Asteroid Data

Brost, as a Vulcanian asteroid, is a highly metallic body, and quite dense for its size, with many of its crustal materials showing unique properties, the result of billions of years of solar radiation and thermal erosion.  However, other than the expected though rather unique properties of Vulcanian asteroids, Brost itself is somewhat unremarkable in form and composition.  Like all of the Vulcanian asteroids, it was formed with the rest of the Inner System over 4 billion years ago, and has remained largely unmodified by collisional processes.  There are some major impact basins, but these likely date back 4 billion years.

Brost is thought to be largely homogenous in composition, with a slightly higher concentration of metals near the core, hinting at an independent formation for this body, rather than it having been calved off of a larger asteroid in the distant past.  Taken by itself, Brost would seem to be a rich source of materials for consumption, and indeed many Vulcanian asteroids were so mined during the Commonwealth Period.  However, Brost has played host to a reminder of tragedy for the past several centuries, and has remained protected from mining or development by the Exploration Society since 2562.

Such a small body as Brost has no chance for geological activity from internally generated heat.  The asteroid itself does show some mineralogical morphology that indicates alteration by heat, but this is certainly due to its close solar orbit and billions of years of enduring the Sun's thermal output.  By itself, Brost has been geologically quiet since it formed, and it is not expected to show any signs of activity until the Sun itself begins to brighten as it moves off of the main sequence, perhaps some 3 billion years from now.

Brost was first discovered by telescopic observations in 2028, from the still new American base on the moon.  The observations, performed by the young Amtech corporation's research department, were a part of a project designed to search for and discover the long theorized but as of yet undiscovered Vulcanian asteroids.  Brost was the third such asteroid discovered, and was named after the then Amtech astronomical project manager, Annita Brost.  As a part of a new policy by the IAU, fostered by the ongoing discovery of thousands of asteroids every year, no number was assigned to Brost;  rather, it was given its name, which was then checked and approved by the IAU.

Brost and its fellow asteroids, however, received very little attention for the next several decades.  While spectroscopic observations showed them to be a rich source of minerals, traveling to and operating that near the Sun proved to be too difficult and dangerous.  Amtech chose to exploit other asteroids in Earth crossing orbits, as well as Belt asteroids.

This changed in 2055 when details for a new type of interplanetary craft, designed for travel in near-Solar environments, was unveiled by Amtech.  The first such ship, the AMT Dutchmann, was constructed and completed in 2058 and shortly after sent on its maiden voyage to the Vulcanian Belt, and the asteroid Brost in particular.  However, in 2059, the Dutchmann suffered a catastrophic loss of its primary heat shield, which had been physically ripped from the rest of the ship.  The tumbling shield also severely damaged the solar panels and heat radiators, as well as caused damage to the EM generator, which served to protect the vessel from the Sun's radiation.

Despite the heroic efforts of the crew, all attempts to rig a temporary shield failed.  The ship, unable to escape from the Sun's gravity, was instead locked onto its original course for Brost.  Long before the Dutchmann touched down on the asteroid, the crew had died.  The ship remained on the asteroid, untouched, for the next several centuries despite the eventual refinement of travel in this region of the Solar System, and the processing of many other Vulcanian asteroids.  Brost itself was almost literally shunned, left to be a silent monument to the fallen crew and their (at the time) revolutionary ship.

It was not until 2562 that the Exploration Society petitioned the New Church Ascendancy Hegemony to officially protect Brost from development.  In that same year, the Society arrived on the asteroid and constructed a protective dome over the remains of the Dutchmann, thus establishing the Dutchmann Memorial Outpost.

To this day the dome stands, a mute reminder of the dangers inherent in the exploration and colonization of space.  While tourism for the Memorial is low, the site remains as a source of inspiration for the many private  and League sponsored space exploration and development organizations.