Skip to main content

star trek - How did the Phoenix land?


We see how the Phoenix was launched, and that its flight was successful - however it doesn't look like it would survive re-entry (no heat shield etc and we have no mention of deflector shields being part of its design) so how was the flight to end? Eject the forward section and land it like an Apollo capsule?


Is there anything in canon or the expanded universe which tells us how Cochran got it back on the ground?


Edit: so it looks like there are heat tiles on the side of the forward cockpit, on the opposite side from the crew windows - however, they dont extend all the way done the fuselage so that might indicate that just the crew cabin is returned to earth.


However, that would mean that the guts of the Phoenix would be left in orbit - not a great situation if you want a continued program, especially considering the dialog suggests a lot of the basic structural material was very hard to get hold of.


Would love some corroboration on this.



Answer



I'm struggling to find a fully canon source but the general gist is that the front section separates from the remainder of the rocket and becomes a landing module.



John Eaves, Concept Illustrator for the First Contact film has described the front section as a "capsule".


enter image description here


The image above tallies nicely with the on-screen image seen in the film.


enter image description here


Unfortunately, the screenplay then subverts this by having Picard run his hands over the lower fuselage of the Phoenix (the bit that should have been abandoned) and stating that he remembers the ship from seeing it in the Smithsonian.



DATA: It is an historical irony that Doctor Cochrane would use an instrument of mass-destruction to inaugurate an era of peace.


(Picard feels the Titan V rocket)


PICARD: It's a boyhood fantasy, Data. I must have seen this ship hundreds of times in the Smithsonian, but I was never able to touch it.




However, assuming the ship's body was jettisoned in space it would have been a simple matter to ask our new Vulcan friends to recover it for us.


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

aliens - Interstellar Zoo story

I vaguely remember this story from my childhood: it was about an interstellar zoo that came to Earth with lots of bizarre and unusual species, and humans would file through and gape at all the crazy looking creatures from other planets. The twist came at the end when the perspective shifted to the other side of the bars and we discovered that the "creatures" were traveling through space on a kind of safari. They thought they were the visitors and we were the animals. Neither side knew that the other side thought they were the zoo creatures. Answer Got it. Zoo, by Edward D. Hoch. Published in 1958. Link to Publication History Link to PDF
Post a Comment
Read more

harry potter - Did Dolores Umbridge Have Any Association with Voldemort (or Death Eaters) before His Return?

I noticed that Dolores Umbridge was born during the first Wizarding War, so it's very likely she wasn't a Death Eater then (but she is pretty evil -- who knows?). After that Voldemort was not around in a way that could affect many people, and most wouldn't know he was planning to rise again. During that time, and up through Voldemort's return (in Goblet of Fire ), did Umbridge have any connection with the Death Eaters or with Voldemort? Was she doing what she did on her own, or was it because of an association with Voldemort or his allies? Answer Dolores Umbridge was definitely not a good person. However, as Sirius points out, "the world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters". Remember that he also says that he doesn't believe Umbridge to be a Death Eater, but that she's evil enough (or something like that). I think there are two strong reasons to believe that: Umbridge was proud to do everything according to the law, except when she trie...
Post a Comment
Read more

harry potter - What is the difference between Diffindo and Sectumsempra?

In the Harry Potter books, Diffindo is called the 'Severing Charm' and it’s most commonly used to cut ropes and the like. However, in the last book Hermione uses it on Ron but misses, creating a 'slash in his jeans' and his knee gets cut, causing him to 'roar in pain'. We've only seen Sectumsempra used once on screen when Harry directly uses it on Malfoy in the sixth book, but there it's mentioned that he is 'waving his wand wildly'. Wouldn't Diffindo, if used in such a fashion also cause a similar effect? Similarly, if it was able to cut Ron, it would also be able to, say, chop off an ear (George's)? In that case, how are these two spells different, except for Sectumsempra seemingly used exclusively to hurt humans? Answer While Diffindo and Sectumsempra both can be countered by other spells, Diffindo is far more easily countered. Reparo, a relatively common spell, can completely reverse its effect when used once. “He pulled the old cop...
Post a Comment
Read more