WILLOW

WILLOW

3134 Breda/Delphi

A751844-C

Primary (pair): M3 Red Dwarf
         Neutron Star

Other Inhabited Worlds:

Boise: (hollowed asteroid/GG moon): A001614-C
Carlton: (GG Moon) Y2C5514-C Naval base
+ Various inhabited bases on smaller bodies


Willow has a number of unusual features for a life bearing world, most notably the unusual star system which it calls home.

The system's primary is a binary pair: a dim M3 red Dwarf and a Class 5 neutron star, which closely orbit each other.

The neutron star is not native to the system, and seems to have been 'captured' by it some 300 million years ago.  The neutron star (called Tsun, while the red dwarf is called Dere, from a play on the japanese word tsundere.)   It shifted some orbits of the planets, and is thought to be the reason why Willow's ecosystem is now in severe decline.

'Hyperspace Fortress'

Tsun gravitationally acts like much larger star, pushing the 'safe' envelope for jump drives out to about 18 million miles from the star.  Willow is well within this radius, at a distance of about 7 million miles from the primaries, and Oyster, the gas giant that Boise and Carlton orbit, is right on its very edge.  A second gas giant called Gibbet orbits at a distance of about 25 million miles.

Because of this, Willow cannot be surprise-attacked via hyperspace, a favorite tactic of space navies.  Ships must usually enter the system well over 11 million miles distant from it, giving it plenty of warning of any incoming attacks.  Ships can try to jump in closer, but run a high risk of misjumps (especially in the post-Cascade era.)

Even if a ship gets in close to Willow, the planet has two additional natural defenses: Willow is very close to its primaries, and receives a great deal of radiation from them.  It has a powerful magnetic field, which traps a lot of that in strong 'radiation belts' surrounding the planet, which help to skew sensors within 100,000 miles of the planet.

Willow is also so close to its parents stars that it has a much higher relative orbital velocity compared to other inhabited worlds.  Its 'year' is only three standard days long.  More than one 'surprise attack' on the world failed in part because the ships were unable to properly match its orbital velocity in time to coordinate the attack properly.

While Willow has a fully functioning A-class starport, including extensive ship yards, Boise (originally a moon of the jupiter-sized gas giant Oyster) is the system's official commercial starport.  Boise is a hollowed asteroid O'Neill colony with a population of 300,000.  It has also been made fully mobile with gigantic plasma rockets, and was moved around the system several times during the height of the Black War to help protect it from attacks.  Its is currently in Oyster's L4 asteroid cluster.

Carlton is site of the system's major naval base.  It was also the site of the only successful major attack on the system by the Solomani.  It is still in the process of rebuilding.

WILLOW

Willow has a gravity of 0.9 standard and rotates on its axis once every 18 hours or so.  Its atmospheric 'taint' is actually the relatively high background radiation.  Not immediately life-threatening, but prolonged exposure without protection can lead to health problems.

Willow is a 'post-garden' world.  Its water has been drying up for millions of years, being lost to chemical processes in a way similar to Mars.  Its hydrographic percentage is now only 10% (down from 60%), concentrated in several dozen small 'seas' (actually large lakes) around which its last remaining vestiges of life cling.  Its close orbit around the stars causes these small 'seas' to have periodic and sometimes spectacular tides and surges, however.

The inhabitants of Willow have set about trying to restore the biosphere to its former glory through long and careful planetary engineering, but the process will likely take many centuries yet.  Willow citizens culturally tend to be very dedicated environmentalists, especially toward their own world but to a lesser extent toward others as well.

Its close distance to its parent stars has kept the planet's core churned up, and as a result it has a very strong magnetic field, which also helps to protect its biosphere from said radiation.  Its still somewhat high for humans and non-Willow life, however, so most of the population lives in shielded shelters and domed cities and dress in radiation-proof suits if they need to be out on the surface for long periods of time.  Still, melanoma and other cancers are fairly high among the population, but at TL 12 they can usually be readily dealt with.

The skies at night, and sometimes during the day, are filled with bright and colorful auroras.

Willow has a population of about 200 million.  An extensive cluster of O'Neill colonies, hollowed asteroids, and stations orbit the planet housing about 10 million of those people.

Willow is the capital of the Willow Accord.  Even before that polity's founding ten years ago, it had become a major 'safe haven' for those fleeing from the Rebellion-Era chaos.  Its major cities, especially around its Downport City of New Brooklyn, have become choked with new residents, human and non, from all around known space.

While the refugees have at times been a source of new skills, labor, ideas, and wealth, they have also at times proven to be quite a burden.  Debate rages about the issue.