2127 (May 5)
Michael Bishop is born in New York, New York, UA.
2128 (October 10)
Johnathan Clemens is born in Redditch, Worchestershire, UK/EU.
2137 (September 2)
Apone, A. (A19/TQ4.0.32751E8) is born in Detroit, Michigan, UA.
2138 (January 30)
Leonard Dillon is born in Baltimore, Maryland, UA.
2142
Gorman, S (A09/TQ4.0.56124E3) is born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada-UA.
Mid 22nd Century
Vast advances are made with starship travel and FTL technology.
Advances made in the area of artifical intelligence.
Gateway Station is constructed in orbit around Earth.
Shuttlecraft Narcissus drifts un-noticed through the Core Systems.
Volcanic activity on LV-426 damages and partially buries the derelict spacecraft previously investigated by the USCSS Nostromo.
It is later theorised by Ellen Ripley that IQ’s dropped sharply during this period.
From Aliens (film & novel). Trip to LV-426 took the Sulaco only 3 weeks, as opposed to the 10 months it would have taken the Nostromo. Bishop says androids have behavioural inhibitors, and the old A/2 models were a bit twitchy. Ripley didn’t recognise Gateway Station. In the Aliens Special Edition the derelict has been damaged and partly buried under a lava flow, when it’s discovered by the Jorden family. James Cameron has said it was due volcanic activity. (Starlog #121). Originally this damage was to have also shut off the Derelict warning beacon, but Alien Isolation retconned this idea by showing Captain Marlow of the Anesidora shutting it off in 2137.
2143 (December 10)
Anne Jorden (nee Ridley) is born in Los Angeles, California, UA.
2144 (April 11)
Russ Jorden is born in Burbank, California, UA.
2145 (July 25)
Drake, M (A23/TQ2.0.47619E7) is born in Austin, Texas, UA.
2149 (May 17)
Hudson, W. (A08/TQ1.0.41776E3) is born in Fort Worth, Texas, UA.
2150 (March 30)
Carter J. Burke is born in New York, New York, UA.
2151 (February 13)
Crowe, T. (A46/TQ1.0.98712E6) is born.
2151 (July 31)
Dwayne Hicks (A27/TQ4.0.48215E9) is born in Alliston, Alabama, UA.
2152 (April 25)
Spunkmeyer, D. (A23/TQ6.0.92810E7) is born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada-UA.
2153
Vasquez, J. (A03/TQ.0.15618E4) is born in Los Angeles, California, UA.
2157
Hadley’s Hope terraforming colony established on LV-426 aka Acheron. There is no sign of any signal from the derelict investigated by the Nostromo 35 years earlier.
From Aliens. Van Leuwan said the colony had been there for over 20 years, so I’ve taken a guess and made ‘over 20’ equal 22.
2165
The Colonial Marine Corp reaches a peak 240,000 personnel at the end of the Tientsin campaign.
From Aliens : Colonial Marines Technical Manual
2168
Eleven people die following a fuel station explosion, when Doctor Johnathan Clemens prescribes the wrong dosage of pain killer. He is found have had impaired judgement (from alcohol and a Morphine addiction) and is sentenced to 7 years in prison on Fiorina 161 and is reduced to a class 3-C medical practitioner.
Based around the length of Clemens sentence, when Dillon found religion and when Weyland Yutani wanted to shut Fiorina 161 down. Interesting to note that Clemens didn’t begin his medical studies till he was into his thirties.
2169 (August)
Hudson enlists in the USCMC.
In the Aliens novel Hudson gripes that his ten year tour was due to finish in four weeks.
Circa 2169
Conestoga Class starship USS Sulaco is constructed.
Estimating the Sulaco is about 10 years old during Aliens (2179). Class of ship taken from Colonial Marines Technical Manual.
2171
Timothy Jorden born.
Estimating Timmy is about 2 years older than Newt.
2173
Rebecca ‘Newt’ Jorden born.
Newt was 6 years old in Aliens (2179).
2175
Weyland Yutani scales down it’s work correctional facility on Fiorina 161, and reduces it to a custodial staff of 25. Johnathan Clemens finishes his sentence and stays as medical officer.
Clemens says Dillon and the Brothers found religion about 5 years before Aliens (2179). Assumes that Weyland Yutani wanted to shut the installation down about a year after. Also assumes that Clemens completed his sentence around the time Weyland Yutani wanted to close the facility down.
2177 (December 23)
Amanda Ripley-McClaren dies of cancer.
From Aliens. The date ‘Deceased 12/23/xx’ is given on the photo of Amanda that Burke gives to Ripley. The year is very difficult to make out, but as Aliens is set in 2179 and Amy died 2 years before, we already have the year.
2179 (Circa May 16)
Shuttlecraft Narcissus is discovered by a deep salvage team, and Ellen Ripley and Mr Jones the Cat are rescued.
2179 (June 8)
Ripley arrives at Gateway and is placed into hospital, where she later learns what has happened.
2179 (June 12)
Ripley is discharged from hospital.
At a board of enquiry, Ripley’s stories about the Alien are widely ignored. She has her flight status revoked, and takes up residence aboard Gateway Station, working with powerloaders in the loading docks.
