Manager in AWOL worker case didn’t ask about Mars transport contract status
“Just trying to help”
URBS VALLIS, Sept. 30 - A staff manager charged with helping more than 20 workers leave the City(Urbs Vallis) to breach their transportation contracts testified Wednesday that he did not know the contract status of any of the people involved.
“People came to me because they wanted to get land transport out of the city. I know a lot of people on the cargo trains. I know who needs help, who has room for a passenger,” Herman Zeiger, a staff manager at the industrial plant and factories between the City and Ares Port, told Tithonia Superior Court Wednesday.
The case has focused attention not only on the scores of workers that have breached the 3-annos (5.5 -year) work contracts they signed in exchange for transportation to Mars, but also the hundreds of City residents who have left their jobs and habitations behind without notice.
The Labor Council is investigating reports of more than 60 missing contract workers, in addition to the 20 that Zeiger is charged with having assisted in breaking their contracts.
In addition, hundreds of people registered as living in the City no longer live or work there, City Councillor Karina Hermetta told a Council meeting in July, but utility and environmental staff estimate that number could be as high as 500.
In court, Zeiger testified that because his work involved frequent contact with cargo haulers, he was able to find jobs or passenger berths on overland supply trains leaving Ares Port for Noctis Labyrinthus, Ius and Geryon and as far as Corprates, some 1,600 km in a straight line from Urb Vallis.
“Cargo crew aren’t always going the full route, and there’s often room for extra people,” Zeiger said.
Labor Council attorney Lucius O’Brionn argued that Zeiger provided a convenient outlet for workers seeking to leave before their contracts expired since shuttle flights have few empty seats and are more closely monitored.
“They came to you because you made it easy?” O’Brionn asked.
“It’s not that easy, or you’d have a lot less workers,” Zeiger replied.
O’Brionn said that as a staff manager Zeiger had a duty to verify the contract status of workers leaving the City and asked why he had neglected to do so.
“I was just trying to help people who needed to get someplace or help cargo trains that needed to fill a slot,” Zeiger said. “They didn’t tell me their contract status. I figured if they were leaving, they were ex-contract. I can’t see everybody’s records, so I didn’t look and I didn’t ask.”
Most Mars immigrants arrive on a 3-annos (5.5-year) work contract with Mars Devco, that includes a half-annos allowance for the 260-day transit, meaning they have 2.5 annos (4-years, 8-months) remaining on their contract on arrival.
Skipped out before court hearing
O’Brionn argued that Zeiger’s failure to remain in the City after being referred to the Court by the Labor Council in August was in itself an admission of guilt.
Zeiger was brought back to the City after being held by Noctis officials at the Noctis Grange Hall, a supply hub, rest stop and transfer depot, after arriving there with a small group of tractors delivering cargo.
Zeiger’s court-appointed attorney argued that Zeige was no longer bound by a contract and had simply decided to take advantage of an opportunity for a new line of work.
“I know a lot of people,” Zeiger said. “They needed an extra hand and I volunteered to help. I was on suspension, so there wasn’t any reason for me not to go. I’m here, aren’t I?” Zeiger said.
Four of the 20 workers that sought Zeiger’s help were later apprehended when returning to the City for varying reasons and assisted in the Labor Council’s investigation, O’Brionn said. In exchange, they agreed to serve the remainder of their contracts plus an additional half-annos.
“They breached their contracts and got a deal,” Zeiger’s attorney said. “Mr. Zeiger finished his work contract more than 3 annos ago. He held up his end of the deal.”
The Labor Council said in a court filing that an investigation by Noctis officials showed that Zeiger was trying to secure a working or passenger berth on a long-distance supply train that was due to arrive at the Grange Hall within a week and return to Coprates, about a 50-sol trip overland.
O’Brionn said the Labor Council investigation suggested that Zeiger had helped workers procure unregistered surfsuits that would not ‘ping’ Port Safety when they left a cargo airlock.
