The Firefly and Serenity Database
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The following is a timeline for the Firefly 'verse. Some of the following entries on the main timeline may not be based on the show's canon.

Timeline[]

2020[]

  • Star cluster in Taurus is discovered, designated “34Tauri(2020)”. Five stars and 14 gas giants found (seven large enough to be brown dwarfs and the remaining seven of Jovian size).

2021[]

  • Recycling programs beginning to fail, global warming increasing.

2027[]

2028[]

2030[]

  • It's official: Earth will lose the ability to sustain 21st century society and current population levels within 100 years.

2035[]

  • The quantum nature of gravity is deduced, allowing for rapid and unprecedented advances in gravity manipulation technologies. Creation of artificial gravity and gravity screening soon follow.

2037[]

  • Space technology development vastly accelerated by new discoveries. Due to the advent of gravity technology, terraforming can take decades instead of centuries.

2040[]

  • First theories for evacuating the Earth presented. Gravity manipulation technology makes evacuation a viable idea.

2042[]

  • Terraforming technology tested on Mars with positive results.

2045[]

2047[]

2048[]

  • Failure of terraforming efforts in the Solar System hit home. Global morale sinks to new lows as riots break out in many major cities. Earth's governments decide that fast action is required to keep society from falling into chaos. As rebuilding Earth’s ecosystem no longer appears to be an option, a plan for mass exodus is proposed instead. The GEA (Global Exodus Alliance) is formed and given unlimited governmental authority and complete control over Earth's meager remaining resources as member nations cede their power to the organization. The GEA moves quickly to take control of infrastructure, police and military and most of the private sector as well, all in the name of mobilization of the greatest single endeavor in human history. Plans are made for the evacuation of the Earth-That-Was's population to the 34Tauri(2020) star cluster.

2053[]

  • Collection and storage of samples of all life on Earth.

2060[]

  • With plans for colonization in place, global resources mobilized, and construction of arks and ark modules on-going, the Global Exodus Alliance (GEA) makes its final move to cement control over humanity. The GEA publishes the "Articles of Alliance", a super-constitution which supersedes all other legal systems on the planet. As China and the U.S. are contributing most of the resources and much of the know-how to the Exodus Project, they take joint stewardship over the new "global government". Smaller countries are given a choice, sign the articles or give up any chance of having their populations join the exodus. Results are almost immediate, unilateral capitulation by 98 percent of Earth's governments. The Alliance is created.

2072[]

  • First wave of terraforming begins. Dozens of Robot terraformer ships are launched. Their targets are two planets orbiting the Verse's central sun, a white primary, dubbed "White Star" (later, simply “White Sun”) by the Americans and "Bai Hu" or "White Tiger" by the Chinese.

2075[]

  • Latest projections show Earth unable to support more than 5 percent of current population within three decades. GEA recommends a vast expansion of the Exodus Project and Alliance approves, remaining cities will be systematically dismantled to increase the size of the ark fleet tenfold. Pollution runs wild as ark fleet is considered the only priority.

2090[]

  • Loading of arks begins with cargo, fuel, and stored genetic samples.

2094[]

  • Boarding of the ark ships begins. Over the last five decades, Earth population has dropped to around one billion due to starvation, disease, toxic contamination, and criminal activities. Reproductive rates have dropped to near zero. Most of the Earth's population now lives in squalor. Although most ark ships will not depart until completely loaded (a process that takes years), survivors welcome the safe, sterile, climate controlled environments of the Ark ships after the horror Earth has become. A rich black market develops that sells positions in the boarding lottery, falsified medical certificates, and other items needed to gain quicker access to the arks.

2095[]

  • The Alliance declares global martial law.

2097[]

  • First ark ships begin to depart. Priority is given to those ships populated with the ancestors of those who will act as the terraforming and construction labor force upon arrival.

2101[]

  • The final Ark ship leaves Earth orbit.

2102[]

  • Leading ships of the Ark Fleet reach cruise velocity of approximately 102,777 km/s or 0.34483c. Fleet formation spreads a little as trailing ships take a little longer to reach cruise velocity. Ships at cruise velocity for 116 years, Earth time. Time dilation slows time aboard ship to 108 years, 10 months, 18 days.

2110[]

  • All telemetry data from Earth ceases. It is assumed that remaining Earth population is 0.

2164[]

  • As the Exodus fleet approaches, higher resolution imaging of the Verse becomes possible. Observers discover hundreds of planets and moons, many of which appear to be terraformable.

2190[]

  • Last person in the fleet who was born on Earth dies.

