Star Trek Encyclopedia
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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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| Ablative armor: | Hull armor employed for the most recent Starfleet vessels such as the Defiant, Prometheus, and Galaxy Dreadnought classes. Ablative armor is an additional reactive plating imposing a counterforce to incoming weapon fire, thereby dissipating its energy. |
| ACB: | Acronym for Annular Confinement Beam, a spatial matrix generated by the primary energizing coils of a transporter system. The ACB determines the geometry for the subsequent scanning and dematerialization process. |
| Accelerated critical neural pathway formation: | Enhancement of human brain functions through genetic encoding. Julian Bashir's brain was improved at the age of six. The procedure, like many other forms of genetic engineering, is outlawed in the Federation. |
| Aceton assimilator: | Weapon used by the ancient Menthars in their war with the Promellians a thousand years ago. Aceton assimilators could drain power from distant sources (such as a hostile ship), then turning that energy into deadly radiation to kill the ship's crew. Hundreds of thousands of these devices were placed in an asteroid field near Orelious IX, trapping the Promellian cruiser 1,000 years ago. |
| Adaptive interface link: | Computer connection used to exchange information between two computer systems of different alien origin. An adaptive interface link was used to download information from an alien space probe of unknown origin to Deep Space Nine's computers |
| Airlock: | Area which can be pressurized and depressurized, to provide controlled access to open space. An airlock consists of at least one chamber with one inner and one outer door. The Cardassian airlocks at Deep Space Nine have two chambers. |
| Alpha Wave Inducers: | The Alpha Wave Inducer is a device meant to induce sleep in most humanoids. It is not meant to replace natural sleep, and cannot be used frequently. It is an electronic version of an anesthetic. Subject enters a deep dreamless sleep during which surgical procedures can be carried out without causing pain to the subject. |
| Alternative timeline: | Any timeline which is different from the currently valid timeline, in particular a timeline which does not exist any more because of a time travel or another method to alter history. An alternative timeline is equivalent to the "normal" course of time, since only an external observer not affected by timeline changes is able to perceive the difference. The concept is similar to a parallel universe, still, parallel timelines depend on each other which is inevitably connected with paradoxes. |
| Alternative warp: | A FTL drive that exists of a negative magnetic corridor in which universes come together. The corridor is not supposed to breach. |
| Ampere: | Unit for the rate of flow of charge. It is the number of Coulombs per second (C/s). Abbreviated Amp or A. |
| Ampheon | Term used for a dead star in an antimatter universe |
| Anabolic Protoplasers: | These devices are used to heal internal and external body damage without the need of opening the body cavity of the patient to effect repairs. They use small forcefields, phase-modulated lasers, and anabolic accelerators to quickly heal injuries without scarring. They come in a variety of sizes for different repairs. Smaller units are useful for fine work involving the eyes and ears, while larger units heal cuts and even broken bones. They temporarily confer the advantage of Instant Regeneration to the area treated, but cannot replace surgery in serious injuries. For example, if used on a very deep stab wound, they could seal the damaged tissues and prevent further blood loss, but a subcutaneous hole would remain unless closed with surgery. This device will not repair incidental damage resulting from the original injury. For example, blood loss. |
| Android: | Humanoid robot, basically consisting of a computer system, actuators and sensors inside a human-like body. Androids are intentionally designed this way so as to work in the same environment and to perform similar tasks as humans. Lt. Cmdr. Data is the only android so far who has been legally acknowledged as a sentient lifeform in the Federation. |
| Angosian alteration: | Used by the Angosians to turn normal men into 'killing machines'. The process alters cell structure using substances as cryptobiolin, triclenidyl and macrospentol. |
| Antigrav: | Anti-gravity units that allow to handle heavy cargo. Antigravs are available as hand-held devices and in form of pallets. Antigravs are probably based on the same principle as the gravity generators on starships. Either antigravs generate a reverse gravity field that compensates for the existing natural or artificial gravity, or they are capable of shielding a volume from gravity. |
| Antigrav thrusters: | Thrusters utilizing antigravity to ascent a ship from a planetary surface. |
| Antigraviton: | Artificially generated, this can act as "antigravity". |
| Antimatter: | Complementary form of matter in which the single particle has the same mass but reversed charge. The mutual annihilation of matter and antimatter releases an enormous amount of energy and is employed to power a starship's systems. |
| Antimatter generator: | Device located on deck 42 on a Galaxy-class vessel which serves to generate antimatter for the warp drive in case the ship cannot be re-supplied in a refuel facility. In normal operation mode onboard antimatter generation is not efficient. It is obvious that more energy is necessary to produce antimatter than the energy content of the obtained antimatter. The only reason for this energy conversion is that the matter/antimatter reaction provides much more power (energy per time) than a fusion reaction. This power is required for the warp drive, while the other ship systems may alternatively be powered by the impulse (fusion) reactor. |
| Antiproton: | A naturally occurring antimatter version of a proton that is capable of penetrating the Romulan Cloaking Device. Also used in Hellfire torpedoes. |
| Antitime: | A concept of time running in reverse direction. Time and antitime are supposed to act like matter and antimatter, causing a breach in space-time upon their collision. |
| Anyons: | Particles produced by the interaction between phased matter and normal matter. In real life, an anyon isn't a real particle, it's a theoretical construction formed by confining a fermion (matter particle), and possibly boson (energy- carrying particle), to a two-dimensional region. |
| Arch: | An arch is a holodeck interface system which contains the scenario of the running program. |
| Assimilation: | Borg term for forced integration of lifeforms and technology into their Collective. For humanoids, assimilation implies transformation into a drone, thereby completely losing their individuality. Nanoprobes are key components in this process. Technology is assimilated by combining and gradually merging existing Borg and new technology. |
