Ulysses 1994XF04

Ulysses 1994XF04 was a large asteroid that struck Strangereal in mid-1999, affecting the planet and its inhabitants in numerous ways. Its impact triggered a series of wars and political crises over the years.

Initially introduced in the background story of Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies, the asteroid became one of the central plot element of the Strangereal continuity.

Discovery
Initially known as "1994XF04", Ulysses was first discovered by the Shellsbridge University in October of 1994 with the aid of the University of Comona, which used computers to calculate its trajectory. Their findings were disclosed to the government of the Federation of Central Usea, who requested additional research on the celestial body. An special team comprised by prominent geologists and astronomers was formed by the International Astronomist Union, which concluded on December that Ulysses, which had a diameter of a mile, had a high chance of colliding with the Earth in the following years.

According to the investigations of Comona, it would pass through the Roche limit on July 3 of 1999 at 15:30 Usea Standard Time, at which point it would shatter into numerous fragments that would blanket the northern hemisphere with the strength of two million nuclear warheads, plunging the planet into a nuclear winter. The FCU chose to maintain total confidentiality of this information because of political and cultural considerations, and sought answers with the Aerospace Society, later realizing that a solution could not be achieved without the aid of its allies.

Defense efforts
On April 20 of 1996, FCU president Robert Sinclair publicly revealed the existence and potential impact of Ulysses in a press conference, causing commotion and shock across the world. In the same day, Secretary of State Stetson attended an emergency conference with the Usea Treaty Organization, where the creation of a "National Missile Defense" system between UTO members was proposed.

Despite initial skepticism over its potential for bellic uses, a mutual agreement was reached. Alternate suggestions to the NMD included the use of interceptor missiles, or even attaching a booster unit to Ulysses itself.

However, a "final defense plan" was announced by Stetson himself after the consideration of a worst case scenario, without revealing much details. Following the conference, the FCU itself conceived a weapon to engage 1994XF04, internally known as "Project STN". The project, an array of railguns known as the Stonehenge Turret Network, was later built in an uninhabited desert area in San Salvacion with the involvement of scientists and workers from across Usea and the world.

Aside from Stonehenge, other systems were built to engage Ulysses, including the Megalith missile silo of Erusea in the Twinkle Islands and the Chandelier railgun of Estovakia in Anea. In Usea itself, other weapons included North Point's Fortress Intolerance and a satellite-borne laser system in the Comona Islands, which was abandoned nearly at the end of its development.

Final months
Envisioned as the "defender of the continent", Stonehenge was declared to be officially completed in June of 1998. Both Osea and Yuktobania had announced their willingness to collaborate with its construction, but were unable to do so on account of reconstruction efforts from the Belkan War.

In that same month, photographs and gravital analyses obtained by an IAU space probe revealed that Ulysses had a hollow interior. Recalculations by Shellsbridge University and the Astronomical Union caused them to conclude that the proportion between Earth's gravity and its mass would cause the asteroid to spilt into two large fragments.

The report was announced solely by the IAU, as the FCU had progressed beyond a point where a review of Stonehenge's capabilities was possible. Prior to the announcement, it was believed that the complex would cover a 1,200-1,500 kilometer radius relative to central Usea, but the updated information declared that the areas within the meridian lines of 135 degrees east and 30 degrees west would inevitably be struck.

After the news of Ulysses' coverage, the FCU refused to make additional revisions to Stonehenge's range to avoid international problems, instead focusing on making it more secure and reliable with its allies. The lack of defenses led the inhabitants of Anea to express their discontent against the crisis management ability to it and the IAU, leading to continental protests.

On the suggestion of Lord Alberto Lawrence, the government of Emmeria responded by mobilizing vessels and aircraft to evacuate the sectors most likely to be hit, persuaded Estovakia and Nordennavic to use their castles to house evacuees, and constructed a series of underground shelters in an around the capital of Gracemeria. As a result, Gracemeria became one of Anea's main cities to have the most refugees inside shelters, and the second city in a global scale to hold the most displaced people, next to Osea's Oured.

By December of 1998, 160 impact shelters had been built in United Nations member states, which declared a full acceptance to house refugees from Usea and its surrounding areas. Non-governmental organizations made extensive increasingly larger preparations concerning food, evacuee sheltering, humanitarian outreach and medical attention in anticipation of Ulysses Day.

