Humanity initially thought that it was alone in the universe. That was questioned when in 1977 the WOW signal was found by SETI. What if SETI tried to decipher the signal and found out that it wasn't a greeting but a distress signal? From this point forward humanity now knows it is not alone and prepares accordingly.

As technology goes forward and humans land on Mars their whole world changes. With the Traveler pushing their technological progress past what was once thought possible they begin a golden age that will last centuries. However one thing is still on humanities mind. The distress signal and the planet that was previously untouchable.