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That's no Moon. It's a space SHIP.

super-heated plasma

super-heated plasma

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,728
The Death Star was a space ship not a space station. It could travel anywhere in the galaxy with light speed. It could maneuver around solar systems, albeit maybe slower than a Star Destroyer. Just because it was much larger than a typical capitol ship, and round like a moon, does not negate this fact. Its a ship, George, not a station.

Come at me.
 
Lord Error

Lord Error

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,369
I think the OP is right. If it can move from planet to planet, it's a ship. Station is supposed to be stationary, like in a fixed orbit. I don't think landing matters either - the ship from 2001 Space Odyssey definitely couldn't land anywhere, but it was still a ship, no? Same with the ship from Sunshine.

Syriel said:
The ISS moves thru space. We still call it a station and not a ship.
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Isn't it in a fixed orbit? I don't mean geostationary orbit, but in a more or less constant, same orbit.
 

Hound

Member
Jul 6, 2019
1,840
They didn't know what they were looking at. Of course they'd identify it as a station given its size.
 
BLEEN

BLEEN

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Oct 27, 2017
21,890
Space stations maneuver around solar systems too. Just not in the typical way you might think.

Technically everything is zipping and zooming through and around solar systems.
 
Digital Dinosaur

Digital Dinosaur

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Oct 25, 2017
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Rita Repulsa's Moon Palace
There's actually been fairly interesting conversations about the very idea of sci-fi mega-ships and how, regardless of whether such a thing can fly under its own power, it is useless to call it a "ship" after a certain point.

Really huge, self-propelled constructs don't serve a practical military function typically assigned to "ships". Their only sensible purpose is as a mobile base of operations.

Personally, I do prefer to classify something that isn't intended to be moved regularly as a station. I might call the Death Star a mobile base, because it's clearly meant to travel around continuously (otherwise it wouldn't be much of a threat). But it can't be called a ship or a vessel.
 
Lord Error

Lord Error

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Oct 27, 2017
4,369
I think, as mentioned above, that the rebels just misidentified it. Anyone would think it's a station given its look and size.

NH Apache said:
First post again lol. This is exactly it
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Is this a joke/reference that I don't know? Because I don't think that landing is the deciding distinction. It seems really that most realistic space ships would be built in space, and would never be able to land anywhere.

BLEEN said:
Space stations maneuver around solar systems too. Just not in the typical way you might think.

Technically everything is zipping and zooming through and around solar systems.
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That is more pedantic and philosophical. As long as they are staying more or less in the same orbit around something, they are being a station, I think.
 
VorpalNonsense

VorpalNonsense

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Oct 25, 2017
14,651
It could travel but it's primary purpose was not as a vehicle but as a base and a weapon platform which makes station feel appropriate. It did not move frequently.
they didn't need to build it that big just for the laser. It was a base. Which makes it more station than vehicle. It didn't do much traveling. But you could say it's both.
 
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BLEEN

BLEEN

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Oct 27, 2017
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Lord Error said:
I think, as mentioned above, that the rebels just misidentified it. Anyone would think it's a station given its look and size.


Is this a joke/reference that I don't know? Because I don't think that landing is the deciding distinction. It seems really that most realistic space ships would be built in space, and would never be able to land anywhere.


That is more pedantic and philosophical. As long as they are staying more or less in the same orbit around something, they are being a station, I think.
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I know 😂 I was being extra pedantic.
 
Lump

Lump

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Oct 25, 2017
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Any space station that can move on its own at will through space is a space ship.

Come at me.


All space ships can be space stations, but all space stations cannot be space ships.
 
Lonewolf

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super-heated plasma said:
The Death Star was a space ship not a space station. It could travel anywhere in the galaxy with light speed. It could maneuver around solar systems, albeit maybe slower than a Star Destroyer. Just because it was much larger than a typical capitol ship, and round like a moon, does not negate this fact. Its a ship, George, not a station.

Come at me.
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When that line is uttered the Death Star is stationary and the size of a moon, much larger than a typical ship and easy for Obi Wan to mistake it for a station. Context matters.
 