Zeiger’s attorney objected to both assertions, arguing that the first was hearsay and inadmissible as no Noctis officials had appeared in court and that the other was simply supposition.
The court granted both objections, and held the hearing over until Sept. 37, when a final ruling on the matter should be expected.
Move-out month in Mars big town: Adding one more Martian
Couple move into a new life in WestHill
URBS VALLIS, Sept. 31 - Felicity Hale and Hugh Tallin have been waiting to move out of the Cubbies, or contract worker dormitories in Mars biggest settlement, before starting a family and that dream came true on Thursday, with a little surprise.
“Yeah, we’re a little ahead of schedule, said Hale, placing her palm on her stomach. “We’re going to add one to the population of Mars.”
“But we still have some time to ourselves and some time to prepare,” Tallin added.
A closed-system environmental specialist who marked his 2-annos anniversary here in July, Tallin said the couple was lucky to be assigned to a hab on an upper WestHill terrace that was vacated several months ago by a resident who left unannounced, one of hundreds who have done so in the last two annos.
“We’re lucky,” said Hale, a resource geographer whose first full day in her new home falls on the anniversary of her arrival on Mars. “It’s kind of an anniversary present, and the baby will be our New Annos present.”
The couple said they had a wider choice of habs after notifying City Residence that they were expecting, and they chose the WestHill unit on a terrace with more facilities for infants and young children.
“City Residence just opened up the hab, and it’s a larger unit, with a nursery school on the same terrace,” Tallin said,
The City is making a concerted effort to help residents with infants and small children, Residential Supervisor Giulia Villanova said
“Mars skews young, and we want to provide a very warm welcome to our newest residents,” Villanova said. “We’ve had 861 newborns so far this year, and that should add up to about 1,150 by the New Annos.”
That makes the current City population 58,356, with 14,948 in WestHill, up from a total of 57,495 on January 1, Census Mars confirmed.
The location is also convenient for Hale, who works with Survey Mars in Ares Port and travels around the Valley every few months.
“We’ve been able to coordinate some trips as Hugh has been consulting with Ius, which is kind of how we got ahead of schedule,” Hale said. Tallin faces a longer walk in the next annos as his work will shift from the third Habtube section to the fourth as soon as the first partition is sealed.
“The walk comes with a great view of Tithonia Chasma and goes right by the gardens and groves,”Tallin said.
The couple’s move is just one among hundreds as City Residence is moving the remaining Cubby residents to solo and shared habs ahead of the Nov. 30 arrival of 2,500 new residents, most of them contract workers, aboard the regular supply train from Earth.
Some 2,010 new arrivals are slated to move to the surface in December, with 1,983 going into the dormitories. The rest will remain aboard the Mars Carousel or housing in the orbital cargo and shipyard.
As of Sept. 30, only 183 people remained in the dormitories, all of whom will move to WestHill or the three Hab Tube sections before the end of the month, Villanova said.
“It’s going to be very quiet in the Cubbies for about a couple months, and then it’s going to get a little crazy,” Villanova said.
Mars kicks up a lot more dust
Xanthe Terra dust storm doubles in size
ORSON WELLES CRATER, Sept. 33 - The Xanthe Terra dust storm has nearly doubled to cover more than 3 million sq. km, covering most of the eastern Valles Marineris, Survey Mars reported Saturday, and stranding a survey crew in the Shalbatana Vallis.
“It’s already exceeded expectations by far, but it’s not likely to get much larger,” Survey Mars spokeswoman Stella Regina said, but for now the western half of the Valley remains clear.
The storm, which started in Luna Planum north of Candor Chasma two weeks ago, now covers the eastern half of Melas Chasma, all of Coprates and Ganges, part of Eos Chasma and the Capri Mensa uplands in Eos, and the Capri Chasma north of Eos, Regina said.
Survey Mars reiterated that supply trains and survey crews in Candor, Melas and Corprates chasmata should seek shelter if possible.
