WC 5: Landscapes that talk
https://landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/apps/YourNameInLandsat-main/index.html
I'm Director Sland. I run the space station XC-5. Its a military installation that orbits an X Class planet. We gather data, process it, and send reports up the chain.
You think 'director' is nice title. I used to be inclined to agree. Its something grand with lots of responsibilities. Lots of power. Prestige. However, space stations aren't what they used to be and director is a title with little meaning this far out.
If you're reading this somehow and don't know how military designations are ranked. At the tip top end are Citadels. The heart of any sector of controlled space. A massive installation with almost all the capabilities available to the military. From shipyards and repair facilities, to material processing and production, to the very best in scientific and engineering equipment. Even in private industry the military is unsurpassed.
You have civilian installations known simply as cities. They are still considered military installations for the purposes of politics and policy. While not equipped with as many military facilities, it still has enough to defend itself and nearby fleets are always prepped to respond in an emergency.
There are various other specialist installations before you get to space stations. I won't go over them, but hopefully you understand a space station is the very lowest of the pecking order. It still gets the protection of the fleet, but its amenities are... SEVERLY LACKING.
Well its not so bad working as 'Director' of a space station. Due to the attractiveness of the military, private industry has a lot of trouble recruiting anyone, let alone anyone experienced. Despite marshal law having fallen decades ago, the Alliance has permitted the military to maintain its monopoly over almost all non-terrestrial operations. With a budget to match.
Good news for me though! With my experience as 'Director' I can secure almost any job I want in private industry. A few years on the worst of the worst and then an entire life of luxury.
I 'retire' in a year. This station is being decommissioned soon anyway as colonists arrive to takeover operations. Apparently my reports have convinced the top brass to greenlight a manned expedition. More good news for me I guess, looks better on my record.
This final year doesn't really matter. I'm meant to just monitor for any anomalies that may change the decision to explore. No more data. No more reports.
It is in this final year I decided I should have some fun. The landscape of the planet below reminds me of images of Earth I've seen. So with all this fancy equipment around me I decided to see if there was anywhere on the planet that did actually match Earth. In looks, in composition, anything that matches really. Might be a nice gift for the colonists too, might get a recommendation!
We've already got a good back log of images and various other data points. Soil samples, rock samples, bio samples from trees, plants, and other fauna adjacent substances. The analysis will take a while so my job will be finding ways to speed it up. I'm thinking of using this old technology that could be 'trained' on some sorted data first and then could very efficiently 'learn' various patterns that could produce the output desired. I'm thinking of making it learn from various Earth and planet pictures to determine which is from where. Any false positives will then be analysed further. It could drastically improve the amount of data that actually needs to be processed. A revolutionary step forward if it works.
Maybe I'll win an award...