During the colonization of the area around Jupiter, the moon Europa was earmarked for deep sea dome construction. Industrial giant PicoMotion was awarded a lucrative contract for constructing thirteen arcology domes within several sections of abyss, performing most of the work by use of remote drone. Tragedy struck, however, when an unexpectedly wide-spread and severe earthquake stressed the newly-colonized domes beyond tolerance and resulted in the lonely death by drowning of tens of thousands of people.

While several of the domes survived the disaster, they were left isolated, largely without logistical support from the large central administrative facility. After evacuating as many people as was feasible, the Jovian government declared the sites condemned and off-limits to human habitation, with one major exception for PicoMotion. The corporation maintains contact with the largest of the surviving domes, operating it as a remote research facility. While rumours of shady practices conducted away from prying eyes abound, nothing has been proven as of yet, and the ongoing signal disruptions make confirmation of evidence difficult at best.

The immense difficulties represented by trying to physically access the dome have resulted in most supplies being delivered by ballistic supply pod, a process usually reserved for deep space vessels too far from port for normal resupply.