Have life sensor readings for planets ever been accurate?

[awiltz2]

Hello all! New here, and I'm already in love with this forum. But to the question ...

Many TOS episodes involve Kirk asking Spock something along the lines of "Do sensor readings show any signs of life on this planet?" with Spock's readings often finding no signs of life.

Yet oftentimes, not 10-minutes later we find them on the planet surface observing either plant-life, or (often hostile) humanoid or energy-based life forms.

I know there are TOS episodes where space ship sensor readings have no signs of life, and ultimately prove to the accurate ("The Tholian Web" for one), but I don't recall a planet or planetoid life sensor reading every being accurate when the readings show no signs of life (planetoid being added due to "For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky").

Have life sensor readings that deemed a planet as lifeless ever been accurate?

 

[T'Girl]

Possibility. The sensors can't pickup a limited number of people, thousands and millions yes, but sometimes not ones and dozens.

 

[Potemkin_Prod]

Didn't Kirk say the ship's sensors could detect a single lit match anywhere on the surface of a planet in "Mudd's Women?"

 

[Neutral Zone]

Didn't Kirk say the ship's sensors could detect a single lit match anywhere on the surface of a planet in "Mudd's Women?"

That being true, why couldn't they find the lithium crystals they required?

 

[Potemkin_Prod]

Because it wasn't convenient to the plot.

 

[awiltz2]

Because it wasn't convenient to the plot.

With the number of times the sensors have produced inaccurate results, it confuses me when they're all surprised each time life is found.

You'd think after the 4th or 5th time, they'd assume a surface to inhabit life until proven otherwise. So many people have died (poor redshirts) because they've assumed no life.

 

[Navigator_NCC2120]

Didn't Kirk say the ship's sensors could detect a single lit match anywhere on the surface of a planet in "Mudd's Women?"

No, it was from the episode "The Man Trap".

Courtesy of http://www.chakoteya.net/StarTrek/6.htm, here is an excerpt:

KIRK: You could learn something from Mister Spock, Doctor. Stop thinking with your glands. We've equipment aboard the Enterprise that could pinpoint a match lit anywhere on this planet, or the heat of a body. Transporter room, Kirk speaking. Three to beam up.

Navigator NCC-2120 USS Entente
/\

 

[Navigator_NCC2120]

Didn't Kirk say the ship's sensors could detect a single lit match anywhere on the surface of a planet in "Mudd's Women?"

That being true, why couldn't they find the lithium crystals they required?

Because the magnetic storm was ionizing the atmosphere making it difficult to probe through it.

Here is an excerpt, courtesy of http://www.chakoteya.net/StarTrek/4.htm:

[Bridge]

FARRELL: Traverse parallel three and four.
SULU: Checking, but not getting much.
SPOCK: The storm is ionising the atmosphere, Captain. Getting difficult to probe through it.
SCOTT: Captain, this is draining our batteries further. If we only had those crystals.
KIRK: But we don't! I didn't get any. I should have found a way. Satisfied, Mister Scott?
UHURA: Losing communications with the miners, sir. Magnetic storm seems worse.
KIRK: Has Childress reported in yet?
UHURA: No, sir. He and the girl are still missing.
KIRK: Sorry, Scotty. How much power do we have left?
SCOTT: About five hours, sir.

Captain's log. Have expended all but forty three minutes of power. Ship's condition, critical. Search now in progress seven hours, thirty one minutes. Magnetic storms are easing.

[Bridge]

SPOCK: Infrared reading. Check traverse three, grid zero four zero.
FARRELL: About eleven miles, bearing one two one from the mining company.
SULU: That's Ben Childress' quarters.
SPOCK: There's a heat unit operating in there. It could be a cookstove.
KIRK: Have Mudd meet me in the transporter room.
SPOCK: Mudd?
KIRK: The name of this game.

Navigator NCC-2120 USS Entente
/\

 

[BoredShipCapt'n]

One of two things must be true:

1. There are a lot of lifeless planets, but there was never an episode about one because they're so boring, so we never get to see all the dozens of times that sensor reading is accurate.

or

2. Life is never boring on the Enterprise, which explains why they never sit around watching a movie or Doctor Who or anything.

 

[Anji]

Now, if the readings were accurate, what fun would it be???

 

[awiltz2]

Now, if the readings were accurate, what fun would it be???

Fun is ... highly illogical.

I do agree though, it would make for a boring series of nothing was unexpected, and all surprises were scientifically and technologically prevented.

 

[T'Girl]

Because the magnetic storm was ionizing the atmosphere making it difficult to probe through it.

So, in other word, they actually couldn't detect a lit match with their sensors. At least not all the time, under all conditions.

 

[Navigator_NCC2120]

Because the magnetic storm was ionizing the atmosphere making it difficult to probe through it.

So, in other word, they actually couldn't detect a lit match with their sensors. At least not all the time, under all conditions.

Correct.

Here is an excerpt of "Mudd's Women", courtesy of http://www.chakoteya.net/StarTrek/4.htm

Captain's log. Have transported aboard the Enterprise to implement search with infrared scanners and sensing system. Magnetic storms on the planet's surface are cutting down speed and efficiency of our equipment. Search now in progress for three hours, eighteen minutes.

Navigator NCC-2120 USS Entente
/\

 

[Timo]

Many TOS episodes involve Kirk asking Spock something along the lines of "Do sensor readings show any signs of life on this planet?" with Spock's readings often finding no signs of life.

I'm curious - what episodes might these be?

Only one comes to mind at the moment: in "Squire of Gothos", the wandering planet is scanned from orbit, but the scans fail to reveal the whereabouts of the kidnapped Kirk and Sulu, and further indicate lack of vegetation or even soil. Yet a beam-down reveals a benign, even welcoming environment, and eventually Kirk and Sulu as well. But that's the work of a superbeing that deliberately aims to mislead our heroes, and can hardly be counted against the reliability of the sensors in other scenarios.

Okay, the "For the World is Hollow" incident might be included as well, but it involves a constructed spacecraft that aims at shielding her occupants - again a case of a "rat race" between sensors and countermeasures, rather than a generic sensor shortcoming, and not really applicable to situations of planetary scanning.

Timo Saloniemi