Interstellar Cold War Timeline
September 20th, 1963- President John F Kennedy proposes a joint American-Soviet mission to Luna.
October 12th, 1963- The Partial Test Ban Treaty is signed. Peaceful nuclear explosions are allowed over a height of 100 kilometers, allowing the Orion Project to continue operating.
November 22nd, 1963- President John F Kennedy is assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas, Texas.
December 5th, 1963- Premier Khrushchev declines the proposed joint space program, not trusting Johnson as much as he did Kennedy.
July 2nd, 1964- The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is enacted.
October 14th, 1964- Nikita Khrushchev is overthrown by Leonid Brezhnev.
November, 1964- Lyndon B Johnson defeats Barry Goldwater and remains President.
April, 1965- The Second Spanish Civil War breaks out between Spanish Communists and Franco's fascist government.
January 5th, 1966- Sergei Korolev's surgery is a complete success.
July 20th, 1966- The Orion 1 lands on the moon with ten American astronauts, including Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, becoming the first human beings to land on another celestial object. Armstrong is the first of the ten to walk on the Lunar surface and speaks the famous quote "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind".
January 27th, 1967- A modified version of the Outer Space Treaty is signed, only forbidding nations from claiming celestial objects as their own and putting WMDs in Earth's orbit.
July 14th, 1967- The People's Republic of China starts up its own manned space program, joining the Space Race.
March 27th, 1968- Yuri Gagarin has a near death experience after the MiG-15 training jet he was flying almost crashes.
April 4th, 1968- Martin Luther King Jr is injured in an assassination attempt. James Earl Ray, the attempted assassin, is arrested and imprisoned.
June 6th, 1968- Robert Kennedy survives an attempt on his life after a bodyguard discovers the gun Sirhan Sirhan is carrying.
August, 1968- The Second Spanish Civil War ends in a Communist victory. The new Communist government quickly allies itself with the Soviet Union.
October 13th, 1968- Cosmonauts Ivan Anikeyev and Valentin Filatyev become the first Russians to land on the moon and the first humans to establish a base. The base, named Zvezda Outpost, can hold 16 people for a month before resupply is needed.
November, 1968- Robert Kennedy is elected President with Hubert Humphrey as his Vice President.
March 4th, 1969- The Sino-Soviet War begins after the border conflicts escalate.
January 25th, 1970- Tranquility Base is created on Malapert mountain near Shackleton crater. The base is manned by a task force of 21 men and armed with conventional Claymore mines and Davy Crockett rockets with low-yield nuclear warheads.
February 5th, 1970- The Vietnam War ends with Vietnam being split between the Communist North and Democratic South.
July, 1971- The Allied Space Administration (ASA) is created, combining the Space Programs of every member nation of NATO into one singular program.
April 19th, 1971- The Soviet Union launches the world's first space station, Salyut 1, into orbit.
November 1st, 1971- The Allied European nations unite into the European Federation to combat growing Soviet power.
July, 1972- Cargo launches by the Soviet Union begin, sending resources to Mars for the future colonization mission.
September 11th, 1972- The Sino-Soviet War ends in a victory for the Soviet Union. The USSR splits China into the Tibetan SSR, Manchurian SSR, Uyghuristan SSR, and Chinese SSR.
October, 1972- A railgun is tested in Nevada. The test proves successful, resulting in railguns being installed on new and old warships.
November, 1972- RFK wins re-election.
May 14th, 1973- Skylab, the first American space station, is launched on a modified Saturn V rocket.
November 3rd, 1973- Mariner 10 is launched. On board is a genetically engineered bacteria that will be dropped onto Venus to begin terraforming by fixing carbon into organic forms.
February 5th, 1974- Mariner 10 flies by Venus.
March 24th, 1974- Mariner 10 flies by Mercury.
April 16th, 1974- New Stalingrad, the first permanent Martian settlement, is established.
October, 1974- Zvezda Outpost's nuclear reactor is upgraded into a Fusion reactor after continuously mining helium-3, which is a necessary element in fusion reactions. This allows the Zvezda Outpost to be further expanded
June 26th, 1975- The Tranquility Base's nuclear reactor is upgraded and becomes a Fusion reactor.
