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Barstow is a system-spanning colony that occupies the unique position of being the furthest settled human system from Sol. Although an independent system, Barstow relies on the Gilgamesh Colonial Confederation for imports and has received substantial funds from the GCC to use the facilities of Lichfield Interstellar, its home-grown starship construction corporation, as a launching point for Pioneering Corps expeditions further beyond the system.
System
Initially established as a private mining operation in 2247, the system has been extensively developed since its initial colonization. Barstow contains two major settlements: Coventry (a rocky terrestrial planet) and Lichfield (Coventry's satellite). Coventry's atmosphere is composed almost entirely of nitrogen and sits at roughly 105kPa with temperatures near the lower end of the survivable range, allowing the planet's inhabitants to operate outside of their life-controlled domes with carried oxygen. Lichfield, meanwhile, lacks an atmosphere.
The system otherwise contains extensive ice deposits and several gas giants, all extensively mined. Barstow is self-sufficient in regard to water and fuel.
Barstow, being on the extreme fringe of human space, is often the first place to hear word of what lies beyond the known world – be it from Pioneering Crews returning from a missions or from civilian vessels sailing back from the abyss with tales to tell.
Economy
Economically, Barstow is heavily reliant on the Gilgamesh Colonial Confederation, which accounts for almost all of the system’s external trade.
Barstow’s predominant corporation is Lichfield Interstellar, a spacecraft manufacturing company. A number of the company’s facilities – spanning much of the system’s thick asteroid belt – have been rented by the GCC Pioneering Corps as a forward operating base for expeditions further into unexplored space. Lichfield Interstellar receives a substantial portion of its total revenue from this contract, and together with their manufacturing, make up the bulk of Barstow's economic output.
Outside of Lichfield Interstellar and assorted mining projects, Barstow is also a moderately-sized hub for frontier equipment and ship's supplies among deep space expeditions due to its location on the extremes of human territory. This has resulted in Barstow being an important way-star for vessels and outposts even further into the unknown.