2059)
Identification: Admonition
Distance: 0.00047 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a series of humanoid corpses spread out in a circular manner that orbit Neptune and appear to be linked with each other — despite no physical link connecting them together, it is impossible to move one of the bodies without affecting the others.
Further Details: Although the corpses that make up the phenomenon are burnt beyond recognition — disallowing for the identification of their species, age, gender, or other characteristics — all of them wear uniforms similair to those used by the International Center for the Study of Unified Thaumatology during the 1990s. When approached by GDSO personnel, ICSUT has declined to comment.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "On the Dangers of Off-World Teleportation" by Xenia Dufort (International Center for the Study of Unified Thaumatology, 2068)
Identification: Blank Space
Distance: 354 670 LY
Description: Phenomenon is an area of 3 lightyears in diameter that includes one or more phenomena of unknown properties. At least one phenomenon in the area actively destroys all information about it.
Further Details: Originally one or more specific phenomena inside Blank Space were recorded before this information was lost. The exact phenomenon could still be deduced through phenomena in the surrounding space until information about the secondary phenomena was also lost. No deduction concerning Blank Space was possible afterwards. All that remains known about Blank Space is that the amount of information lost to something in Blank Space is growing and that Hawking Radiation was recorded in the area.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Counterconcepts in Space" by Melinda Williams (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2058)
Identification: Solaris Punching Center
Distance: 1690 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a hycean exoplanet with an extremely dense ocean covering its surface but lacking an atmosphere. Observation has revealed that the ocean moves on its own, without any interaction with outside forces. Through these movements, complex structures are created at irregular timeframes. The structures usually last for two days until they collapse upon themselves, releasing large amounts of EVE and akiva radiation.
Further Details: Closer observation revealed that the structures created by the ocean almost always ended in the appearance of shark-like objects. Furthermore, the event that interrupts the creation of these structures seems to be some kind of thaumaturgical ritual that summons a large ghostly fist over the ocean, which subsequently descends upon the newly formed structure, destroying it.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "The Blooming Study of Solaristics" by Kelvin Kris (International Center for the Study of Unified Thaumatology, 2079)
Identification: Wand's Comet
Distance: 23.178 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a comet consisting almost entirely of gold. The comet's tail is caused by excessive amounts of EVE radiation generated from inside the comet rather than escaping gases as is normal for comets. Wand's Comet's path suggests it might have crossed the Solar System 240 thousand years ago.
Further Details: Wand's Comet is wildly believed to be the hiding place of all treasure the mythical Fae pirate Captain Wand stole during their lifetime. This is supported by multiple treasure maps attributed to Captain Wand locating the treasure at relative coordinates that always correspond with the comet's current location. According to the legends, Wand's Comet is filled with artifacts unrivaled in their magic. It supposedly consists out of all kinds of exotic material ranging from irrilite mountains to rivers of mercury. What speaks against these theories is that Captain Wand was active in the 220th millennium BCE during the Yeren-Fae Space Race. The comet was at this time already too far away for any spaceships to reach it and Captain Wand should not have been able to make contact with it.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "The Final Treasure" by Olivié Gwyneth (The Sidhe Lounge, 2056)
Identification: Heartnel-1
Distance: 62 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a small satellite, orbiting a gas giant known as Heartnel-0. Heartnel-1 has no atmosphere, but its surface is covered entirely by a fungal colony. The colony will occasionally release small fungal probes capable of maneuvering through space, which appear to bring mineral resources back to the host planet.
