Navigational deflector: Difference between revisions
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#REDIRECT [[Shields (Star Trek)]] |
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[[Image:ambwall.jpg|right|thumb|350px|The blue navigational deflector is seen here on the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C)|USS ''Enterprise'' (NCC-1701-C)]], an [[Ambassador class starship]].]] |
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In the [[Star Trek]] [[fictional universe]], the '''navigational deflector''' is a device found on many [[Starfleet]] ships capable of [[warp drive|warp]] travel, generally noticeable by its foremost location on many ships' engineering hulls and its soft [[blue]] glow. The navigational deflector is used while moving at faster-than-[[light]] speeds to prevent damage to ships' hulls from micro[[meteor]]s and [[friction]] from the microscopic objects and extremely thin [[gas]] found in interstellar [[outer space|space]]. Deflectors accomplish the first goal through the use of powerful deflector/tractor beams extending several thousand [[kilometer]]s fore of their ships, aimed automatically through use of the ships' long-range [[sensor]]s. The deflection of smaller objects and stray [[atom]]s is done by largely static low-power [[deflector shield]]s generated by the deflector. |
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The beams and shields created by the deflector are often a source of [[subspace]] distortion and [[EM radiation]], which can interfere with the operation of ships' sensors. Due to this, long-range sensor arrays are often placed circularly around navigational deflectors. This allows the sensors to look along the same [[axis|axes]] of the beams and shields to reduce interference and also, because of their close proximity to the deflector, allows for the speedy receipt of data from them by the [[computer]] in control of the device. |
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In combat, the navigational deflector forms the first layer of a starship's static defenses. It is almost useless against high-powered beam and missile weapons, but quite potent at blunting the assault of light and medium-powered weapons. The fact that many light weapons are [[laser]]-based rather than phasers or disruptors has created a myth that navigational deflectors cannot be penetrated by lasers, even though some of the Federation's foes (most notably including the [[Borg]]) use lasers as a primary weapon system to devastating effect. |
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The [[hardware]] used in navigational deflectors can be quickly reconfigured to produce a variety of [[particle]] streams and [[energy]] emissions, making them a sort of '[[Swiss army knife]]' for Starfleet vessels and a convenient [[deus ex machina]] device for script writers. Such uses can be seen in ''[[Star Trek: First Contact]]'', where it was used to travel into the past and, later, reconfigured into an interplexing beacon, a long-range communication device; in "[[The Best of Both Worlds]]" (''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation|TNG]]''), as a weapon against a [[Borg cube ship]]; in [[Scorpion (Star Trek)|"Scorpion", Pt. 2]] ([[Star Trek: Voyager|''VOY'']]), for travel between alternate [[universe]]s; and, during the [[Klingon Civil War]], for detecting [[cloaking device|cloaked]] [[Romulan]] ships. |
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Navigational deflectors are not seen on a few Starfleet craft, such as the [[Miranda class starship|Miranda]], [[Soyuz class starship|Soyuz]], and [[Constellation class starship|Constellation classes]]. These classes perform the same functions by use of bow-mounted tractor emitters and low-power use of the deflector grid. Many alien ships also do not have deflector dishes and presumably operate similarly. |
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==External links== |
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*[http://www.memory-alpha.org/en/index.php/Navigational_deflector "Navigational Deflector" at Memory Alpha] |
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Latest revision as of 21:03, 15 December 2007
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