Following the enquiry, Carter Burke provides Hadley’s Hope with the co-ordinates to the derelict spacecraft on Acheron.
From Aliens
2179 (June 19)
Russ and Ann Jorden are sent investigate a set of grid co-ordinates provided by Carter Burke, beyond the Ilium Range on LV-426, with their children, Timmy and Newt.
From Aliens. One week for transmission to reach LV-426.
2179 (June 21)
The Jorden family discovers the derelict with their children. Russ is attacked by a facehugger and impregnated with an Alien embryo. He is taken back to Hadley’s Hope.
From Aliens. Simpson and Lydecker talk about sending the Jorden’s out Burke’s co-ordinates a couple of days earlier.
2179 (July 3)
Colonial Administration loses contact with the colony.
This assumes Burke followed up his original transmission a week later, then received no reply (2 week message turnaround Gateway – LV-426 – Gateway).
A number of colonists escape to LV-223 on the mining ship Onager.
2179 (July 6)
Ripley reluctantly agrees to accompany Burke and a Colonial Marine squad of 2nd Battalion, 9th Regiment to Acheron to investigate on board the USS Sulaco.
Assumes Burke was able to russle up a marine squad and convince Ripley inside 3 days. Also take Gormans line “Sorry we didn’t have time to brief you people before we left Gateway.” Suggests the whole thing happened pretty quickly.
2179 (July 26)
The last pockets of resistance at Hadley’s Hope are over-run by the Aliens.
There was at least one ‘intact’ human discovered by Dietrich, which suggests that she was only impgregnated within the last 24 hours.
2179 (July 27)
The USS Sulaco arrives in orbit around LV-426.
2179 (July 27 – approx 0900 Mission Time Index 0:00:00)
The marines dropship departs the Sulaco
Gorman said he wanted DCS ranging and tactical database assimilation by 0830, and dropship prep had 7 hours. I’m assuming half the squad worked on one and half on the other, and therefore left the ship about half an hour after 0830.
2179 (July 27 – Mission Time Index 0:58:00)
The dropship lands and the marines investigate Hadley’s Hope.
2179 (July 27 – Mission Time Index 1:31:00)
The colony is declared secure and Gorman, Bishop, Ripley and Burke joint the marines in the main Operations centre. One survivor, Newt, is discovered.
2179 (July 27 – Mission Time Index 4:55:00)
Hudson discovers the colonists PDT’s (Personal Data Transmitters) in the Atmosphere Processor.
2179 (July 27 – Mission Time Index 5:19:00)
The marines enter the AP Station. The colonists are discovered, all dead bar one, inside on Sub Level 3.
2179 (July 27 – Mission Time Index 5:33:00)
Corporal Dietrich finds a live colonist, who is quickly killed when her chestburster hatches.
2179 (July 27 – Mission Time Index 5:34:00)
The marines are attacked by the Aliens. Corporal Dietrich, Private Frost, Private Crowe, Private Wierzbowski, Master Sergeant Apone, and Private Drake are all killed or captured during the assualt.
Ripley, and Newt, along with Lieutenant Gorman, Corporal Hicks, PFC Hudson, and PFC Vasquez elect to take off and nuke the entire colony from orbit, despite Burke’s protests. However drop-ship pilots, Corporal Ferro and PFC Spunkmeyer are killed by an Alien, and the drop-ship crashes. The survivors join android/ synthetic/ artifical person Executive Officer L. Bishop back at the main colony, and seal themselves in against the Aliens.
2179 (July 28 – T-Minus 4 hours to Atmosphere Processor explosion)
As the Atmosphere Processing station is about to go critical (due to the drop-ship crash – and possibly smart gun fire), the survivors on Acheron decide to get Bishop to remote pilot the second drop-ship down to Acheron in order to escape. Meanwhile Burke tries to get Alien specimens back to Earth by attempting to impregnate Ripley and Newt. They are saved, and as Burke is about to be executed by Hicks, the Aliens attack.
2179 (July 28 – T-Minus 42 minutes)
Newt leads Ripley, Hicks, Vasquez and Gorman through the colony airducts, after Hudson and Burke are lost in the inital Alien assault. Vasquez and Gorman are killed during the evacuation, Newt is captured and Hicks is critically wounded, but makes it to the landing field with Ripley’s help.
2179 (July 28 – T-Minus 26 minutes)
The second dropship from the Sulaco touches down. Ripley informs Bishop they aren’t leaving.
2179 (July 28 – T-Minus 15 minutes)
Ripley heads back into the disintegrating processing station, rescues Newt and encounters the Alien Queen.
2179 (July 28 – T-Minus 2 minutes)
Ripley and Newt get back to the drop-ship and escape, only seconds before the station explodes.
2179 (July 28)
The Alien Queen (along with an egg) stows away on the drop-ship and attacks the group when they arrive back on the Sulaco. Bishop is torn in half. Ripley manages to battle the Queen hand-to-hand using a powerloader and blows the Queen out of the airlock.
