Aphras

Location: Milky Way / The Shrike Abyssal / Xe Cha System /  Second planet

Description

A unique discovery, Aphras is a "heavenly twin," a planet in a star system that has not one but two worlds of sufficient mass to retain an _[sic] nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere within the habitable life zone of its parent star. Fossil evidence shows abundant vertebrates and evidence of a sapient terrestrial avian species in its Bronze Age.

However, the only trace of contemporary life on the planet is that of single-celled organisms in its seas. All else has suffered from an extinction event -- a series of massive impacts that vaporized vast quantities of water and lofted dust into its atmosphere. Early theories that this event was a collision with a fragmenting asteroid have now been discounted -- the impact craters were aimed directly at habitation centers.

Mineral Deposits

Initial Scanner Result: Moderate