September, 1975- NATO is expanded to include Mexico, Finland, Sweden, South Korea, Japan, Israel, and India. NATO is renamed to the Global Defense Organization, or GDO.
February, 1976- Elvis Presley becomes the first musician to perform on another astronomical object when he's hired to play at Tranquility City.
April, 1976- The Settlement Defense Front (SDF) is formed to protect the colonies across the Sol System from Communism.
October, 1976- The world's first military spaceship is made by the Soviet Union. Named the Gagarin after Yuri Gagarin, it's measured at 75 meters long and armed with artillery and nuclear missiles.
November, 1976- Hubert Humphrey defeats Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan in the election, becoming the 38th POTUS. Edmund Muskie is chosen as his Vice President.
May, 1977- America's first military spaceship is constructed. Named the GDS John F Kennedy and measuring at 100 meters in length, it is armed with railguns and nuclear missiles.
September 5th, 1977- Voyager 1 is launched to study the outer Solar System.
January 13th, 1978- Hubert Humphrey dies at 66 years old. Vice President Muskie succeeds him as the 39th President.
April, 1978- The first fusion powered car, the Ford Fusion, begins mass production.
August, 1978- Soviet miners on Mars discover a new element near Olympus Mons. Named Betharian Stone, it's capable of producing twice as much energy as any fossil fuel on Earth.
June, 1979- NATO begins mining asteroids for minerals.
August 22nd, 1979- European astronauts Patrick Baudry, Umberto Guidoni, and Reinhold Ewald become the first people to land on Mercury.
November 20th, 1979- The International Space Station & Shipyard begins construction.
December, 1979- The world's first AI, Ethan, is created in Tokyo, Japan.
March, 1980- Elijah Kamski founds Cyber Life, with the purpose of creating androids for public sale.
February, 1981- The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is created.
January, 1982- After months of debating and a public vote, the Artificial Intelligence Citizenship Act is passed to grant AIs equal rights to humans.
November 10th, 1982- Premier Brezhnev dies.
November 12th, 1982- Yegor Ligachev is elected to succeed Brezhnev as Premier.
January, 1983- Terraforming technology is successfully tested in the Sahara desert.
May, 1983- The RT600 Chloe is created by Cyber Life. It is the first Android to pass the Turing Test.
June, 1983- The world's first directed-energy weapon is built in France.
March 11th, 1984- Chuck Hull creates the world's first 3D printer.
June, 1984- The ST200, the commercial model of Chloe, begins mass production.
October 12th, 1984- The floating city of Aphrodite is created above the clouds of Venus by the European Federation.
May 15th, 1985- The cure for most cancers is discovered by a joint group of allied scientists.
May 26th, 1985- The nations of Africa unite into the African Union. The President of the African Union declares that Africa is neutral in the Cold War.
October 11th, 1985- Weyland Industries is recognized as a legal entity and corporation under US law.
April, 1986- 3D printers become widely available and affordable to the public.
August, 1986- Cybernetic modifications are made available to the public.
1987- The Genetic Rights Act is passed by both the Covenant and the Soviet Union to prevent abuses by gene tech corporations conducting research outside Earth's legal jurisdiction.
February, 1988- The ISSS is completed.
July, 1988- A pure fusion weapon is successfully tested in the Mojave Desert.
1989- Elijah Kamski is named "Man of the Century" by Century magazine.
1990- The American Androids Act is passed by the United States government, requiring Androids to be distinguishable from humans. All Cyber Life androids are included with an LED light on their temple from this point onward. Other nations containing Androids, such as the Soviet Union and the European Federation.
August 20th, 1991- The New Union Treaty is ratified. The Union Treaty of 1922 becomes null and void and establishes a new nation known as the Union of Soviet Sovereign Republics.
February, 1992- The United States government begins Project Homo Novus (New Man) to create super soldiers.
July, 1992- The Soviet Union, learning of Project Homo Novus from their spies, begins Project Prometheus to create their own super soldiers.
November, 1992- Incumbent President George HW Bush defeats democratic nominee Bill Clinton for the Presidency.
