Vulcan (planet)

Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek content.

For the mirror universe counterpart, see Vulcan (planet) (mirror).

PLANET
Vulcan

Classification:	Class M
Affiliation:	United Federation of Planets (Confederacy of Vulcan)
Location:	40 Eridani
Moon(s):	None; T'Khut (Sister Planet)
Dominant Species:	Vulcans, Underliers
Population:	4.9 billion Vulcan (2370s)
Capital:	ShiKahr
Length of day:	24 hours

Vulcan, also known as T'Khasi, is the class-M desert planet that is homeworld to the Vulcans and it was also known as Ti-Valka'ain in the Vulcan language. (ST reference: Aliens)

[edit] Overview

Vulcan from orbit in 2154.

Vulcan has no moon, but does have a sister planet - T'Rukh (also called T'Khut or Delta Vega), and this sister planet has a moon called T'Rukhemai - one feature of which was the Vulcanis Lunar Colony. (TOS episode: "The Man Trap", TOS novel: Sarek (novel)), VOY episode: "Unimatrix Zero (episode)", VOY novel: Pathways) The world circled a star known as Nevasa to the Vulcans. (TOS novels: Vulcan's Soul, Exodus (novel))

The planet was the second planet of six that orbit the orange star which is part of trinary system with the two other stars being too far away to immediately be visible in Vulcan's sky. Vulcan is a harsh, desert planet with barely a quarter of its surface area containing water. It possessed a thin atmosphere and high gravity (1.4 G). Vulcan's geology produced starkly upthrust mountains, craggy inhospitable and inspiring to the planet's acestic logicians and mystics alike. The capital of Vulcan was the city of ShiKahr, a low, stark settlement laid out in logical grids and quarters around an ancient oasis. (ST reference: Aliens) The world possessed three primary continents called Na'nam, Han-shir and Xir'tan. The first were were enormous land masses that were divided into various provinces whilst the third was an island somewhat larger than the Earth continent of Australia. (LUG roleplay module: The Way of Kolinahr: The Vulcans

On this world, it was the heat of summer that led to the vegetation dying but when the rains came, the gardens on the planet came to life. During the hotter moments on Vulcan, there were only carnivorous plants out in the desert that were still active which survived in times of drought by catching any animal that was weakened by thirst. (TOS novel: The Vulcan Academy Murders) Typically, there were no lost civilizations on the planet as new cities were always integrated into the older ones which meant that ruins remained. In addition, the planet's manufacturing and heavy industry had, for centuries, been conducted in the asteroid belt within the system. The only industry that was allowed on the surface were those that neither despoiled the environment nor disturbed its transquility such as music crafting. (TOS novel: Dwellers in the Crucible)

Vulcan was a dry, desert planet, with two great seas; The Vulcan population lived in impressive cities with an approximate population of 4.9 billion in the year 2378. It was unknown how Vulcan can maintain the oxygen in its atmosphere, since there is little discernible plant life on the surface of the planet. If it does not have a suitable source of oxygen, the atmosphere should theoretically be used up in a matter of years. Vulcan is also very geologically active, and is home to a number of impressive lava spectacles, including the Fire Falls. ^{[citation needed]}

Vulcan's orbital period (year) is 203 days long. ^{[citation needed]}

[edit] History

Though currently a dry desert planet that occupies 96% of the world's surface, fossil records have determined that early Vulcan possessed 90% water along with a few islands with nothing but a hot sea present on the planet. Thousands of years later, when the proto-Vulcans developed and began to form tribes did 40 Eridani A erupt in a massive solar flare that scorched the planet's surface which resulted in many native creatures dying though those on the opposite end of the planet survived in caves or other shelters. (TOS novel: Spock's World)

Early in the Dominion War, Benjamin Sisko expressed his concerns to Admiral Zach Warner that the Dominion would eventually be able to invade Vulcan if Starfleet kept up its defense posture. The routes between Vulcan and Earth and Alpha Centauri were critical to the Federation. (DS9 novelizations: Call to Arms..., ...Sacrifice of Angels)

The concerns for Vulcan lasted throughout the year, with fighting near the Vulcan border. Later, the fall of Betazed made the possibility of an invasion of Vulcan very likely. (DS9 episodes: "Favor the Bold", "In the Pale Moonlight", "The Reckoning")

During the Borg Invasion of 2381, several Borg cubes moved to attack Vulcan. They managed to begin an orbital bombardment which inflicted severe damage to notable locations on the planet, including the Vulcan's Forge. However, the planet was saved from destruction when former Earth Captain Erika Hernandez managed to influence the collective to attack itself, severely damaging the cubes attacking Vulcan, which were later destroyed by a Starfleet task force including the USS Atlas and USS Prometheus.

Major Spoilers
WARNING! This article contains MAJOR spoilers for the recently released film Star Trek (2009). Caution is advised.

In the alternate timeline created by Nero's temporal incursion, Vulcan was destroyed in the year 2258. The planet was obliterated by an artificial singularity created when Nero launched a red matter device into the planet's core. Of a population of 6 billion, approximately ten thousand escaped the devastation, and though their cultural legacy would survive, the Vulcan people became an endangered species. (Star Trek)

[edit] Geography

A map of Vulcan's surface (Decipher RPG)

An atlas of Vulcan (Last Unicorn Games)

Alternate surface details (See below) (Worlds of the Federation)

Vulcan's Forge, circa 2137

[edit] Seas

Thanar Sea, also known locally as the Eastern Sea
Voroth Sea, presumably also known as the Western Sea
Great T'Kala Sea

[edit] Continents (and Provinces)

[edit] Regions

[edit] Points of Interest

[edit] Cities

[edit] Volcanos

[edit] Natural History

[edit] Flora

[edit] Fauna

Contradicting the Vulcan RPG manual, The Worlds of the Federation shows a different Vulcan surface and star system which has much less ocean and more minor lakes.

[edit] External link

Vulcan (planet) article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.

Create a new article Upload a new image
Recent changes Help Search	Random page Special pages What links here Recent changes Random page