[Thessia] Conference Marks First “Star of Athame” Crew Appearance

Conference Marks First “Star of Athame” Crew Appearance

The Thessian Observer

Serrice, THESSIA – Over a month has passed since the Star of Athame’s return to Council Space from her journey into the Mankina Cluster. The ship has since been taken to an undisclosed location, where its crew is being briefed on events that have changed the galaxy during their 324-year odyssey.

In the meantime, however, the Thessian Board of Astronomy, which includes representatives of dozens of asari universities on the planet, has released a preliminary report reviewing the Star’s massive exploratory database. The report was delivered in a press event held yesterday by the Board’s Chairwoman, Dr. Hyreen Linara, and assisted by the Star’s own scientific lead Dr. Paqui T’Vell.



T’Vell’s appearance is unexpected in that it marks the first public appearance of any member of the Star of Athame. During the presentation, no interruptions were allowed, though members of the press were allowed to direct questions to Dr. T’Vell. T’Vell, who seemed healthy and calm, presented a variety of pictures from mapped planets, and lectured about specific conditions throughout the cluster, which is notable for its high density of radio stars and background radiation.



During the presentation, the Star made a second unexpected move in announcing that the Star crew had installed a network of comm buoys on their way home, in the hope of aiding further exploratory vessels throughout the cluster. Dr. T’Vell also expressed hopes that follow-up missions and/or colonization programs would soon be forthcoming.



A full transcript of the report can be obtained [here].

Asked on her thoughts on galactic development since the Athame’s disappearance, Dr. T’Vell expressed gratitude for the combined efforts of all races in successfully fighting off a common enemy. She was, “of course,” shocked about the magnitude of destruction in her crew’s absence; however, as she stated, the ongoing galactic reconstruction and high spirits “serves as an example for me and my ship’s family.”

T’Vell declined to speak for her crewmates, stating that she “[didn’t] feel entitled to speak about [their] feelings.”



When asked about non-Thessian researchers joining the effort of exploring the Athame’s scientific data, Dr. Linara stated that the Board of Astronomy would issue invitations to other scientific institutions “soon.”

T’Vell has been the only member of the Star of Athame to appear in public. The Board of Astronomy and Space Patrol officials have declined comment on the rest of the crew’s status, which remains the subject of speculation. In addition, no further information has been released on what is being called the “Crown Jewel” of the Athame’s discoveries: an 35,000-year-old space probe of unknown origin. When asked about it by Thessian Observer press, Dr. Linara replied that it “is still in the early stages of investigation…it is too early to make any enlightening comments.”

I had been wondering when they were going to release the data from this exploration. It should be interesting to see where the discoveries lead.

Asari hiding something? That's certainly never happened before!

35,000... that would place it after the Protheans but before any of our modern societies. It could be a particularly interesting find, if the dating was accurate.

What I find amazing about all this is, that we sometimes think we know so much about the galaxy but we really don't, only small portions, a few clusters. The galaxy is so huge, there could be whole empires of alien civilizations out there and we might never know.

Anyway, I think developing a good plan how to analyze this amount of data is needed. You can't just let anyone browse around in the files and make assumptions just like that, this needs to be coordinated. Maybe we asari take a more though approach and that may seem like a lengthy process to some species. A team needs to be defined and I am sure, every species will be able to participate.

35,000.

Very interesting- The Maw Doctor, do you know of any books about ancient civilizations other than the Protheans?

Translation: "We left a liiiiiiiiiittle more out there of ourselves than we meant to."

They need to release the data. It's not theirs, it's the inheritance of the galaxy, just dump it into a few academic databases and let the full power of the galaxy's smart people work it out.

I mean, it's likely they're just some protodrell or something, a civ that burned itself out. Reaper cycles were fairly regular, right, this doesn't fit.

You'd think they would have lost the taste for secrets for good...

Oh come on, it's been what, a couple of months? A proper preliminary report on their discoveries would be incomplete without a first-stage analysis by local specialists collaborating with the crew themselves, and as anyone could imagine, the crew has a lot to deal with right now.

The Mankina Cluster's not going anywhere, and there are plenty of other ongoing projects for the galaxy at large to put their efforts into - nobody's going to miss out if they take some extra time on this one, for the benefit of the people who've already done far more than anyone could've asked in the service of scientific discovery.

And why should they need to? There is a database filled with three hundred years' worth of information on that ship. Quite ffrankly, the more people they bring in to parse it, the faster we can get results - all without necessarily trying to work with a questionably sane crew.

Honestly, the only reason I can see that they don't do it right now is if somebody on the crew went nuts and is hoarding all the data with a deadman's switch or something.

Which is both unlikely and spectacularly stupid-sounding.

I find their methods of retaining this secrecy just as interesting as the data they may be hiding. Remarkable that no one has commented on it yet; to remain that quiet for so long takes a lot of effort and, more importantly, credits, which means they're receiving funding somehow - lots of it.

Two factors are dubious here:

1. That a board of Astronomy, of all things, is their soul source of funding. Such industries tend to be at the short end of the economic stick these days.
and
2. That their additional investors are completely in the dark about what's on that ship. You don't invest in something invisible, after all.

It is certainly something to think about.

I believe you all vastly underestimate the difficulties involved in releasing academic information. Asari like to take their time with such things - it is not a matter of secrecy, they merely have a longer view on the world than we do. Coupled with the psychological shock of the crew - would you like a list of every major event in the past 375 years? We can start with the Geth gaining sentience and end with the Reapers - who are the ground breakers of this discovery, and whose experiences mean just as much as the data in the exploratory banks, it will take some time for the information to be released.

Patience.

Yes, you do have a point; all of those factors are valid and certainly at play as well. However, are you going to completely deny outside investors? The resources it takes to keep something on this scale quiet are phenomenal.

It is common practice in academic and scientific circles to withhold the raw data until it has been published, so that unscrupulous researchers don't try to rush something out with it first. While I don't doubt they already have dozens of manuscripts in review, scientific publishing takes time. I would be surprised to see any of the data released to the public in less than a year.

Niamh, finally someone who understands.
The Board of Astronomy is one of Thessia's oldest community funded institutions, it was the organization that launched the Maiden Voyage and is as respectable as can be. They will triple check before releasing any scientific information. Sensational rapid news is not the way they do things.

I am afraid I do not understand what you think they are 'keeping quiet'. Again, asari have a long view of the galaxy (and of research in particular) that can be incredibly frustrating to anyone else. And, as an alumni of Serrice, I can inform you with no uncertainty, they do have resources at hand for projects on an extremely large scale, and are known to be protective of their data - I am still under several non-disclosure agreements with the university relating to research I was involved in. I am not going to say there is no chance of a conspiracy, but I sincerely doubt there is an active, malicious coverup. As researchers are wont to do, they will reach for outside help when they are ready, and no sooner. The fact that they even mention the possibility happening "soon" is telling enough. Academically, this is an entirely normal, routine situation, and seeing people treat it as a conspiracy is bewildering, at best.

Remember the Star of Athame only reappeared quite recently - even in more 'standard' lifespans (such as human, or drell), projects like this rarely see any public (or academic, even) results within the first few years.

Of course, it is only good practice to check the facts prior to publication, lest they risk embarrassment. However, I am still curious as to what methods they are employing to keep their findings "under wraps", as the ship's findings would be of great interest to myriad entities.

The invested parties are easier to find ("easier" - in this scenario, it will take more than a cursory financial investigation to reveal them), though depending on who it is, may pose additional interest.

...Ah.