History
Timeline
When all men are but dust, time will march ever on.
Brother Matthews in The Litany of Time
- 2023:
- Construction of a permanent lunar base begins.
- 2027:
- First manned mission to Mars touches down successfully.
- 2029:
- Lunar base fully constructed and manned by an international team of lunarnauts.
- 2033:
- US/Iranian friction reaches critical point, war breaks out.
- 2034:
- Russia sides with Iran. Europe sides with America. Global tensions escalate.
- 2036:
- US/Russia skirmish in Chinese territorial waters leads to retaliation from China. WWIII begins.
- 2040:
- WWIII ends after limited nuclear exchange.
- 2042:
- Rapidly depleting terrestrial resources and widespread fallout prompt an increase in space program funding.
- 2045:
- United Nations reforms itself as the United International Confederacy, aiming to prevent a repeat of WWIII.
- 2052:
- Mars missions resume with a Martian colony using adapted lunar colony technology, alongside significant advances in space propulsion technology.
- 2053:
- Cryonic sleep technology perfected, rapid fabrication technology perfected.
- 2060:
- UIC begins plans for first extrasolar colony, founds the United International Confederacy Space Agency (UICSA).
- 2073:
- UICSA completes first orbital construction yard.
- 2081:
- First Axiom-class super colony ship completed.
- 2082:
- Rising tensions between UIC supporters in remaining global superpowers and separationists leads to escalating but non-overt conflict - Cold War II.
- 2084:
- Launch day - on the 20th July, eight Axiom-class super colony ships depart from Earth orbit for New Earth.
- 2220:
- On 12th February, a power failure is reported on Horizon; subsequent pod ejection and course correction to Rivis 490.
- 2228:
- Horizon arrives at Rivis 490d on 30th December.
- 2278:
- Projected arrival of rest of First Extrasolar Colonial Fleet at New Earth.