Telos Academy |
Construction of Telos Academy's Farpoint Jumpship Hyperion is Underway in Vineyard
The USS Voyager at Renaissance Academy will soon be joined by the USS Hyperion currently under construction at Telos Academy in Vineyard. Both simulators will operate within the Farpoint universe.
The Hyperion is located on the second floor of the school's second campus located in Vineyard, Utah a mile or so south of the Megaplex Theater on Geneva Road. The Telos program is directed by Dr. Ryan Anderson. Read more about Telos Academy and Dr. Anderson's previous experience as a volunteer at the Christa McAluliffe Space Education Center in his teen years in a previous Troubadour post. Learn more about Telos Academy on the school's web site.
The Hyperion's bridge layout resembles the original USS Voyager at the Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center which closed in August 2012.
Recently I stopped by to visit the Hyperion. Ryan Anderson graciously gave me the VIP tour of the school's new building and the simulator. The Vineyard campus will serve college aged students. The school's original campus in Orem serves junior and senior high school students.
The Hyperion has its own set of stairs leading up from the lobby.
As you can see, the Hyperion is on second floor.
The framing is up. Ryan stands in the Hyperion's briefing room.
We're looking into the simulator's storage area accessible from both the control room and briefing room.
This is where the brig will be located. Of course it will have it's secret hatch as all good brigs do.
This is the transition area taking crews from the ship's Briefing Room to the Bridge.
The Hyperion Bridge looking toward the left wing with the ship's main tactical screen going up in the corner to the left.
We're looking back toward the bridge entrance from the transition room. The ship's wheelchair access doorway is seen.
The Hyperion is also accessible by elevator.
The Hyperion |
The Farpoint Universe's Writer's Guide
Section 1
The new USS Voyager at Renaissance Academy will fly missions set in a new universe called Farpoint. The writer's guide for Farpoint is in development. I'll post the sections as they are completed so those who plan on visiting the Voyager will understand the universe and this will in turn minimize the time it takes to brief.
MacKenzie and Drake from our Voyager Club are working on mission ideas. They have done, and are doing research on the naming of alien races so some of the names presented may change.
A few points to remember while reading:
1) This universe is not set hundreds of years in the future. These events are happening now in the present. I took this approach to mesh the outside 'real' world the students live in with their missions; think Star Gate.
2) The primary aliens the crews interact with are humanoid, the results of a genetic seeding of the region by an ancient race. This make burdensome and expensive make-up unnecessary.
1) This universe is not set hundreds of years in the future. These events are happening now in the present. I took this approach to mesh the outside 'real' world the students live in with their missions; think Star Gate.
2) The primary aliens the crews interact with are humanoid, the results of a genetic seeding of the region by an ancient race. This make burdensome and expensive make-up unnecessary.
Please take a moment to read the first section of the Writer's Guide and familiarize yourself with the universe.
Thank you,
Section 1
On the 16th of November 1974 a radio message was sent from the Arecibo Radio Telescope in Puerto Rico into deep space. The message was aimed at the current location of globular star cluster M13 some 25,000 light years away. The message was a demonstration of human technological achievement. The message was a “Hello!” from planet Earth to anyone or anything out there with the technology to decode and understand its message.
The Arecibo Radio Message
The following information is classified as TOP SECRET by the governments of Russia, France, Great Britain, China, and the United States. Anyone caught sharing this information will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
In January 2013 a radio message from deep space was received by the Allen Radio Telescope Array in California.
The Allen Radio Telescope Array
The signal was written in English and read:
“You are not alone. There are many civilizations within this arm of the galaxy. Your planet is the furthest found from our center in the Diaspora. We are the House L’eneth of Tinarr’ah and have the premier seat at Capital Point. A Cardalir jumpship intercepted a message sent from Earth giving an approximate location of your planet. Knowledge of this message came to us from an informer in the Cardalir government.