| Astrometrics: | Stellar cartography lab aboard a Federation starship, employed to chart regions of space and to determine the ship's position. |
| Atavachron: | Temporal portal developed on the planet Sarpeidon to travel through time. The atavachron alters a time traveler's cellular structure, making it possible to survive in earlier environments, but also making it impossible to return to the present without reversing the alteration. The people of Sarpeidon used the atavachron to escape into the past when their sun, Beta Niobe, went nova in 2269 |
| Atmospheric system: | Part of the life support systems that provides breathable air and comfortable temperature and humidity on a starship. Class-M atmosphere is the standard setting on Federation starships, implying 26°C temperature, 45% relative humidity and 101kPa air pressure with a composition of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and 1% trace gases. Part of the starship volume can be switched to other environmental conditions. Oxygen is produced by photosynthetic processing of CO2. |
| Auto destruct: | Extreme measure to prevent a starship from being captured by an enemy, also referred to as self destruct. The auto destruct can be initiated by the captain, acknowledged by voice recognition and personal command code. In most cases it is necessary that the first officer or other senior officers confirm the auto destruct. A silent count-down can be selected in order not to warn enemy forces that are already aboard. |
| B'aht Qul Challenge: | Klingon game of strength between two players. The players holds both arms forward, one person's hands inside the other's. Each tries to force the other's hands inward or outward depending on where they are located. |
| Badlands: | a region of space located near the Bajoran-Cardassian border. The region is known to for its constant and extremely dangerous plasma storms, which often cause problems with sensors and navigation. |
| Bahgol: | Klingon beverage served warm. |
| Bajoran orbs: | Mystical orbs sent to the Bajorans by "the Prophets" (a.k.a. wormhole aliens). They have great religious significance and create great personal experiences that can last minutes or days, but always leave the person changed by the experience. |
| Bajoran wormhole: | Stable wormhole situated near Bajor and Deep Space 9. Used by the Federation for traveling to the Gamma Quadrant |
| Baryon: | Naturally occurring "heavy" particles like protons. Periodically need to be swept from the surface of deep space constructs. |
| Baryon sweep: | High-frequency plasma field used to remove baryon particles from a starship's superstructure. During extended periods of warp flight, baryon particles build up on the starship, requiring periodical decontamination. The procedure is deadly to a starship's crew, requiring complete evacuation of a starship before the procedure is executed. Baryon particles are a particle family. The baryon-family consists of protons and neutrons, the basic elements of an atom's nuclei, and hyperons, which are highly unstable particles. It is logical that the baryon sweep is deadly to humans, because it removes all baryon particles it encounters - so all the protons and neutrons in the atoms of humans! A baryon sweep would completely dematerialize a starship, leaving only a cloud of electrons behind. |
| Barzan wormhole: | Unstable wormhole situated near the Barzan-system. The wormhole is formed by radioactivity that built up in a ring. A probe was sent through the wormhole, and confirmed that the wormhole connected the Alpha Quadrant with the Gamma Quadrant. The wormhole was bought from the Barzans. However, the wormhole appeared to be unstable. |
| Bat'leth: | traditional Klingon weapon, translated means "sword of honor." Approximately a meter long blade with four pointed ends, two on each side of the weapon. The weapon is held by any of three handles, typically the outer two for two handed wielding of the weapon or both hands on one handle when swinging the blade |
| Battle bridge: | Secondary command center on Galaxy-class starships, located atop the engineering hull. The battle bridge serves as replacement for the main bridge in case of heavy damage or as control center for the engineering section in separated flight mode (saucer separation. |
| Bearing: | Flight vector which is specified relative to the ship's current orientation. A bearing consists of the two coordinates azimuth (horizontal angle) and elevation (vertical angle). Bearing 000-mark-0 represents a direction straight ahead. |
| Berthold radiation: | Form of radiation, deadly for humans. |
| Biobed: | This is an orthopedically-designed hospital bed that includes medical sensors and display units for diagnosis and gas and fluid connect points for treatment of patients. The primary biobed, typically located in the center of a starship sickbay, is equipped with an additional overhead sensor cluster and a containment field generator and serves for surgical and other intensive-care procedures. The bed is raised to allow the doctor to comfortably examine the patient. It has a graphic display at the head which gives the patient's current status. Restraining fields are available on some models, but are rarely needed. They also have a button to detach the bed from its wall hookup, and initiate the small hovering devise, which allows the bed to be used as a stretcher for transportation. |
| Biochips: | Cybernetic implants surgically imbedded into bodies of the Borg. They serve to enhance their physical abilities and synthesize any organic molecules needed by their biological tissues. The Borg are dependent on the implants, and would die if the biochips are removed. |
| Biofilter: | Part of the transporter system that recognizes and filters out potentially hazardous viruses and bacteria from the matter stream. The biofilter is normally used only in transport to the ship. |
| Biogenic weapon | Type of biological weapon which is illegal under interstellar treaties. |
| Biomatter resequencer | Device used aboard 22nd century Earth starships to process organic waste by rearranging molecules. Basically, this is like a simple replicator. |
| Biomimetic gel | Illegal substance that is necessary for the creation of biogenic weapons outlawed in the Federation |
| Bioneural circuit: | Computer processor based on biological components, also referred to as gel packs. Bioneural circuits are employed in the most recent Federation starships, such as the Sovereign and Intrepid classes. Starfleet uses the original human brain structures in the form of bioneural circuits instead of just imitating them with microelectronic (or isolinear) technology. The gel packs containing biological components, however, they may be infected by viruses or bacteria. |
