Antares (Alpha Scorpii)
A colossal red supergiant star in the Western Spiral Arm, renowned throughout the decadent circles of the Galaxy as the exclusive native habitat of the Antarean Parakeet.
Stellar Dossier: Antares (Alpha Scorpii)
"Ford's copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy smashed into another section of the control console with the combined result that the guide started to explain to anyone who cared to listen about the best ways of smuggling Antarean parakeet glands out of Antares (an Antarean parakeet gland stuck on a small stick is a revolting but much-sought-after cocktail delicacy and very large sums of money are often paid for them by very rich idiots who want to impress other very rich idiots)..."
— The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Chapter 17
Antares is an immense, pulsating red supergiant anchored in the Western Spiral Arm. With a stellar radius several hundred times larger than Sol, its sweeping ruby light bathes a volatile system of inner cinder worlds and outer gas rings.
The Illicit Gland Trade
The Antares system is famous (and deeply infamous) across interstellar criminal and diplomatic circles as the native home of the Antarean Parakeet. Because the harvesting of Antarean parakeet glands is heavily restricted under Imperial conservation treaties, the planetary customs cordons around Antares IV are among the most heavily fortified in the galaxy—spawning an entire black-market subculture of high-stakes smuggling.
Guide Activation Aboard the Heart of Gold
During the violent orbital missile engagement over Magrathea (Chapter 17), Ford Prefect's copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was thrown across the bridge as the ship plummeted out of the sky. Striking an unshielded console, the impact jostled its sub-meson microprocessors, triggering an unprompted, high-volume lecture on the most sophisticated clandestine techniques for smuggling parakeet glands past the Antarean orbital blockades.
Alpha Centauri
The closest stellar neighbor to Sol, located just four light-years from Earth. Site of the local Galactic Hyperspace Planning Council department where Earth's demolition orders were on display for fifty Earth years.
Arcturus (Alpha Boötis)
A luminous, warm orange giant star in the Western Spiral Arm. The hyper-active freight junction of the quadrant, famed for colossal cargo mega-freighters and Arcturan Mega-gin.