Faraday Gyre (CivBE)

Wonders

Faraday Gyre
Wonder in Beyond Earth
Cost	275
Maintenance	None
Requires	Power Systems
Specialist slots	None
Effect	+5 Diplomatic Capital
Notes	Energy Maintenance for Buildings and Improvements reduced by 50% in this City.

The Faraday Gyre is an aquatic-only Wonder introduced in the Rising Tide expansion pack.

• +5 Diplomatic Capital
• Energy Maintenance for buildings and improvements reduced by 50% in this city

Quote

"Let this system be a model for the interaction of our work and our society: Great forces acting on countless agents, exploiting the ironclad laws of physical sciences, creating instances of action and progress." - Kozlov, Axioms from the Minutes of the Central Directorate

History

The Faraday Gyre is a city-sized electromagnet capable of creating an immense source of low-voltage power that can supply modest motors and batteries. The massive vortex turbine artificially-induces an oceanic gyre seeded with millions of metallic micro-filaments. When properly applied, the magnetic force from this phenomenon induces a significant electric current.

Over 200,000 cubic meters of water surges through the turbine at 60 kilometers per hour, every minute. Producing the tremendous rotational force and perpetual spin capable of creating a catastrophic maelstrom was relatively simple compared to building the structure that would contain it. The answer was found through continuum mechanics and involved water being diverted and recycled into a pressurized stream. Observed from a safe distance underwater, one would witness a vigorous whirlpool collapsing into a spherical point; a globe of tumultuous force.

During the development of the Faraday Gyre, the station's design and purpose was evaluated for potential military applications. The idea was to convert the station into a mobile, submersible capable of consuming naval vessels and settlements, as well as devastating coastal cities. However, cooperation between multiple sponsors was required to create the initial stations and the tactical design was abandoned.

The counter-rotors located near the top edges of the structure that filter and reprocess the micro-filaments back into the turbine create the pleasant side effect of releasing fresh, scintillating mists into the city above. These thin sheets of spray are referred to as "ghosts". It is not uncommon to find children chasing them through the streets on a warm day, unaware of the monumental crushing forces that birth the gossamer veils.

Images