| Bioregenerative Fields: | A Bioregenerative Field is an energy field used to accelerate cellular growth. It temporarily confers the advantage of Regeneration on the patient. A sterilize unit is typically used during this procedure to keep infection from being multiplied by the Bioregenerative Field. |
| Bioship: | Starship type employed by Species 8472, made of the same kind of biomatter as the species itself. Modified Borg nanoprobes are the only known defense against the species and their ships, while the Borg failed to assimilate them |
| Bio-neural gel packs: | Biological computer processor, involving data transmission with neurons (neural cells, which are also responsible for data transmission in humanoid brains). Gel pack technology is more efficient than traditional optical data transmission. A gel pack contains a gelatinous organic medium. Being biological, gel packs are vulnerable for viral and bacteriological attacks |
| Black hole: | Also referred to as quantum singularity, an enormous concentration of mass the gravity of which is so strong that even light is not able to escape. The radius inside which this effect becomes evident is called event horizon. The existence of black holes has been confirmed by real world physics. There are different types and sizes of black holes, some of them actually existing, others assumed possible. Their common characteristic is the strong gravitational force that causes any kind of mass/energy to fall towards its center, once it is inside the event horizon. The mass concentration in the center is possibly beyond the current laws of physics. Even the elementary particles that form the atom nucleus under normal conditions might be crushed and further compressed to an unknown degree, with a density close to infinity, which is referred to as singularity. |
| Blood screening | Method devised by the Federation to uncover changelings. |
| Blood wine: | Klingon drink, extremely alcoholic, that is a best served warm. It is red in color. It is not known if blood is an actual component in the wine. |
| Borg alcove: | Resting place for a drone aboard a Borg cube, serves for regeneration and omni directional interconnection. Usually each drone is assigned to a specific alcove. |
| Borg drone: | Hybrid humanoid/machine being that shares a common consciousness with the other drones of the Borg Collective. They are born as normal humanoids and later assimilated. While the basic composition of all Borg drones is similar, each single drone is equipped with task specific tools. A typical Borg drone is largely covered with an exoskeleton, has a gray skin color, no hair, one biological and one cybernetic eye, one biological and one mechanical arm, the latter equipped with a variety of tools. |
| Borg Collective: | Designation for the Borg society in which the drones form a collective consciousness instead of individual thinking and acting. The formerly humanoid drones are equipped with several implants and are connected to each other and to their ship via subspace links. The Borg Queen seems to be a contradiction to the principle of common consciousness. Still, the Queen can be regarded as a representation or incarnation of the Collective rather than an individual leader. This interpretation is corroborated by the fact that the Queen did not exist in "Star Trek: First Contact" until she was assembled. Once she had come to life, the Borg were dependent on her and finally died when she was destroyed. |
| Borg implant: | Cybernetic component of Borg drones. The implants control, enhance and supplement their biological functions. They also provide their biological parts with the required nutritive substances. The Borg are dependent on their implants. |
| Brak'lul: | Klingon trait of redundant vital organs, making the survivability of the person greater than it would otherwise be. This includes 23 ribs (rather than 10), 8 chambered heart (rather than 4), and two livers (as opposed to one). |
| Bridge: | The command center of a starship. It is designed as a control center and typically has no other equipment. From the bridge a commander can fire weapons, receive information from sensors, pilot the ship, and more |
| Bussard collector: | Device usually attached to the forward end of the warp nacelles that serves to collect interstellar hydrogen atoms for fuel replenishment, also referred to as Bussard ram scoop. The Bussard collector consists of a set of coils which generate a magnetic field. The Bussard collector is named for the 20th century physicist and mathematician Robert W. Bussard. The Oberth class and the Excelsior class (original design) have no visible Bussard collectors. The upgraded Excelsior version (Enterprise-B) has Bussard collectors, although they seem to be ineffective, because they are hidden behind the saucer hull from the perspective of an incoming hydrogen atom (a possible design flaw). |
| Captain's yacht: | Large shuttle docked beneath the saucer hull of a Galaxy-class and Sovereign-class starships, usually employed for diplomatic missions. |
| Carbrodine: | Origin unknown. Becomes explosive when mixed with infernite. |
| Cardiostimulator: | This is a defibrillator that can also restart a stopped heart. This device will not damage surface tissues. |
| Cardies: | term referring to Cardassians or Cardassian Union (often derogatory). |
| Cargo bay: | Section of a starship which is used for storage of various cargo. Cargo bays can be accessed through docking ports or by cargo transporters. |
| Cargo transporter: | Low-resolution high-volume transporter system for non-biological objects. |
| Castridinium: | Naturally occurring, this is the hardest substance known to Federation Science. |
| Causality loop | Sequence of events in which cause and effect cannot be distinguished. A causality loop is possible if a time travel is involved. |
| Central plexus | Part of a Borg ship whose purpose is to control and link together the drones. |
| Cha'DIch: | Klingon term referring to the person who stands with a warrior during a ceremonial challenge or trial. He is there for defense and support. It literally means "second" and is similar in meaning to a second in a duel. |
| Chancellor: | Title of a leader of an organization or government. Typically used to refer to the leader of the Klingon High Council. |
| Chlorinide: | extremely corrosive and dangerous substance. It must be stored in special containers to prevent leaks. |
| Chronitons: | Particles, that are in a state of temporal flux (out of phase with the space-time-continuum). Chronitons are used to create a temporal vortex for time travel, and are also involved with cloaking devices. Chronitons are also used as torpedo charge by the Delta Quadrant race called the Krenim |
| Chronometric particle: | Mentioned multiple times in Star Trek. Might be the same as a chroniton. |
| Class M |
Classification
for a planet with a nitrogen-hydrogen atmosphere. Class-M planets provide
