The terraformation of Mars required two things; planetary adaptation to life, and the adaptation of life to the planet.
-- Senator Diedre
The early Martian settlers seldom walked the planet's surface. They came as aliens, occupying orbital stations above the atmosphere. Generations of Martians oversaw failed attempts to seed life on the planetsurface. In three hundred years the Martian settlers only succeeded to increase the presence of h2o on the planet; sourced from the asteroid belt and scattered along the surface as unmelting blocks of ice. It wasn't until a passing scientist on her way to Jupiter Faction took an interest that things would begin to change. Through genetic manipulation, she created Red Well, a modified mychorrizhal association. In essence Red Well is a chlorine tolerant, iron reducing fungus. It's dominance in Martian soil and water systems is a culmination of symbiotic relationships with modified lichens, algaes and numerous additional microbes. First distributed in greenhouses, the natural ecology quickly spread beyond these structures, and gradually, the Martian soil became tenable. Victorious, the adjulated scientist continued on her way to Jupiter, to one day reappear as Ada, the JF Clanarch of Europa.
The cure to Martian terraforming enabled a new way of life for the Martian people, no longer bound to farming in domes above the atmosphere. In short time a chain of green houses along the equator was growing four times the food required to feed their colonies. The
Martian Green Belt developed at a fortunate time. Dragon trees were an engineered hybrid, primarily of redwoods and maples, that had shown great resilience to the cold Martian temperatures. They'd already begun expanding from city boundaries when the MCA approved their seeding beyond colonial settlements. Supported by a range of ground level plants, they rapidly established themselves across the planetscape. These ecosystems became further supported by species of finches and hawks which were introduced without official approval, traced to founding members of the
Green Cult.
After the Firewall incident devestated Earth's infrastructure, the Martian food surplus became the saving grace of Earths great population. For their aid, the Martians were rewarded with protection under Vassaldom of the EMC. While this compramised trade relations with Jupiter Faction, JF continued to tradeWith the two most powerful factions invested in the Martian bioproducts, all efforts went to fortifying the Martian ecosystem. This marked the dawn of the Martian Golden Age.
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