2200[]

2218[]

2220[]

2225[]

2240[]

2251[]

2253[]

  • Decision to use nano-compression technology to compress and ignite brown dwarfs.
  • P/2020(Blue Sun)01 “Burnham” first brown dwarf to be “helioformed”, due to distance from core systems. Ignition successful but produces random bursts of radiation.

2255[]

2256[]

2258[]

2259[]

2260[]

2261[]

2262[]

2266[]

2270[]

2271[]

2273[]

2274[]

2280[]

2281[]

2290[]

2295[]

  • Terraforming of S/2035(Himinbjorg)01 "Aesir", along with its moons Bestla, Borr and Odin, is complete.

2300[]

2305[]

2308[]

2320[]

2335[]

2348[]

  • Terraforming of P/2031(Georgia)13 "Ithica", along with its double-planet S/2172(Ithaca)01 "Priam", is complete.

2350[]

2352[]

2355[]

2358[]

2360[]

2361[]

2370[]

2400[]

2404[]

2405[]

2407[]

2410[]

2415[]

2417[]

2420[]

2421[]

2425[]

2430[]

2433[]

2435[]

2436[]

2440[]

2444[]

2449[]

2459[]

  • August: Serenity's keel is laid and construction begins.

2460[]

2465[]

2468[]

  • September 20 - Malcolm Reynolds is born. In the motion picture Serenity, the date of birth for Malcolm Reynolds is displayed as being September 20, 2468.
    • Screens from Serenity suggest that Mal was born on September 20, 2468; which would make him 49 at the time of the series Firefly; though this may be a mistake, since the information screen also misspells his name as "Malcom," and may have been intended to be 2486, making him 31, an age more consistent with his appearance (and the actor's own age).

2469[]

2470[]

2471[]

2472[]

  • Temperance Jones is born (or possibly the next year, as she is described as being 4-5 years older than Jayne)

2473[]

  • Temperance Jones is born (or possibly the previous year, as she is described as being 4-5 years older than Jayne)

2474[]

2475[]

2476[]

  • Marcus Grange is born.
  • Wright is born.

2477[]

2479[]

2480[]

2484[]

  • Zoë Alleyne is born. Zoë Alleyne's year of birth year was confirmed on an information screen in a deleted scene from Serenity, available on the DVD release of the film, which also indicated the specific date, the indication that she was born vesselside, and her Social Control Number. The Firefly Timeline by Edgar Governo indicates Zoë's date of birth as February 15, 2484, while a feature in The Signal #2.4 podcast indicates it as March 15, 2484 — both based on that deleted scene.
  • Henry Evans learns about the Independence movement and joins to avoid police trouble. (Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale)

2485[]

2486[]

  • Hoban Washburne is born.
  • September 20 - Malcolm Reynolds is born. In the motion picture Serenity, the date of birth for Malcolm Reynolds is displayed as being September 20, 2468.
    • Screens from Serenity suggest that Mal was born on September 20, 2468; which would make him 49 at the time of the series Firefly; though this may be a mistake, since the information screen also misspells his name as "Malcom," and may have been intended to be 2486, making him 31, an age more consistent with his appearance (and the actor's own age).

2488[]

2490[]

2493[]

2494[]

2497[]

2498[]

2500[]

  • River Tam is born. River Tam's age is said, and confirmed, to be 17 at the time of the Firefly TV series (2517), setting her year of birth as 2500.

2502[]

  • Terraforming of P/2033(Blue Sun)09 "Shenzhou", along with its moon Tiangong, is complete.

2503[]

2504[]

2506[]

2508[]

2510[]

2511[]

2512[]

2514[]

2516[]

  • Jayne Cobb and two others attempt to hijack Serenity.

2517[]

2518[]

2519[]

  • Terraforming of P/2028(White Sun)10 “Rubicon” is complete.
  • All White Sun planets available for colonization.
  • Emma Washburne is born
  • “Miranda Affirmation” project initiated. I.A.V. Unification on station to oversee habitation and distribution.
  • Call sent out for colonists with harsh environment experience and military background to assist with exploration and construction. Assignments considered extremely hazardous.
  • Terraforming of S/2180(Miranda)01 “Caliban” resumed. Fast-tracked, utilizing new techniques pioneered at Ita. Tentative completion set for 2530.

Stories[]

The various stories set in the 'verse can be assumed to be in this order:

It is unclear exactly when "What Holds Us Down" takes place, but the inclusion of both Hoban Washburne and Simon Tam shows that it is some point between the end of "Serenity" and the beginning of Serenity.

See Also[]

External links[]

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