Gas giant

A class 7 gas giant

A class 9 gas giant

A class J gas giant

A gas giant was a huge planet made entirely of base gases, including fluorine, methane and ammonia. Typically they di not possess a solid surface, but rather had dense atmospheres. These turbulent atmospheres were generally made of the same materials as stars, however, they lack the mass necessary to begin nuclear fusion. Theoretically, if two gas giants collide, they may be able to create a self-sustaining fusion reaction, leading to the birth of a new star. (TNG: "Ship in a Bottle")

There were several types of gas giants known to Humans: class J, class 6, class 7, and the class 9 gas giant, which was also known to the Klingons as the Q'tahL class. (DS9: "Starship Down"; ENT: "Broken Bow", "Sleeping Dogs") The Sol system had four gas giants, none of which were class 9. (ENT: "Sleeping Dogs")

Gas giants contain intense magnetic fields that often create unique waveforms. The resulting EM interference sounds very strange when played over speakers. Travis Mayweather referred to these sounds as "siren calls," noting that while he lived aboard the ECS Horizon as a kid, his dad would put them through the speakers whenever they flew by a gas giant. (ENT: "Sleeping Dogs")

Neelix's cousin once had a job transporting disulfides from a gas giant. He enjoyed the turbulence, according to Neelix, who also noted that "disulfides are known to cause delusions." (VOY: "Friendship One")

In 2152, Enterprise NX-01 pulled the IKS Somraw from a class J gas giant. (ENT: "Sleeping Dogs", "Marauders", "Judgment") Later that year, they encountered a gas giant in Arkonian space that had "dozens of moons," and was referred to as "like a gravitational jigsaw puzzle." (ENT: "Dawn")

The Xindi-Insectoid shuttlecraft discovered in 2154 was discovered to have almost half of its power grid routed to structural integrity, leading them to theorize that it could probably be flown inside a gas giant. (ENT: "Hatchery", "Azati Prime")

In the mirror universe, the Tholians held the USS Defiant at a facility in the Vintaak system that was orbiting the gas giant. (ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly")

In 2369, the USS Enterprise-D was able to witness the collision of two gas giants in the Detrian system. (TNG: "Ship in a Bottle")

Also around this time, Rudolph Ransom eluded a Romulan Warbird by taking his vessel into the atmosphere of a gas giant. (VOY: "Equinox, Part II")

In 2370, the USS Raman became trapped in the atmosphere of a gas giant while the crew was attempting to sample it at a low orbit. (TNG: "Interface")

According to the script, the planet was "a huge, greenish, Neptune-like planet. The swirling, violent quality of its atmosphere can be seen even from [orbit]."

In 2371, a Maquis interceptor, piloted by the Female Changeling, lured a runabout, piloted by Kira Nerys and Odo, to a moon orbiting the gas giant located near the Badlands. (DS9: "Heart of Stone")

In 2376, the Delta Flyer encounter a class T gas giant within a stellar nursery in the Delta Quadrant. It was surrounded by rings, one of which radiogenic, and Janeway used these particles to reinitialise warp power in the Flyer following a massive antimatter loss. The Flyer and its occupants were later discovered orbiting the gas giant by the USS Voyager. (VOY: "Good Shepherd")

During the Antarian Trans-stellar Rally in 2377, one of the competing ships changed course by using the gravity from a gas giant to boost its speed, and successfully made up for lost ground. (VOY: "Drive")

Background

According to Geoffrey Mandel's Star Trek: Star Charts, Starfleet's planetary classification of gas giants are "class J" planets, ranging in age from two to ten billion years. The diameter of a gas giant ranges from 50,000 kilometers to 140,000 kilometers, and its atmosphere is layered with various gases, at different densities and temperatures. Gas giants usually lie in the cold zone of a star's ecosphere, and have been known to host hydrocarbon-based indigenous lifeforms.

External link

• Gas giant at Wikipedia