Buzz
Stardates serve as the chronological framework within the Star Trek universe. Initially conceived as a flexible notion in the original series, the system gained depth over time, becoming a crucial element in the narrative.
Steps to Stardate Calculation
Converting Common Dates into Stardates
Understanding the Duration of a Year: Each Earth year encompasses 1000 stardate units.
Assess the Duration of Your Year: Typically, a year spans 365 days, extending to 366 in a leap year. This quantity is denoted as n.
Select a Reference Date: Your reference date serves as the cornerstone for subsequent computations. You have two options: 2005 = 58000.00 and 2323 = 00000.00 The standard year (2005 or 2323) is now designated as b, while the stardate year (58000.00 or 00000.00) is referred to as c.
Determine the 'Month Number':
This figure, denoted as m, corresponds to the following values: January = 0; February = 31. For other months, add one if it's a leap year. March = 59; April = 90; May = 120; June = 151; July = 181; August = 212; September = 243; October = 273; November = 304; December = 334.
Identify the Day and Year: The day within the month is labeled d, while the year is marked as y. For instance, using 2005 as the reference date, 23 May 2008 translates to: n = 366; b = 2005; c = 58000.00; m = 121 (120, +1 for leap year); d = 23; y = 2008.
Apply the Formula: The stardate computation follows this expression: c + (1000*(y-b)) + ((1000/n)*(m + d -1)) = Stardate. Employing the aforementioned values, the stardate evaluates to 61390.71. Stardates typically round to two decimal places.
Translating Stardate to Standard Date
Familiarize Yourself with the Chosen Base Date: Consider, for instance, the stardate derived from the preceding method, 61390.71. The designated base date is 2005 = 58000.00
Extracting the Year: Focus on the thousands digit and beyond, disregarding the hundreds, tens, units, and decimals. In this instance, the result is 61000.
Subtract the Stardate Base Date from this Value, Divide by 1000, and Add the Standard Base Date: 61000-58000 = 3000. 3000/1000 = 3. 2005 + 3 = 2008. This denotes the year.
Determining Leap Years: A leap year is divisible by four but not by 100, except if it is also divisible by 400 (e.g., 2000). Since 2008 is divisible by four but not by 100, it qualifies as a leap year.
Derive Month and Day: Examine the hundreds digit and the lower digits for this computation, disregarding thousands and higher. This yields 390.71.
Perform Multiplication (366 for Leap Years): Multiplying 390.71 by 366 results in 142,999.86.
Divide and Round: Divide 142,999.86 by 1000, then round to the nearest whole number. This gives 142.99986, rounded up to 143.
Increment by One: The result is 144.
Determine the Largest Subtracted Month Number: This number represents the month. Adjust the month number upward by one if it's a leap year (and past February). Since the largest month number fitting into 144 is 121, the month is May.
Deduct the month number to obtain the date: 144-121 = 23. Hence, your date is 23 May 2008. It coincides with the initial day you began with.
Pointers
Cautions
- While converting stardates back into standard dates, occasional discrepancies of a couple of days may occur due to rounding errors.