Further Details: Observation suggests that Heartnel-2's colony is the result of a collision with a malfunctioning Avyngir deep-space exploration probe. These biomechanical probes were created by Yeren scientists 210,000 years ago, in order to search for life outside of planet Earth. While these probes were designed to lead intelligent life back towards Earth without accidentally seeding planets, it is believed that the programming of these probes degraded over hundreds of thousands of years, causing at least one of them to search for a surface to grow on to. Of the 36 probes launched by the Avyngir exploration program, only four are accounted for.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "The Original Voyager Program: Avyngir's Attempt to Find Life Beyond the Stars" by Dr. Alison Stark and A. M. Faletra (New Sunsets Publishing, 2036)
Identification: Exotaurus
Distance: 100 LY
Description: Phenomenon is an exoplanet with an earthlike atmosphere. Its main difference from Earth lies in the atmosphere's high level of methane and 90% of all land on the exoplanet consisting of grassland. At regular points around the exoplanet, the grassland is interrupted by crop fields instead. The grasslands are inhabited by the only mammal native to the planet: the cow as found on Earth.
Further Details: The fact that Exotaurus is inhabited solely by cows was not observable by the GDSO and was only confirmed on a mission to the exoplanet much later. All cattle tested on Exotaurus have been found to be genetically identical to cattle on Earth. The crop fields on the exoplanet connect to crop circles on Earth, serving as a bi-directional Way.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Grand Cow Theft by the Orthothan Fae" (Archive of the International Court for the Paranormal)
Identification: Syzygy
Distance: 40 618 927 755 ± 12 545 900 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a chain of galaxies ranging from 3600 to 425 000 light-years in diameter, appearing to be spaced evenly apart in a straight line on the order of 10 light-years. No further similarities or patterns exist between individual galaxies.
Further Details: It remains unconfirmed if this is simply the product of perspective. Observation of the phenomenon is ongoing, as neither end of this configuration has been discovered at the time of writing.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Through the Looking Glass: Issues with the Geocentric Perspective" by Stefania Suzett (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2060)
Identification: Metteyya
Distance: 363 088 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a luminous spheroid approximately 40 meters in diameter, currently travelling towards the Milky Way from intergalactic space at a constant speed of 1.0000000001c. On account of the multiple failed attempts to study its emission spectra and other characteristics, the phenomenon has tentatively been classified as an anomalous stellar object.
Further Details: Deep time orbital models strongly suggest that the phenomenon will come close to, if not enter the Solar System in 360 kiloyears. Proposals to study the Akiva signature of the phenomenon are currently under consideration.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Interstellar Near-Misses: Nibirus for the Modern Age" by Tsewang Chodron (Accra Technical University and Marduk Foundation, 2066)
Identification: Iris
Distance: 817 018 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a massive, circular reflective surface, approximately 150 000 km in diameter. The object remains angled perpendicular to the point of observation, perfectly reflecting the viewer's point of origin/perspective back to them.
Further Details: I'm pretty sure this is a metaphor. — Former Intern Astrologist Vincent Bohart
Attached Documentation: N/A
Identification: Möbius Klein
Distance: 41 523 672 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a pair of galaxies, both approximately 5500 LY in diameter, in the shape of Möbius strips. All celestial bodies in both galaxies lie perfectly on the Möbius strip surface. The galaxies are expected to collide in 5-6 billion years.
Further Details: A temporal anomaly of unknown origin affected the galaxies, causing them to collide in a matter of days. The galaxies merged into the shape of a Klein bottle.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "The Topology of Space" by Dr. Tymoteusz Forteca (Personal Journal, 1929)
Identification: Cetus
Distance: 700 000 000 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a cosmic anomaly; a supervoid measuring 100 megaparsecs (300 million light-years) in diameter. Whilst the majority of voids are simply regions of space-time containing very few galaxies relative to the rest of the observable universe, the phenomenon is completely devoid of any and all celestial objects. Despite this fact, individuals directly observing the phenomenon will perceive a pair of dim, faint lights existing at the center of the supervoid’s frame of reference accompanied by inaudible whispering.
Further Details: The seemingly intangible nature of the phenomenon and its capability of inducing audiovisual hallucinations within the observer have been related to the existence of a being recorded within the oratories of the ancient Fae as the Leviathan; "There are many among my contemporaries who liken the celestial heavens to the depths of the ocean. Eidetic memories of once crossing the Neverdreamt Sea and witnessing strange, glowing animals traversing beneath the ocean's surface conjure up images of stars sailing upon moonless skies. Cascading waves ripping apart their reflections within pale waters echo cosmic storms tearing apart the heavenly bodies. And in those fantastical stories, poetic recreations of the interstice between dream and reality, there dwells an imaginary beast sailing upon the night sky. As it navigates the cosmic oceans, it feasts on the heavens, gorging itself upon all starlight until only a great darkness remains — its wailing song echoing upon the firmament."