Regina said a Survey crew on an inspection tour in the Shalbatana Vallis, about 2,800 km east of the City, had reached its destination at a community being built in deep caverns and a pit crater by famed Mars builder Jeremiah Volcan
Survey Mars has rejected the settlement claim filed by Volcan but has not specified the grounds for the rare rejection and sent the survey crew to inspect it, even though the community had previously been visited by famed Survey Mars explorer Chief Eustace Saint-Lazare.
Claims may only be rejected if the involve claims on resources beyond which the homesteader or community can feasibly develop and use for current and future growth.
The Shalbatana community has already built at last two intensively gardened habitats in caverns nearly a kilometer underground near a 900 m deep pit crater that they envision turning into a vertical city.
Volcan previously led the building of the WestHill Terraces in Urbs Vallis, the first significant permanent habitations in the Valley.
Saint-Lazare, who has been staying in Orson Welles, did not accompany the inspectors, and also declined to comment, saying only, “I’ll let Jeremiah speak for himself.”
Orson Welles explorer Perpetua Heathering said Volcan has directed the Survey crew to a safe cavern where they can wait out the storm.
The Orson Welles community has sharply curtailed outdoor activities to limit damage to machinery from the dust, Heathering said.
As for the stranded Survey Crew, Heathering said, “Jeremiah tells me he’s lent them some covers to keep their tractors clean and invited them in for coffee.”
Mercury in overdrive
Tithonia Museum orrery shows off the solar system
URBS VALLIS, Sept. 29 - Mars seems kind of slow. Well, compared to Mercury.
Our dusty red home planet orbits the sun once an hour in the mechanical orrery, or model of the solar system, on exhibit at the Tithonia Museum.
In the same time, Mercury, the little grey pilgrim with wings upon its feet, circles the sun nearly eight times, while creamy white Venus makes nearly three orbits, and the blue and white Earth a bit under two.
Each of the planet’s globes show in exquisitely detail the latest view from orbit, including the growing dust storm covering the eastern half of Valles Marineris on Mars.
A group of children stared up in wonder not only at the planets circling above them around the Tithonia Museum’s main room, but also the gears of various sizes that move like ancient clockwork above the orbs of the planets.
The bronze-colored mechanical gears mesh together almost miraculously to make sure the planets move at the right speed around the pale white light in the center that represents the sun.
“What do you notice?” asks astrophysicist Alexa Kimkora.
“They’re too close together!” one girl calls.
“Jupiter’s too small!” a boy shouts.
“You’re both right,” Kimkora says. “We made Mercury the diameter of a small plate and Mars as big as a dinner plate, but if we kept that consistent, Jupiter would be too big to fit in the room. And if we kept the distances proportional, Saturn would be out on the terrace and Uranus and Neptune out hanging above the aquaculture ponds.”
For that reason, Kimkora says, Jupiter is only about three times as big as Mars instead of more than 20 times as big.
The exhibit, does however, keep the orbital times in proportion.
Stately Jupiter with its swirling bands and Great Red Spot makes its circuit about four times a sol, while Saturn with its dazzlings rings takes 15 hours.
Pale blue Uranus takes nearly two sols to complete its orbit and Neptune more than three sols.
“If you want to see Neptune in a different spot, come back tomorrow,” Kimkora tells the schoolchildren seated on benches along the walls.
While the size and distances aren’t proportional, the view of the planets is as up to date as possible.
Each of the balls representing the planets shows the latest detailed imagery from orbiting craft, where available, such as the dust storm on Mars and a huge seasonal storm on Earth.
On Earth, for instance, a swirling mass of spiral-armed white clouds obscures part of North America (It would be October 2144 on Earth so hurricanes are okay)
“That’s a storm they call a hurricane,” Kimkora says, “with winds that can blow down big trees and drop tons of rain from the sky. You have a question, Roseen?”
“What’s rain?” the girl asks.
