Abyss Rift

Library Data Milieu 1116 

The Abyss Rift is an astrographic feature lying within the Spinward Marches.

• It is a rift area of low stellar density.
• It is not widely known of, except by astrographers and local starship captains.

Description (Specifications)

The Abyss Rift is a region of lower stellar density principally lying within the coreward-trailing quadrant of the Spinward Marches.

• The region measures an average of 4 parsecs spinward-trailing by about 11 parsecs coreward-rimward.
• It is a significant obstacle to interstellar trade and commerce, restricting the movement of lower jump-rated vessels.

It is rumored to contain a curious space-time anomaly.

A simple chart of the Abyss Rift region, showing the most widely accepted definition of its borders.

File:Chart Spinward Marches Rifts Basic Labelled.png

Rift Regions

250 px
(Chart sourced from Traveller Map)

• The location of the supposed space-time anomaly is marked by a blue circle.

Borders

Note that the exact borders of the Rift have never been precisely defined and are currently "best guess".

Seasoned astrographers continue to squabble over its precise physical dimensions and properties, quoting figures and values relating to the average density of the interstellar medium, emissions from within the region it covers, and a dozen other considerations. Despite years of heated debate a consensus has not yet been reached and different astrographic surveys repeatedly give it different boundaries.

History & Background (Dossier)

High cargo capacity, low jump rating vessels move along the Mains and Clusters of the sector, carrying vast amounts of goods and commodities between their member worlds. Jump-2 and Jump-3 feeder routes work their ways around the voids and rifts, linking the various clusters and traces.

Three systems, all with travel advisories, lie within the rift's currently accepted boundaries.

The worlds are Sonthert, Victoria, and Ylaven. The presence of these Amber and Red Zones is taken as further evidence by locals that the rift is a bad place where strange and awful things happen. Interdicted Victoria is widely believed to hold an Ancients site.

• It is likely to also contain a number of dark, frozen, starless rogue worlds and wandering icy planetoids within its depths, but none have ever been officially charted or catalogued.

Some Terran observers have called the Abyss Rift the "Bermuda Triangle" of the Spinward Marches, recalling the mysterious oceanic region on their homeworld. The rift has, over the centuries, been associated with disappearances and gained a reputation as a place where unusual events occur.

The rift has been the site of several notable ship disappearances over the last half millennium and a substantial amount of lore has built up associated with them. Curious jump related phenomena have been reported in the rift for centuries, often by reliable witnesses. Scouts plying the X-boat route between Lanth and Ghandi report events such as receiving radio signals in jumpspace or "someone on the hull, trying to get in".

It is suggested that the rumored space-time anomaly is centered around astrographic hex coordinates 1917. Some believe it to be a Space Sargasso, lying at the center of a larger shoal region that interferes with drive performance.

Worlds & Sectors (Astrography)

This astrographic feature is found in the following areas:

Charted Space – Third Imperium:

• Spinward Marches
  • Lanth Subsector
  • Lunion Subsector
  • Vilis Subsector

World Listing

Comprehensive Second Survey data for all worlds associated with the Abyss Rift is available.

• The primary source material for all data is Traveller Map.
• Other sources may differ: some elements of the data may be contradictory or incorrect.
• Data is occasionally updated as new information becomes available.

AAB library archives contain expanded data about the following systems:

3 of 3 World articles in Abyss Rift

Sonthert  •  Victoria (SM 1817)  •   Ylaven   •  

startbacknext(3 listed)

Note that some Second Survey data, though only 40 years old, may already be out of date.

• Scouting missions gathering reliable, verified data can receive substantial payment.

References

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Rob Caswell. MegaTraveller Journal 1 (Digest Group Publications, 1991), .
• Loren Wiseman. "Lost Treasure Ships of the Abyss Rift." Challenge 44 (1990): .
• Loren Wiseman. "Fated Voyage." Challenge 46 (1990): .
• Loren Wiseman. "Demon Dark." Challenge 58 (1992): .
• Dave Nilsen. The Regency Sourcebook (Game Designers Workshop, 1995), 41,46.
• Martin Dougherty. The Spinward Marches (Mongoose Publishing, 2008), .
• Colin Dunn. Library Data (Mongoose Publishing, 2011), 2.
• Martin Dougherty. Behind the Claw (Mongoose Publishing, 2019), 10, 63, 67, 69.
• Martin Dougherty. Whispers on the Abyss (Mongoose Publishing, 2024), 121.