What Sets the Enterprise Did and Did Not Need

[MAGolding]

Agreed except on the bunks issue. While it may have gone against what GR originally envisioned, the only way you're going to fit 430 crew into non-bunk accommodations is for 95% of the Enterprise interior to be bedrooms.

Bunks are just way too practical NOT to be used

If the average cabin is between 10 x 20 and 20 x 20 feet (200 to 400 square feet, 430 cabins would total 86,000 to 172,000 square feet. If the radius of the saucer section is 200 feet, the widest deck would have about 125,663.6 square feet. The widest section of the saucer has two decks for a total of about 251,327.2 square feet. And the narrower upper and lower parts of the saucer could also be used for cabins.

Kirk's cabin was apparently on Deck five Room 3F121

McCoy's cabin Deck Nine, Section 2, Room 3F 127.

Janice Rand's quarters were at one time Deck Twelve, Room 3C 46, and another time Deck Twelve, Room 3F 125.

Harry Mudd was temporarily in Room 3F 125., deck unspecified.

http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Quarters

Since the quarters were spread out over at least eight levels of the ship, it is possible that there were 430 individual cabins for crew plus some more for guests.

The Enterprise A and the Excelsior in STVI seem to have had fewer cabins and crew and junior officers assigned to multi person cabins with bunk beds to save space for something else in the saucer section, presumably some bulky machinery.

 

[Mytran]

Oh it totally could fit, it just wouldn't leave a lot of space for the actual stuff that makes the ship work

 

[alensatemybuick1]

When people start trying to figure out the exact scale of the Enterprise and its interior arrangements is the exact moment I can hear the joy being sucked out of the room.

 

[Mytran]

IDIC, my fellow TrekBBSer - I personally LOVE that stuff!

 

[plynch]

More of an actual mess hall than we saw in occasional rec rooms. It humanizes people, and is a nice setting for conversations, down moments, which early S1 did well.

 

[tomswift2002]

It's interesting to note, in relation to my previous comment, but I was just rewatchn "Encounter At Farpoint", and Wesley tells his mother in sickbay that the Enterprise-D has a "low gravity gymnasium". So it makes you wonder if D.C Fontana was right in the original Enterprise having a 'low gravity gymnasium'.

 

[Ssosmcin]

I like it, they should have done it. In '65-1968, in color seasons 2 through 4 of Irwin Allen's Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea had the Seaview control room with four large windows that depicted the ocean via rear projection and looked very impressive.

The windows were moved to the control room in the 1965 season, but the rear projection for the observation nose was there from day one. Actually they used it less and less as the series went on, relying more on water tanks on set with bubbles rising to the top. No nearly as effective as the rear projection...

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

It's interesting to note, in relation to my previous comment, but I was just rewatchn "Encounter At Farpoint", and Wesley tells his mother in sickbay that the Enterprise-D has a "low gravity gymnasium". So it makes you wonder if D.C Fontana was right in the original Enterprise having a 'low gravity gymnasium'.

I would think that a ship as large as the Enterprise (any version) would have entire decks dedicated to ensuring physical fitness for the crew. A crew of hundreds would need a LOT of options to keep fit and healthy.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

It's interesting to note, in relation to my previous comment, but I was just rewatchn "Encounter At Farpoint", and Wesley tells his mother in sickbay that the Enterprise-D has a "low gravity gymnasium". So it makes you wonder if D.C Fontana was right in the original Enterprise having a 'low gravity gymnasium'.

Low gravity sounds like the very last thing you'd want if the goal is to stay fit and keep your bones healthy.

 

[scotpens]

Low gravity sounds like the very last thing you'd want if the goal is to stay fit and keep your bones healthy.

I assume the "low gravity gym" would be more for novelty sports than strenuous exercise. For example, in the 1/6 g of the Moon, it would be possible for humans to fly using bird-like wings (as described in Robert Heinlein's story "The Menace from Earth").