comfortable living conditions for a longer time, and the are suited for
permanent accommodation of humanoids. A precise definition of planet classes can only be found in non-canon sources, e.g. in the UFP Info Terminal. At least, K and L planet classes that also provide breathable air, but seem to designate desert planets, are mentioned in a couple of episodes. Star Trek inherently focuses on Earth-like planets for dramaturgical reasons, since no spacesuits are necessary and suitable sets are easy to find. Still, inhabitable planets seem to ubiquitous, and every time a shuttle is about to crash, there is "occasionally" a Class-M or at least Class-K or L planet in the vicinity. |
| Cloaking device: | Technology of Romulan origin used to render a starship invisible to the eye and to sensors, also used by the Klingons, Breen, The Order, USS Defiant. The cloaking device generates a space distortion which causes light and sensor rays to travel around the ship, so nothing is reflected from its surface. Cloaking the ship consumes large amounts of power, therefore the simultaneous use of the warp drive was not possible with the early cloaking devices in the 23rd century. Furthermore, the use of weapons is usually not possible while the cloaking device is activated. The space distortion necessary to bend light rays is equivalent to an enormous mass concentration and would certainly crush the ship and crew, so additional measures must be taken to compensate the effect inside the distortion. |
| Cloning: | Technique to grow a new body that is genetically identical to an existing lifeform. |
| Coalsack: | Dark nebula that exists of dust. |
| Coaxial warp drive: | An FTL propulsion technology which is described as bending space, not subspace, as opposed to conventional warp drive. |
| Cochrane: | Unit of subspace distortion named after Zephrem Cochrane, the inventor of warp drive. 1 cochrane is the distortion required to propel a ship at lightspeed (warp 1). Thus, to travel at warp 2 (10x lightspeed), a distortion of 10 cochranes is required. The unit 'cochrane' is also used for the intensity of matter/antimatter-reaction. |
| Cochrane, Zefram (2030-2117): | Terran inventor of warp drive. He achieved this task on April 4, 2063 in the Phoenix launched from an abandoned missile complex in Montana, North America. At the age of 87 he left for a last space voyage and disappeared from Alpha Centauri, never to return. |
| Communicator: | Personnel subspace communication device, originally hand-held, later in the 24th century integrated in the Starfleet badge; the latter is also referred to as comm badge. The communicator serves to establish a voice contact to another person or computer and provides lock-on contact for the transporter. The comm badge is usually programmed with a crew member's individual bioelectric data, which is verified through a dermal sensor. The communicator will fail if used by an unauthorized person. |
| Computers: | The computers in Star Trek have both voice- as manual interface. They run under an operating system called LCARS. The Enterprise has three main computers. Two reside in the primary hull (the saucer); they are vertical cylinders, about 8 decks high, and located on opposite sides of the saucer, flanking the bridge. The third computer is located in the secondary hull (engineering), and is smaller than the other two cores; it controls the Stardrive section when the ship separates. The computers are networked with each other, and with the rest of the ship via the ODN - the Optical Data Network. The ODN has enough processing power on its own to take over limited control of the ship in case of a complete computer failure. That explains why systems are still accessible, even when the main computers are down. The displays use 'nanoprocessors' - cell sized mechanical computers - to display information. The display itself contains data polled from the ODN, and based on user selections, displays whatever is appropriate. So even if the computers go down, whatever information is (1) already on the ODN (or ODN backups) or (2) in the display itself can be selected and displayed. The three main computer cores are equipped with low level subspace field generators. This allows signal propagation within the cores at faster-than-light (FTL) speeds, allowing the computers to perform much faster than anything constructible given 20th century technology, even theoretically. This cannot be applied (by 24th century technology) to smaller computers. Until 2329, the duotronics technology (invented by Dr. Richard Daystrom in 2243) formed the basis of the computers used aboard all Federation starships for over 80 years, including the main computers aboard the old Enterprise. The starship Defiant is equipped with a completely new technique, called reflex-quintronics. An other new advance in computer technology are bio-neural gel packs |
| Computer system: | Data processing, transfer and storage system employed for a wide variety of control purposes, for scientific analysis and as a database. In 24th Federation starships the computer cores are equipped with subspace field generators which enable FTL data processing and transmission. All components of the computer system are connected with each other and with the main computer core by the ODN. A number of subprocessors is distributed throughout the ship to supply additional computing capacity, improve speed and provide redundancy. As the data volumes as well as the clock frequencies of computers rise, light speed becomes the main limiting speed factor. Moreover, distances of several 100m have to be bridged e.g. within starships. Hence, FTL data processing is inevitable in 24th century computers. |
| Containment field: | A specially shaped forcefield used to isolate dangerous materials like antimatter or biohazard specimens. Containment fields are used in antimatter storage pods to protect a ship against contact with the extremely volatile antimatter. Somewhat different containment fields are used for quarantine isolation and for containment of dangerous biological specimens. The containment fields used in the warp drive on the old Enterprise needed to be phase locked within three percent in order to avoid instability, but by the time of the Enterprise-D, multi-phase containment fields were able to operate considerably above that value. |
| Continuum distortion propulsion (CDP) | The official name for warp drive. |
| Continuum drag: | Theoretical force, from which is said that it stops ships from accelerating while they at warp. Continuum drag is comparable to air drag, but it's not air that influents movement, but the space-time continuum. However, there's no need for a force like that to explain why sustaining a warp field needs a constant influx of energy. This might be better explained by the fact that warp drive is non-newtonian, and is thus not explainable with Newton's laws. |
| Cortical stimulator | Medical device that stimulates brain activity in case of severe injuries. |
