LV–2412, more commonly referred to as Skyfire Down, was a planet situated in the Ross 619 System of the Outer Rim Territories' Tartarus Sector. It was the site of a prison and mining colony co–owned by the United Americas Allied Command and the Weyland-Yutani Corporation.
History
Between 2105 and 2107, future USCSS Nostromo engineer Dennis Parker served as a mechanic for the Outer Rim Defense Fleet at Skyfire Down. Prior to 2175, Skyfire Down was terraformed and the Skyfire Down Military and Civilian Corrections Facility, a mining and military prison colony owned by both the United Americas Allied Command and the Weyland-Yutani Corporation, was established on the planet. In 2175, after resources on the Three World Empire mining planet Fiorina 161 ran dry and the mine there was scaled back, Skyfire Down's workforce was expanded to include civilian prisoners. As of 2184, being assigned to the United States Colonial Marine Corps garrison on Skyfire Down—usually as the result of a misdemeanor—was considered a dead–end posting by Colonial Marines. Following the commissioning of the Type 3300B Deucalion-class X expedition colony carrier by the United Nations Interstellar Settlement Corps in 2181, three such ships were in production at Skyfire Down to complement the two existing models, the Deucalion and the UNCSS Ìyánlá.
Climate and terrain
Though the atmosphere on Skyfire Down was breathable, the planet was subject to frequent, blazing meteorite storms from the junk belt orbiting it; it was these phenomena that lent Skyfire Down its name. Nights on the world were brisk and lasted for twenty hours. The mean temperature was 8°C. Skyfire Down's surface was rocky and pitted, with deep excavations resulting from strip–mining.
Economy
Key resources on Skyfire Down included heavy metals, helium-3, rare earth metals, laborers, and trained soldiers. Military vessels such as the Conestoga-class frigate and Valley Forge–class were built at the shipyard in Skyfire Down's orbit and shipped to the ORDF's Liberty Echo naval base at Delphís B for assignment. Weyland–Yutani Corporation subsidiaries such as Lunnar-Welsun Industries and Hyperdyne Systems had interests in the mines supplying the shipyard.
Population
As of 2184, Skyfire Down's population encompassed 20,000 military inmates, 80,000 civilian prisoners, 4,000 corporate administrators and UAAC support staff, two hundred Colonial Marshals, five hundred Marines, and 15,000 fleet personnel and officers.
Points of interest
The eponymous Skyfire Down Military and Civilian Corrections Facility was located on Skyfire Down, in addition to a Colonial Marine garrison and Colonial Marshal station. Orbiting Skyfire Down was an Outer Rim Defense Fleet shipyard.
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