Known Space

The Milky Way galaxy is approximately 70,000 light years in diameter and 1,000 light years across the axis of rotation. Astro-cartographers divide the Milky Way up into 9 galactic regions (GR): Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Eta, Theta, and Iota. From a point of reference that is perpendicular to the axis of rotation, the GRs are organized like so:

Alpha	Beta	Gamma
Delta	Epsilon	Zeta
Eta	Theta	Iota

Each GR is approximately 23,333^2 x 1000 light years. Despite advances in the technology of space travel over the last century in the Dragon Quadrant, the inhabitants only consider the Delta GR as 'Known Space'. They have sub-divided the Delta GR into 8 quadrants (the correct term is octant, but it never caught on): Aero, Betyl, Castilon, Dragon, Epoch, Forbidden, Gry, and Halcyon. Unlike the GRs the quadrants are organized in a three-dimensional manner with two layers:

Upper (top view)
Aero	Dragon
Betyl	Castilon

Lower (top view)
Epoch	Halcyon
Forbidden	Gry

Side (A-B-E-F view)
Aero	Betyl
Epoch	Forbidden

Each quadrant represents 11667^2 x 500 light years. The quadrants are further divided into a coordinate system from -10 to +10 on the X, Y, and Z axes. These coordinates represent safe points from which to use the full power of a ship's slingshot drive. These coordinates are somewhat evenly spaced, but more generally it is understood that the coordinate provides a gateway into area approximately 550^2 X 25 light years. Once within a specific coordinate, a ship may navigate to specific solar systems within that area with less powerful, more precise use of the slightshot drive and the stellar drive once they are within a system. Because there has been little travel to other GRs, most astral notation assumes the Delta GR reference and only lists the local coordinates and sometimes the quadrant (for clarity).

Space Travel

Despite the fact that significant differences in the evolution of all the races who have achieved space travel, every race has eventually come upon the same principle to achieve Faster Than Light travel. Perhaps it is the influence of the Dragons, or possibly there is truly no other way to accomplish it. In either case the Slingshot Drive (as it is commonly known) is used by all space faring races.

The Slingshot Drive operates by generating enough gravitational force to bring into existance a temporary wormhole. Were one to connect both endpoints of the wormhole, a perfectly straight line would be created. The length of this line depends on two factors: the amount of energy used to generate the wormhole and the surrounding gravitational fields. Thus, the best mileage garnered from a wormhole is from one that takes the ship across empty space. The more cluttered the space transversed is, the more energy that is required to form the wormhole.

Unlike common science fiction depictions, there is no actual travel time through the worm hole. As soon as the wormhole is sufficiently stable, the ship punches through instantly (thus the idea of a slingshot). Obviously, part of the ships energy output is used to balance the gravitational forces of the wormhole; otherwise, the ship would be crushed out of existance attempting to pass through it.

From a speedometer perspective, the ship itself never really travels at the speed of light. However, the distances covered in that instantaneous passage through the wormhole technically fall into the category of Faster Than Light. Current technology limitations allow the inhabitants of the Dragon Quadrant to jump as much as 600 light years at a time through known space.

When travelling through unexplored space, it is best to keep the jumps to 5 light years or less in order to avoid slamming oneself into some celestial body. The time required to travel from one part of known space to another can be measured in hours, while years could pass without finding anything of interest in unknown space.

Much smaller jumps can easily be made by the Slingshot Drive. However, the closer the ship is to large gravity wells, such as the planets of a solar system, the more energy is required to create a stable wormhole. Upon approaching a solar system, ships switch to conventional propulsion systems in order to travel into, out of, and between the planets of the solar system.

A network of communication satellites strategically positioned near the gateway points of the coordinate system maintain up-to-date navigational data, though this is not their only function. This data is provided free to anyone who wishes to use it in order to ensure as safe a jump as possible from one coordinate to another. The cost of providing this data is subsidized by the governments of the Dragon Quadrant.

Energy

Cold Fusion is the power source of choice for colonies which have an abundant source of water or raw hydrogen. Anti-Matter is the power source of choice for star-ships, space-stations, and colonies where water is a precious resource. The difference is largly due to the risk to benefit factor. While anti-matter is the more efficient of the two, having anti-matter reactors on a planet is a huge risk in the event of containment failure. For ships, water and/or raw hydrogen may not be available at all times and running out of gas in the middle of nowhere is unpleasant to contemplate.

The power requirements for portable electronic and mechanical devices has been standardized to make use of rechargable power packs. These power packs are good for nearly unlimited recharges.

Transportation

Midsize and larger cities no longer have roads for personal vechicles. All transportation within a city is conducted via a mass-transit system. Services to the system are provided by private companies under contract to the city. These companies provide varying levels of service, from smaller 4 person vehicles to limo style luxery to service akin to that of a public bus. The availability of these services depends on the customer's willingness to pay.

Matter Transporters have replaced air travel as the most efficient way to get from one city to another. It is speculated that someday, matter transport will replace even the mass-transit system, but that day is still a ways off due to the cost to power the transporters. While most transporters are owned by companies who provide their services to the public, many large corporations will invest in a transporter system as a means of keeping their facilities connected across the planet. The total distance a transporter signal can travel without being reconstituded cannot exceed 100,000km or the signal will be lost. Matter Repeaters are positioned in geosyncronous orbit around the planet to get the beams from one side of the planet to the other. All intraplanetary shipping is handled by Transporters.

Personal vehicles are still available, but only for use in remote areas or in smaller cities without the means to develop a mass-transit system. Wheeled vehicles are still the most common with airborne vehicles available, but not as common due to the significant cost difference. Anti-gravity generators require power supplies used to run a small spaceship or colony so are still impractical for personal vehicles.