What was the purpose of Terok Nor?

[at Quark's]

I mean, we know it's supposed to have been an ore refinery.

But why build one in space and in orbit around Bajor? Why not simply have this refinery on Bajoran soil (and use the station itself for more 'space oriented' purposes, whatever those might have been)?

 

[C.E. Evans]

I always figured Terek Nor was more than just a refinery, but also the main port of call for Cardassian and non-Cardassian ships passing through the Bajor Sector. It was the Cardassian Union's version of a starbase, IMO, but refining ore was a daily operation.

 

[Citiprime]

But why build one in space and in orbit around Bajor? Why not simply have this refinery on Bajoran soil (and use the station itself for more 'space oriented' purposes, whatever those might have been)?

I’m guessing that it might mean some of the ore processing was highly dangerous. If something goes wrong, at worst you lose the station instead of creating an environmental disaster on the surface that might taint your other strip-mining operations.

It might mean the Cardassians applied the bare minimum of safety standards, if only to protect their investment.

Also, as attacks from the Bajoran resistance increased, the mining operations were probably a primary target. Putting it on a space station makes it harder for the Bajorans to reach and affect. So Terok Nor can be a relatively reinforced hard target where you coordinate supply operations going to-and-from Cardassia.

One thing I’ve noticed about the design is that it only makes sense if the transporters are working. Since the docking ring and pylons are on the outer edges of the station away from the central core, and the airlocks we see on-screen are relatively small, all large amounts of cargo must have to be beamed aboard or out. And if transporters aren’t working, the entire operation probably grinds to a halt.

 

[Tosk]

The Cardassians didn't seem terribly concerned with doing it the easiest way. We see that they had the Bajorans physically schlepping ore around in carts. It's almost as though they didn't care about the amount of effort the whole thing was for their forced labor force.

 

[at Quark's]

Well yes, it must have served a lot more functions than just an ore refinery, otherwise why would the prefect of Bajor have taken up his residence there in person?

I guess my question would need to be why also have a refinery there? And yes, while I would understand reasons such as mitigating environmental risks or making it harder for Bajoran resistance to blow up the place, I still wonder what would make this particular operation that important to the Cardassians and / or that dangerous.

 

[Iamnotspock]

I’m guessing that it might mean some of the ore processing was highly dangerous. If something goes wrong, at worst you lose the station instead of creating an environmental disaster on the surface that might taint your other strip-mining operations.

That makes sense for an ore refinery alone, but you'd also lose Gul Dukat, prefect of Bajor, and his top lieutenants. Why was the Occupation conducted from the station?

 

[Citiprime]

That makes sense for an ore refinery alone, but you'd also lose Gul Dukat, prefect of Bajor, and his top lieutenants. Why was the Occupation conducted from the station?

Just a guess, but Dukat's ego.

Given the level of trust that Cardassians seem to have for others, Dukat may have wanted to supervise the ore processing personally to make sure that no other Cardassian officials got "sticky hands" and tried to exploit the operation for their own gain.

It also fits with Dukat's actions during the Dominion War. There's no reason for the leader of the Cardassian government to command the Dominion fleet during "Call to Arms," or to rule from the front lines as the commander of Deep Space Nine during the beginning of Season 6. He could of just as easily left Damar in charge and directed Dominion fleet movements from Cardassia.

But he chose to lead from the front and plant his flag on the station out of ego.

 

[DonIago]

Given the contempt that Dukat's superiors seemed to have for him in "Civil Defense", it's entirely possible that they weren't too bothered by the idea of him being killed if there was an accident on Terok Nor.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

I would assume ore production was not the main purpose of the station, but it served the broader purpose of having an orbital military station that was capable of repairing incoming ships. Processing ore to specifications may have required greater oversight than what the Cardassians could manage on Bajor or they were willing to allow.

 

[kkt]

Yes. You put it in orbit so you can screen the Bajorans who are allowed there and track their movements. If they just used a walled base on the surface, terrorists freedom fighters could figure out ways to climb over the wall, tunnel under it, or drill through it.

 

[fireproof78]

I mean, we know it's supposed to have been an ore refinery.

But why build one in space and in orbit around Bajor? Why not simply have this refinery on Bajoran soil (and use the station itself for more 'space oriented' purposes, whatever those might have been)?

Probably for further refining before being shipped to Cardassia.

Also, population control.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Given the contempt that Dukat's superiors seemed to have for him in "Civil Defense", it's entirely possible that they weren't too bothered by the idea of him being killed if there was an accident on Terok Nor.

Indeed, Central Command's opinion of Dukat was so low that they anticipated he would try to flee the station during a worker revolt. That's why Legate Kell left behind that recording. You can tell from the tone of Kell's voice that he KNEW Dukat was going to pull a stunt like this.

 

[Citiprime]

It's interesting to consider some of the ideas that they contemplated for Deep Space Nine when they were conceiving the series.

If I remember correctly, one idea was the station would NOT be Cardassian, and its origin would be unknown. Basically multiple species had controlled it over time and the entire aesthetic would be a mishmash of different technologies that had been added over time.

It's just the Cardassians were the previous occupants that had used it to exploit the Bajorans.

 

[at Quark's]

It's interesting to consider some of the ideas that they contemplated for Deep Space Nine when they were conceiving the series.

If I remember correctly, one idea was the station would NOT be Cardassian, and its origin would be unknown. Basically multiple species had controlled it over time and the entire aesthetic would be a mishmash of different technologies that had been added over time.

It's just the Cardassians were the previous occupants that had used it to exploit the Bajorans.

That would have been a fascinating idea. Some parts of the station more primitive than what the Federation had, some parts centuries more advanced.... some rooms with machinery and devices no-one could determine the purpose of and which they quickly learned not to experiment with ...

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

That'd be a great idea for a planetary colony based series - the purpose of building the colony is twofold; 1) to study all the tech and culture 2) to keep anything dangerous or valuable out of enemy/criminal hands.

 

[Reymet_2]

I’m guessing that it might mean some of the ore processing was highly dangerous. If something goes wrong, at worst you lose the station instead of creating an environmental disaster on the surface that might taint your other strip-mining operations.

Also it's easier to use forced labor on a space station than on a planet's surface (especially if the planet is also the laborers' homeworld) since it would be way harder to escape space station than a labor camp on the surface.

 

[Oddish]

It's also possible that some of the mining was done from moons or asteroids. A space station would make sense for that.

 

[at Quark's]

It's also possible that some of the mining was done from moons or asteroids. A space station would make sense for that.

Yes. Especially so if the refined ore would also be intended for use in space.

Even so, I still would hesitate to have the mine ore operation on the same space station as where the Prefect of Bajor has his headquarters.

 

[DonIago]

Yes. Especially so if the refined ore would also be intended for use in space.

Even so, I still would hesitate to have the mine ore operation on the same space station as where the Prefect of Bajor has his headquarters.

Why build one Terok Nor when you can build two at twice the price?

 

[kkt]

Yes. Especially so if the refined ore would also be intended for use in space.

Even so, I still would hesitate to have the mine ore operation on the same space station as where the Prefect of Bajor has his headquarters.

Yes, I would expect an ore processing station to have very different design needs than a command headquarters. A command headquarters would preferrably not have Bajorans on it at all.