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "A Cosmic Whalesong" by Dr. Victoria Takemi (Self-published, 2018)
Identification: Agathodaemon
Distance: 670 200 LY
Description: Phenomenon is a spherical object, about the size of Jupiter, believed to be composed of an unknown gaseous compound. Agathodaemon does not appear to have a gravitational pull, based on its interactions with other objects. Foreign substances which pass through Agathodaemon to undergo some form of alchemical transformation, typically exiting the phenomenon as some form of transitional metal, regardless of its previous composition.
Further Details: Prior to 2058, it was considered scientific fact that intelligent use was a core component of the alchemical process. The discovery of Agathodaemon and several other alchemically significant deep-space objects has since caused the academic consensus to shift away from this view.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Agathodaemon: Challenging the Intelligence of Alchemy" by Ann Barlowe et al. (International Center for the Study of Unified Thaumatology, 2058)
Identification: Ytterby II
Distance: 29 009 009 LY
Description: Ytterby II is a rogue Cthonian planet determined to be primarily composed of the elements Yttrium (88.7%), Terbium (2.1%), Erbium (0.7%), and Ytterbium (8.2%).
Further Details: While the existence of Ytterby II does not necessarily run counter to conventional physics, the nature of the formation of these specific uncommon elements, in such a large quantity, in a single location, is subject a high degree of scrutiny in the realm of both conventional and anomalous sciences.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Rare Earth Elements, Minus The Earth" by Ryan Constanski. (Stellar Questions, Yearly Issue, December 10th, 2063)
Identification: Até
Distance: 4.47 AU
Description: An irregular moon of Jupiter that orbits it with a semi-major axis of 20,824,300 km and an orbital period of only 126.3 days, a violation of Kepler's laws of planetary motion.
Further Details: No other anomalous properties have been noted.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Kepler's Suggestions" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2044)
Identification: Raisin Comets
Distance: Variable; the closest instance is currently 7 AU from Earth, while the farthest is approximately 30 AU away.
Description: At least 12 objects with similar sizes and orbital characteristics to comets. However, these objects do not outgas and therefore lack comas and tails. Their surfaces are very dark in coloration and exhibit extremely complex topography. Spectroscopy of the surface indicates the presence of chlorophyll, melanin, and other biological pigments.
Further Details: These objects are currently hypothesized to be Dyson trees, plants genetically engineered for the creation of Earthlike habitats on comets. Legends of the Yeren-Fae space race suggest that several such organisms may have been created during that period, though it is unclear what, if anything, lived (or still lives) in the cometary habitat therein.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Dyson Tree Candidates in the Oort Cloud" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2045)
Identification: Wraith
Distance: 3 100 LY
Description: A carbon planet with a surface of graphite, an atmosphere of carbon oxides, and oceans of liquid hydrocarbons. Seismic activity has caused mountains of diamond to protrude from the surface in several places; however, all such mountains have been mined extensively, and the majority of the diamonds removed from the planet.
Further Details: The derelict remains of at least 14 city-sized mining machines remain on the planet's surface, but the extremely low light provided by its brown dwarf "sun" makes detail difficult to discern.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Evidence of Extraterrestrial Diamond Mining on Carbon Planets" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2046)
Identification: Duergar
Distance: 2 500 LY
Description: What appears to be a black dwarf: the stellar remnant of a white dwarf that has cooled to a surface temperature so low that it no longer emits significant amounts of visible light (in Duergar's case, about 4 Kelvin).
