Rylands

Rylands is, for the most part, like any other civilised planet. The two main continents on Rylands II, and the southern part of Gerdania, have a population of approximately 4 billion. Slightly less than half of these people are involved in primary industry (mainly mining and agriculture), with a similar number in service. Unemployment is virtually unknown, although most secondary industry is carried out by highly-automated factory units on the 6 moons.

Major exports:

• Veal
• Gold, Silver, Aluminium, Lead

Major imports:

• Electronics
• Steel and plastics

However, 12% of the planet's land area (the larger part of the continent known as Gerdania) is taken up by the universe's largest formal gardens, the famous Ryland Park. Among these gardens are 22 mansion houses, and 7 buildings licensed for commercial use (currently corporate HQs, with the exception of the Maveggan Flight Vehicle Company design studio, which also houses a workshop for custom-made vehicles). These 29 buildings are protected by the Park Conservation Act, which states that no building in the park may change purpose or be remodelled, constructed or destroyed. These buildings are all rented from the Landscape Committee, a planetary government subsidy which is responsible for maintaining the park.

Planetographic Survey

The system contains 5 planetary bodies.

• Rylands I is a small rocky body with an atmosphere mostly of helium and nitrogen. As yet unsettled, although Rylands University maintains an outpost with a staff of 11 at the axial south pole.
• Rylands II is the main settled planet, which now supports a naturally sustaining breathable atmosphere
• Rylands III is an artificial gas giant, created as the tomb of planetary founders Tomas Gerdan and Nikolinye Astrusse
• Fenlan's World (formerly known as Rylands III) is a gas giant with heavy concentrations of plutonium dust in the lower atmosphere, making it too hazardous for habitation. At 3 year intervals, a heavily shielded freighter is sent with equipment to filter and refine this dust for sale to the Ecumenical Energy Commission.
• Rylands IV is believed to be a comet which got captured in a roughly stable orbit. Current projections suggest its orbit will decay enough to pose a risk to the inner planets within the next 600 years.

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Timetable code: RYE