BUREAU OF COLONIES — PLANETARY SURVEY DIVISION

TOPOGRAPHIC ATLAS — CLASSIFIED DOSSIER (FILE: CHEN/GEODIV-ALT/9C)

Planet: Chendiuria
Issued: 2346.01.17
Compilation Authority: BuCol Planetary Cartography and Environmental Directorate (PCED)
Clearance: Level 5 — Internal Reference and Military Research Use Only
Subject: Primary Peaks of the Chendiurian Surface (Elevation ≥ 8,000 m)
Subclassification: Hazard Grade Delta–Theta

PLANETARY OVERVIEW

Atmospheric Density: Equivalent to 0.71 atm at Terran 10,000 ft.
Composition: 79.8% N₂, 18.3% O₂, trace silicate dust and volatile oxides.
Planetary Radius: 0.94 Earths
Gravity: 0.98 g
Surface Temperature Range: 8°C–77°C
Dominant Terrain: Hyper-arid mountain basins; thin-aired plateaus.
Continental Division:

• Western Continent: Primary habitation, elevated highlands, civilian and military settlements.
• Eastern Continent: Penal and industrial complexes; equatorial, volatile weather, toxic lowland basins.
• Minor Continents: Karthis Minor, Serrin Archipelago, Polar Dust Isles.

ORBITAL ELEVATION COMPOSITE

(Orbital Cartography Feed 09-B: Chendiuria Western Hemisphere / Source: Geostationary Array LOR-3)

• Contour Interval: 200 m
• Datum Reference: Chendiurian Planetary Mean Radius
• Topographic Notes:
• Western Continent’s Vantok Range dominates the hemisphere, with peaks piercing the tropopause.
• Eastern Continent’s Chora Range forms the geological scar known as the Aghra Rift Belt.
• Minor glacial remnants persist in shaded fissures below 7,000 m; no persistent surface ice above datum.

(Map Access Restricted: Visual Overlay Authorized for Level 5 only.)

1. MOUNT KESSIRA — The Shard of the Heavens

Height: 11,972 m
Coordinates: Grid W-12.772 / N-05.339
Range: Vantok Range, Western Continent
Summit Status: Unclimbed
Casualties: 23 (17 presumed, 6 confirmed)
Notes:
Sheer vertical rise of 8.3 km from base plateau.
Wind shear of up to 320 kph; average summit pressure 0.25 atm.
Recorded Incidents:

• 2322.09.13 — Geological Society drone team “Pale Knife” lost telemetry at 10,911 m.
• 2339.03.06 — Civilian team “Ascendancy” perished during night climb; audio recovered 24 hours later.

Recovered Audio Fragment BuCol Archive Ref. 2339-06-12K:

“—sun’s coming up wrong—sky’s like glass—tell Nyra we—” transmission ends.

2. MOUNT DAE-UR — Mother of Dust

Height: 10,841 m
Coordinates: Grid W-08.341 / N+14.228
Summit Status: Climbed once (2287 CE), fatalities on descent
Casualties: 2 confirmed
Climbers: Sgt. E. Nkomo & Cpl. R. Vanz (Fleet Marine Myrmidon training unit)
Recovery: None.
Description: Broad volcanic shield; vents release sulfur oxides and trace radon.
BuCol Note: “Climbing considered equivalent to Class-IV atmospheric trial.”

Recovered Log Entry (Nkomo, 2287 CE):

“We made the crest. Air tastes like copper and static. Vanz says the horizon looks curved. I think the mountain is breathing.”

3. MOUNT THERRIN AKH — Sky-Breaker

Height: 10,412 m
Coordinates: Grid W-05.882 / N+10.101
Summit Status: Climbed — three verified ascents (2299 CE, 2308 CE, 2320 CE)
Casualties: 19 total across seven expeditions
Climbing Condition: Silicate dust storms; average surface abrasion loss per hour: 0.6 mm
Notable Event: Myrmidon Expedition (2299) carried Bureau flag to 10,392 m. Summit image recovered from helmet cam of Lt. Marei Stojanović—
(Cam fragment declassified for morale purposes in 2310 CE.)

Quote — Lt. Stojanović (Helmet Log):

“The horizon looks infinite. The dust sings when it hits the armor plates. It’s like climbing into the sun’s lungs.”

4. MOUNT YALATHRA — The Veiled Lady

Height: 10,065 m
Coordinates: Grid W-02.441 / S-09.553
Summit Status: Fully unclimbed by humans; one drone verification (2301 CE)
Casualties: 11 confirmed (gas inhalation, comm loss, one vaporization event)
Hazards: High magneto-electric interference; static arcs over gear at 8,000 m.
Environmental Advisory: Sulfur vents saturate the upper air with conductive aerosols; electric blue haze observed nightly.