“Water dropping from the sky, like a shower. It turns into vapor, rises up into the air and falls back down in drops,” Kimkora said.
Several children just shook their heads in disbelief.
"But that’s not the only storm in the solar system. Can you name another.”
“The Red Spot on Jupiter,” a boy answers. “It’s hundreds of annos old.” “Very good, Donal. Any other questions?”
“What about Pluto?”
“It’s out in the Kuiper belt, Roberto. It’s categorized as a dwarf planet, but sometimes it comes in closer than Neptune. “ Kimkora reached into a drawer and held up a small white, tan and brownish red orb in the palm of her hand
Pointing to the famous white heart shape on Pluto's surface, Kimkora said, “It’s only about one-third the size of Mars, but I like Pluto, too.”
Mystery of missing whiskey solved
ARES PORT, Sept. 31 - A City Safety official said Thursday that they have resolved the mystery surrounding the missing case of whiskey brought to Mars by DevCo Planetary Manager Elric Balvicar as part of a high-value crate.
About half the parcels in the crate were brought to the surface, while the rest remained on the orbital. The whiskey, a distilled alcoholic drink, was in a parcel brought to Ares Port where it was mistakenly placed among several pallets of unrelated cargo.
“It was simply mislaid,” the Safety official said. “Someone put it in the wrong place. That’s all. We’re not making any referrals to the (Tithonia Superior) Court.”
The City (Urbs Vallis) officially continues to ban alcohol, Council President Claude Paddingbury has stated publicly.
By Mei Aonio, Ares Port Correspondent
Calendar
Save a life. Get surfsuit certified
Keep new arrivals safe outside. Ares Port and City Safety are offering four-week coursea in surfsuit for safety trainers ahead of the November arrival of new workers on the supply train from Earth obrit. Get certified. Saturday afternoons. Ares Port Shuttle Terminal 1. Register through City Safety.
You'll have to ask to see Pluto
The Tithonia Museum is hosting an exhibition of an exquisitely detailed orrery with spheres that mimic the view from orbit of each of the planets. The distances and size aren’t to scale, since Jupiter, Saturn and the outer planets wouldn’t fit, but the detail is amazing. Held over through October. The exhibit will add a threedee component in October .East Terrace 12
Make new fronds
Fern-friendly Tithonia Gardens opens up its new fern forest house. Soak up the greenery and the deliciously humid air. From small forest floor ferns to not-quite tree frens, you’ll soak in the greens. Through end October. Habtube 2, Terrace 4
City farmers' market
Going green with veggie envy? Get to the City farmer's market. Stalls available by appointment. Industrial Tube Terminal. Saturday 0900-1500
Spike! Volleyball
Get ready to jump without worrying about the ceiling. Learn to play volleyball at the new Hab3 beach. Saturday, Sunday sessions 08:00, 10:00, 12:00. North Beach Hab3 Terrace 1
“A Different Shade of Blue”
Romance comedy threedee. Girl meets boy. Boy gets silly, Boy comes to his senses. Stage 3. Hab 1. Terrace 8 Sept. 38-Sept. 44, 18:00, 20:00, 22:00
Acoustic Song Share
Everyone gets a song. Cafe du Mont. Geryon Agora Saturday 16:00
Coprates Swing Session
Try a little Lindy at Schiapparelli Hall. Friday 18:00
City Social
Mix and mingle with new arrivals and old hands. Hab 2. Terrace 4, by Tithonia Gardens. Every Friday 17:00
- Merry Grace, lifestyle correspondent
The Chaos Courier helps you over the rough spots.
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APPRENTICES Aquaculture. 8 annos and up. URBS 62128
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The header photo is the iconic mosaic of the Valles Marineris hemisphere of Mars from 2,500 km above the surface taken by the Viking Orbiter. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)
The Candor Chaos Courier, Candor Chaos, Valles Marineris, Mars
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Photomosaic: Viking Orbiter: NASA/JPL-Caltech