Enterprise-A bridge dimensions

[admiral_reliant]

I know it's been asked before in terms of the TOS bridge but does anyone have any idea how big the bridge would be from The Undiscovered Country?

It looks quite a bit larger than the TOS bridge but how much bigger.

Are there any members here that are trained architects that may be able to extrapolate size when compared to the actors, door frame sizes, distance walked in steps to and from a point of reference?

I'm planning on making a full size version so some ideas would be great.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I'm curious about this too, but because I want to know if it'd fit in the bridge dome which was designed for the TMP bridge.

I also wonder if the V and VI bridges really are in fact the same set, since V's looks so spacious but VI so cramped. It can't all be lighting, paint and angles, can it?

 

[Galileo7]

I'm curious about this too, but because I want to know if it'd fit in the bridge dome which was designed for the TMP bridge.

I also wonder if the V and VI bridges really are in fact the same set, since V's looks so spacious but VI so cramped. It can't all be lighting, paint and angles, can it?

Agree, I wondered too if TFF Bridge was reconfigured including turbolifts positions and redressed for TUC or was it built new for TUC.

 

[trekfan39]

Same set guys. they took it apart after ST V and put in in storage then rebuilt it for ST VI.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

I love this style of Trek design, especially with the blue-green LCARS.

 

[Richard Baker]

I hate the way they keep moving the turbolifts- even if this is a swappable module all the connecting shafts have to be realigned to match up.
IIRC the ST6 bridge was made to look smaller by adding the beams around the edges so the camera had to always look around something...

 

[Mark_Nguyen]

I've rationalized that they were able to move the location of the turbolifts with the idea that Deck 2 would have a horizontal shaft that would serve as the "storage" area for a spare lift car. When they swapped the bridge module and thus the door location, the space for the lift on Deck 1 would still be sitting on top of the horizontal shaft on Deck 2. Thus, while the actual trip in the turbolift wouldn't be straight up and down, they wouldn't have to rip out several decks of turboshaft just to keep the elevators working.

Mark

 

[F. King Daniel]

If nobody has the original 1701-A set dimensions from STV or VI, how about Voyager's USS Excelsior reproduction for "Flashback"? It was later recycled as the Dauntless, the Prometheus and the Equinox.

 

[Richard Baker]

I've rationalized that they were able to move the location of the turbolifts with the idea that Deck 2 would have a horizontal shaft that would serve as the "storage" area for a spare lift car. When they swapped the bridge module and thus the door location, the space for the lift on Deck 1 would still be sitting on top of the horizontal shaft on Deck 2. Thus, while the actual trip in the turbolift wouldn't be straight up and down, they wouldn't have to rip out several decks of turboshaft just to keep the elevators working.

Mark

I like this idea except when you move the turbolifts along the sides of the bridge, from closer together with one module and almost on opposite sides in another module, the connections shift in two directions. They move both horizontally and also towards the nose- the only way to make that work would be to have an open area in deck 2 under the bridge so the turbolift cars would enter, slosh around to where the bridge shafts now are then continue upwards.

 

[Ithekro]

Maybe they removed the security checkpoint on B deck that no one ever used and thus could shift the turbolifts around. So that on later starships, people could just go to the bridge, regardless of who they were without question.

 

[Timo]

That "Deck Two security area" seemed to be a case of Shane Johnson misunderstanding the dialogue from "The Enterprise Incident" and thinking that the Romulan Commandress was being escorted to some sort of a holding cell on Deck 2. But it appears she was going to luxury guest quarters instead...

A horseshoe corridor for storing and shuffling turbolifts right below Deck 1 makes sense, as the Bridge indeed should be kept constantly supplied with lift cabs. After the lifts are done shuffling, they no doubt travel up and down along two vertical shafts spaced exactly as shown on the Rec Deck forward wall in ST:TMP (since right aft of the saucer center axis is the only place where the Rec Deck could be located).

Of course, Deck 1 and Deck 2 are relative measures - there also appears to be a Deck 0 on which the upper docking port is situated, because that docking port is accessed via turbolift from the Bridge and therefore cannot be on the same deck. And moving the Bridge down a bit from the docking port level lets one move the turbolift stations at will, too, without having them protrude to the outside of the hull...