1994- Miguel Alcubierre proposes the possibility of creating the Alcubierre Drive, a FTL Engine. It operates similarly to the warp drive from Star Trek. The US government shows interest in the design and begins construction on a single drive.
1995- Sergei Krasnikov proposes the Krasnikov Engine. The Krasnikov Engine operates on wormholes instead of warp travel like the Alcubierre.
July 27th, 1996- Hypersleep Chambers are created by Weyland Industries.
September, 1996- Project Prometheus shows its first successful results. The new super soldiers are named BOGATYRs.
November 5th, 1996- Richard Feynman wins the election, defeating Bob Dole and Bill Clinton for the Presidency.
November 1st, 1997- The USA, Canada, and Mexico merge to form the United States of North America.
1998- The Superconducting Super Collider is completed in Texas.
1999- Project Homo Novus is declared a success by the US government after the first generation of SPARTANs are created.
January 7th, 2000- Weyland Industries manufactures the first advanced android prototype model of its kind. He is affectionately called David, a name Sir Peter Weyland had initially reserved for his own human son. AIs use the David android to help blend into society and learn.
November 7th, 2000- Feynman secures his re-election after defeating George W Bush.
September 11th, 2001- Four planes are hijacked by Al Qaeda terrorists. Two of the planes crash into the World Trade Center in New York, the third crashes into the Pentagon in Washington DC, and the final plane crashes in a field in Pennsylvania after the passengers attempt to regain control of the plane. The Cold War is put on hold to begin the War on Terror.
November 11th, 2001- Deviant Androids peacefully protest in Detroit, joined by several AI and led by the deviant Android Markus. US soldiers attack the Androids, resulting in many being killed and public opinion shifting in support of the Androids. Markus is cornered by the soldiers alongside the other survivors of the attack. The deviants sing in a final effort to show their peaceful intentions. The President calls off the troops, giving the Androids a moment of freedom.
April 22nd, 2002- After months of debating and a public vote, the Artificial Creation Citizenship Act is passed to grant AIs and Androids equal rights to humans.
August 10th, 2003- Man lands on Pluto for the first time.
November 2nd, 2004- Gore is elected.
2005- The first iteration of the ODSTs are created.
2006- The first quantum computer is built.
2008- New Mombasa, Kenya is chosen as the site of the world's first Space Elevator, also known as a Space Tether.
August 10th, 2010- The terraforming of Luna begins.
April 3rd, 2012- Weyland acquires Northrop Grumman, Boeing, BAE Systems, and Lockheed Martin. These major acquisitions significantly bolsters multinational defense, security, and aerospace technology holdings.
2014- The democratic nations across the globe unite into the Covenant of Democratic Nations. In response, the Soviet Union annexes all Warsaw Pact members into itself, leaving only a few nations left on Earth.
2015- After much debating, the world's first Neanderthal is cloned in West Germany.
August 25th, 2016- Weyland Corp launches the Explorers Academy—an alternative grad school for underprivileged college students interested in the fields of biotech, nanotech, cybernetics and terraforming. Top graduates of the program are offered positions at Weyland Corp.
2017- The Alcubierre Drive is successfully tested with the CSS Reagan traveling to the Proxima Centauri system. Later in the year the first colony outside the Sol system is established on Proxima Centauri b. It is named Terra Nova.
2019- The Krasnikov Drive is successfully created by the Soviet Union and installed on the Gagarin. The Soviet Union establishes their own colony in the Alpha Centauri system, naming it New Moscow.
November 3rd, 2020- Markus is elected as the first non-human President of the Covenant.
November 20th, 2020- Terraforming of Mars begins.
2021- The International Society of Civil Engineers is established.
January, 2023- Contact with the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 probes are lost.
August 15th, 2026- The Pandoran War begins after increased tension between the Soviet Union and the Covenant on the moon of Pandora. The President of the Covenant and the Premier of the Union agree to not use any nukes on Earth for this conflict.
December 10th, 2028- The Pandoran War ends with Pandora being annexed by the USSR.
2030- The SDF declares war on Earth, igniting the Secession Wars.
