Cymbeline (world)

Cymbeline (in the Arcturus Subsector)is a rarity in planetological studies: a massive world with a thin atmosphere. Although nearly 1 5,000 kilometers in diameter and having a density of 1.09 Earths, Cymbeline has a very thin (almost trace) atmosphere. Nearly 90% of the world surface is uninhabitable due to lack of atmosphere; the other 10% does have a thin, breathable atmosphere pooling at the bottom of extremely deep canyons and crevasses by the world's high gravity. These canyons form a network which straddles large portions of each hemisphere. Icecaps cover 30% of the world's surface.

The canyon bottoms are settled by a population of nearly 22 million living under a representative democracy. Local industries include mining, some light manufacturing, and agriculture on some sunlit canyon slopes. There are also a growing tourist trade and a small gas harvesting industry near the icecaps.

Cymbeline's surface is divided into the habitable canyons and the uninhabitable highlands. Cymbeline Down Starport is on the surface situated in the highlands; pressure domes, large elevator platforms and underground hangars, and tunnelled passageways make up the large starport complex. A monorail link through a bored rock tunnel connects with Findor (Cymbeline's largest city), located 80 kilometers east of, and 12 kilometers below the starport.

Findor: With a population of six million, Findor is easily twice the size of any other city on Cymbeline. It occupies a particularly broad section of canyon running eastwest within 10° of the equator. East-west sections of canyon are especially valued because the sun can shine into the depths through most of the day. The city itself is built into the canyon's rock walls and on islands in the large lake at the canyon's bottom. At points where the canyon narrows, delicate bridges carrying monorail cars connect the built-up areas of opposite sides.

Findor is a cultural and government center as well. Government offices for the bureaucracy are located in the city. A good university has its campus there. The city has good entertainment production facilities (audio and video studios). An artist colony enjoys a subsector-wide reputation for strobe-light sculptures.

From Findor, monorail links (winding along the bottoms of the canyons) connect with the other major cities of Cymbeline: Wildine to the north (important for gas and water mining in the icecaps), Cranches to the east (strip mining), and Logos to the south (technological research and development).

Just as seas separate continents on most worlds, the highlands separate the canyons on Cymbeline. Most of the canyons are connected enough to allow travel between them without venturing into the highlands, but some are virtual islands accessible only by pressurized ATVs or grav vehicle. There is some discussion of extending the monorail links to some of these island canyons, but the effort has not yet proven practical from a cost standpoint.

Volcanoes: Cymbeline has a number of active volcanoes, most of them concentrated in the northern hemisphere. Volcanic action is the primary source of Cymbeline's atmospheric gases. During eruptions, the gases are thrust upward and drawn back to the planet surface by gravity. The gases then flow along the contours of the land, eventually settling to the bottoms of the canyons. Local bacteria have evolved to metabolize the components of the volcanic gases to release oxygen.

- Source: Adventure 13 Signal GK

Non-Canon

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