User:NewOriginalSchwann/Sandbox

nyeheheheh Lois I am suffering from barotrauma.

History

Spooky shit dude.

Environment

The fourth largest moon in the Jovian System, and only slightly smaller than Luna, the environment of Europa was one of the first truly alien ones encountered by a young humanity. The moon’s icy surface is one of the smoothest natural ones in the Orion Spur, with very few craters and mountains, likely due to its high tectonic activity - a condition the stations attached to the ice must endure to the best of their abilities. The surface of Europa is bathed in radiation due to its lack of a true atmosphere, and mere hours of exposure to the radiation levels of the surface can prove to be fatal without treatment. As a result all non-shielded human settlements must be constructed below the ice of the surface, which is thick enough to act as a preventive shield against radiation. The Europan surface ice can be as thick as twenty miles in certain areas, with thinner areas often exhibiting the moon’s iconic cryogeysers as the water below interacts with the ice above. Some of these cryogeysers are capable of reaching over a hundred miles into the space above the moon, and have been known to interfere with craft passing by the moon.

Below the ice of the Europan surface lies the primary reason for humanity’s colonization of the planet: the Europan Sea. This massive ocean spans the moon in its entirety, and is upwards of one-hundred miles deep in some areas. The Europan Sea is extremely cold due to its position under the icy surface of the moon with the average surface temperature being -160 Celsius (or -260 Fahrenheit), and the coldest temperatures ever recorded in Europa being -220 Celsius (or -370 Fahrenheit). A higher salt content in the Europan Sea than its Earthborn counterparts has led to a lower freezing point, and a lower temperature overall. Exposure to the waters of Europa will rapidly result in hypothermia, and maintaining a livable temperature is a constant concern for every resident of and settlement on the moon. Heavy clothing is a common sight for residents of Europa, as not all of the cold can be staved off. Aside from the cold, another constant feature of the Europan Sea is the extreme amount of pressure it is capable of producing in its depths. Those submarines that proceed further down into the inky depths of the ocean are known to have heavily-reinforced hulls, often made of plasteel. In order to withstand the pressure exerted upon those brave, or stupid, enough to conduct EVA work Europan diving suits more readily resemble spacesuits than wetsuits.

But despite these inhospitable, completely dark conditions, Europa is not as devoid of life as one may assume.

Flora and Fauna of Europa

no husks here :)

Life on Europa

One’s standard of living in Europa depends heavily upon what facility they reside in, but there are some general rules. Settlements on the moon, due to its very light gravity, are universally built around large gravity generators that predate their shipborne counterparts - these models are by far larger and more power-inefficient, making them unsuited for non-planetary use. The primary method of travel for the vast majority of Europans are submarines of various sizes that make their way through the massive ocean under the planet’s icy surface. Due to submarines being far cheaper to build and maintain, and settlements being under the ice for safety, space-based travel between settlements remains rare even in the 2400s. The so-called “Deep Crazy” is another phenomenon that can be found regardless of where one is living on Europa, though some sailors and residents will claim that certain areas lead to higher rates of the affliction than others. Another constant factor for all settlements is the cold, often damp environment of the moon. Devices must constantly be maintained to ensure they do not break, lest the cold water seep into an area that humanity has carved out to live in. Beyond this, settlements begin to diverge in quality. Space is typically at a premium under the ice of Europa, and cramped quarters are a common feature of daily life.

The most common settlements under the Europan ice fall under a loosely-organized category best defined as “civilian stations.” These stations range in size from only a few thousand to upwards of several million residents, and vary widely in quality. The common nickname for these stations is derived from the fact that they are primarily utilized as residential areas for those that reside under the icy surface of Europa. These are some of the oldest settlements on Europa, and are often connected to nearby research, tourism, or industrial stations. The highest-quality civilian stations are often shared between Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals, which uses their attractive housing to attract new employees and encourage transfers to the Europan branch of the corporation, and Idris Incorporated, which utilizes them as tourist icons for the planet. Lower-quality civilian stations often suffer from a variety of issues, such as heating problems and persistent leaks in the hull - problems on any Europan station, but ones that become far worse when one’s home is barely breaking even.

Research stations are, aside from a few Sol Alliance stations hanging on by a ragged thread, owned and operated by Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals. Advanced research submarines come and go from them, heading off to a myriad of locations in the murky depths of the moon’s oceans - some never to return. These state-of-the-art facilities vary in size from small observation outposts to facilities that are cities onto their own, and some are rumored to only be accessible to very high-ranking Zeng-Hu personnel. What goes on in this Europan “blacksites” is barely known to the general public, or lower-ranking Zeng-Hu employees. The research provided by Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals provides a large source of employment for the moon’s population, and the megacorporation is known to possess the largest submarine fleet of any actor on the moon. Zeng-Hu submarines are known to go on longer expeditions and go further into the still poorly-charted depths of the Europan sea than any other vessels. Incidents of “Deep Crazy” are an unfortunate fact of life in these research stations, but Zeng-Hu is known to pay extremely well for contracts on Europa.

Tourism stations are a hallmark of Idris Incorporated’s presence on the moon, and are typically situated in major civilian stations. The most famous of these is, without a doubt, Idris’ Jovian Jewel resort and Galileo's Pearl facility. Due to their locations near the surface of the Europan Sea, “Deep Crazy” is not a common factor in these tourist facilities and Idris Incorporated does its best to avoid the affliction. Many Idris Incorporated employees dislike working on Europa, particularly those in lower-level positions such as the cargo departments of stations - those responsible for loading and unloading the many cargo submarines that traverse the depths of Europa.

The so-called “industrial stations” are the heart of the Europan submarine fleet. These industrial centers are typically situated near the surface of the moon’s seas and feature large bays to produce the submarines of the planet, which can range from small shuttles with a crew of under a dozen to massive research vessels with crews in the hundreds. Many of the materials utilized in the dockyards of the Europan Sea are imported from a nearby neighbor of the moon: Callisto, where materials mined upon the volcanic surface Io are refined. This is due to the immense size of the Europan Sea making mining impractical: it is difficult to reach the seabed for mining when the sea extends one-hundred miles downwards.

A Submariner's Life on Europa

AHOY

Major Settlements

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