Memory Alpha
Register
Advertisement
Memory Alpha

Neutrinos are subatomic particles that Starfleet uses for various purposes. Neutrino detectors are part of a starship's sensor array, and the presence of elevated neutrinos may indicate the presence of a ship -- possibly cloaked. The Bajoran wormhole also emitted neutrinos before opening, giving Deep Space 9 a moment to prepare before any ship came through.

References

  • When the Enterprise-D had apparently passed through a wormhole, Data set out to check the neutrino and heavy particle detectors. (TNG: "Clues")
  • When Wesley Crusher returned from Starfleet Academy to visit the Enterprise and met Robin Lefler, he was so distracted that she had to remind him that his "neutrinos are drifting" as he tried to recalibrate the ship's scanners. (TNG: "The Game")
  • When a shuttlecraft belonging to the J'naii had disappeared into an area of "null space," Data was surprised to detect a neutrino emission (such as a shuttlecraft might emit) apparently coming from nowhere. William Riker later confirmed that the emission was coming from within the null space. (TNG: "The Outcast")
  • Geordi La Forge attempted to infuse a reactor on Tagra IV with neutrinos when it started to overload. (TNG: "True Q")
  • Miles O'Brien observed residual neutrinos in the structure of a building damaged by what he had thought was only an illusion -- the Dal'Rok in a village on Bajor. (DS9: "The Storyteller")
  • Jadzia Dax noticed that most of the neutrinos on Deep Space 9 were spinning in the same direction (when really the direction of spin should have been random) and characterizes it as a symptom that someone had altered the laws of probability. (DS9: "Rivals") In reality, neutrinos always have a left-handed spin while antineutrinos always have a right-handed spin, meaning that she probably considers both to be neutrinos.
  • Jadzia Dax noticed that certain interference in a ship's transponder signal just before it exploded could have been caused by a forced neutrino inversion, such as the Romulans used in their explosives. (DS9: "Improbable Cause")
  • When a Dominion fleet disappeared inside the Bajoran wormhole, Jadzia Dax noticed that there weren't even any neutrino emissions left from the ships. (DS9: "Sacrifice of Angels")
  • Icheb designed a high-resolution gravemetric sensor array that scanned for the neutrino flux associated with wormholes, to help Voyager get home faster for his science fair project. He got the idea from studying Starfleet records on the Bajoran wormhole. (VOY: "Child's Play")

External links

Advertisement