"Return To Mars": It's Go Time!

[Emperor Tristar Majestica]

Unnamed New City, Hungadada, Planet Mars:

"Good afternoon Center, this is Mapleguard Outpost, please provide a status update? over"

"Outpost, this is Center. All systems are check, Outpost power is at 80% operation. over"

"Center, message received. We're going to halt construction for today. We've got a scout team that says a storm is headed our way in a couple of hours. over"

"Yeah, Outpost, the storm is heading your way at about a 112 kilometres an hour. Secure all loose items, and seek shelter. Get that scout team back now! over"

"Roger that, Center, we're going offline. See you in a bit! over and out"

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Storms on Mars are no longer the threat they used to be. In the early days of the city, it was terrifying to have a dust storm at over 100km/h come by and wreck a lot of the construction process. There was also very little shelter, so a lot of people had to be consistently treated for dust inhalation. In good time, Mapleguard and Dawnstorm were built. They became fully functional and became the jewel of the HAA Space Exploration and Residence Program, known in Hungadada as going to "Live on Mars". The idea had been that if you were sent up (with consent of course), that you would never be brought back. At least, not until the base could support it. But, even after a decade on Mars, and even though Dawnstorm Terminal could support trips back and forth, the risk they carried was too much. Having spent so much time in space, with low gravity, it was concerning to scientists how the human body would react back on Earth. There were no trips back and forth, only trips carrying new members of the population to the base. 

But the people on Mars were happy. They had everything they could ever wish for. Spending 10 years on Mars had meant that the population on Mars had grown significantly, especially with the constant addition of a couple hundred adults every few months. A total of 56,000 people resided on Mars. And more kept coming, inspired by the stories of exploration, and space. But a new problem was fast approaching: overpopulation. Mapleguard had only been built to support about 55,000 people. And it was a huge, sprawling city in its own right, taking up about 150 kilometres squared. But, building larger would have made the city too large, something that the council didn't want. And so, it was decided by the council and the HAA to fund the construction of a new, satellite city, which would support a further 100,000 people. Having heard the HAA Plan to "Return to Mars", the City Council of Mapleguard had decided to at least offer their own insights into what renewed focus on the settlement would look like. And so, the Mapleguard city council sent the following brief to the HAA:

 

 City of Mapleguard

Council Directive A-9018 || HAA SPACE EXPLORATION AND RESIDENCE PROGRAM

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In relation to: Expansion to Construct a Satellite City around Mapleguard to Support More Population

 

Respected Directors,

Over the last few months, our communications have determined a urgent growing need to build a new city within the proximity of Mapleguard in order to support the rapidly growing population. Our final calculations suggest expanding Mapleguard would be unfeasible and unpleasant. Therefore, it is in the best interest of the City of Mapleguard to fund construction of a satellite city connected to Mapleguard. This satellite city would still be governed by Mapleguard City Council, but would support up to 100,000 people. The satellite city would be billed as a smart city (smarter than what currently exists). We will implement and construct new, innovative technologies into the city to best support its population.

Construction is expected to take 5 years, and will be commenced at a rapid pace. The project cost is given at $3.5 billion, with cost overrun predictions given at no more than $2.0 billion. Detailed documents with all possibilities considered have been sent down to the HAA Mission Development Centre, for analysis and final approval. 

We look forward to your response. 

SIGNED,

COUNCIL CITY OF MAPLEGUARD 
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TO BE CONTINUED