2,500
edits
Alpha Shard: Difference between revisions
→History
NightHammer (talk | contribs) m (An image of the shard orbiting the sun would probably be better) |
|||
| Line 24: | Line 24: | ||
When the {{UNSCShip|Pillar of Autumn}}'s reactors went critical on [[2552#September|September 23, 2552]], Installation 04 attempted to activate a safety measure and make a slipspace jump. However, this self-preservation protocol was only partly successful, and only a small portion of the ring—a shard with a surface area of 96 km<sup>2</sup>,<ref name="nf1">'''Halo: Nightfall''' - ''Chapter One''</ref> later designated Alpha Shard—managed to enter slipspace before the ''Autumn''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s reactors overloaded and destroyed the ring. The surviving fragment of the Halo reentered normal space in the vicinity of a red giant star some distance away from the [[Orrichon system]] and was caught in the giant star's orbit.<ref name="wp shard"/> | When the {{UNSCShip|Pillar of Autumn}}'s reactors went critical on [[2552#September|September 23, 2552]], Installation 04 attempted to activate a safety measure and make a slipspace jump. However, this self-preservation protocol was only partly successful, and only a small portion of the ring—a shard with a surface area of 96 km<sup>2</sup>,<ref name="nf1">'''Halo: Nightfall''' - ''Chapter One''</ref> later designated Alpha Shard—managed to enter slipspace before the ''Autumn''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s reactors overloaded and destroyed the ring. The surviving fragment of the Halo reentered normal space in the vicinity of a red giant star some distance away from the [[Orrichon system]] and was caught in the giant star's orbit.<ref name="wp shard"/> | ||
While most of the debris of Installation 04 either fell into [[Threshold]]'s or [[Basis]]' [[gravity well]]s or remained in the orbital debris field, at least 30% of the mass and curvature remained unaccounted for by the UNSC. In late [[2555]], the Office of Naval Intelligence took note of information recorded by an Automated UNSC Scout Vehicle, Recon-14, in an area designated Location 6201. Recon-14 had been deployed from the ''Pillar of Autumn'' before the ship's crash-landing on the Halo installation. The signal data from the drone was analyzed by multiple ONI specialists, among them ONI attaché for astrophysical phenomena [[Madeline Tress|Dr. Madeline Tress]]. She correctly concluded that the signal originated from the missing fragment of Installation 04, indicating that a part of the ring either generated or was enveloped in a significant slipspace event, one far exceeding the capabilities of either human or Covenant technology.<ref name="wp shard"/> | While most of the debris of Installation 04 either fell into [[Threshold]]'s or [[Basis]]' [[gravity well]]s or remained in the orbital debris field, at least 30% of the mass and curvature remained unaccounted for by the UNSC. In late [[2555]], the [[Office of Naval Intelligence]] took note of information recorded by an Automated UNSC Scout Vehicle, Recon-14, in an area designated Location 6201. Recon-14 had been deployed from the ''Pillar of Autumn'' before the ship's crash-landing on the Halo installation. The signal data from the drone was analyzed by multiple ONI specialists, among them ONI attaché for astrophysical phenomena [[Madeline Tress|Dr. Madeline Tress]]. She correctly concluded that the signal originated from the missing fragment of Installation 04, indicating that a part of the ring either generated or was enveloped in a significant slipspace event, one far exceeding the capabilities of either human or Covenant technology.<ref name="wp shard"/> | ||
Uniquely, the extreme heat of the ''Autumn''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s explosion, comparable to temperatures produced by a [[supernova]], caused the formation of an entirely new element in a small area of the fragment—one not found elsewhere in the universe. This element was later illegally mined from the fragment and smuggled to [[Human colonies|human colonial space]], specifically [[Sedra]]. It was discovered that the element caused catastrophic breakdown of DNA in certain humans but did not affect other species. The element was refined into a [[bioweapon]] which a [[Sangheili]] terrorist unleashed in [[Sedra City]], killing or hospitalizing many of the planet's citizens. A joint [[Locke's team|ONI]]-[[Sedran Colonial Guard]] team led by [[Jameson Locke|Lt. Commander Locke]] embarked on a mission to the Halo fragment in order to capture the smugglers who mined the element and destroy the deposits with a [[HAVOK]] nuclear warhead.<ref name="nf1"/> | Uniquely, the extreme heat of the ''Autumn''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s explosion, comparable to temperatures produced by a [[supernova]], caused the formation of an entirely new element in a small area of the fragment—one not found elsewhere in the known universe. This element was later illegally mined from the fragment and smuggled to [[Human colonies|human colonial space]], specifically [[Sedra]]. It was discovered that the element caused catastrophic breakdown of DNA in certain humans but did not affect other species. The element was refined into a [[bioweapon]] which a [[Sangheili]] terrorist unleashed in [[Sedra City]], killing or hospitalizing many of the planet's citizens. A joint [[Locke's team|ONI]]-[[Sedran Colonial Guard]] team led by [[Jameson Locke|Lt. Commander Locke]] embarked on a mission to the Halo fragment in order to capture the smugglers who mined the element and destroy the deposits with a [[HAVOK]] nuclear warhead.<ref name="nf1"/> | ||
==Description== | ==Description== | ||