The Trans-Newtonian Elements, first discovered by British physicist Jane Richardson in April 2017, are a set of eleven elements that have completely revolutionised physics as the world understood it. Fundamentally, the Trans-Newtonian Elements are different from regular matter in the way that they almost seem to exhibit Aristotelian behaviour. This is because the Trans-Newtonian Elements interact strongly with the mass-space field, and consequently experience drag when in relative motion against a large celestial body.
Despite the fact that these elements were only found in significant quantities deep underground and was therefore technically challenging to extract in commercial volumes, given the obvious industrial applications, large investments were rapidly made available, and Trans-Newtonian Elements as well as associated technology was soon integrated in more and more meaningful ways into the complex and volatile mesh that was world industry.
The mass-space field was, as its name may suggest, closely tied to the structure of space itself, and thus Trans-Newtonian Elements could, on the scale of quantum mechanics, distort distances across the cosmos. With a relatively straightforward method of faster-than-light communications now available, the global telecommunications network was completely revolutionised, with a predictably positive effect on the global economy. Furthermore, the control that this communication gave Earth over probes across the solar system was vital in the creation of a more effective space exploration program.
It was really these elements that sparked the beginning of the second space race. With sufficient energy, Trans-Newtonian Elements could "push" on the mass-space field as well as be dragged down by it, and human spacefaring was liberated from the tyranny of the rocket equation. Space travel on a large scale was suddenly viable, and the previously ignored natural resources of space were suddenly the forefront of international policy.
Now, the United Confederation has announced that they were planning an "imminent" launch of their new deep space probes using Trans-Newtonian technology, and both the Pact of Collective Security and the Asian Defence Coalition are seething in jealousy.
For better or for worse, the discovery of Trans-Newtonian Elements have pushed humanity into a new and interesting era...
Johnson Space Centre
2025 January 02nd 08:47
"...three, two, one, liftoff."
In what some people were calling the most televised event so far in the twenty-first century, three NASA probes of the explorer-class lifted off from Johnson Space Centre at 08:48 UTC on the 2nd of January, 2025, as the United Confederation celebrated the 31st anniversary of the Articles of Confederation. The probes has been ready for a couple weeks now, but the launch has been delayed until now. First, there was the obvious public relations benefit to timing the launch to coincide with the anniversary of the Articles of Confederation, and second, the engineers at NASA wanted to check and re-check every component, making sure that nothing could possibly go wrong in this first demonstration of Trans-Newtonian spacefaring.
It was still night in Texas, and the blue-white plumes of the new engines, modest they might be compared to the hulks of the early space age, shone brightly and visibly.
It was a glorious night for the United Confederation. Although the technologies involved were ramshackle in nature, representing only superficial improvements and integrations of Trans-Newtonian technologies to older rocket models, what the public saw was not the technological weaknesses of the rockets, but rather the potential that the Explorer missions represented.
Humanity was once more going out into space, and at the forefront of the new frontier stood Commander Jonathan Reed of GEV Explorer 001, Commander Chris Drake of GEV Explorer 002, and Commander Ben Barlow of GEV Explorer 003.
The other two superpowers were yet to respond to this historic event. No doubt their public relations crews were working overtime, trying to salvage what they could from what was undeniably a solid loss of prestige for their respective causes. Perhaps they would release a statement soon, but then again, they might not.
Earth Orbital Space,
2025 January 02nd 08:51
T = +275 seconds
Somewhat less than five minutes after the launch, the world's media was still glued to the footage sent back to Earth from the receding probes. The increasingly small Earth visible from the cameras of GEV Explorer 001 captured the imagination of the world's public.
"First stage clear. Probes on route."
With the successful launch, and the probes well on their way to their respective destinations, Houston erupted in celebration. So did many of Earth's cities. Today, just for a day, people would be willing to put their ideological differences aside to cheer on what was clearly a great victory for all humanity. Even with the launch over, very few people turned off their televisions. The projected time from Earth to Luna was a mere one hour and forty-five minutes, and soon, they would see man returning to the moon once again after over fifty long years.
The journey to Mars that GEV Explorer 002 was undertaking was projected to be a bit longer. A few weeks, in fact. But in not very long at all, Commander Jonathan Reed would be the first man to step foot on the red planet.
These were exciting days.
"Commander Reed, this is Houston speaking. How are you feeling this fine day?"
