Jenatris Cloud
Par'tha Expanse
| Par'tha Geography | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Spatial Phenomena | ||
|
Jenatris Cloud | |
|
Rintani Nebula | |
|
Norlian Nebula | |
| Jenatris Corridor | Siiden Passage | |
| K'tem Hyperlane | ||
| Planets and Systems | ||
| Points of Interest | ||
| Aelann Imperial Shipyards | Midway Station | |
| Jirissa Gardens | Lastelle Island | |
|
Deep Space 26 | |
|
Shemsh | |
|
Outpost Ganzera | |
| Neighboring Regions | ||
| VIR | UFP | |
| RSE | Solerian Sector | |
|
| ||
The Jenatris Cloud was discovered several hundred years ago by Hanol Jenatris, an astronomer from Alpha Centauri. The Cloud is really a combination of hundreds of small nebulae and odd subspace anomalies concentrated within this area of space for some as yet undiscovered reason. Various types of radiation and subspace friction make the Cloud prone to plasma and ion storms, causing it to be a highly dangerous place to be, moreso in some places than the Badlands area near Bajor. The density of particles present, the radiation, and the storms also make the Cloud very difficult to traverse. Sensors will only function up to a half a light year at best, and even that is highly spotty. Communications are impossible outside of a few hundred thousand kilometers, and in some areas, radiation interference and particle density is so severe that forming a warp field is impossible and shields can't be raised. Thankfully for those wishing to travel through the Cloud, the Jenatris Corridor (though slightly indirect) does run from the Federation side of the Cloud to the opposite side.
The Cloud, although a dangerous place to be, is thought by many to be a place of incredible beauty. Hues of gold predominate, with strands of fuchsia and royal blue, and other soft colors accenting and highlighting the swirling mass of particles and gases. The internal storms add a subtle sparkle, which gives some people the impression that the Cloud is almost alive.
In 2391 the USS Atlantis revealed an abnormal behaviour of the gases of the Jenatris Cloud. Those gases proved to be mutating constantly and one of this mutations was able to breach the hull and enter the ship. The mutation continued and affected the crew making inhibitions fade away a little. Science teams with an engineering team in enviro-suits were able to fix the breach and vent the gas away. Further scans on a sample proved that out of the cloud small portions of the gases decay to inert compounds within hours. Current hypothesis is that something within the nebulous cloud keeps the gases mutating.
In 2395, further study of the Jenatris Cloud revealed that short term exposure to the cloud gases caused varying side effects in numerous species. These side effects included hallucinations, impulse control issues, and in telepathic species the potential for psychosis. Further research led to the discovery of a cure designated the Jenatris Cure, which removes and prevents these side effects in the individual it is administered to.
In 2398, the USS Chin'toka, while escorting a colonization fleet alongside two other Federation starships, was forced to enter the Cloud after being driven out of the Jenatris Corridor by hostile forces. They found that not all sections of the massive nebula were equally dangerous, and they were able to carefully navigate it using low warp speeds and several sensor modifications. Star systems were even discovered inside the Cloud, though none so far have been determined to contain life.
In 2400, the Nova class USS Aldrin was briefly lost inside the Cloud while investigating a newly discovered Chon facility, Outpost Ceti. She and her crew were recovered by the USS Astraeus, which discovered a new, massive space-dwelling life form in the process, native to the Cloud and capable of telepathic communication.