Deep Space 9

Overview[]

DS9 was originally built in orbit by Bajorian slave labor during the occupation of their planet by the Cardassian Union.  Then known as Terok Nor, it served as their main orbital resupply station for ships, primary ore refinement facility, and the command post for the Cardassian overlords for Bajor. 

Following the Cardassian withdrawal from Bajor it was abandoned and Starfleet took control over the station which was renamed as Deep Space 9.

Shortly afterwards, DS9 became one of the Federation's most important outposts thanks to the discovery of the Bajoran Wormhole to the Gamma Quadrant and would go on to become one of the most historical, strategic, and political space stations in the history of both quadrants.

Technical Specifications[]

• CLASS:  Centok Nor Platform Station

• TYPE:  Orbital Resupply/Ore Refinement Facility

• OVERALL DIAMETER:  1,451.82 meters (Docking Ring only)

• HABITAT RING DIAMETER:  579.12 meters

• UPPER CORE DIAMETER:  285.90 meters
  • MID-CORE DIAMETER:  182.88 meters
  • LOWER CORE DIAMETER:  184.46 meters

• OVERALL DRAFT:  969.26 meters (Docking Pylons only)
  • OVERALL CORE HEIGHT:  368.90 meters
  • WEAPON SAIL TOWER HEIGHT:  192.02 meters

• MASS:  45,000,000 metric tons

• DISPLACEMENT:  10,120,000 metric tons

• DECKS:  260; 98 (excluding the Docking Pylons)

• CREW COMPLEMENT:  300 to 1,200 persons

• POPULATION:  7,000 persons (maximum supportable population)

• SIGNIFICANT INHABITANTS: Gul Dukat, Quark, Rom, Nog, Elim Garak, Jake Sisko, Morn, Leeta

Design Features[]

Deep Space Nine has been referred to as a "Hybrid Planar-Columnar Triradial Structure" owing to the fact that it consists broadly of three flattened rings built out from a vertically stepped cylindrical core which is separated into three distinct components; an upper, a middle, and the lower core. The prominence of threes in its architectural design is due in no small part to Cardassian culture which has an almost mythological reverence for them.

The upper core which contains the primary operations center or "Ops" of the station; the mid-core which houses the restricted engineering utilities such as life support, industrial replicators, the primary computer cores, and deflector shield generators; and the lower core which incorporates the main fusion power plants. Radiating out from this cylindrical core is a concentric central ring which contains the three split-level commercial center of DS9 popularly known as the Promenade. The Promenade features various shops, the restaurant/bar known as "Quark's" with adjoining personal holosuites along with other personnel support amenities including the medical center, the security offices, a small school, and a Bajoran Temple.

Radiating out from this central ring are three interconnecting bridges which link to second innermost concentric ring dubbed the Habitat Ring. The Habitat Ring predominantly features the living quarters for permanent residents as well as crew quarters and temporary living quarters for guests. The Habitat Ring also boasts six large landing bays with elevators for small crafts such as the Starfleet Runabouts and three dorsal and three ventral tower-like structures which are the weapon sail towers that contained tractor beams, various fixed and rotating phaser arrays, and photon torpedo launchers. There is also three support members/primary crossover bridges which link the Central Core, the Habitat Ring, and the outermost Docking Ring.

The Docking Ring is the outer ring of DS9 and is intended for bulk cargo storage holds and the moving and transfer of goods and cargo and has numerous personnel and cargo transfer tunnels. It has three primary docking ports located at the extreme outboard ends of the primary crossover bridges. In addition, there are nine secondary docking ports (three distributed on each arc-section of the ring). The Docking Ring has three major dorsal and three ventral pylons with large lower buttresses that inwardly sweep in a curving arc that terminated in a thinner, spindly looking tip. Known as the Docking Pylons, they are mounted equidistantly around the ring at the primary crossover bridges, these Docking Pylons were previously used for ore processing facilities and has a primary docking port located at the inward facing tips of the pylons themselves. These docking stations were intended for humongous sized ore freighters for an additional six docking ports. The Docking Pylons give DS9 its characteristic semi-spherical shape.

DS9 underwent a major refit in 2372 as its increasing primary importance as a strategic location in the Alpha and Gamma Quadrants. When it was finished, the entire station had been entirely refitted with standard Starfleet phasers and photon/quantum torpedo launchers. Each of the six weapon sail towers have a pair of extendible rotary weapons array. The 12 rotary arrays have a combined total of 48 Type IX phaser cannons and microtorpedo launchers. In addition, there are 3 Type XI planetary-class phaser emitter arrays mounted on movable gun carriages spanning the Habitat Ring and an additional 36 stationary weapon strap-on packs that are hydraulically lifted or extended out of their concealed housings. These packs are scattered around key strategic locations around the station and contain a Class X phaser bar array and torpedo launcher bay. The photon torpedo ordnance supplies had also been expanded so that the station had 4,500 photon torpedoes and 1,000 quantum torpedoes at any given time. This tactical upgrade has significantly enhanced the offensive capabilities of DS9 and gives them the capacity to concentrate weapons fire around a nearly 360 degree arc.

