Rigel system

AT: "xx" The Rigel system was a planetary system. This system consisted of a primary and at least twelve planets. The primary was named Rigel. Several of these planets were either suitable for colonization by or were the homeworlds of humanoid life-forms. By the mid-23rd century, many of these worlds were inhabited. An asteroid field was located 2 days away at impulse speed from Rigel XII. This system was located within 90 light years of the Sol system. (TOS: "Mudd's Women", "The Doomsday Machine", ENT: "Broken Bow")

By the mid-22nd century, this system had been charted and explored by both the Klingons and the Vulcans. Klingons had named this system Rigel, a name that was adopted by the Vulcans and later the Humans. In 2151, Captain Jonathan Archer used the Vulcan star charts to plot a course to this system. (ENT: "Broken Bow")

In the mid-23rd century, the Rigel system was part of the most densely populated section of the Milky Way Galaxy. (TOS: "The Doomsday Machine") The native species living in the system include the Rigelians of Rigel V, (TOS: "Journey to Babel") the similarly named Rigellians, (Star Trek: The Motion Picture) the Kalar of Rigel VII (TOS: "The Cage") and the Hill People of Rigel IV. (TOS: "Wolf in the Fold") By the mid-23rd century, there were also Humans living in the Rigel system. (TOS: "Mudd's Women", "Shore Leave") The Rigelian hypnoid and Rigellian ox were native animal species to the Rigel system. (TAS: "Mudd's Passion"; TNG: "The Schizoid Man") Ratana trees were from this system. (DS9: "Rejoined")

The Barros Inn was known to be one of the wildest bars in the system. (DS9: "Rejoined") Rigelian chocolates and the Rigelian flame gem are other items from this system, as are the diseases Rigelian fever and Rigelian Kassaba fever. (TOS: "By Any Other Name", "Requiem for Methuselah", ENT: "Twilight", DS9: "Chimera") Moon over Rigel VII was a song with fairly simple lyrics, inspired by a natural satellite of Rigel VII. (Star Trek V: The Final Frontier)

History

File:RigelVII-Holberg917G fortress.jpg

A Kalar castle on Rigel VII

The Rigel colony on Rigel X

A lithium mining station on Rigel XII

In 2151, the Rigel system was the first star system visited by the Enterprise NX-01, the first Earth starship with the warp 5 engine, after it departed from the Sol system. The Rigel colony on Rigel X was a popular trade complex at the time, visited by numerous species. (ENT: "Broken Bow")

By the mid-2150s, Rigelians from Rigel V were visiting Earth. (ENT: "Home", "Affliction") In early 2155, the Rigelians participated in talks discussing their wish to join as a possible member in the Coalition of Planets along with Humans, Tellarites, Andorians, Coridans and Vulcans. (ENT: "Demons", "Terra Prime")

In 2254, a landing party from the USS Enterprise was attacked by the native Kalar warriors on Rigel VII. (TOS: "The Cage", "The Menagerie, Part I", "The Menagerie, Part II") By the 24th century, the Kalar castles of Rigel VII had become tourist attractions. (DS9: "What You Leave Behind")

In 2266, several women on Rigel IV were murdered by Redjac. (TOS: "Wolf in the Fold") During the same year, Harcourt Mudd, using the illegal Venus drug, attempted to sell Eve McHuron, Ruth Bonaventure and Magda Kovacs to lithium miners on Rigel XII. (TOS: "Mudd's Women")

Some time before 2267, Leonard McCoy visited Rigel II where he met two female cabaret dancers. (TOS: "Shore Leave")

In 2267, the Rigel system had a population in the millions. This system was threatened by the planet killer until the combined efforts of the starships USS Constellation and USS Enterprise destroyed the extragalactic doomsday weapon. (TOS: "The Doomsday Machine")

In 2327, Ensign Jean-Luc Picard had a two dates on Starbase Earhart with Penny Muroc who was from the Rigel system. (TNG: "Tapestry")

In the 2360s, Starfleet Academy cadets of the Nova Squadron won the Rigel Cup, where fighter pilots compete for piloting excellence. (TNG: "The First Duty")

During the Dominion War, Federation had a pergium refinery on Rigel IV. (DS9: "Prodigal Daughter")

In an alternate future, Geordi La Forge was living with his wife and children on Rigel III. (TNG: "All Good Things...")

