Questions about Stellar Cartography

[Sawyer]

Now, I haven't seen many of the Voyager's so I don't know what all they did in their SC. However, some one on a ship wants to use ours as a long range sensor display. Now, I thought the SC was just a means to display stars from a database.

So, can the SC be used as a long range sensor, or just a really wide screen display?

[Ineti]

SC could be used as a sensor array, sort of I guess. Rather than using sensors to detect a nearby planet/moon/thing in space, SC could be used if the item in question has already been catalogued and added to the SC database.

Can SC be used to detect an approaching ship? I think not. I envision SC as being a huge 3D galactic map that a person could sit or stand in. I don't see it being used as an active sensor system.

Of course, an innovative engineer might speak otherwise.

(Pesky engineers)

[qerlin]

I would think the stellar cartography, while most a 3-D map, would change according to incoming sensor data. They might screen out the kind of subspace distortions or gravity effects of a ship...or they might not.

[Dan Gurden]

I agree with qerlin... The Stellar Cartography is simply a computer display that accesses the database and the communications and sensor data to provide the most up to date map of the universe. It can focus in to a fine point, and chart known ships, planets, anomalies and the like... Or it can take the wider view and show you everything, all in holographic 3D.

The advantage of the Cartography lab is that it can be programmed to simulate the results of various anomalies, it may not be a 100% accurate prediction, but it will be damn close.

However, the way I look at a main viewer, it too is a computer display screen, not a window... Anything the Cartography lab can do the main viewer can do... Its just that many crew look at the monitor as whats in front or behind the ship... But why cant the 'Tactical view' be brought up, using the Computer to highlight any ships in the sensor range, warp trails, power signatures, perhaps picture in picture communications, allowing the captain to talk to the enemy captain on a small corner of the viewscreen, leaving the rest of the monitor to show the warbird jockeying for a superior firing position...

At least thats how I use it in my games...

[qerlin]

I don't have anything else to add, but this gets me one post closer to lcdr.

I think whoever said it was right...I have been taken over by Styro!

AAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!!

[Sawyer]

Okay, for those who have watched Voyager after they created the Astrometrics stage... How was it used? Was it used strictly as a database display or tie it in with sensor readings to display more than the bridge viewscreen?

I thought of SC as more of a near-3D view screen, not quite holographic but close. The Bridge view screen was always flat 2D display, an enhanced tactical / sciences / communication / front window display unit.

Oh well. Thanks for all the comments. Hope you get your promotion, qerlin
<G>.

[silverthorn]

In that crappy Voyager episode...

Hang on, must elaborate, there's over 100 crappy Voyager episodes to choose from.

Let's try again.

In that crappy Voyager episode about the race Seven of Nine uses the Stellar Cartography screen to view the progress of the race.