The Brown Dwarf Cycle

See "Pride," here.

Borderline between planetary and stellar mass;

gravitational contraction generates high heat, although not on a stellar scale, in the atmosphere;

much greater heat and pressure at the core;

gravitational collapse initiates thermonuclear reactions;

core temperatures increase;

inner layers expand;

therefore, pressure decreases and thermonuclear reactions cease;

momentum and interior heat maintain expansion for a while;

then collapse recommences.

The cyclical outbursts do not affect the life on Nemesis' innermost satellite which has had gigayears to adapt.

Exploration of Nemesis
An unmanned probe, Gertrud, entered the system and launched robot investigators, including Osa which went into close polar orbit around Nemesis and transmitted data to Gertrud until its transmitter began to fail although sporadic, distorted transmissions continued, showing that Osa was still collecting data. Later, the spaceship, Anna Lovinda, arrived and docked with Gertrud. When Nemesis expanded, gaseous resistance forced Osa lower and into an unstable orbit. A pilot from Anna Lovinda must recover Osa before it becomes a meteorite. Captain Telander asks why the inner probe is nicknamed "Osa" but does not get an answer.

(New post on Religion and Philosophy: here.)