...But once that's done, the horseshoe corridor could be on Deck 1 just as well.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[trekfan39]

That "Deck Two security area" seemed to be a case of Shane Johnson misunderstanding the dialogue from "The Enterprise Incident" and thinking that the Romulan Commandress was being escorted to some sort of a holding cell on Deck 2. But it appears she was going to luxury guest quarters instead...

A horseshoe corridor for storing and shuffling turbolifts right below Deck 1 makes sense, as the Bridge indeed should be kept constantly supplied with lift cabs. After the lifts are done shuffling, they no doubt travel up and down along two vertical shafts spaced exactly as shown on the Rec Deck forward wall in ST:TMP (since right aft of the saucer center axis is the only place where the Rec Deck could be located).

Of course, Deck 1 and Deck 2 are relative measures - there also appears to be a Deck 0 on which the upper docking port is situated, because that docking port is accessed via turbolift from the Bridge and therefore cannot be on the same deck. And moving the Bridge down a bit from the docking port level lets one move the turbolift stations at will, too, without having them protrude to the outside of the hull...

...But once that's done, the horseshoe corridor could be on Deck 1 just as well.

Timo Saloniemi

No deck 0 Timo the bridge docking port area was also on deck 1 and was only accessible though the turbolift which spins around to give you access to that area.

 

[Timo]

Which is utter nonsense to begin with. Why would the engineers do anything so idiotic?

Having the docking port on a different level altogether is a win-win interpretation:

1) The bridge actually fits inside the hull. Not just this bridge, but all the later ones as well.
2) There is a rationale for making the docking port accessible via turbolift rather than, say, a doorway.
3) If the turbolift just rotated, why didn't Spock make use of this feature? We see him depart the docking level, then take a turbolift ride to some unknown destination, and then enter the bridge - some time after Chekov has taken his own, somehow more direct ride to the bridge, as he's already there to welcome Spock. If the lift actually goes somewhere, perhaps this somewhere was a worthwhile detour for Spock to take?

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Ithekro]

Spock went down to use the head then came back up to greet the Admiral. It was a long trip from Vulcan.

 

[David cgc]

some time after Chekov has taken his own, somehow more direct ride to the bridge, as he's already there to welcome Spock.

It wasn't that much "more direct." The first time we see Chekov in that scene, he's stepping away from the same lift doors and then turning around to look at Spock with everyone else. The implication seems to be that he was in the same cab as Spock, and then sidled out between Spock and Uhura during Kirk's reaction shot.

It's actually kind of funny, now that I look at it, seeing him awkwardly find his blocking. I'm guessing someone on set made the same point you did, and rather than have Chekov staged like he's Spock's bellboy, standing just behind him, they just gave him a little business in the second wide-angle shot so eagle-eyed fans could assume he was just out of sight in the first shot. And it looks like they're the same setup (lighting, angle, monitor videos all match), so there's probably a master shot somewhere in the Paramount vault that includes Koenig gingerly scootching out the door.

 

[Timo]

Wow, talk about being in error... I've never noticed this detail. Yes, the whole thing about Chekov somehow getting past Spock is a misunderstanding, apparently. There's room for Chekov to hide in the turbolift in Spock's bridge entry shot.

Although is Koenig really there? The Trekcore shot shows Spock's twin shadows, the one away from turbolift centerline being the sharper one. The lift floor is otherwise free of shadows... Is the lift lit only by the "in-universe" overhead light and its reflections?

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Mytran]

The apparent magical appearance of Chekov is a "nit" that first read about in Phil Farrand's series of books but one that never seemed to exist, from my POV. When Spock arrives the camera only shows us about half the turbolift, plenty of room for Chekov to be standing there. Spock walks out and to the side and the doors remain open. We then get a shot of Kirk spinning round in his chair, followed by a closeup of Spock, the doors now closed behind him (we did heat the sound). Next wide shot has Chekov walking past Uhura to stand beside her.

The only mystery then is WHY Chekov chose to stay in the turbolift so long after Spock exited, and why he took such a long time to walk past Uhura. But in purely practical terms, he's got all the time & space required