Measuring the distance to Eve gate

Some capsuleers claim that Eve gate is anchored somewhere in the New Eden system, just outside the roughly 500 AU reach of combat scan probes in the maximally zoomed out view of the stellar map.

This claim is one that I can verify experimentally. Not by flying out there, but by using parallax measurements. Parallax is the fancy name for a familiar phenomenon: as you move around, objects nearby will shift their position relative to the faraway background. The larger the shift, the closer the object is to you.

Parallax measurements are a standard technique in astronomy. In fact, the distance unit of 1 parsec (3.26 light years) is defined through a parallax angle of 1 arcsecond (1/3600^th of a degree). 

These measurements fall in the broad category of triangulation. You do not actually need a fixed background of stars, any triangle will suffice. So, I pick the Promised Land gate, and the Farthest Shore station as two corners of my triangle. The side of the triangle connecting them is 11.8 AU long, a respectable base line. The third corner of the triangle is Eve gate. To find the distance to it, one needs to measure the angles that the two reachable corners make with Eve gate and use a bit of standard trigonometry.

The tactical overlay superposes a polar coordinate grid on the screen and makes it possible to measure the angles to an accuracy of about 0.1 degree (one should be careful, since the triangle does not lie in the equatorial plane, declination must be taken into account). The accuracy of 0.1 degree is a pretty low resolution for an astronomer, but it is useful to a capsuleer: it still allows to locate an object within 6760 AU of the star. This is a massive range, one that far surpasses what you can do with combat probes.

I first tested the technique on a known point (a bookmark I placed where I met the Goner), to confirm that it works. It passed the test.

Then I used it on the gate, and found a parallax angle of 0.06, so within the error bar of 0.1 degree. This means that what we see as the gate is not caused by a structure within 6760 AU of the star. Most likely, this places the gate outside of the New Eder star system. The claim by some, that the gate lies at 500-1000 AU, is thus refuted.

Flying with Goner Arielle

Today, I scanned down and followed Goner Arielle as he travelled to the gate.

 

I have been in contact again with Goner Sarachem, and he pointed out to me the communications channels they use when present. He is relieved often by other Goners. Sarachem speaks Amarrian, albeit with a noticeable accent of his own ancient tongue. I also learned that they see their travel as a sort of penance they perform for all of us sinners in the cluster, including for their own sins. That is why they do not accept help, nor will they rush their flight to the Gate. 

The combat probes worked admirably, and I was able to journey for several hours with Goner Arielle. From this I learned that they do not journey on a line from the sun to the gate, but rather from the Promised Land gate to Eve gate. As such, they may miss Toth's expedition wrecks which I was told warped to the star and then proceeded to Eve gate. 

 

Goner Arielle appeared in deep meditation, and remained taciturn. After a few hours, he rejected my invitation to chat. I enjoyed our joint path, and meditated myself as well.