November 25th, 8252

TO: SURVEYOR'S CORPS (Celesmore System)

STAR SYSTEM: CLOUWELL

PIRMARY STAR:

The primary star of the Clouwell system is a B2V class star: a young and vigorous main sequence star with a brilliant blue hue. It puts out an incredible amount of heat to the point that the moons of Clouwell 1 are marginally habitable in terms of temperature.

INNER CAULDRON:

The inner cauldron of the Clouwell system contains no planets but plenty of mineral wealth. Working from the star out there is a solar flare region where said flares can be observed on a disturbingly regular basis. Past this there are two regions where gravity riptides are common due to the interaction of the star and the nearby asteroids. Just past these two regions is an intermingled dust ring and asteroid belt, debris left over from the collision of at least two proto planets, that scans reveal as possessing plentiful industrial metals, sustainable amounts of ornamental materials (unusual mineral formations) and major deposits of radioactive isotopes from the cores of dead planets and the lashes of solar flares of the system's star. Just past this region is a cluster of asteroids, likely the remnants of a proto planet that ran afoul of a set of gravity riptides and impacts and was broken open. The sixteen major asteroids that make up this luster contain plentiful masses of industrial metals, ornamental materials, and radioactive isotopes.

PRIMARY BIOSPHERE:

The primary biosphere of the Clouwell system is a very narrow band on account of the heat of the star and contains only a volume of some size that is prone to irregular gravity riptides due to the interaction of the asteroid cluster and Clouwell 1.

OUTER REACHES:

The only stellar feature of interest in the outer reaches of the Clouwell system is Clouwell 1 and its eight moons. The world itself is a gas giant of the typical volume of such worlds but with a larger then average destiny and thus gravity well. Clouwell 1's atmosphere is majority hydrogen, and thus viable as a fuel world, but the dance of her dust rings, her moons, and her high gravity will make harvesting a tricky task without the assistance of an orbital traffic control station.

Clouwell 1-1 is a proper moon, albeit one of low mass and low gravity (0.96g). It has managed to capture an atmosphere of average density but said atmosphere is sufficiently different from human norms as to be toxic to breathe. Despite the cold temperatures present on the wold there is no evidence of water ice, or indeed water in any usable form or quantity. Thus extraction of the sustainable quantities of radioactive isotopes and limited exotic materials (exotic hydrocarbons) will be difficult.

Clouwell 1-2 is a different beast entirely. A large and dense moon with high gravity (1.66g) it's climate and surface are that of an ice world fairly covered with cryovolcanoes. The mixture of ammonia and methane these release has crated an atmosphere both three times as dense as earth standard and aggressively hostile to both human-style life and environmental protective equipment. Standard environmental seals, such as those found in Surveyor's Corps issue void suits, are calculated and expected to last for no more then twelve hours before failure. For all of this danger Clouwell 1-2 is expected, per planetary scans performed in low orbit, to yield significant masses of industrial and ornamental metals, plentiful radioactive isotopes, and limited exotic materials in the form of sundry unusual methane and ammonia substances.

Clouwell 1-3 is a small low gravity (0.84g) moon whose orbit is quite close to that of Clouwell 1-2. accordingly it's atmosphere shares much of the same composition as that moon but at a much more standard atmospheric pressure. It is no less deadly should an environmental seal fail but at least it is far less aggressive about destroying them. Clouwell 1-3's planetary scans indicate the presence of sustainable amounts of industrial metals plus limited quantities of radioactive isotopes and exotic materials

Clouwell 1-4 is most unusual in that, despite being in the outer reaches of a star system, it is a moon that is not only habitable but verdant with active life. It is a large moon but of a density such that it's gravity is very near to earth standard (1.04g). Its climate is cold, but it's atmosphere is close to earth standard and breathable freely by humans. The surface is currently in a 'Pangaea' configuration with only a single continent of note covered by a pair of vast tundra forests and a trio of barren ice field wastelands.

Life forms of note on Clouwell 1-4 include a species of small ambulatory tree and a flower that has been tentatively called the 'Clouwell Spitting Phase Blossom' for it's difficulty to detect on sensors and the thorns it launched at an automaton sent down to collect samples. The HMSCS Night Horse's onboard auto doc flagged this same flower as possessing unusual compounds that may well be unique in the chemical catalogs of the Star Empire – see attached data logs for further details.

In Addition to the aforementioned species there is a second identified distinct species of small tree, two unique species of flying animals, a heard beast that wanders the wastelands as it migrates from one forest to the other and back, a massive flying reptilian life form, an amphibious scavenger species, three sorts of stealth ambush predators (that the Night Horse was able to detect), and a small quadrupedal hyper-toxic predator species.

In terms of mineral and organic resources, Couwell 1-4 possesses plentiful reserves of industrial metals and radioactive isotopes, significant deposits of exotic cold-weather organic materials, and significant reserve of exotic compounds in the form of the Clouwell Spitting Phase Blossom.

Clouwell 1-5 is a moon of average demotions but low gravity (0.62g), a thin and toxic methane-rich atmosphere, and icy temperatures. Inhospitable to human life, Clouwell 1-5 possesses only limited supplies of industrial, ornamental, and exotic metals. There is also a small set of ruins of unknown origin on the surface that may be of scientific interest.

Clouwell 1-6 is another large moon of lowish density with a resulting nominal gravity (0.97g). It's atmosphere is of corresponding nominal density but possessed of sufficient ammonia concentrations as to be sub-optimal for breathing by humans. Combined with the ice world cold temperatures full environmental gear is strongly recommenced slash required for surface exploration. Limited concentrations of industrial metals are present but more exotic crystalline compounds are present in sustainable quantities in addition to plentiful reserves of ornamental materials and radioactive isotopes.

Clouwell 1-7 is a habitable moon recovering from a devastating impact. A large moon possessing normal gravity (0.98g) and a thin but human breathable atmosphere. Extensive mountain rages dominate most of the surface of the world besides the large impact crater. Most life forms that were detected form orbit either live at the rim of this crater or in the various valleys and caves scattered across the planetary surface. Inconclusive scans point to the possible presence of a planet-wide cave network, either from tectonic reasons or due to an as-yet unidentified tunneling creature. Identified species include three species of flora, an apex predator of sorts, and a small flying mammal. Additional species may exist sufficiently far underground that they evaded detection via orbital scan.

Clouwell 1-7's mineral resources include major reserves of industrial metals, plentiful ornamental stone, and limited deposits of radioactive isotopes concentrated at the center of the crater. Further scans of the crater itself reveal a major deposit of technological components of various sorts, raising the possibility that the crater was formed by a crashing star ship.

Clouwell 1-8 is a lesser moon in an erratic orbit. It passes close enough to Clouwell 1-7 that it may well have been knocked clear off that moon by the impact that also wrecked it's ecosystem.

COMMENTS:

The two habitable moons, when combined with the rich asteroid belts in the inner cauldron, make the Clouwell system very attractive to claim at the earliest viable opportunity. Cold and extreme weather gear would be a must for any colonists dispatched to this system unless terraforming operations were initiated to raise the surface temperatures of the habitable moons somehow.

SIGNED: CAPT Lawrence Warde, Commanding, HMSCS Night Horse.