 

[tomswift2002]

Low gravity sounds like the very last thing you'd want if the goal is to stay fit and keep your bones healthy.

Maybe for a human from Earth. But if there was someone, like Melora Pazlar from that one DS9 episode that came from a planet with low gravity, or even a human from a low gravity colony, then their bones might not be up to handling full Earth gravity.

But a low gravity gymnasium could also be used to train people for outside repair work, or work on a ship with no gravity.

 

[Mytran]

Could have been used, but clearly wasn't; none of the Starfleet personnel we see handle themselves at all well in zero-G!

 

[EnsignHarper]

I assume the "low gravity gym" would be more for novelty sports than strenuous exercise. For example, in the 1/6 g of the Moon, it would be possible for humans to fly using bird-like wings (as described in Robert Heinlein's story "The Menace from Earth").

I think it be very useful for training purposes there has to be times they have to outside of the ship for maintenance purposes..

 

[Shawnster]

OK, I just counted the number of bunks in the Franz Joseph plans. I used these plans because they were the first definitive Enterprise deck plans produced and I love them. These prints have a lot of rooms set aside for various starship operations, medical sections, brigs, large bulky machines, multiple transporter rooms, cargo holds, water tanks, shuttle bay, bowling alley, theater, swimming pool, etc... In other words, they are more than just crew quarters.

Using this as a base I counted:

510 total beds. Most of these are 2 beds per room. These are not bunk beds.
26 crew quarters have single beds. This allows for senior staff and VIP quarters.
484 beds are shared in 242 rooms. This allows for junior officers, enlisted and VIP quarters with 2 beds.
440 beds are in the saucer section. The TOS Enterprise had a crew of 430. The entire stardrive section could be empty of crew quarters. On the other hand, Maybe the quarters in the stardrive section or engineering hull are fully occupied and those 70 empty beds are in the saucer in case of emergency.

Star Fleet Technical Manual, also produced by Franz Joseph, breaks the crew down as:
43 Command officers
387 enlisted grade
430 total crew

43 people are not going to fit 26 bed. It can be concluded some of those officers either share quarters or they have an extra bunk in their quarters.

 

[Ryan Thomas Riddle]

Star Fleet Technical Manual, also produced by Franz Joseph, breaks the crew down as:
43 Command officers
387 enlisted grade
430 total crew

43 people are not going to fit 26 bed. It can be concluded some of those officers either share quarters or they have an extra bunk in their quarters.

In the US Navy, junior and warrant officers share a two-bunk stateroom. So your conclusion is only logical. (See what I did there.)

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Re: low gravity gymnasium.

"Null-gravity combat exercises" are mentioned in TAS "The Jihad." Kirk and Spock are adept at it.

 

[Richard Baker]

The windows were moved to the control room in the 1965 season, but the rear projection for the observation nose was there from day one. Actually they used it less and less as the series went on, relying more on water tanks on set with bubbles rising to the top. No nearly as effective as the rear projection...

TNG used simple black cloth with stars on it most of the time for showing outside the windows- that's why they used any excuse to drop out of warp for those scenes. Since TOS Trek never used warp star streaks to show them traveling at warp it would have been a lot easier.

 

[FormerLurker]

I assume the "low gravity gym" would be more for novelty sports than strenuous exercise. For example, in the 1/6 g of the Moon, it would be possible for humans to fly using bird-like wings (as described in Robert Heinlein's story "The Menace from Earth").

Parisses Squares!

 

[F. King Daniel]

That's what I always thought. When I saw the casing in TWOK, my immediate thought was "What the fuck? That's not right..."

My exact reaction coming to The Making of Star Trek's tech section after seeing the movies first!

 

[Mytran]

Re: low gravity gymnasium.

"Null-gravity combat exercises" are mentioned in TAS "The Jihad." Kirk and Spock are adept at it.

Very true! Just the 23rd century Klingons and 24th century genetically engineered doctors which suck at it then :-)