Built by Starfleet to usher in a new age of exploration and diplomacy, Starbase Yorktown
represented the pinnacle of Federation technology and architectural design.
Rather than being a typical facility on or around a Federation member planet, Yorktown
was positioned alone in space to avoid showing any level of favoritism towards any particular world.
The enormous sphere was reminiscent of the core section of Earth's older Starbase 1,
though any further resemblance ended there.
Rather than the station's superstructure being spherical, Yorktown instead was a vast mostly
empty ball, holding in the atmosphere for the artificial world contained within.
During the day, the atmosphere was the clear blue of a summer's day, with the atmospheric
haze being visible even from outside.
Somehow the station had a night time, though it's unclear whether this was due to being
in orbit around some unseen planet or a sunshield shadowing it, or through other artificial means.
The actual facilities and housing for the base were all built onto a series of looping,
swirling arches crisscrossing the internal volume,
and were large enough to house millions of beings.
These city buildings were far more “Federation civilian” than “Starfleet navy” in appearance
and purpose, with ample space for the arts, culture, parks, museums, nightlife and gardens.
Inhabitants and visitors could get around simply by walking in the open air, by taking
a monorail or shuttle to their destination, or using one of the many public transporters.
These transporters did make the monorail completely obsolete though, as there simply could have
been yet more transporters at each station along a line rather than a train.
One of the most important aspects of Yorktown's design
was the heavy integration of artificial gravity fields.
Not only were these vital for the myriad buildings and outdoor spaces,
but also for the circulation of air inside the vast bubble.
Using the wildly varying directions of gravity to direct the airflow around the structure
and towards the core air circulation system is simply genius.
Despite the civilian cityscapes, Yorktown still had a sizable set of docks for Starfleet
ships to moor at, as well as drydocks for repairs and construction.
Unlike the exterior mooring points that Starbase 1 had, those that Yorktown had were all interior,
on the sides of the “spacelanes” that crisscrossed the habitable sphere of the station.
These spacelanes were large tunnels that some of the city sections were built atop, evoking
images of large ship canals from 20th century Earth.
These lanes all converged at a central void, which allowed ships to transfer between them.
Unfortunately, they had a lot of flaws, chiefly that they didn't seem large enough to allow
ships to safely pass each other.
When the Enterprise docked, it must’ve blocked out the entire spacelane either side of it.
There was another vessel docked behind it, but it's unclear if the Enterprise carefully
squeezed past this on the way to its own berthing, or if the second craft arrived later.
As the Enterprise did that high speed launch there must’ve been no other ships in the
way, meaning that it also reserved the entire lane in front of it as well.
It seems very odd to build such a large civilian station on the edge of a completely uncharted
nebula where any unknown threat could suddenly present itself, but it did at least have a
number of defensive systems, from turret emplacements to a satellite cordon.
Any ships present could also protect the starbase, but they would’ve had to have navigated
the busy spacelanes to depart.
Before Krall attacked, all of these ships were lured away to search for the Enterprise,
leaving the starbase vulnerable.
Also, the station may appear fragile,
"Looks like a damn snowglobe in space, just waiting to break."
but it's very likely that the translucent outer shell was shielded, as Krall headed
for the large physical doors that protected the entrance to the spacelanes, rather than
the surface of the bubble itself.
In an effort to maintain a politically neutral position between new Federation members, the
starbase and its inhabitants were left vulnerable to attack thanks to short sighted decisions
made by Federation leadership.
However, its visual design is absolutely stunning, a truly awe inspiring example of the technology
of the time, and a vast monument to the ideals of the Federation.
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