| Cosmic string: | String of subatomic particles, producing as much as energy as a black hole. |
| Coulomb: | Unit of charge. There are 6.2415 × 1018 electrons in -1 Coulombs and 6.2415 × 1018 protons in 1 Coulomb. Abbreviated C. |
| Cruising speed: | Standard speed of a starship. Voyager's cruising speed is warp 6 or warp 8, and Enterprise-D's cruising speed is warp 7 (max.: warp 9.2). |
| Cryostasis: | State of low biological activity in a human body, achieved by preserving the body in a cooling chamber. Another method is cryonics, meaning that the bodies of patients with incurable diseases are frozen after their deaths hoping they might be revived in the future. |
| D'k tahg: | Traditional Klingon warrior's knife. It has three blades: one main blade down the middle and two smaller blades that act as a hand guard. It serves as a ceremonial weapon where the bat'leth isn't used. It is always carried by the warrior even when not in battle situations and serves as a ready weapon in impromptu battles arise. |
| Dabo: | Roulette-like game of chance. It has a well with multiple balls or pieces that fall into marked slots |
| Dark matter: | Form of matter that exists of particles which don't emit any (electromagnetic) radiation, making it invisible and hard to detect. Some physicians think that dark matter can function as an energy source for starship drives. Dark matter exists in the Mar Obscura nebula. In Star Trek, dark matter seems to have some exotic properties. It makes objects continually phase in and out of our universe. This property can cause depressurization on board of starships, because the hulls phase in and out. |
| Dampening field: | Energy field that inhibits any form of transmitting or energy emission that it is designed to prevent. |
| Daystrom Institute: | Major center for research into the science and technology of computers. It is named for a 23rd-centuary computer scientist Richard Daystrom. It is the most prestigious center for civilian research in the area of computers. |
| Daystrom, Richard: | 23rd-centuary computer scientist and inventor of comptronic, duotronic, and multitronic computer systems. He achieved his duotronic breakthrough when he was just 24 years old. He won both the Nobel Prize and the Zee-Magnees Prize in 2243 for his duotronic breakthrough. |
| deBroglie Waves: | Naturally occurring--a representation of ordinary matter as waves rather than particles. Can also be artificially generated, and is a side effect of cloaking devices. |
| Dechyon: | An artificially created class of particles that travel below the speed of light. |
| Decon chamber | Facility aboard a 22nd century starship to remove possibly dangerous contamination of persons entering the ship. |
| Dedication plaque: | Commemorative plaque located on the bridge of each commissioned starship in Starfleet. It has the symbol of Starfleet, ship name, registry number, commissioned date, location of shipyards where it was assembled, and the names of all senior officials involved in its construction and commissioning. |
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Deflector: |
Starship device, used to create a deflector field and the deflector beam |
| Deflector beam: | Beam generated by the deflector, pushing away distant objects which lay in the course of the ship. |
| Deflector field: | Gravimetric field, which is the mechanism after a deflector shield. A deflector field pushes away objects/projectiles near a ship and absorbs energy beams. This costs energy, so when the shields deflects a projectile or absorb an energy beam, the shields lose energy. The field is created by the graviton sources of the deflector. The energy output is phase-synchronized through a series of subspace field distortion amplifiers (field-strength of 625 millicochranes). |
| Deflector shield: | Forcefield around a starship, space station, planet or other facility that serves for protection against natural hazards and enemy attacks. This shielding system is often simply referred to as shields. Phaser and disruptor fire cannot directly penetrate the shields, unless the shield frequency is known and exactly matched. Without matching, weapons may weaken the shields by draining energy from them and their respective energy sources. Transporters cannot be used when the shields are in place. In contrast to the shields, the navigational deflector usually provides a forcefield which focuses on single obstacle such as a comet. |
| Dekyons: | Particles that seem to cause breaches in subspace. |
| DeLaure belt: | Area of space of high hyperonic radiation. The DeLaure belt is situated near Tau Cygna V |
| Delta rays: | Type of radiation produced by older engines. Delta rays refer to moderate energy electrons which have been kicked off a nucleus by the passage of a nearby high energy charged particle. |
| Denorios belt: | Area of space between Bajor and Cardassia with very high neutrino activity. The Denorios belt is the location of the Bajoran wormhole. |
| Dermal regenerator: | Medical device used to seal small wounds or burns and restore the original skin structure. Dermal regenerators are standard equipment of Starfleet and other civilizations in the 24th century. The hand-held dermal regenerator is supposed to support and accelerate the natural healing process of the skin tissue. |
| Detrian planet collision: | Collision of two gas-giant planets which occurred in 2369 in the Detrian system. The two planets merged with each other, and the combined mass became high enough to cause self-sustaining fusion reactions and thus forming a real star. |
| Deuterium: | Isotope of hydrogen, includes an additional neutron. Deuterium fuel is used for the fusion reactor (impulse drive) as well as for the matter/antimatter reaction (warp drive). |
| Dilithium crystal: | Component of the warp drive inside which the matter and antimatter streams are converted to an electroplasma stream in a controlled mutual annihilation. Dilithium is the only known element to be non-reactive to antimatter when subjected to a high frequency electromagnetic field in the megawatt range. The efficiency of the reaction inside the crystal depends on its quality. While naturally occurring crystals had to be used in the 23rd century, monocrystalline dilithium can now be produced by means of epitaxy. Although Dilithium does not exist in the real world (and would probably not be a stable element if ever discovered), it is an efficient concept to solve the problem of controlling the matter/antimatter reaction. |
| Discommendation: | Klingon ritual that is the equivalent of banishment. Any Klingon who receives the punishment is treated as if they don't exist by other Klingons. |
| Disruptor: | Energy discharge weapons, used by Klingons and Romulans. Disruptors are available as shipboard and hand-held weapons. The function principle of disruptors is probably similar to phasers, however, further information on this issue is "classified". |
