Skip to main content

star trek - Why does Deep Space Nine spin?


In DS9: Afterimage Ezri Dax is suffering from a bout of 'space sickness' and asks Sisko if Chief O'Brien can slow down the spinning of the station.



EZRI: Do you think the chief could adjust the inertial dampers so the station would spin a little slower?




Within the Star Trek universe, artificial gravity seems under control to the point of being completely taken for granted, so why does DS9 spin? Do all space stations spin?



Answer



According to the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Technical Manual the rotation was driven by four factors:




  • To control the rotation imparted by the processes of docking and undocking spaceships.




  • To control the additional centrifugal force imparted by transferring ore from the processing centre (at the middle of the station) to docked ships at the outer pylons.




    The internal skeletal structure provides only 22 percent, the remaining 8 percent being derived from the EPS conduit field effect, which acts as a crude structural integrity field (SIF) system.


    While some Starfleet engineers have looked upon this area as over-designed, it has worked exceedingly well for the Cardassians. especially in the pylons' ability to damp out lateral and rotational forces imparted by both docking space vessels and large moving masses within the pylons.





  • To provide thermal control, so that half of the station isn't permanently in darkness and the other half permanently in light (thus preventing one side from overheating).



    For example, a continuing topic for debate centers around the reason ops and the commander's window are aligned on a vector that seems to relate to no other symmetrical division, 30 degrees away from the ops- Pylon 3 centerline and 30 degrees away from the ops-Pylon 1 centerline. The most plausible explanation involves the mechanics of Terok Nor's synchronous orbit about Bajor and the thermal control rotation of the station.






  • There's also the suggestion that the need for a rotational period may be somewhat driven by the desire to have Cardassia Prime in view at all times from the Prefect's office.



    A possible correlation exists in which Cardassia Prime and its parent star would be visible through the window center at all times.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

harry potter - How could Expelliarmus beat Avada Kedavra?

I want to be very careful about how I ask this question – I am not asking How did Voldemort die? [CLOSED] Below the text is the relevant passages from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows if anyone wants to review them (I'm sorry for the amount of text). How did Expelliarmus beat Avada Kedavra and kill Voldemort? I feel the reason Harry's Expelliarmus overpowered Voldemort's Avada Kedavra curse has to do with who was master of the Elder Wand and how the Elder Wand works. I've always had trouble understanding fully how the Elder Wand works, though. How much did the fact that Voldemort never truly won or mastered the Elder Wand factor into how Expelliarmus reacted to Avada Kedavra and caused Avada Kedavra to rebound and kill Voldemort? An answer based in book canon would be especially welcome, but any canon source really is fine. Harry heard the high voice shriek as he, too, yelled his best hope to the heavens, pointing Draco’s wand: ‘ Avada Kedavra !’ ‘ Expelliarmus !...
Post a Comment
Read more

game of thrones - Is Syrio Forel dead?

In the episode 'The Pointy End' (Season 1 Episode 8) when Arya runs from the Lannister guards you hear the sound of a sword being dropped (around 4:56): [embedded content] After that neither Syrio or Ser Meryn Trant is never mentioned or seen in the show again, except when Arya mentions to the Hound that Ser Meryn Trant killed Syrio. Is there any mention in the books that Syrio actually dies?
Post a Comment
Read more

tolkiens legendarium - Difference between elves and dwarves blacksmithing in the Lord of the Rings

Both the elves and the dwarves were famous for their metal work in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but what is the difference between what they made, and which one had the better skill of making amours and swords? Answer James Christopher's answer sums up the second part of your question well, but as to the difference in what they made, a little more detail is needed. Once the Elves learned to forge with steel, the shape of the sword changed, now being able to take on the form of a great broadsword or a light and agile curved sword. Additionally, they took great pride in decorating their swords. As we see in the Lord of the Rings , some swords like Sting had magical properties such as glowing blue when orcs are near. As far as the use of Mithril, lotr.wikia has two contradictory passages: Thus, Elven blades became renowned as great weapons, capable of performing deeds beyond the skill of their handlers and were even more glorious when the use of Mithril was allowed to the Elves. ...
Post a Comment
Read more