Terraforming
Terraforming is the process of reshaping or otherwise modifying the ecology of a planet or moon, in order to make it more habitable for life.
The opposite is thought to be the medical procedure known as bioforming.
Process
Terraforming begins with first selecting a planet that has the right mass, gravity, rate of rotation, and balanced periods of day and night, and which is located in its sun's habitable zone.
- Federation efforts at terraforming were coordinated by a division called "Terraform Command," and ensured both that there was no life on the planet, and that life would never naturally occur without outside interference. Terraforming stations would then be established.
The next step involves making water available for life, in water basins. This can be done using hydraulic landscaping, sometimes with the additional step of filtering and re-oxygenating the subsurface water, or by directing water-rich comets into the planet's surface. If the water on the planet has an incredibly high salt content, portions of it can be desalinated in order to meet terrestrial and agricultural needs. Microorganisms are then introduced as the first constituents of the biosphere, permitting its atmosphere into self-sustaining oxygen production. As the biosphere expands, higher order plants are introduced.
- One of the key metrics of this process being successful is the close monitoring of the amount of vegetation on the planet.
Following the previous steps, industrial replicators will allow for the manufacturing of large volumes of volatile compounds, and elements critical for life (Carbon dioxide, Nitrogen, Ammonia, methane, etc.).
- Terraformers have accelerated this part of the process: as of 2364, it would only would take around 30 years to build a habitable world, compared to millions or billions of years in nature. (
Terraforming can also be done on a smaller scale, as so to correct an imbalance in a planet's geosphere or climate.
Terraforming Projects
- Mars:
One of Humanity's first terraforming projects was the planet Mars, in their own local solar system. A verteron array located near the newly-established "Utopia Colony" periodically redirected comets into the planet's ice caps, which allowed for the releasing of trapped carbon dioxide, and added water. By 2155, Mars' atmosphere had been thickened enough that pressure gear was not required for humanoids to survive in the Martian lowlands, although thermal clothes and a supply of oxygen were still necessary.
In the 23rd century, despite the harsh climate, Venus was home to a Human agricultural colony and a Federation shipyard. By 2223, the world had a population of 2.57 billion individuals, mostly Human, and the government was a full-status colonial member of the Federation. By the 24th century, efforts were underway to fully terraform the planet. Several terraforming stations were established on the surface.
In the 2280s, Project Genesis emerged, a torpedo that could transform a barren world into a habitable one almost instantaneously. The device was detonated during the Battle of the Mutara Nebula in 2285.
The planet it had created destabilized in a matter of months, scientists deciding it was due to the protomatter used from the nebula. The technology of the Genesis Device was abandoned.
Terraforming Devices