| Docking port: | Facility for establishing a physical connection and mutual access between a shuttlepod and a starship or a starship and a space station. |
| Dom-jot: | Billiards-like game played on a specially shaped table. The balls, cues, and table are programmed to react to several different inputs. |
| Doppler compensator: | Part of the transporter system that compensates for relative motion of the origin and the destination of the transport. Without this device, the Doppler effect would lead to a wavelength shift, thereby distorting the transport pattern. |
| Doppler effect: | The process by which waves (typically light and sound waves) increase or decrease in frequency as they bounce off an item that is moving toward or away, respectively, from the source of the waves. It can be used to judge speed and distance. |
| Dreadnought: | Self-guided Cardassian missile. The Dreadnought is charged with 1000 kilograms of matter and 1000 kilograms of antimatter. Combined with an impact speed on full impulse (150,000 km/sec, half lightspeed), this causes an explosion which can destroy a small moon. The Dreadnought was sent by the Cardassians to destroy a Maquis target, but was intercepted by the Maquis, reprogrammed by B'Elanna Torres and sent back to a Cardassian munitions depot. It was encountered in the Delta Quadrant, traveling on an impact course to the planet Rakosa. The missile was taken into the Delta Quadrant in a same way as Voyager did. The tetryon beam of The Caretaker damaged its sensors, confusing Rakosa for its original target. The Dreadnought is very large, even larger than a shuttle craft. It is divided in multiple rooms. The computer's artificial intelligence is almost humanoid; it can even lie and divert you and can engage in conversations (even in small talk). It can hail ships on itself. When you enter Dreadnought, the computer scans your DNA structure to identify you. Its warp systems are highly advanced. The Dreadnought has its own warp core, a maximum speed of warp 9 and masks its warp trail with an electromagnetic field. Weapons are fired independently. Dreadnought has thoron shock emitters and when you fire on Dreadnought, he emits plasma waves. |
| Drydock: | Facility in which starships are maintained and repaired, usually located in a planet orbit in combination with a starbase. |
| Duck blind: | Cloaked observation post, employed by the Federation for anthropological studies of native pre-warp civilizations. |
| Duotronics: | Computer technology used aboard Federation starships from the mid-23rd to the beginning of the 24th century, invented by Dr. Richard Daystrom. Daystrom was also responsible for a further development, the multitronics. The experiment, however, failed in 2268 because the M-5 multitronics computer was given consciousness and willfulness. The Duotronics was eventually replaced by isolinear technology from 2329. |
| Duotronic computers: | Computer technology invented by Dr. Richard Daystrom and used aboard Federation starships from the mid-23rd to the beginning of the 24th century. It was revolutionary for its time. |
| Duranium: | Very strong metal alloy. It is commonly used in starship hulls and as a light armor. |
| Duritanium polyalloy: | Extremely strong medal alloy often used in starship hulls and medium armor. |
| Dyson Sphere: | Artificial sphere built around a star in order to take advantage of its energy emissions. The Dyson sphere is named after Freeman Dyson, who conceived this concept. There are several types of Dyson spheres. Its radius is 100 million km so as to provide moderate irradiation density on its inner surface, maintaining Class-M living conditions throughout the whole 1.25*10^20 km^2 area, 7*10^11 times the Earth's surface. In an optimistic estimation the sphere is only 100m thick and any element except for hydrogen and helium can be employed for its construction. Still, about 12,000 Earth-like planets would be required in this case. As a result, there should be a large space region without planets. Only a vastly advanced and superior Q-like race would have the power to collect planets and put them together to such a huge construction. However, a serious objection is that a race able to build a Dyson biosphere would actually not need one and a less advanced civilization with the necessary knowledge would not give up their planet(s), everything that makes up their history. Summarizing, this type of Dyson sphere is not a viable concept. Nevertheless, scientists are engaged in a serious search for such objects. Dyson spheres are supposed to have infrared emissions, because the light coming from the respective star is absorbed and converted to heat. In order to maintain a constant average temperature inside the sphere, it would be necessary to allow the outer surface to emit the excess energy in form of infrared radiation. Unlike the Dyson biosphere a radiation collector installed in space, inside the orbit of Mercury, could provide all the necessary energy required for an advanced human civilization. |
| EMH: | Acronym for Emergency Medical Hologram, a holographic replacement for a starship's medical officer. The EMH is a combination of a projection and forcefields, like most objects created on the holodeck. Being only a projection, the EMH seems to be inferior to replicated holocharacters. However, in this way he is able to change between an opaque and a transparent state, if required. |
| Eichner radiation: | Radiation emitted by subspace phase inverters. |
| Einsteinian: | A system is Einsteinian when it's strictly restricted to relativity. |
| Electomagnetic radiation: | radiation that is carried by a photon. Its power is determined by its frequency and velocity (v = c = 3.00 108 in a vacuum). |
| Electrostatic forcefield: | Used as contamination field in the brigs aboard starships, and probably too for emergency forcefields and window forcefields. |
| Elway theorem: | Scientific treatise that proposed transport through a spatial fold as an alternative to matter-energy transport. Although the concept was initially very promising, development of interdimensional folded space transport was abandoned by the mid-23rd century when it was found that each use of the process caused cumulative and irreversible damage to the transport subject. The Ansata terrorists of the planet Rutia IV made use of this technique with a device called an inverter to provide a nearly undetectable means of transport, despite the terrible cost to those being transported. |
| Empath: | Organism capable of sharing feelings of others. |
| Endorphins: | Naturally occurring neurochemicals in humans and many humanoids. They inhibit the ability of the organism to feel pain. They are naturally released during the course of strenuous physical excretion. |
