Palreeuh Nebula Rift

The Palreeuh Rift is a region of unknown nebulae, located on the farthest border between V.R.A. and Sov space. It is filled with asteroid belts that contain a number of different types of resources, and is also a major folded space/FTL intersection.

Geography
The Rift is believed to be a failed stellar nursery, approximately 9 billion years old, and as such contains a small number of very old red giant stars. The rest of the Rift is a tangle of stellar gases, asteroid belts, and various other bits of stellar clutter. The only planets in the Rift are large gas giants located in orbit of a few of the dying stars.

Resources
The Rift contains a number of asteroid belts, all of which contain valuable minerals in abundance. This is arguably the only completely neutral zone in the Sintar Cluster, and all the races in the area have an unspoken agreement that they will not clash with each other unless provoked. Some of the minerals currently being extracted include titanium, silicon, copper, uranium, aluminum, and plutonium. The area is also abundant in xenon gas, and the V.R.A. has set up a number of extraction arrays to acquire as much of the gas as possible. The area is also home to a species of sargasso weed that is considered particularly delicious by both the Horovine and the Sov, and both races have set up numerous harvesting operations in order to sell the plant to restauranteurs in their respective empires. Efforts at cultivating the plant have failed thus far.

Nebulae
The nebulae are composed primarily of hydrogen and iodine, which react to create the spectacular green glow reported by space travelers. It is unknown where the iodine came from, as it is not naturally present in stellar nurseries, although analysis of samples indicates it is artificial in nature. The nebulae also hold a substantial electric charge due to the constant reactions, and may in fact behave similarly to an EMP when they come into contact with unshielded electronics. It is for this reason that ships heading into the nebula are required to be fitted with external charge neutralization systems of some variety. Once every year, the nebula will enter an "active" phase, during which the hydrogen/iodine reactions become far more intense, posing a great deal of danger to ships passing through the area without shielding. Occasionally, even standard shielding will fail during the active period, resulting in the complete and total disabling of the ship, as well as crippling EM headaches for all aboard. However, the active phase is regarded as very beautiful when viewed from outside the nebula, and Horovine, Zevestivan, and Sov tourists will pay a premium to observe the phenomenon from as close as possible. Stations are not affected by the active phase, as their shielding is much stronger than that of most ships. The active period lasts anywhere between three days and two weeks, after which normal activities within the Rift may resume.