<< Before the 21st century

21st century

• 2040: Human population reaches 10 thousand million.
• 2040-2050: The oil crisis gives rise to a nuclear power economy, mostly fission-based, but with fusion quickly gaining wide acceptance and use.

22nd century

• 2132: Human population reaches 15 thousand million.
• Advances in allotransplantation increase human lifespan, making the overpopulation problem worse.
• Organ banks cannot support the increasing demand for organs. Several governments re-adopt the death penalty and apply it to a lot of crimes.
• Many nations begin seriously considering space as a possible solution to the overpopulation and organ banks crises.
• 2156: 57 nations form the Space Colonization Consortium, an organization meant for cooperation towards the establishment of a human colony out of Earth.
• 2162: The Consortium starts mining the Sol main asteroid belt.
• 2198: The Consortium starts the Mars Project, a variation of Mars Direct.
• By the end of the century, humanity is a Kardashev Type I civilization.

23rd century

• 2239: The Mars Project becomes the Martian Human Habitat, housing 612 people along with other animal and plant life.
• 2242: The L2 Habitat is placed in orbit around Earth-Sol’s L2.
• 2243: The first working Bussard ramjet is built.
• 2245: The first unmanned ramjet, a probe named Bussard is sent out to Rigel Kentaurus.
• 2253: Bussard reaches Rigel Kentaurus, finding three planets.
• 2257: Bussard reports reach Earth. Rigel Kentaurus Ac bears life, and appears habitable by humans.
• 2259: A more sophisticated probe named Examiner is sent to Rigel Kentaurus Ac.
• 2263: The Consortium effectively becomes the first Earth Government.
• 2272: Reports from the Examiner reach Earth. Rigel Kentaurus Ac is deemed apropriate for colonization and renamed to Paradise.
• 2275: The 20 Giga Day: 20 thousand million humans live on Earth. The Fertility Laws are created.
• 2277: Three new ramrobots are sent to other nearby systems: Barnard’s Star (5.96 ly), Sirius (8.6 ly), and Procyon (11.4 ly).
• 2284: Adam, the first generational colony ship leaves for Paradise. The fastest speed achievable without using a ramjet is about 3600 km/s (0.012c), which means it will take Adam 362 years (9 generations) to reach Paradise.
• 2294: The reports from Barnard’s Star arrive, showing another habitable planet. That planet is dubbed Spirit.

24th century

• 2325: Eve, the second generation ship, departs for Spirit. Eve is faster than Adam at 0.03c. The ship will take 5 generations to reach it, arriving by the year 2527.
• Several more ramjet probes are launched.

25th century

• 2412: The first Main Asteroid Belt experimental habitat is founded.
• Around 2420: Earth’s population stabilizes at 18 thousand million.
• 2423: The MHH covers 5% of Mars surface, and houses twelve million people.
• Three more colony ships are launched to farther star systems.

26th century

• 2527: Eve reaches Spirit and founds the first extra-solar colony.
• 2532: Colonization of the Sol Main Asteroid Belt begins.
• 2533: Earth learns of Eve ’s success.

27th century

• 2603: Advances in cryonics make it potentially usable for interstellar travel.
• 2612: First habitat on Jupiter’s trojans.
• 2633: The various artificial and terraformed habitats on the Sol main belt officially become a colony, known as the Belt Federation of Human Habitats.
• 2646: Adam lands on Paradise and the second human colony outside the Sol system is successfully established.
• 2651: Earth learns of Adam ’s success.
• 2653: Sleeper, the first sleeper colony ship is built.
• 2655: Sleeper leaves for Hearth (formerly ε Eridani a). Sleeper ’s arrival is expected in 2808, reaching a top speed of 0.06c.

28th century

• Sleeper is in transit to Hearth.

29th century

• 2808: Sleeper arrives at Hearth and finds the failed Grasshopper colony.