| Endoskeleton: | structural support mechanism (both biological and mechanical) that is inside of the body it is protecting. Humans and other mammals have endoskeletons, whereas insects have exoskeletons. It is not designed to protect the body, only help it keep it's shape. |
| Engineering section: | Also referred to as engineering hull, secondary hull or stardrive section, typically a separate section of a Federation vessel in which the main power source and control (main engineering) is located. |
| EPS: | Acronym for Electro Plasma System, the power distribution network used aboard Federation starships. Plasma is diverted throughout the ship to supply the warp drive and other systems such as SIF, life support, computers, shields or weapons. |
| Escape pod: | Small vessel that is released from a starship in case of an extreme emergency, also referred to as lifeboat. All recent Federation starships are equipped with escape pods, a Galaxy-class vessel has about 400 of them. Escape pods are equipped with RCS propulsion only. The escape pods can evidently be reintegrated into the ship. Evacuation is the last option in case the ship is out of control. Yet, this applies in the same manner to sea ships. |
| Eugene's limit: | Theoretical limit imposed on warp propulsion systems. According to Eugene's limit, warp factor 10 can not be achieved, since the energy expenditure as well as the speed would be infinite. Although it was an arbitrary definition at first, Eugene's limit can fortunately be explained along with the peak transitional threshold in a way that a 10th layer of the warp field is not efficient and the complete remaining velocity range is compressed between Warp 9 (9 layers) and Warp 10 (infinite speed). Any mentioned warp factor of 10 or more that seems to break this rule is actually attributed to a different definition of warp factors where the latter might be connected with a new propulsion technology. In essence, Eugene's limit expresses the impossibility of achieving infinite speed, and this fundamental principle has been violated. Infinite speed is impossible, irrespective of the employed propulsion system and probably also for Q-like beings. |
| Eugenics Wars: | Conflict on Earth during the early 1990s between genetically engineered "supermen" and ordinary humans. The "supermen" believed themselves superior and destined to rule the planet. They were overthrown in 1996 and the leaders escaped into space aboard the S.S. Botany Bay. |
| Evasive pattern | Tactical starship maneuver to escape an attack. |
| Event horizon: | Spherical boundary around a black hole inside which any form of mass or energy is inevitably trapped, unless it can move faster than light. A hypothetical event horizon can be assumed and calculated for any mass value. It is possible to survive within the event horizon at least for a few seconds, provided that it is a huge black hole with around a million sun masses. A person crossing the event horizon in a starship would notice nothing but a distorted view of the outside world at first. However, while falling towards the center, the starship and its passenger would be virtually stretched and finally torn apart because of the strong gravitational force gradient. An external observer outside the event horizon would perceive the starship and its passenger move slower the closer they get to the event horizon, corresponding to a time dilation. Eventually, they would virtually seem to stand still exactly on the edge of the event horizon. Anyway, the starship would become invisible to the observer because of the red shift of outgoing radiation. |
| Exocomp: | Small robot designed for multi-purpose tasks in hazardous environments. Exocomps are equipped with microreplicators for generating whatever tool is currently needed and an extensive neural system to allow independent decisions. In 2369 Lt. Cmdr. Data proved that Exocomps, due to this intelligence, had to be regarded as sentient lifeforms. |
| Exogenic field: | Energy field surrounding a particular class-L planet located in the Rutharian sector. This exogenic field had high gravimetric stresses and was composed of subspace metryon radiation, generated by unstable elements in the planet's core. |
| Exoskeleton: | structural support mechanism (both biological and mechanical) that is outside of the body it is protecting. Insects have exoskeletons, whereas humans and other mammals have endoskeletons. |
| Fal-tor-pan: | Vulcan ritual of "refusion." It has an ancient origin. The ritual's goal it to reunite the Vulcan's katra (living spirit) with the respective body. |
| Federation starship registry codes: | -BDR Federation, non-Starfleet, civilian transport -NX Federation, Starfleet, experimental -NAR Federation, non-Starfleet, research -NCC Federation, Starfleet, active service -NDT Federation, non-Starfleet, transport -NFT Federation, non-Starfleet, civilian -NGL Federation, non-Starfleet, freighter -NSP Federation, Vulcan, science |
| Fek'lhr: | Klingon guardian beast of the underworld, Gre'thor. |
| Ferroplasmic infusion: | Procedure to re-liquefy a planetary core when the molten material in it became solid. High-energy plasma is injected into the planetary core through an infusion device, heating up the core and re-liquefying it. The core of Atrea IV became solid in 2370. The term 'ferroplasmic' is derived from the Latin word 'ferro', which means iron and is one of the main components of the core of class-M planets. 'Plasmic', of course, is derived from the use plasma in the process. |
| Fire Caves: | Forbidden Bajoran caves where the Pah-Wraiths dwell. |
| Fluidic Space: | Realm of Species 8472, a parallel universe filled with a biological fluid. |
| Food processor: | Ship system providing the crew of a 23rd century Federation starship with food. The food processor is possibly the predecessor of the replicator that has been introduced in the 24th century, but it is unknown whether the food processor actually creates and composes the nutritive substances or only conveys them. |
| Food replicator: | Replicator that produces food and drinks. |
| Forced quantumsingularity drive: | (FQSD) Energy source, used in Romulan starships as warp core. Energy is drained from a quantum singularity, in fact an artificial black hole. |
| Forcefield: | Generic term for an artificially generated electromagnetic or gravitational field. There is a wide variety of forcefields for different purposes, for instance the deflector shield, the navigational deflector field, the IDF, the SIF or the artificial gravity. Containment fields are forcefields used to contain dangerous materials. Other types of forcefields are employed to lock a starship brig or a shuttlebay while the mechanical door is open. Star Trek episodes often suggest that forcefields can easily be shaped so as to provide a flat surface and an abrupt border. The force of real electromagnetic or gravitational fields, however, decays proportional to 1/r^2 in a distance r from the source. Sources from many directions would have to interact in order to create the forcefields usually seen in Star Trek. |
