Shackleton-Shoemaker

  

Shackleton-Shoemaker was a Lunar double-crater city located at the site of modern Soupol City which served as the capital of the Earth-Lunar Union from 2088 to 2417 CEC and later the capital of the Tellurian Federation from 2417 to 2642 CEC. The crater city was originally known to the ancient, Earth-based space agencies as Shackleton Station from its original establishment in 2038 CEC; founded by a coalition of governments, Shackleton Station was the first permanent human habitat on Luna. At its peak immediately prior to the Capitulatory War in 2642 CEC, Shackleton-Shoemkaer had a population estimated at 24.8 million people, making it the second-largest city on Luna at the time after Yuèliàngmén City. Following its partial destruction in the wake of the Capitulatory War, Shackleton-Shoemkaer was eventually incorporated into the Lunar Superstructure, and it was formally reestablished as Soupol City in 2676 CEC.

During its heyday as the capital of Earth-Luna and later Telluria, Shackleton-Shoemaker was considered the most important cultural, economic, political, and social centre in the entire Sol system. Following the end of the Third World War, Shackleton Station became a focal point for the emergence of the nascent Earth-Lunar Union. As one of the earliest safe harbours in the wake of the war, the station quickly grew into the most prominent centre of human civilization on Luna. It was host to Luna's busiest and largest spaceport from 2038 to 2112 and again from 2251 to 2319 CEC, thereafter stably remaining an important point in Luna's greater economic network. As the capital of the Earth-Lunar Union and the Tellurian Federation, the city of Shackleton-Shoemaker possessed immense political significance and sway in its own right.

Much of the modern remnants of the original settlement lie underneath Soupol City. The lowest levels of Soupol remain original constructions from the time of the Earth-Lunar Union and the Tellurian Federation, with the oldest portions being over a millennium and a half in age. As estimated 1.8 million residents of Soupol City reside in zones which directly considered former portions of Shackleton-Shoemkaer. However, the most recognizable features of the crater city as it is commonly represented in artworks, such as its skyline and its orbital profile, have been lost due to the construction of Soupol City over the site.

Extensive portions of the abandoned underground are closed to the public due to their danger from contamination or structural degredation; these areas nonetheless remain patrolled by the Ecumenical Guard due to frequent trespassing by urban explorers. The United Lunar University maintains special dispensation for archaeological and Lunar geological operations at the site from Parks Luna, which is otherwise considered the formal administrator of the site. The Shackleton-Shoemaker Museum of History, a joint operation between ULU and Parks Luna, is one of the moon's largest and most well-known; it host to a over 200 exhibits on the colonization of Luna, early human space civilization, the Earth-Lunar Union, and the Tellurian Federation. The museum and its associated restored portions of Shackleton-Shoemaker receive 2.3 million visitors annually, making it the fourth most popular tourist attraction on Luna.