Further Details: Though the possibility of black dwarfs was theoretically predicted in the 20th century, none were expected to exist, as it would take a white dwarf at least 1015 years to reach Duergar's temperature—more than 76,000 times the current age of the universe.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "A Rebuttal of the Black Dwarf Explanation for the 'Duergar' MACHO" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2047)
Identification: The Lateful Star
Distance: 260 000 LY
Description: A millisecond pulsar that, instead of "pulsing" regularly like normal stars of its type, does so in a simple code similar to Morse. When translated by thaumaturgical means, these pulses were found to be messages directed at the prehistoric Fae Empire's Queen Mab, consisting primarily of personal insults and vulgar threats.
Further Details: It appears that the object's senses do not circumvent the speed-of-light delay, causing it to still perceive Earth as it was hundreds of thousands of years ago. Its transmissions are likewise limited by the delay, meaning that they will not reach non-anomalous telescopes on Earth for at least another 240,000 years, and that Queen Mab was likely completely unaware of the star's apparent grudge against her.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Implications of Stellar Sentience" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2048)
Identification: The Berateful Star
Distance: 250 000 LY
Description: A millisecond pulsar that, instead of "pulsing" regularly like normal stars of its type, does so in a simple code similar to Morse. When translated by thaumaturgical means, these pulses were found to be messages directed at the Lateful Star, angrily telling it to be quiet.
Further Details: The two pulsars are approximately 20,000 light years apart. If the Lateful Star began insulting Mab in the early days of the Fae empire (~280,000 years ago), then the Berateful Star has only begun to hear its messages relatively recently. Likewise, the Lateful Star will not hear the Berateful Star's complaints for close to 20,000 years — shortly after it sees Mab be defeated, ~260,000 years ago.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Implications of Stellar Sentience" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2048)
Identification: Whalefall
Distance: 576 LY
Description: A young, warm terrestrial planet of shallow seas, vast wetlands, arid deserts, and steep mountains. The only macroscopic life is an enormous colonial organism with similarities to coral, lichen, and microbial mats, inhabiting an inland expanse of lakes and wetlands with an area of almost 700,000 square kilometers. Though this organism is photosynthetic (as evinced by the presence of chlorophyll and similar pigments), the planet's atmosphere contains very little oxygen.
Further Details: Earth's atmosphere first became oxygenated 2.4 billion years ago, approximately 2 billion years after the planet's formation, but corals and lichens only evolved within the last few hundred million years. Whalefall's young age (~1.5 billion years) would seem to preclude a local origin for this complex organism, and its unoxygenated atmosphere indicates that the colonial organism has not existed for a long time, geologically speaking.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Possible Panspermia Events During the Yeren-Fae Space Race" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2049)
Identification: Textbook
Distance: 1 000 LY
Description: A star system consisting of one K-class star, three terrestrial planets, and two gas giants. The orbits of the planets are all perfectly circular and lie in exactly the same plane, to which all of their rotational axes are perfectly perpendicular. All six bodies are perfectly spherical and have completely homogenous surfaces. The masses of the planets are exact multiples of 0.1 Earth masses, and the stellar mass is exactly 0.5 solar masses. These properties defy all current models of planetary system formation.
Further Details: The configuration of this system exactly matches an oversimplified hypothetical scenario presented in An Introduction to Para-Astrophysics by J. Clay, S. Norton, and G. McCauley, a college textbook published in 2027.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Survey of an Impossibly Simple Solar System" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2050)
Identification: The Firmament
Distance: 1 524 800 LY
Description: An immense sphere of an unidentified white material 172 light years in diameter. The sphere's surface has polygonal facets, each with an estimated area of hundreds of millions of square kilometers, that give it a "crystalline" appearance. The surface temperature of the sphere has been measured at approximately 6000 Kelvin.
Further Details: The object was initially mistaken for an anomalously large star, but subsequent measurements indicate a mass only a few times greater than the Sun, suggesting that the sphere is very thin and mostly hollow.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Crystal Spheres and Other Variant Solar Systems" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2051)
Identification: The Broken One
Distance: 2 537 400 LY
Description: A G-type main sequence star that, despite its temperature, is a dark red color consistent with much smaller or older stars. Organisms exposed to the light of this star "melt" into gelatinous forms that retain consciousness and mobility but display radically altered psychology. Observations with non-anomalous telescopes show that the star once had a more typical appearance, indicating that its current state is the result of a transformation experienced sometime in the last 2 million years.
