Editing Crippen Station

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Considered by many to be the most important [[space station]] in human history<ref name=SO-137/>,'''Crippen Station''' was the first industrial space station put into low [[Terra|Earth]] orbit in [[2005]], as the center of the [[Western Orbital Defense Network]] (WODeN pronounced Woden, as in the Germanic name of the Norse god, Odin).

==History==
Starting in [[1994]], as part of a joint venture between the [[United States of America|United States]] and Japan, the Crippen Station was a major piece of the Space Defense Initiative (SDI).  The project was later renamed the Western Orbital Defense Network (WODen).

Easily dwarfing the Soviet [[Salyut-8]], Crippen Station was larger then any station built previously, housing over 2,000 people, and including modules for scientific laboratories, factories, and recreation areas for the personnel.  

In late [[2007]], the station was upgraded with facilities creating the ability to build and repair the defense network satellites, scientific satellites, and the ships proposed for manned missions to [[Terra|Mars]] (see [[AS Altair]] & [[AS Columbia]]).

During this time, the station became the central command for the Western Orbital Defense Network. Additionally it also became the site of the first murder to occur off Terra, when a utility knife was used to fatally stab a crew member in [[2010]]. <ref name=SO-244>''Strategic Operations'', pp. 244-245 "Aerospace Operations - Combat"</ref> <ref name=SO-258>''Strategic Operations'', p. 258 "Aerospace Operations - Psychological Considerations"</ref>

Not tasked solely for scientific study, the Crippen Station included sophisticated military technology allowing for the detection, tracking, and jamming of enemy weaponry.  The station included energy weapons that played a part in the [[Second Soviet Civil War]] destroying hardliner-launched Soviet ICBMs.  This prevented millions of civilians from being massacred during that conflict.

After the Second Soviet Civil War ended in March 2014, the station returned to its primary mission of scientific research and study.

In [[2016]], Crippen Station became the home of the newly formed [[Alliance Space Command]] (ASC) tasked with creating the first lunar settlements.  After these settlements were completed, the ASC moved its headquarters to Luna and Crippen was retasked to construct the first manned vehicles for Mars exploration.  The ''[[AS Altair]]'' was the first launched in [[2017]].

The ''[[AS Columbia]]'' was launched from the station in [[2027]].

The last major role of the Crippen Station was as part of the [[Magellan Program]].  The first interstellar probe, ''[[Magellan Program#Magellan One|Magellan One]]'', was launched from the station in early [[2030]] to explore the [[New Earth|Tau Ceti]] system.

The preserved Crippen Station would later serve for centuries as a famous aerospace museum until its obliteration along with numerous other spacecraft in orbit around Terra by a debris cascade caused by the destruction of the massive [[O'Neil Station]] during the opening shots of the [[Amaris Coup]].<ref name=SO-137>''Strategic Operations'', p. 137 "Aerospace Technologies - Space Stations"</ref>

==Notes==
*Although unconfirmed, one ancient [[Doug Chaffee|historical record]] suggests the Crippen Station was named in honor of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Crippen Captain Robert Crippen], pilot of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STS-1 STS-1], the first United States of America [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle space shuttle] orbital mission.


==References==
<references />
* ''DropShips and JumpShips'', p. 5-8


==Bibliography==
* [[Doug Chaffee]] email - 11-12-2008
* ''[[DropShips and JumpShips]]'' 
* ''[[Strategic Operations]]''


[[Category:Individual Space Stations]]