History[]

After the forcible annexation of Bajor by the Cardassian Union in 2328, the Cardassians initiated strip mining of the surface for its rich natural resources. However, the Cardassians would find themselves facing opposition by the Bajoran Resistance and found efforts at pacifying the local populace too difficult even with forced labor camps and the horrific torturing and executions of resistance fighters only resulted in stiffening resistance. Ultimately, Gul Dukat came up with the idea of creating an orbital ore processing station which would provide them with improved security and control, thus was the concept of Terok Nor born.

Through 2346 to 2351, much of the infrastructure of the station was fabricated and assembled by Bajoran slave labor although some of the critical components had to manufactured and shipped from Cardassia Prime such as the entire Ops Module due to their sheer complexity or for security protocols. 

In 2352, Terok Nor came online under the "enlightened" rule of Gul Dukat and became the primary source of uridium ore mined from Bajor.  Under working conditions of over 130 degrees Fahrenheit, the refineries aboard Terok Nor would process nearly 20,000 tons of ore per day.

By 2369, increasing political pressures from the United Federation of Planets along with near constant attacks by the Bajoran Resistance and less readily available resources found on Bajor resulted in the Cardassian Union deciding that it was no longer economically viable to continue their presence on Bajor. In exchange for certain concessions from the Federation, the Cardassians withdrew from Bajor. Terok Nor however was essentially abandoned in high orbit around the planet as sabotage had disabled the self-destruct capabilities of the station and it deemed too difficult to move the station across any significant interstellar distances.

Instead, the Cardassians ripped out as much sensitive equipment as they could and conducted a rampage of destruction and petty vandalism on the station's interior. With the establishment of the Bajoran Provisional Government, it was decided to request Federation aid and assistance to help rebuild their world. The Provisional Government offered Terok Nor to Starfleet as their central administration hub for the Bajoran System although they would retain ownership; overall authority would be left to the Starfleet Commanding Officer. Starfleet accepted and began a laborious process to repairing and upgrading the station which was renamed as Deep Space Nine under the command of Benjamin Sisko.

Days after his assumption of command, Sisko made contact with a race of extradimensional non-temporal aliens who have indirectly inspired the Bajoran religion as the "Prophets" when he was looking for proof of the existence of the 'Celestial Temple' near DS9.

In doing so, he discovered that the 'Celestial Temple' was in fact, a stable wormhole created by the Prophets which connected the Alpha Quadrant to another point of space over 70,000 light years apart in the Gamma Quadrant, a major spatial shortcut that would ordinarily require a 67 year one-way journey. The immense scientific and economic value of this unique wormhole prompted Bajoran Milita Major Kira Nerys, First Officer of DS9 to have the station relocated to the mouth of the wormhole to cement Bajor's claim to it.

The once minor station was immediately elevated into becoming the most important scientific exploration center for Starfleet and a major economic boon for the resource strapped Bajorians. Many Bajorans who once viewed the Federation and Starfleet as unnecessary irritants, came to embrace them as the sole counter for the avaricious Cardassians who once more realized that the Bajor had an exploitable resource for them.

Eager to explore the vast new territories of the Gamma Quadrant, dozens of alien races would establish trading relations with Bajor and DS9 made peaceful First Contact with a number of native species from the Gamma Quadrant and DS9 was a major diplomatic port. However this changed when Starfleet made hostile contact with the dominant military government of the Gamma Quadrant known as the Dominion; a heavily regimented, belligerent, and extremely xenophobic dictatorship in 2370 and DS9 unfortunately became the focal point of Starfleet's defense and military operations for the next several years as a state of heightened tensions existed between the Alpha and Gamma Quadrants.

These tensions ultimately exploded in 2373 in the Dominion War with the Dominion invading the Alpha Quadrant and seeking to impose their brand of "order" over the rest of the galaxy. After forcing their way through the wormhole with a massive fleet, the Dominion quickly annexed the Cardassian Union and began moving huge numbers of warships and fresh personnel into the Alpha Quadrant while their diplomats began extracting nonaggression pacts from various regional governments.

Captain Sisko ultimately decided to blockade the wormhole by the use of a stealthed self-replicating minefield which resulted in the existing Dominion forces in the Alpha Quadrant to attack DS9 in order to seize control of the station, forcing Starfleet to temporarily abandon it which fell back into the custodianship of the Cardassians who promptly renamed the station Terok Nor once again. While the Bajorans were forced to remain neutral, Starfleet engaged a lengthy campaign over the next two years; ultimately retaking Terok Nor which became the central repair and resupply depot for Starfleet and the central headquarters and planning center for the Allied Ninth Fleet consisting of Starfleet, Klingon, and Romulan ships.

DS9 was also finished the Dominion War as it was where Starfleet and the Dominion signed a peace treaty, formally concluding the war between the Alpha and Gamma Quadrants in 2375. Shortly afterwards due to the disappearance of Captain Benjamin Sisko in the wormhole, his first officer Bajoran Colonel Kira Nerys would assume command of the station which continues to act as the custodian of the wormhole to the Gamma Quadrant and also hosted the official acceptance of Bajor into the United Federation of Planets.