Why do Star Trek ships have saucers?

The saucer of the Enterprise D was specifically designed to separate and if needed could land on a planet surface in the event of catastrophic breach of the warp containment system.

How big was the saucer section of the Enterprise?

ILM rewired and updated its six-foot Enterprise model for the saucer separation sequence. ILM made a 12-foot (3.7 m) saucer section model to “crash” into an 80-foot (24 m) planet surface model. An 18-inch (46 cm) model of the saucer’s forward edge was used for close-ups of the crashed ship.

Why is saucer section?

Ships capable of saucer separation were designed for this purpose in order to have the primary hull serve as a lifeboat for the crew in the event of catastrophic damage to the warp core or a loss of antimatter containment. It is for this reason the majority of crew comforts are nestled into the primary hull.

How many times did the saucer section separation?

Nice concept, but it doesn’t happen very often, because in order for the visual effects experts to separate the ship, they must separate a lot of money from their budget. The effect was done only three times on the show.

What does NX Stand for Star Trek?

“The Making of Star Trek” (which came out in 1986) explains that NCC stands for ‘Naval Construction Contract’ while NX stands for ‘Naval Experiment. ‘ Also, USS stands for ‘United Space Ship.

What is the largest ship in Star Trek?

USS Enterprise NCC 1701-J – “The largest Starfleet starship to appear anywhere on screen is the upgraded Enterprise-J briefly seen in the episode “Azati Prime”. It’s described as being “almost 2 miles” in length (i.e. 3.2 kilometers) as compared to Borg cubes which are approx. 3 kilometers in length along each edge.”

What is saucer separation in Star Trek?

Saucer separation was an emergency procedure which could be performed by some types of Federation starships, and involves the complete disconnection of the primary and secondary hulls . The procedure began to be incorporated into starship classes in the 23rd century, including the Constitution-class,…

What is the purpose of a saucer in a ship?

For suitability during emergency landing. The role of a saucer is to keep the majority of the crew separate from the secondary hull, so that in emergency situations involving warp core breaches, the crew can use the primary hull as a long-term life craft.

Can Constitution-class starships perform saucer separations on their own?

By the 23rd century of the Kelvin timeline, Constitution -class starships were able to readily perform saucer separations on their own, with it even being possible to pause the procedure. ( TOS comic: ” I, Enterprise!, Part 1 “) The saucer however would not function as its own ship until all connections to the drive section were severed.

Who was in charge of the saucer section of the Enterprise?

( Star Trek Generations ) The USS Enterprise -D used saucer separation as a way to confront the Q entity on its first mission in 2364. Captain Picard left Lieutenant Worf in charge of the saucer section. The separation was the first to be conducted at high warp.