Ergo

Nemo III is a terraformed ocean world that has kept the Nemo System relevant to the Empire. NemoCo quickly established itself on Ergo when scans revealed significant oil reserves under the ocean. Once terraforming was completed, massive oil rigs, many made from the decommissioned terraforming platforms, were built to extract the underwater resources.

As pockets of oil were depleted, the rigs were converted into permanently habitable platforms with shops, restaurants and civil services to accommodate the high number of workers who wished to stay on planet after their contracts ended. In the late 27th century, a study conducted by the University of Mentor showed that on average Ergo’s residents lived longer than residents of other worlds, and used words like “peaceful” and “tranquil” to describe the planet. This general perception of Nemo’s idyllic and relaxing lifestyle spread throughout the Empire and led to a booming tourism industry. Over the centuries, ambitious developers have even built luxury platforms geared specifically for tourists.

Of course, the biggest mystery is how vast quantities of oil even got under Ergo’s ocean. No native life existed on Ergo when Humanity arrived, and researchers are still searching for any fossil evidence of what life once existed there. While exactly what happened is unknown, the most widely accepted explanation is that millennia ago an extinction level event eradicated all native life. These unknown, and long gone, organic species are who we have to thank for Ergo’s oil reserves.

To this day, the misconception that Ergo’s ocean has life still exists, probably amplified by its association with the Space Whale. In fact, Ergo’s tourism ads and brochures go to great lengths to dispel this notion; even specifically telling tourists NOT to bring fishing gear on their vacation and highlighting how much safer it is swimming in water void of anything that can eat you.

The Space Whale
The 'Space Whale' is an unusually shaped asteroid and tourist attraction.