| Fourier series: | Mathematical method of converting any periodic signal into sine and cosine waves. It was developed by French mathematician Jean Baptiste Joseph Fourier (1768 - 1830). A Fourier transform is a method of taking any signal (doesn't have to be periodic) and converting it from the time domain to the frequency domain. This allows for easier and more meaningful analysis of the signal. Example: 10 cos(2p60) would produce a single pulse of magnitude 10 at 60 Hertz. |
| FTL: | Acronym for Faster Than Light, applies to warp propulsion and 24th century computer systems. |
| Fusion reactor: | Energy producing reactor that uses the energy released during the fusion of two deuterium (heavy hydrogen) into helium. This is the same process that goes on in most stars and it requires extreme amounts of heat to occur naturally. |
| G'now juk Hol pajhad: | The Klingon law of heredity. Both family honor and dishonor along with debts and due are passed on to the error. Crimes of the father are visited on the sons. |
| Galactic energy barrier: | Energy field surrounding the entire galaxy at its boundaries. Multiple ships encountered it, destroying/disabling them. The galactic barrier also has weird effects on warp travel, because it also marks the boundary of the Milky Way's gravitational well. |
| Gallicite: | rare mineral used in Federation warp coils. |
| Gamma radiation: | Electromagnetic radiation with wavelength of less than 10-10 meters (frequency of more than 1010 Hertz (10 GHz)). It is typically emitted by radioactive decay or in a nuclear reaction. |
| Genesis project: | Ambitious teraforming project at the end of the 23rd century. Its key component, the Genesis device, was supposed to transform desert planets into inhabitable Class-M worlds. This process was determined by a transformation matrix. The Genesis device is too omnipotent to be true. Not only did it form a planet out of the gaseous or plasma matter of the Mutara Nebula, also this planet was immediately turned into a Class-M world and, moreover, even life was created from inanimate matter . The Genesis device enables its owner to "play God", and maybe the Klingon commander Kruge was right to regard it as the ultimate weapon. The amount of energy required exceeds the capabilities of the small Genesis device by far, so a quantum uncertainty effect like in the quantum torpedoes might be involved or energy would have to be produced from part of the reacting matter itself in a kind of chain-reaction. However, the so-called matrix is much more mysterious. The Genesis process evidently has several stages that need precise scheduling, which is supposed to be accomplished by the matrix. Entropy considerations forbid the shown sequence of events, and it was not controlled from outside, either. |
| Genesis device: | Short range torpedo intended to test the Project Genesis teraforming process. The Genesis Device was prematurely activated after being stolen by Khan Noonien Singh . The teraforming process involved a massive explosion that reduced the planet to subatomic particles, which then reassembled according to a preprogrammed matrix. |
| Genetic engineering | Generic term for modification of DNA, illegal in the Federation |
| Genetronic replicator: | An experimental medical device used to stimulate the genetic code of an individual into growing whatever types of cells are needed by the patients. It temporarily confers the advantage of Instant Regeneration on patients. |
| Grand Nagus: | Ferengi master of commerce. The sole Ferengi leader. |
| Grappler |
Early
mechanical equivalent to a tractor beam. |
| Gravimetric field: | Term used for a graviton field (graviton). |
| Gravitic Mine: | Mine used in the 2300s and 2400s. It was intended to have an explosive force of 75 isotones. |
| Gravitational sinkhole: | It's a gravity well that circumscribes a subspace pocket that includes a type-G sun with 3 planets. Inside the pocket is a temporal difference: 1 minute inside the pocket is equivalent to 0.4744 seconds in 'real time'. The star system in it is 'stuck' in subspace. The anomaly is 600 meters in diameter and out of phase with normal space (phasing). Such an anomaly is mono-directional: you can get into it, but under gravimetric forces, not get out of it. It's located some 50,000 light-years from Sol. The sinkhole is collapsed now by alien force (these aliens have lost 11 ships in it). |
| Graviton: | Particle that carries/transfers gravity forces at lightspeed. A field of gravitons is called a gravity- or gravimetric field. |
| Graviton inverter circuit: | The mechanism after the antigrav's anti-gravitational lift . Nothing about it is known, but since I am fond of hypothesizing, I have a theory: The graviton inverter circuit (GIC) reverses the energy characteristics of gravitons flowing out of a graviton generator. This reverses also the forces generated by the gravitons. So, the GIC generates anti-gravity by reversing gravity flows. The anti-gravitons are then leaded to the surface of the antigrav. This kind of generation of anti-gravitons out of normal gravitons is much like the onboard antimatter generation on a starship, although the fundamental mechanism might be different. (graviton) |
| Gravity generator: | Device based on the emission of graviton particles that provides artificial gravity in normally zero-g environments. Artificial gravity is an essential life support system on a starship, since it allows natural walking and working and enables an "upwards" and "downwards" orientation. Usually a network of gravity generators is employed, in order to provide a homogeneous gravity field. In case of an EPS failure, the gravity generators on Federation starships remain in service for up to 240min. The existence of gravitons has been confirmed by real world science. Still, there is no viable theory for generating gravitons without the according mass being involved. Since the distributed gravity generators keep on working even on heavily damaged ships, the loss of artificial gravity is a very rare failure |
| Gravity well: | Distortion in the space-time continuum, made by every object of mass. Mentioned multiple times in Star Trek. Bodies as stars and planets cause a very small distortion (the geometric distortion of the sun is only 1/2000th degree in comparison with 'flat' space-time). Black holes make giant distortions in space-time, causing phenomenon as Einstein Rings (discovered in the 20th century). Wormholes can be considered as gravity wells, so deep that they form a traversable tunnel. |
| Great Hall: | Building that seats the Klingon High Council. It is located on Qu'nos. |
| Gre'thor: | Klingon hell |
| Guardian of Forever: | Time portal, created five billion years ago by an unknown civilization. The device is 5 billion years old. The Guardian of Forever is a sentient computer device; his programs are able to respond to questions. |