Impact
On Saturday 3 of June 1999, Ulysses passed the Roche limit and spilt into two halves, which then broke into thousands of fragments that showered the northern hemisphere.

Several small meteorites were engaged by Stonehenge and Megalith, the former ensuring a degree of safety against the impacts for part of Usea. Urban areas like Anchorhead City and Saint Ark were annihilated by the strikes, while other sites such as Newfield Island and Erusea's capital Farbanti endured impacts that greatly altered their geography. Over half a million people died within the first two weeks, and the total damage caused by Ulysses was estimated to equal 18 months of the continent's total GDP.

The fragments that struck Anea heavily damaged Estovakia, while the underground shelters ensured a minimal loss of life in Emmeria.

Aftermath
The impact of Ulysses on Earth triggered many changes across the Earth, having a profound effect on politics and the life of its inhabitants. The event became the catalyst of a series of crises and military conflicts across Usea and the planet, spanning a legacy lasting nearly twenty years.

Northern hemisphere
Nearly a year after the catastrophe, over a million refugees were housed by the nations of Usea— the situation was particularly dire in Erusea, where the refugee situation reached the point of crime and disease plaguing camps of the displaced at the border, and the sheer number of people forced the government to refuse letting more in by April 2000. The events in the west led to a heated dispute between Erusea and the FCU, which culminated in the former's takeover of the Stonehenge guns, triggering the Usean Continental War.

In the other side of the world, the Anean Federal Republic of Estovakia was one of the worst affected countries by the asteroid impacts, suffering widespread destruction and having its economy completely devastated. The fall of the country's infrastructure led to a civil war waged between several factions for many years, ending only when these factions were forcibly united by a junta of military officers known as "The Generals". As with Usea, the junta declared war on neighboring Emmeria in 2015.

Osea and Yuktobania
In the years following Ulysses, minor fragments continued to fall onto the planet. The elimination of these remnants was rendered impossible by the destruction of Stonehenge, and later the Megalith facility, during the Continental War in Usea. The issue was brought up during the 2008 G7 Summit, held aboard the Osean Federation's Arkbird spacecraft, where it was decided that the ship would be used to clean up the space debris left by Ulysses.

After the summit, the Arkbird was equipped with weapons built in conjunction by Osea and Yuktobania. The ship was outfitted with Yuktobanian pulse laser guns, an Osean beam laser system and missile launchers for large fragments. Though not a full solution to the problem, the Arkbird successfully cleared 80% of space around the planet's geosynchronous orbit, leading to various nations participating in the construction of an "International Space Station" project; a project which was sponsored by Osea and Yuktobania.

Craters
The fragments of Ulysses produced several craters across the Earth. Many of the best known impact sites are located in the northern hemisphere of the planet - whether Ulysses' fragments struck the rest of the world, however, is uncertain.

Usea
Anderson Crater


 * Located sixty miles south of North Point. The impact heavily damaged the eastern side of Newfield Island. In the years after Ulysses, plans were put forward to restore the crater area, though efforts were hampered by the Continental War and protests by the Geological Survey Society.

Krasinsky Crater


 * A crater in Mt. Shezna, officially named "Romanov" after Usean astronomer Brzezinski Romanov. The fragment that struck the area hit with enough strength to pierce into the mountains, opening a natural vent from which underground steam flows.

Mackenzie Crater


 * A crater in the Faith Park region, which formed a mesa terrain. Because of the lack of rain in the area, researchers theorized that the crater would remain intact for thousands of years. The proximity of sunlight to the equator made solar energy technology feasible, and a facility was built in the site.

Goldberg Crater


 * Found in the Whiskey Corridor desert, it is one of the largest craters created by Ulysses, having a diameter of 8.4km. The collision caused the steady draining of water from the nearby Iruzari Rriver, which was predicted to dry up in a few years' time.

Ryker Crater


 * A crater in Farbanti, the capital of Erusea. One of the deadliest recorded impacts, a Ulysses asteroid completely destroyed the coastal area of the city, killing hundreds and flooding the site with seawater. Despite the event, the inhabitants of the city remained there in the aftermath.

Anea
Antenora Crater


 * A crater in Sonne Island, in north Estovakia. The impact occured in the vicinity of the Chandelier.

Trivia

 * The Ulysses asteroid was named in accordance with existing astronomical conventions.