Rainbow Star Cluster

The Rainbow Star Cluster, also called the Rainbow Cluster, is a particularly active area of space located at the center of the Tarantula Nebula.

Overview
The Rainbow Star Cluster is dominated by seven degenerate stars. The cluster earns its name from gas clouds that fill the region and are ionized by intense ultraviolet radiation from the stars, turning them a wide spectrum of colors. The ionization also spawns violent and treacherous storms, but even within relatively calm storm-free areas, the cluster is strong enough to limit the effectiveness of spaceship radar. Relativistic jets comprised of high velocity energetic particles are also common. Conditions inside the Rainbow Cluster make it a clear hazard to navigation, and space travelers who know it by reputation or by observation hesitate to enter it ("They're Coming!").

History
In 2199, the commanding officer of the Earth battleship Yamato, Admiral Juzo Okita, risks a direct crossing of the Rainbow Star Cluster to avoid enemy attacks and to more quickly reach their destination in the Large Magellanic Cloud. However, the Garmillas general Erich Domel correctly anticipates Okita's move and leads a heavily armed task force into the cluster, initiating the Battle of the Rainbow Star Cluster ("They're Coming!"). Fighter pilots and ship crews alike are forced to rely on optic mode sensors and their own eyesight throughout the battle. The Garmillas carrier Lanbea and a Garont heavy bomber are damaged and plunge into an area of ion turbulence, but manage to escape the cluster and the surrounding nebula. Toward the end of the battle, Okita lures Domel's flagship into an ion storm, destabilizing it and leaving it defenseless against Yamato ("Under the Rainbow Sun", Space Battleship Yamato 2199: Odyssey of the Celestial Ark).

Japanese language information

 * 七色星団 Nanairo seidan