Temporal mechanics

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"I hate temporal mechanics!"

- Miles O'Brien, past and future copies

Temporal mechanics is the study of the workings of time and its effects on the space-time continuum, and is particularly relevant when dealing with time travel. As late as 2154, time travel was deemed impossible by the Vulcan Science Directorate.

The United Federation of Planets has had some form of time travel ability since at least 2268. It is possible that at least some of the current and future regulations regarding time travel can trace their origins back to this date. However, capability at this point was most likely inaccurate, making any attempt at time travel experimental and dangerous. Temporal mechanics is taught at Star Fleet Academy.


Documented Time Travel

  • As of 2378, at least 40 different instances of some form of time travel had been noted in Federation records. Technologically speaking, the Federation's capabilities concerning time travel have remained unclear.
  • The USS Enterprise under Captain Kirk first experienced time travel in 2266 when an emergency cold starting of its warp drive slingshot the ship and crew 71 hours into the past. In 2267, after an encounter with a black star, the Enterprise was hurled 300 years into the past. Eventually, the Enterprise's science officer Spock devised a method for returning the Enterprise back to its original period. Though other instances of time travel had been noted, this appears to be the first instance of controlled time travel by the Federation. Later that year, officers Kirk, Spock and McCoy traveled to Earth's early 20th century and back via the Guardian of Forever. Sometime in 2268 the same Enterprise traveled back in time, using the light-speed breakaway factor, to 1968 on a historical research mission.
  • In 2286, Admiral James T. Kirk and his senior staff took a stolen Klingon Bird-of-Prey back in time to the year 1986 to retrieve a pair of then-extinct humpback whales to save Earth from destruction by an alien probe.
  • Also in 2373, an encounter with the 29th century timeship Aeon threw Voyager back to an alternate 1996. History was set right when Captain Janeway destroyed the timeship before it could travel to the future and accidentally cause a temporal explosion. Voyager was returned to the correct time by an alternate version of the Aeon from the correct timeline.


Temporal Cold War

The events of the Temporal Cold War further complicate the understanding of Federation time travel capabilities.


As early as the 26th century, historians and anthropologists used "Time-travel pods" to travel through time to observe historical events. Crewman Daniels, an alleged time traveler from the 31st century, used a Time Travel pod to show Jonathan Archer a group of time-traveling anthropologists from 2769 observing the building of the pyramids of Giza. As of the 29th century, a time traveling faction represented by a "mysterious individual" could only communicate and exchange information and technologies through time, appearing as a non-corporeal entities. By the 31st century, this technology was perfected to allow physical travel.


According to Daniels, all time travelers were bound by the observance of strict procedures set forth in the Temporal Accords. Daniels stated that the Temporal Accords were enacted after time travel was developed by all time travel–capable species to prevent catastrophic tampering with the timeline.


By 2153, the Sphere Builders, a group previously thought to possess the ability to examine alternate timelines, sent Xindi-Reptilians back to 21st century Detroit to develop a bioweapon to destroy the Human race.

Ultimately, the war ended when the Na'kuhl returned from an alternate 1944 (created by their very actions) and caused the Cold War to go hot with time-travelers changing time as they liked. Daniels brought Enterprise and Archer back to 1944 to stop Vosk, leader of the Nak'uhl, from returning to the future. With the help of a member of another faction of the Temporal Cold War, Archer shut off Vosk's compound's shields, allowing Enterprise to destroy it and thus destroying the temporal conduit and killing Vosk just as he was about to travel back to the future.


Known Methods

Paradoxes

See also