Sol system

AT: "xx"

A painting of four planets of the Sol system

The Sol system (also known as the Terran system) was an inhabited star system located within a stellar cluster. This system was located in Sector 001 (the Sol Sector), a region of space in the Alpha Quadrant. This was the capital system of the United Federation of Planets.

Location

The Sol system was located less than ninety light years from the Qo'noS system, a system in the Beta Quadrant. This system was located at the boundary line between the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. (ENT: "Broken Bow", "Two Days and Two Nights"; Star Trek: Insurrection; Star Trek Into Darkness)

Solar system maps

In the late 19th century, the inner system was depicted on a German map of the inner system. (Star Trek: Enterprise, opening credits)

In 2254, the inner system was depicted on a map, which was stored in the USS Enterprise library computer. This was one of the records scanned by the Talosians. (TOS: "The Cage", production art)

In 2267, "Chart 14A: The Sol System", which was stored in the Enterprise library computer, was a map of the Sol system. This chart was scanned by the probe Nomad in Auxiliary Control. (TOS: "The Changeling", production art)

Star charts

In the 2270s, the location of Sol, and its largest planet Jupiter, was labeled on a neighborhood of astronomical objects, which was stored in the Enterprise library computer. This was one of the records scanned by V'ger. (Star Trek: The Motion Picture, production art)

In 2293, the location of Sol was labeled in a map of the Milky Way Galaxy. This map was on a wall of Captain James T. Kirk's quarters aboard the USS Enterprise-A. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, okudagram)

In 2364, the location of Sol was labeled in a star chart, which showed the distance of this sun to neighboring stars in light years. This record was stored in the USS Enterprise-D library computer. The Portal of Outpost 63 scanned this record that year. (TNG: "The Naked Now", "The Last Outpost", production art)

In "Two Days and Two Nights", the NX-class Enterprise set a milestone several months after the mission to Qo'noS ("Broken Bow") by becoming the first Earth ship to travel 90 light years away from the Sol system. In Star Trek Into Darkness, Qo'noS was identified as a Beta Quadrant planet.

On a PADD made for Star Trek: Insurrection, the Sol system was depicted as being at the boundary line. [1]

Ancientstarchart.jpg

The inner system

The inner system

Earth solar system, The changeling.jpg

"Chart 14A: The Solar System"

Sol and nearby astronomical objects

The location of Sol on a star chart

The location of Sol on "The Explored Galaxy" star chart

Physical characteristics

The system consisted of its primary Sol and nine planets. An asteroid belt separated the system into an inner system and outer system. The inner system had four terrestrial planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. The outer system had four gas giants and one terrestrial planet. The gas giants were Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. The sole terrestrial planet in the outer system, and outermost planet in the Sol system, was Pluto. (TOS: "The Cage", "Tomorrow is Yesterday"; TAS: "One of Our Planets Is Missing"; Star Trek: The Motion Picture; Star Trek Generations)

Known system locations

• Sol (primary star)
  • Mercury (Sol I)
  • Venus (Sol II)
  • Earth (Sol III)
    • Luna (The Moon; moon)
    • See objects in Earth orbit for more.
  • Mars (Sol IV)
    • Deimos
    • Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards (orbiting drydocks)
  • Asteroid belt
  • Jupiter (Sol V)
    • Jupiter Outpost 92
    • Jupiter Station (space station)
    • Moons of Jupiter (moons)
      • Io (moon)
      • Ganymede (moon)
  • Saturn (Sol VI)
    • Mimas (moon)
    • Rhea (moon)
    • Titan (moon)
  • Uranus (Sol VII)
  • Neptune (Sol VIII)
    • Triton (moon)
  • Pluto (Sol IX)
  • Burke (comet; crashed into Mars 2155)
  • Halley's Comet (comet)
  • 1889 V (comet)
  • 1892 III Holmes (comet)
  • 1892 V (comet)
  • Biela's Komet (comet)
  • d'Arrest (comet)
  • De Vico's Komet (comet)
  • Enke's Komet (comet)
  • Faye's Komet (comet)
  • Finley (comet)
  • Winnecke's Komet (comet)

History

Earth (Sol III)

Approximately four billion years ago, an ancient species of humanoids injected genetic material into the primordial soup on Earth. Five hundred million years later, life began on Earth. (TNG: "The Chase", "All Good Things...")

Approximately sixty-five million years ago, a comet collided with the planet Earth. With this mass extinction event ending the dinosaurian era, mammals rose to prominence. One of those mammalian species, Humans, forged a civilization on their home planet.

Starting in the mid-20th century, Humans began the process of exploring and colonizing their home system. By the late 24th century, there were Humans living on Venus – which was being terraformed into a M-class planet – on Luna, on Mars, and on the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. (TOS: "Return to Tomorrow", "By Any Other Name"; DS9: "Past Tense, Part I"; ENT: "Strange New World", "Azati Prime")

Commander Dolim claimed that after Earth was destroyed there would be a "residual presence" in the system, and expected to be able to dispatch of them with four ships - this statement might yield insight in the extent of colonization in the mid-22nd century.

In 2371, a microscopic singularity passed through the system and exploded. (DS9: "Past Tense, Part I")

The Borg maintained a transwarp conduit with an aperture less than a light year away from Earth. The conduit was collapsed by the USS Voyager in 2378. (VOY: "Endgame")

In an alternate timeline, all major inhabited planets and colonies in the Sol system were destroyed by the Xindi weapon. This ended when the Enterprise NX-01 crew sacrificed themselves to change the future by erasing interspatial parasites from Jonathan Archer, allowing him to remain in command and find and destroy the weapon. (ENT: "Twilight")

In another alternate timeline, the entire Sol system was destroyed in a temporal explosion when Henry Starling took the timeship Aeon from the 20th century to the 29th century without properly calibrating the temporal matrix. This event nearly happened but was stopped when Captain Janeway manually fired a photon torpedo from Voyager at the Aeon as it entered the temporal rift, destroying it and killing Starling. (VOY: "Future's End", "Future's End, Part II")

Appendices

Background information

A map of the galaxy created for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Technical Manual was reused on a PADD in the film Star Trek: Insurrection depicted the location of the Sol system. [2] The PADD prop was sold on It's A Wrap! sale and auction. [3]

Deep Space 9's classroom featured a painting of four planets of the Sol system including Earth and Saturn earlier. (DS9: "The Nagus")

The chart naming astronomical objects was from the Star Fleet Technical Manual.

The chart naming stars within twenty light years of Sol was drawn by Rick Sternbach for the Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology in the late 1970s. Found on page 77, this chart showed Earth commercial and exploration routes after the use of warp drive began. Sol was a stop on the Alpha Centauri-Epsilon Eridani commercial route.

According to Star Trek: Star Charts (Pg. 19), although the Sol system is located in the exact corner of the sector and was thus divided equally among all eight sectors, it is considered to be in Sector 001 for purposes of celestial navigation. Similarity, while the Sol system is divided equally between the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, it is considered to be part of the Alpha Quadrant.

According to The Worlds of the Federation, there was a tenth planet beyond Pluto.

Apocrypha

The real-world debate on the status of Pluto as a planet was referenced in the novel Before Dishonor.

External links

• Sol at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• Solar System at Wikipedia