2031- After a year of fighting, Earth and SDF's political leaders meet on Pluto's moon, Charon, to negotiate the Charon Accords. This ultimately brings an end to the Secession Wars, whilst limiting both sides' abilities to expand further into the galaxy. The SDF secures Mars' sovereignty through the Accords.
2032- Ignoring the Charon Accords, SDF begins to expand into the Covenant controlled Neptune and Uranus Clusters, killing numerous CDN civilians in process.
2044- Further violating the Charon Accords, SDF captures the Union controlled Saturn Cluster and its vital refueling stations.
May 6th, 2045- Operation Riah begins. The SDF launch an attack on a Covenant black site on Europa, retrieving data on the SPAR project.
May 7th, 2045- Fleet Week begins on Earth. The SDF hijack the AATIS guns in Geneva, crippling much of the Covenant and Union fleets. After a brief skirmish, the guns are secured back into Terran grasp and SDF sleeper-cell Riah is captured. The Terran fleet engages the SDF fleet in ship-to-ship combat outside Earth's atmosphere. After destroying the attacking fleet, Olympus Mons, equipped with an F-SPAR cannon, arrives and destroys most of the SATO launches a concurrent attack on the Lunar Gateway. The Covenant launches Operation Port Armor and successfully retakes the Luna Gateway Port. The Union launches Operation Burn Water on Titan and successfully destroys the SDF's critical refueling stations.
May 8th, 2045- The Covenant and Union launch Operation Black Flag in an attempt to lure the SDF fleet into the AATIS array. SDF manages to destroy the guns first, allowing the fleet to attack Earth with little resistance. SATO responds by hijacking the Olympus Mons, killing Admiral Salen Kotch and using its weapons to force SDF to retreat. Earth launches Operation Blood Storm in an attempt to cripple the SDF war effort by attacking Tharsis Shipyard. Despite heavy losses, including the ships Retribution and Olympus Mons, as well as most of their crews, Tharsis Shipyard is destroyed, along with much of the SDF fleet.
May 10th, 2045- Operation Avenger is launched, with the remains of the SATO fleet attacking Mars.
July, 2045- The SDF surrenders to Covenant & Union forces. The SDF is disbanded and Mars is re-integrated into the USSR and CDN.
June 22nd, 2054- Miguel Alcubierre dies at 90 years old. He is mourned by Covenant citizens across space.
2056- The population of Earth reaches 10 billion.
2057- Serguei Krasnikov dies at 96 years old.
2062- Scientists increase the lifespan of human beings to 300 years.
January, 2064- The Interplanetary War begins between the CDN and secessionist forces.
March, 2070- The Interplanetary War ends with a CDN victory.
2075- A group of scientists come up with the Theory of Psionics, which states that the mind is in many ways a reflection of the universe itself, a microcosmos.
2080- The School of Psionics is founded by Alejandro Burromuerto. Any people showing psionic abilities or signs of developing psionics enroll in the school.
2090- The Soviet-Covenant War begins in the Arcturus system.
2103- The Soviet-Covenant War ends in a Covenant victory.
2120- A Quantum Bomb is tested. The test is successful.
2171- Pope Clement XVI is assassinated by Cerberus via rosary beads coated in toxic substances. Pope Leo XIV expressed beliefs more in-line with Cerberus' ideals.
2173- Elaborate crypts made by the extinct spacefaring species Zioph are discovered on Armeni in the Knossos system. Several universities begin excavations.
October 17th, 2176- President Enrique Aguilar of the CDN was assassinated during a photo opportunity with Soviet Union Premier Ying Xiong. The perpetrator was Michael Moser Lang, a patent clerk and political dissident from Virginia. Lang obtained a Kassa Fabrication M-12 Locust sub-machine gun and concealed it within a shoulder-mounted video camera which he brought to the event. The first burst from Lang's weapon broke through the barriers protecting the stage. Xiong attempted to shield Aguilar from the line of fire, but Lang's next shots passed completely through Xiong and killed both men. It is discovered later that Cerberus had given Lang the funding to purchase the weapons for the assassination.
July 12th, 2187- The First Contact War begins after a Soviet science vessel and its escorts are attacked by a Turian fleet whilst it is attempting to scan an unidentified object in the Feu system.