Last Log (Expedition “Heaven’s Teeth”, 2315 CE):

“She’s beautiful. She’s whispering. The static keeps saying my name.”

5. MOUNT LETH-AKRAAN — Father of Silence

Height: 9,888 m
Coordinates: Grid W-04.191 / N+02.882
Summit Status: Climbed repeatedly; safe route established
Casualties: 3 (dehydration)
Climber’s Note: Audio echoes persist up to four minutes due to sound refraction through hot air layers.
Cultural Importance: Site of Chendiurian annual “Silence Pilgrimage.”
Quote — Pilgrim Nareen Hasso (2343 CE):

“When the wind stops, you hear your own heartbeat reflected back through eternity.”

6. MOUNT AGHRA’S SPINE

Height: 9,651 m
Coordinates: Grid E+12.441 / N+00.093
Range: Chora Range, Eastern Continent
Summit Status: Unclimbed; penal zone access denied
Casualties: 47 (documented escape attempts, 2294–2340 CE)
Environment: Extreme convective currents, equatorial heat exceeding 74 °C base, 41 °C at 8,000 m.
BuCol Penitentiary Division Note: “Bodies unrecovered. Likely desiccated to calcium husks within days.”

Recovered Fragment — Inmate Transmission (source: Confiscated radio, NLCPC, 2337):

“The Spine’s not a mountain—it’s a wall between the living and whatever’s waiting.”

7. MOUNT SHUN-DAIR — Wound of Heaven

Height: 9,322 m
Coordinates: Grid E+16.121 / N+06.314
Summit Status: Unclimbed
Casualties: 9 (2318 CE Mercenary Expedition “Karthline”)
Hazards: Sub-surface uranium strata emitting low-grade gamma flux; induces hallucinations at high altitude.
BuCol Advisory: Climbing requires lead-lined gear and AI radiation escort.
Recovered Voice Log:

“The rocks are glowing. I keep seeing faces. The ridge is bleeding light.”

8. MOUNT PALISAR — The Sun’s Grave

Height: 9,040 m
Coordinates: Grid W-01.913 / S+14.021
Summit Status: One confirmed summit (Mira Holt, 2333 CE fatal descent
Casualties: 1 (confirmed)
Environment: Basaltic glass crust; optical distortion at midday, reflective temperature peak 68 °C.
Recovered Visor Footage (Partial):

“It’s so black it eats the sun. I can’t tell where the world ends.”

9. MOUNT VELAN-ISHT — The Burning Crown

Height: 8,728 m
Coordinates: Grid W-18.210 / S+31.880
Summit Status: Climbed once (2311 CE, Expedition Tholos-4)
Casualties: 3 (heatstroke, organ collapse)
Base Temperature: 71 °C average daytime; 42 °C nighttime.
BuCol Thermal Research Division: Used for suit endurance testing under controlled ascent conditions.
Quote — Expedition Leader Dr. Avram Heen:

“When you touch the rock, you feel it breathing heat like a beast that wants you dead.”

10. MOUNT HESH-TARIN — Last Breath

Height: 8,311 m
Coordinates: Grid S+27.553 / E+05.928
Range: Karthis Minor Continent
Summit Status: Climbed once (2324 CE, Marine-Survey Hybrid Team)
Casualties: None (initial 2 missing from follow-up expedition 2328 CE.
Winds: Katabatic gusts exceed 400 kph; summit bedrock metallic and electrostatic.
Cultural Note: Considered “the test of true lungs.”
Inscription found near 6,000 m marker:

“Breath is the only possession you can’t barter.”

STATISTICAL SUMMARY

DIRECTORATE COMMENTARY

“Chendiuria breeds endurance the way other worlds breed life.
To stand on her mountains is to stand in defiance of death itself.
Even augmented lungs weep at those heights.”
— Dr. Leina Vos, BuCol Planetary Geologist, Memorial Address, 2345 CE

CLOSING NOTICE

This Topographic Atlas entry is intended for BuCol Military Cartography, Atmospheric Engineering Trials, and Myrmidon Environmental Endurance Programs.
Unauthorized dissemination or civilian publication of climbing casualty data constitutes a violation of the Colonial Stability and Information Control Act (CSICA) 9.7(c).

End of Document — File Locked under Clearance Key CHEN-VN-9C.
All voice and telemetry files archived in secure node REDACTED.