Capital Point
House Apopis of Cardalir filed a legal claim to your planet at Capital Point. While not currently on their schedule for colonization, that day will come soon and you will be subjugated into servant hood. It is the way of the Cardalir. The Tinarr’ah are opposed to the colonization of intelligent sentient beings and have been unsuccessful in challenging the Cardalir claim to Earth.
The only legal way you can protect your independence is to establish a diplomatic mission at Captial Point. This will give you the Far Seat on the Grand Council. Your membership will also benefit our cause. Together, with your cooperation, we can advance our position on the Council and challenge the established system of colonization and servanthood. This in turn will protect less developed civilizations – allowing them to grow and develop without external influences.
Without a jumpship you can’t meet the legal requirement necessary for a Council seat - having an embassy at Capital Point. Thus your ascension to a Council seat is problematic. We are limited in what we can do to help. According to the Great Charter, we cannot interfere with the Cardalir Claim. Claim Law is exact and unforgiving. We may visit claimed planets but may not land without written permission from the Administrator of Claims and permission from the Cardalir Prime. Because of this, we can’t provide you with a jumpship.
Cardalir
While forbidden to land on a claimed planet, there are other ways we can help. Our Premier has ordered an intercession on your behalf. We will expedite your technological development so your independence and freedom is protected and our political goals may be realized. Remember, only you can establish a presence at Capital Point and claim the Far Seat on the Grand Council. Your embassy must be approved and open before Cardalir enforces its claim. We will do everything legally possible to assist. We don’t know when House Apopis of Cardalir will enforce their rights so we must act quickly.
You must build both a jumpship and space worthy diplomatic station. Using a jumpship of your own construction (required by law), you will transport the station and its staff to Capital Point (Right Ascension: 18h 52m 51.060s. Declination: +45° 20′ 59.507). Once here, your Ambassador will be presented to the Grand Council. His or her credentials will be examined. If accepted, your ambassador will then make a formal request to join the Diaspora by taking the Far Seat on the Council. Earth will be protected from colonization by Diaspora law once the seat is granted.
Tinarr’ah Jumpship
We know your languages and history by monitoring your communication broadcasts from a small scientific outpost on the planet you call Mars. From these observations we have come to the conclusion that knowledge of our existence at this point in your planet’s development would be destabilizing to your existing social structures. This instability would delay our cause by distracting your governments’ attention away from establishing your embassy at Capital Point. For that reason, we have chosen to limit contact to the nations having permanent seats on your United Nations Security Council. We leave it to you to provide the necessary secrecy and security. From Mars we will monitor all broadcasts and deal appropriately with information leaks by providing misinformation and misdirection.
Because our laws forbid us to land on a claimed world, bringing the equipment and technology required to build the jumpship and station to you is impossible; however, we can send equipment and technology in a series of transpods delivered by a drone drop ship. The ship cannot land so the shipments will be lowered to the surface. Actual construction must be done by you. A quantum communicator (QC) will be included in the transpod shipments. Quantum communicators allow instantaneous visual and audio streaming no matter the distance. This will be helpful during construction. Our engineers, programmers, and technicians will be on call around the clock to answer questions.
The transpod deliveries will be made thirty days from this date 12:00 GMT. Location, Pitcairn Island. The planet’s 52 residents must be temporarily relocated during the delivery. Please find a way to do this without drawing suspicion. One cargo ship will enter the island’s harbor to collect the equipment. All other vessels must stay 200 miles from the island, this includes submarines. Satellite monitoring is allowed. The QC will be installed within the borders of the United States at a location of that government’s choosing. Exact blueprints detailing the construction of a jumpship will be transmitted using the QC. That information must be shared with all approved nations.
If you agree, please transmit your reply to Mars on this same frequency.
This is the end of the broadcast.
Pitcairn Island
Theater Imaginarium
The best gifs of the week, assiduously edited for gentler audiences, minors, and the terminally offended