in the Rocket City inside the science of episode I II III IV V VI Leia’s slave costume ARTIFICIAL GRAVITY Two of the more astounding – and, perhaps, improbable – things we see in the Forget the awesome space dogfights entire “Star Wars” saga are the Death Star space stations. The man-made and the showdown between Luke and globe in Episode IV is supposed to be 100 miles in diameter; the second his papa. The thing that fans — many EPISODE VI: of them pre-teen boys in 1983 — re- Death Star in Episode VI, right, is meant to be 600 miles in diameter. member the most about Episode VI is that ... thing ... Princess Leia almost How might engineers bring gravity to a space station this size? wore as a captive in Jabba the Hutt’s Return of the Jedi palace. In the epic conclusion of the saga, the Empire pre- Costume designer Aggie Guerard An attractive problem “When I saw that movie I was a stu- pares to crush the Rebellion with a more powerful Rodgers told Wired magazine there dent in Architecture at Auburn Uni- Death Star while the Rebel fleet mounts a massive The Death Star — and all the other attack on the space station. Luke Skywalker con- were two versions of the outfit. “One ships in the Star Wars saga, for that versity,” Smitherman says, “My first was a hard metal piece that (actress reaction was ‘No, no, no, that’s not the fronts his father Darth Vader in a final climactic matter — “have some type of artificial duel before the evil Emperor Palpatine. In the last Carrie Fisher) wore when she was gravity,” says David Smitherman, way you would build this.’ not doing any stunts, and one was a second, Vader makes a momentous choice: He de- a technical manager in NASA’s Ad- For movie purposes it looks so cool stroys the Emperor and saves his son. The Empire is rubber piece that we formed so that vanced Concepts Office at Marshall she would be comfortable when do- [but] I would have built a large in- finally defeated, the Sith are destroyed, and Anakin Space Flight Center and who has a flatable, like a big balloon, so you’d Skywalker is thus redeemed. At long last, freedom ing stunts,” she says. “It was lined background in space architecture. “We with leather so it wouldn’t chafe have a pressurized atmosphere, and is restored to the galaxy. do not understand how they would do then go inside and build this thing.” her body.” something like that, although we would Directed by: Richard Marquand However, the costume didn’t hold love to be able to do that. Presumably, Smitherman would together well. Fisher reportedly also have advised the Empire to Released: May 25, 1983 “From my perspective as an architect, do something about the thermal refused to use the standard remedy what I would look at doing is creating First weekend gross: $23.0 million for such issues — namely, double- exhaust port where Luke Skywalker some type of rotational facility where fires his torpedo. sided tape. As a result, IGN Enter- you can generate gravity.” Total domestic gross: $309.2 million tainment reports: “Several scenes Total worldwide gross: $572.7 million had to be re-shot when ‘wardrobe Jeanne Cavelos, a former astrophysi- malfunctions’ occurred.” cist and mathematician at NASA’s “If we envision Academy Awards: Nominated in four categories, Johnson Space Center and the author including original score, sound editing and sound Fisher writes on her website that the a spaceship as a of “The Science of Star Wars” says it’s mixing. Won none of those awards; however, the outift “had the tendency to make giant, rotating, hula- all about acceleration. movie was given a special achievement award for my now not-so-private privates hoop-type tube with visual effects. quite public. Especially for the ac- “Since acceleration is caused not only the passengers inside tor standing behind Jabba, playing by slowing down or speeding up but by the tube, the rotation The good: Leia’s metal bikini. We had to sit through Boba Fett [Jeremy Bullock]. From changing directions, an object mov- would push them against two movies’ worth of frumpy robes to find out what where Boba stood, so straight and ing in a circle undergoes a constant the outermost part of the she was packing. tall and severe behind his mask — acceleration,” Cavelos writes. tube” Cavelos writes. to put it simply and weirdly, Jeremy The bad and the ugly: There are too darn many Muppets in this movie: Jabba’s pets and house could see beyond my yawning, “When we look at doing missions to Mars where you’ve got a six-to-nine-month band, Yoda and those truly annoying Ewoks. plastic bikini bottoms all the way travel time on the way out and then the same on the way back, and then living to Florida.” on the surface in just one-third [of Earth’s] gravity, that’s a concern,” Smither- “A bad feeling about this”: 1) C-3PO, as he and Sleep on that one, guys! man says. “There have been missions where we have looked at concepts for R2-D2 enter Jabba’s palace. 2) Han, as the Ewoks rotating the habitat so you would have at least a one-third gravity on the attempt to grill him. way out there and higher gravity on the way back.” Limbs chopped off: Luke slices off Vader’s Graphics and research by artificial arm during their lightsaber duel on the Charles Apple/Special to The Times new Death Star. Interviews and research by What would be really cool ... Nature imitates art Lee Roop/The Huntsville Times “There have been times when I wished movies like that Remember that scene in It’s called Mimas and is Sources: “The Science of Star Wars” Great quote: by Jeanne Cavelos; “Star Wars: Where would do scenes where, all of a sudden, the artificial gravity Episode IV when Obi-Wan 396 miles in diameter. The Science Meets Imagination” by National goes out and people start floating around,” says Smither- Kenobi realizes it’s a space circular crater — which, in “You’ve failed, your Geographic and the Boston Museum of man. “Because there’s no mass there, so they’re having to station and not a moon? this picture from NASA’s Science; “Star Wars: The Complete Visual generate it through some type of power supply, some way. Cassini probe, does look Highness. I am a Jedi. Dictionary” by David West Reynolds and Well, guess what: See that at lot like the Death Star’s Like my father before James Luceno; NASA’s Jet Propulsion “Of course, we don’t understand how they would do that, but photo at left? That’s not the Laboratory; Wired magazine; laser weapon — is 88 if the power went out it seems like that gravity would go out Death Star – that is a moon. me.” StarWars.com; Internet Movie Data Base; miles across. www.the-numbers.com; IGN Entertainment; also. And that would be really cool,” says Smitherman. Of Saturn, to be precise. CarrieFisher.com; Lucasfilm Ltd. - Luke Skywalker Images: Courtesy of Lucasfilm