Location

The Rigel star system was part of the constellation Orion as it was seen from Earth. (TNG: "Family") The Rigel system was located between Sol and Argelius II (TOS: "Wolf in the Fold") near the star systems L-370 and L-374. (TOS: "The Doomsday Machine")

The location of the Rigel system had been depicted in several Federation star charts. A large star chart depicted the location of Rigel in the Milky Way Galaxy in 2293. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country) In 2367, the location of Rigel was depicted on a tactical situation monitor in Captain Benjamin Maxwell's ready room on the USS Phoenix. (TNG: "The Wounded") One star chart depicted Rigel near Vega. This chart was displayed in astrometrics on USS Voyager in 2376. (VOY: "Child's Play")

In an alternate 2366, Rigel was marked on a tactical situation monitor showing the fleet deployments in the Federation-Klingon War. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise" display graphic)

Rigel, the lower right star of the constellation Orion

Star-chart alpha-beta quadrant.jpg

The location of Rigel on "The Explored Galaxy" wall chart

The location of Rigel on a tactical situation monitor

The Rigel system in relation to Pollux IV, Jouret IV, Vega, and Organia

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Background information

The Rigel system cannot be farther away than 90 light years, as Archer referred to Risa in ENT: "Two Days and Two Nights" as being the farthest away from Earth any Human had gone to that point. This visit to the vacation planet was after Rigel X had been visited on the Enterprise's maiden flight.

"The Explored Galaxy"

This chart was also seen in several Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episodes set in the 24th century, from the year 2364 to 2370. These were: TNG: "Conspiracy", "The Measure Of A Man", "The Emissary", "The Mind's Eye", "The Game" and DS9: "In the Hands of the Prophets", "Cardassians".

Star Trek: Star Charts

The author and illustrator, Geoffrey Mandel, believed that there were two systems that shared the same name. The two systems were Beta Rigel and Beta Orionis (the "true" Rigel).

Beta Rigel System

Beta Rigel was the closer of the two systems. This star was located in or near Federation space, in the Beta Quadrant. The star was named Beta Rigel by Earth astronomers for its perceived proximity to Beta Orionis. The primary, Beta Rigel, was a spectral class A5V star with an absolute magnitude of 6.2. There were 10 planets in this system, and four of them were classified as Class M. In the mid-22nd century, Beta Rigel was a destination on the Vulcan space lanes. In 2151, the Enterprise visited this system on its maiden voyage. Over two centuries later, in the late 24th century, Beta Rigel was a destination on the major space lanes. All four of the system's Class M planets were Federation members.

"True" Rigel (Beta Orionis)

"True" Rigel (Beta Orionis) was a bright blue binary star system located 773 light years from Sol. This system had more than ten planets.

"True" Rigel was located in the Beta Quadrant. Rigel A was a Class B star with a magnitude of -7. Rigel B was a Class B star. This system was located in non-aligned space.

(Pgs. 36, 45, 59, "United Federation of Planets II")

Apocryphal

According to the reference book Worlds of the Federation (page 36), the Rigel system and the Orion system are one and the same. Rigel VIII being the homeworld of the Orion species. According to the book, Rigel II and Rigel IV were colonized by Humans.

According to the Last Unicorn Games and Decipher role-playing games, the Rigellians are known as "Chelarians" and they are from Rigel III.

External links

• Rigel at Wikipedia
• Rigel at the Internet Stellar Database
• Template:NCwiki