Stellar Dossier: Soulianis and RahmCopy Anchor Link

"'Computer!' shouted Zaphod. 'Rotate angle of vision through one-eighty degrees and don't talk about it!' For a moment it seemed that nothing was happening, then a brightness glowed at the edge of the huge screen. A red star the size of a small plate crept across it followed quickly by another one — a binary system. Then a vast crescent sliced into the corner of the picture — a red glare shading away into deep black, the night side of the planet."

— The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Chapter 14

Soulianis and Rahm are the twin red suns anchored deep inside the cosmic gloom of the Horsehead Nebula. Shrouded from the rest of the Galaxy by hundreds of light-years of impenetrable interstellar dust and dark ionic gas clouds, this binary system holds in its gravitational embrace the fabled custom-planet construction world of Magrathea.

Orbital Mechanics & Solar ProfileCopy Anchor Link

• Binary Configuration: The system consists of two companion red stars orbiting their common barycentre:
  • Soulianis: An elder, cool red subgiant radiating a deep, somber crimson glow.
  • Rahm: A smaller, companion red dwarf whose orbital plane brings it into frequent close alignment, creating dramatic dual-light horizons.
• The Crimson Horizon: On planets orbiting the pair, the suns rise and set in staggered succession, casting an ethereal, double-shadowed crimson glare that slowly shades into the absolute black of space.

Rediscovery by the Heart of GoldCopy Anchor Link

For centuries following the collapse of the former Galactic Empire, the coordinates of Soulianis and Rahm were considered mythological fabrications of ancient space-ballads:

1. The Blank Nebula Screens: Arriving in the Horsehead Nebula on conventional photon drive, the external monitor screens of the Heart of Gold showed pitch blackness because the dense nebula dust absorbed all outside starlight.
2. The 180-Degree Rotation: When Zaphod Beeblebrox ordered the ship's computer (Eddie) to rotate the viewing angle through 180 degrees, the twin red suns crept across the forward viewscreen like glowing small plates.
3. Illuminating Magrathea: The crimson glare of Soulianis and Rahm illuminated the vast crescent night-side of Magrathea, confirming to Ford Prefect and Trillian that the legendary world was real.

The Fires of Dawn: The Orbital Binary SunriseCopy Anchor Link

As the Heart of Gold traversed the night side of Magrathea at an orbital altitude of three hundred miles (Chapter 16), the ship swung toward the daylight terminator, culminating in one of the marvels of the Galaxy:

• The Searing Horizon: Out of the utter pitch-blackness of space stabbed a sudden point of blinding light. It crept upward by slight degrees and spread sideways into a razor-thin crescent blade, before erupting into two visible furnaces of white fire searing the black edge of the horizon.
• Shafts of Atmospheric Colour: Fierce shafts of brilliant colour streaked through the thin, stagnant upper atmosphere beneath the vessel.
• Zaphod's Ecstasy vs. Marvin's Irony: While Zaphod breathed in awe at "The fires of dawn! The twin suns of Soulianis and Rahm...!", a low, ghostly music floated through the bridge: Marvin humming ironically because he hated humans so much.
• Ford's Aesthetic Wonder: Even as a cynical sceptic who refused to believe in ancient legends, Ford Prefect felt excitement burn inside him at the pure, unadorned beauty of the twin starburst.