From Aliens. Dates are based around dialogue that Burke told Hadley’s Hope admin to go looking for the derelict on ‘6/12/79’ (12 June 2179). The shot of Earth from Gateway shows a northern hemisphere summer (working backwards from there tells us about when Ripley was found – counting around 3 weeks to get back to Earth). It takes 3 weeks for the Sulaco to get to LV-426. Mission times are based on the marine camera feeds seen on screen.
The explosion of the Atmosphere Processing station renders the derelict spacecraft on LV-426 not viable for collection of Alien specimens.
Alien Resurrection has Dr Gediman lamenting the destruction of the Derelict. On top of this, if the Derelict was still intact, Weyland-Yutani would have gone straight to LV-426 rather than going to Fiorina 161, and the USM wouldn’t have needed to clone Ripley. It’s also been theorised that Ripley could have nuked the Derelict from the Sulaco. The Weyland-Yutani Report says the Derelict is no longer a viable source of eggs following the destruction of Hadley.
2179 (August 8)
The egg left by the Alien Queen on the USS Sulaco, hatches and impregnates Ripley while she is in hypersleep. Some of the facehugger’s acid blood causes a fire, and the Sulaco’s main computer evacuates the ship. The hypersleep chambers of Ripley, Newt, Hicks, and Bishop are put on board Emergency Evacuation Vehicle (EEV) unit 2650.
2179 (August 9 – 0600)
The EEV crashes on Fiorina ‘Fury’ 161, an Outer Veil mineral ore refinery and mens maximum security correctional facility. Hicks and Newt are killed in the crash and Bishop is rendered inoperative. Superintendant Harold Andrews requests Weyland-Yutani immediately evacuate Ripley. Meanwhile the facehugger on the EEV impregnates Spike, a dog belonging to Prisoner Thomas Murphy.
2179 (August 9 – 2100)
Newt and Hicks’ bodies are cremated in the furnace. During the ceremony, an Alien hatches from Spike.
2179 (August 10 – 0800)
The Alien attacks Prisoner Murphy in vent shaft 17 and he falls into a giant fan and is killed.
2179 (August 10 – 2000)
The Alien attacks Prisoners Boggs and Rains, while Prisoner Golic escapes. Ripley is attacked by Prisoners Junior, William, Gregor and Martin while at the prison’s waste dump retrieving Bishop. Dillon intervenes preventing her from being raped.
2179 (August 10 – 2100)
Golic shows up raving about the Dragon that killed Boggs and Rains and it confined to the infirmary. Ripley reactivates Bishop who accesses the Sulaco’s flight recorder and tells her that the Alien was on board the Sulaco and is now on Fiorina.
2179 (August 10 – 2200)
Medical Officer Johnathan Clemens is killed by the Alien in the infirmary. Before Ripley can alert Andrews, he is also taken.
2179 (August 11 – 0000)
A number of prisoners are killed in a fire while attempting to trap the Alien.
2179 (August 11 – 0100)
It is revealed that Ripley has an Alien Queen inside of her.
2179 (August 11 – 0300)
The next attempt to kill the Alien results in all the remaining prisoners deaths, apart from Prisoners Robert Morse and Leonard Dillon. Dillon is killed when he lures the Alien into the refinery’s lead works. Prisoner Morse dumps hot lead on the Alien, from which it escapes. Ripley turns the sprinklers on it, shattering the molten Alien into pieces.
2179 (August 11 – 0330)
Michael Bishop, the human prototype and designer of the Bishop model androids, arrives on the starship Patna at Fiorina and fails to convince Ripley to let him remove the Queen embryo. Ripley throws herself into the refinery’s furnace in order to stop Weyland-Yutani getting their hands it. Warder Francis Aaron is shot when he attacks Bishop. Genetic samples of Ripley are collected. The Fiorina 161 facility is closed down and the sole survivor, Prisoner Morse is re-assigned.
From Alien 3. The Sulaco would’ve been about a third to half way (one week to a week and a half) home when the EEV was ejected and eventually ended up on Fiorina 161, and Andrews said the rescue ship would arrive with a week. A date of July 6 is given in the Alien 3 novelisation and shooting script, but wasn’t in the film and has been left off here as it doesn’t correlate with the dates in Aliens. Of course it’s possible that the EEV was in space for about a year before it crashed, but the film doesn’t give us this impression, and it is therefore highly unlikely. The version referenced here is, of course, the theatrical cut of the film.
Late 22nd Century
Prisoner Morse writes an account of the events on Fiorina 161 entitled ‘Space Beast’, telling how Ellen Ripley sacrificed her own life to protect us from the beast. Morse’s story is subsequently banned.
From Alien : Resurrection (novel).
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NOTES:
Information has been researched from the four Alien films and their novelisations, and is based on the date ‘6/12/79’ given by Ripley in Aliens. Judging from the technology in the series, I’ve assumed this date to be the 12th of June 2179. If information or events in a novelisation contradict a film, then the film takes precedence.Ages of characters are based on the actors age, unless specifically stated in films or novelisations. Some estimates are a best guess from all available data. Some estimates are a complete guess, and may therefore be wildly innaccurate.
The Alien Universe Timeline 