Tour - Main Bridge

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Summary

Primary operational control of a Galaxy-class starship is provided by the main bridge, located on Deck 1 of the primary hull (commonly referred to as the saucer section). The main bridge directly supervises all primary mission operations (with the exception of the shuttlebays and assorted craft) and coordinates all departmental activities.

As with most starships, the main bridge is an ejectable module and can be completely replaced with another bridge if the need calls for it. Different Galaxy-class starships have different bridge designs.

Additional Information

Location		Deck 01
Description		The forward bulkhead is dominated by the primary viewscreen. Directly aft of this are the operations and conn (helm & navigation) positions. It should be noted that helm control can either be operated from the left or right forward stations or, in some cases, from the tactical station. It also should be noted that the operations console is capable of communications, scanning, and course navigations. At the very center of the room is the command area - the captain's chair at the center, flanked by chairs for the first officer to the right and an additional officer (typically the ship's counselor or chief medical officer) to the left. These command chairs have been raised two steps above the forward stations so as to provide command staff with an unobstructed view of the forward viewscreen. Each of these command stations include consoles for shipboard systems access. Smaller backless seats are located on the edges of the command area for other officers to sit should the need arise. The tactical console, positioned directly behind the captain, is located in the wooden handrail that encircles the rear half of the central command area. The aft bulkhead carries several additional consoles. These can be customized as needed. When operating with the standard configuration, Mission Operations/Environmental Control and Engineering I/Engineering II take up the entirety of the aft workstations. The stations feature pullout seats below the console which are normally flush with the panel below the stations. The bridge is also equipped with two food replicators. By necessity, the bridge has easy access to and from all other important areas of the ship. In all, there are six doors leading from the room. Moving clockwise from the primary viewscreen, the first door (level with and to the right of the conn) leads directly to the battle bridge emergency turbolift. At the rear right of the bridge, a shallow alcove contains two doors: one of which leads to a head and the other to a corridor leading to the observation lounge. The door at the rear left of the room opens onto a standard turbolift. Continuing around, the fifth door leads into the captain's ready room and the sixth to another turbolift. Since the development of the Galaxy-class, several different bridge modules have been deployed throughout the fleet. The Magellan's current bridge includes six additional stations, three on each side of the bridge, replacing the equipment lockers found on many older modules. The three starboard stations are designated Science I, Science II, and Science III. The three port stations are designated Communications I, Communications II, and Communications III.