2nd Earth:Origins

Chapter 6: Part 6

Minerva and Lim were able to map a large area around the crash site. We already named it the Northern drylands. Although the region we are inhabiting is rainless, Minerva believes Tommy was correct. After almost nine months (according to my calendar, which is accepted by Lim and Minerva) in this planet, no evidence of rain was detected. The fog cover sometimes thickens and there are days that the fog is virtually absent. During the 'fogstorm,' the entire region we live is white and gray, and visibility is only a few meters. It is quite dangerous to travel at those times. The fogstorm is very spectacular. The surrounding is very white and sometimes billows of cloud like fog cover everything. There are instances that we have to grope around for the fog can enter our camps. If the camp is properly sealed, the fog could not penetrate. It will be a few more months before our full year cycle, and the last three months is one thing we haven't seen.

Using our hovercraft, we were able to transport enough quantities of provisions to our camp site, 900 kilometers from the crash site and almost 1500 kilometers from the Three Peaks. We're near the river we first discovered and we eventually named it Discovery river.

Since Minerva is a geologist, she was able to find out many things about geologic structure and features of the planet. Our camp site is at the border of the forest and the northern grasslands, we discovered many unusual things about the planet. There are no stones here, only rocks. The smallest rocks are the rock spires on the Crash Site. No pebbles, only soil and sand. The soil cover on the crash site was very thin and gradually becomes thick as it reaches the forested south. The vegetation also gradually changes, from moss and algae, later becoming short stubs of grasses and later into tall grass like plants. The tall grasses later become mingled with large fragrant shrubs, and eventually squat and wide tropical trees. The Discovery river probably runs for almost 2000 kilometers without any large tributaries nor small channels. Small streams feeding it make the river clear, shallow and surprisingly calm. It ends to a very large lake, probably as big as South China Sea in area and its waves are large and turbulent. The turbulence is probably caused by the breeze coming from the east. We haven't tried crossing it. We named it the Restless Lake.

The entire planet is tropical but not jungle. There are no winds matching the winds of a typhoon, a hurricane nor any tornadoes. It is an extremely gentle planet. No rain, no stones, granite crust beneath rolling plains, grasses and trees. Even the forests are sparse. Although they become thicker and fog shrouded as one goes further south, near the Equator. Lack or rain is compensated by the presence of dew every morning and late in the evening. The plants and grasses appear as if they were rained on lightly. The coniferous forests are only found in the highlands. None of the highlands we've discovered so far are higher than two kilometers, except for the Three Peaks. The Three Peaks are incredibly high, higher than Mount Everest on earth. At its highest, according to ELSA it is about 13 kilometers high. They are at the edge of a large plateau which we tentatively named Western plateau. On the north east is the much lower elevation, we called Northern highlands, where we get our timber for our houses.

Lim and I once tried going north, but we almost got lost, because the north is an endless rock plain covered with moss and algae that gets thinner as we go farther. We are probably very close to the North Pole, when we called off our travel. Our saving grace was the Three Peaks, visible almost everywhere we go except when we go far south and east.