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deimosmasque

deimosmasque

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The thing can move through hyperspace and travel through a Star system fast enough to be a real threat. There is nothing stationary about it.
 
Keldroc

Keldroc

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Oct 27, 2017
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super-heated plasma said:
The Death Star was a space ship not a space station. It could travel anywhere in the galaxy with light speed. It could maneuver around solar systems, albeit maybe slower than a Star Destroyer. Just because it was much larger than a typical capitol ship, and round like a moon, does not negate this fact. Its a ship, George, not a station.

Come at me.
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There's no such thing as a "space ship." There are spacecraft, which is any spaceworthy vessel, of which space stations are a subclass. The only requirements to be a space station are to have docking capability and provide a long-term habitat environment for people to stay on the craft. The ability to move has nothing to do with anything, as motion is relative, and thus everything in space is moving in some frame of reference or another. Therefore, the Death Star is, in fact, a space station, which is a type of spacecraft.
 
Lump

Lump

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Keldroc said:
There's no such thing as a "space ship." There are spacecraft, which is any spaceworthy vessel, of which space stations are a subclass. The only requirements to be a space station are to have docking capability and provide a long-term habitat environment for people to stay on the craft. The ability to move has nothing to do with anything, as motion is relative, and thus everything in space is moving in some frame of reference or another. Therefore, the Death Star is, in fact, a space station, which is a type of spacecraft.
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n9YWsnh.jpg
 
gforguava

gforguava

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Oct 25, 2017
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A station gets its name not from itself being stationary but rather because it is a place one stops at.

A fire station is the place where firefighters stay when not out firefighting, battle stations are where you are ordered to stay when in combat, a "station" is a place where you stay, and since the Death Star is clearly a military base in function its designation is entirely fitting.
 
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Gustaf

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Oct 28, 2017
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also, i mean, obi wan doesn't know it can move thru space, hence he thinks is a station
 
Clay

Clay

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Oct 29, 2017
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super-heated plasma said:
The Death Star was a space ship not a space station. It could travel anywhere in the galaxy with light speed. It could maneuver around solar systems, albeit maybe slower than a Star Destroyer. Just because it was much larger than a typical capitol ship, and round like a moon, does not negate this fact. Its a ship, George, not a station.

Come at me.
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How much of this did Obi-Wan know when he said that line? Presumably he was mostly commenting on its size. I don't believe he had any idea of its capabilities at the time.
 
ThereAreFourNaan

ThereAreFourNaan

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Nov 8, 2017
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But why are they "Star Destroyers" when they are also stated to be "Imperial Cruisers"?

(don't give me the EU stuff here I know the 'answer')

Bluebot said:
The Death Star can't land making it a space station.
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Spacecraft / spaceships are not required to be able to land. Indeed, many real world spacecraft proposals don't because surviving reentry is extremely challenging. Also a lot of fictional ones. The ISV Venture Star from Avatar is a more realistic example, the Enterprise from Trek is a less realistic one.
 
Uncle Squingis

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It's a space station because ObiWan definitely consulted the Force regarding its classification before opening his mouth.
 
Shoe

Shoe

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Obi-Wan is literally seeing the thing for the first time as he says that line. How's he supposed to know if it can travel freely or not?
 
Lonewolf

Lonewolf

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Zero-ELEC

Zero-ELEC

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gforguava said:
A station gets its name not from itself being stationary but rather because it is a place one stops at.

A fire station is the place where firefighters stay when not out firefighting, battle stations are where you are ordered to stay when in combat, a "station" is a place where you stay, and since the Death Star is clearly a military base in function its designation is entirely fitting.
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Does that mean Star Destroyers are space stations as well?
 
colui

colui

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It's also the first time he sees something like that. Give him a break.
 

Ecotic

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In Star Wars canon, it seems nothing like the Death Star has ever been attempted or built before. It's a mobile station and base of operations, a warship, and possibly a fleet carrier if Star Destroyers can be housed and launched from it. It probably requires a new classification and term entirely.
 
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