Further Details: The effects of the Broken One's light at intergalactic distances, if any, are unknown. The precise time of its transformation, and therefore the time when its potentially dangerous altered light will arrive at Earth, is likewise unclear.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Proposal for the Deployment of a Starshade Between Earth and the Broken One" by Dr. Kothaar Astrix (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2052)
Identification: Myxian Dawn
Distance: 43 998 079 083 LY
Description: A roughly Earth-sized planet, with (presumed) unexceptional geological and atmospheric compositions. Upwards of several quintillion fungal spores saturate the atmosphere, and are regularly struck by cosmic rays, resulting in the entire planet being covered by large, constantly shifting, multicolored aurorae.
Further Details: Due to the sheer density of matter above the planet itself, it is not currently known what organism, if any, produces these spores.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "An Examination of Extraterrestrial Hyperflora" by Dr. Palm Dyspha(Galilean Astronomic Committee, 2064)
Identification: Vitreous Showers
Distance: 204 980 LY
Description: A small, tidally locked, (debatably) rocky planet orbiting >.001 AU from its giant host star. The proximity and temperature have led to the entirety of the planet being molten, with the side facing the star even boiling. Despite this, the planet retains an atmosphere, where the rock condenses enough to rain molten glass back down to the surface.
Further Details: The host star has undergone transformation into a white dwarf. As it is now significantly further away from a significantly less radiative star, its unique weather patterns have ceased, leading to no geological or atmospheric activity. The planet is now comprised completely of a solid, greyish glass, infused with various late-stage solar materials.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "A Study of Solar Proximity and its Effects" by Dr. Sage Dyspha (Galilean Astronomic Committee, 2043)
Identification: Starstruck
Distance: 396,423 LY
Description: A largely uniform pulsar star. Any attempts to chart the wavelength of the radiation produced by the star will result in the song "Wrecking Ball" by Miley Cyrus playing from every device capable of producing audio in a fifty meter radius around the individual attempting the charting until the charting attempt ceases.
Further Details: N/A
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "Space Symphonies: How Cosmic Radiation Influences The Music Industry More Than You'd Think" by Aoife Daly, (SkyMarshall, 2081)
Identification: Space Oddity
Distance: 22 763 LY
Description: Unclear. Possesses a heavy antimemetic effect which prevents viewers from remembering details concerning it when not directly observing it.
Further Details: Through trial and error with a number of observers, the following details have been confirmed about the object:
- It is not a singular object, but a large mass of smaller objects, bound together by some form of gravitational anomaly.
- The mass is roughly pentahedronical, with each side estimated to be the same size, believed to be roughly ten kilometers across.
- On occasion, the smaller objects which make up the surface of the object will undulate, causing a small number of them to disconnect from the mass and float away before vanishing. What exactly befalls these objects after they disappear is unknown.
- The object appears to be orbiting the Galactic Center and Sagittarius A*, completing an orbit once every five solar years, appearing to alter the manner in which it orbits the black hole with each cycle. Thus far, a circular orbit has never been observed.
- The objects which make up the mass are not spherical.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "All The Stars We Cannot See: Extrasolar Antimemes And Why The Universe Will Never Be Entirely Understood" by Dr. Penelope O'Sullivan (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2067)
Identification: Melville
Distance: 8.6 LY
Description: A low-mass brown dwarf orbiting Sirius A. No known anomalous properties.
Further Details: Dr. Isma Bolton, the object's discoverer, has identified it with legends of Captain Ahab and the Yeren-Fae Space Race, but no such relationship has been confirmed.
Attached Documentation: 🔗 "And to the Stars I Went with Only a Name" by Dr. Isma Bolton (Vanguard Academic Consortium, 2089)