The Jovian Initiative was a project of the Maltarian Empire designed to return Ganymede to the temperate climate it enjoyed during the days of the Stellar Consortium. In late 3001, after having begun to re-settle the moons of Jupiter, they announced plans to seed Jupiter with a polydenum-powered device that would convert it into a white dwarf, a second star in the Sol System.
Numerous objections followed, such as requests by Deserata governor Darian Ellesmere to discuss the loss of Jupiter's atmosphere as a fuel source, and a plea from Quaquan Ambassador Stargazer Skyhawk to discuss alternatives to the project. Not all reactions were negative: G'ahnlo Trade Minister Tolobo remarked publicly of the potential for tourism, and Sivad First Councillor Paul Truffaut declined to become involved. Martian First Consul Deke Armitage called for an end to media speculation in favor of a summit.
Doctor M'rlath, director of the Jovian Initiative project, dismissed concerns regarding the project's safety and economic consequences, but agreed to further discussion. He announced that the project was calculated to have an 87 percent chance of success and fully under control. The Jovian Initiative was successfully carried out in 3002.
Callisto became an environment much like pre-terraformed Mars with a cold surface, but not as cold as Centauri. Ganymede became Earth-like as it was in Stellar Consortium times, except no longer requiring the aid of a solar collector. Europa, being a bit closer, melted into an ocean world similar to Sivad, with a thick, moist atmosphere that trapped heat and became fairly tropical. Io, already a volcanic wasteland, increased its volcanic activity a hundredfold. The rest of Jupiter's moons, being mostly on the order of small asteroids, did not experience such an effect. The Maltarians planned to make use of Europa, and maintained mining rights on Callisto, which they planned to share with Centauran settlers.