Babylon 4
The Babylon 4 Station
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| First appearance | Babylon Squared |
|---|---|
| Affiliation | Earth Alliance |
| Launched | 2254 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class | O'Neill cylinder, two rotating sections |
| Fighters | Starfury fighter craft |
| Defenses | Defensive grid |
| Power | Fusion reactor |
| Length | 6 miles (9.7 km) |
Babylon 4 (also known as B4) is a fictional space station from the television series Babylon 5.
In the series, Babylon 4 was the immediate predecessor of Babylon 5 and the largest of the Babylon stations. It was constructed using materials left over from the three previous stations (as seen in details such as Babylon 3 emblems on some surfaces.)
Although the two stations share similar internal layouts, Babylon 4 is much larger than Babylon 5, and actually has engines which can physically move it through space if necessary. While Babylon 5 only rotates in one direction, Babylon 4 had two sections rotating in opposite directions. Babylon 4 also has a different color (B4 is green, B5 blue).
In the show it is first revealed that the station mysteriously disappeared just after construction was completed. The officer in charge, Major Lewis Krantz, sent out a distress signal. (Krantz was an EarthForce Marine, not intended to be part of the station's permanent crew; he was assigned to supervise the final stages of construction, then to turn it over to an EarthForce Naval officer who would be the permanent CO).
Late in the first season of the show (episode "Babylon Squared") Babylon 4 reappears, four years after it disappeared, and the crew of Babylon 5 mount a rescue mission to save the crew. Babylon 4 is surrounded by a mysterious distortion field which can have terrible effects on those encountering it. The first pilot sent out to investigate the disturbance is killed after being rapidly aged by the field. There is also an alien of an unknown race, known as Zathras, who is found on the station. His origin is unclear and when it is attempted to remove him from the station, a support beam falls on him and traps him. He is abandoned as the evacuation is completed. Associated with Zathras is a being known as "The One," to whom Zathras gives a repaired time stabilizer, indicating that The One is at least in part responsible for the disappearance of the station.
Two years later (two part episode "War Without End") the full story behind Babylon 4 is revealed. It turns out that those responsible for the theft of the station are the crew of Babylon 5. With help of the Great Machine on Epsilon 3, used to create the time field, the crew travel from 2260 to 2254 to stop Babylon 4 from being destroyed by the Shadows. Zathras turns out to be one of the race that maintains the Great Machine. He provides the crew with time stabilizers to stop them from becoming 'unstuck in time'. After preventing Babylon 4's destruction, the station is boarded and an attempt is made to induce the crew to evacuate. The attempt succeeds, but backfires, slinging the station four years forward in time to 2258. The rescue from that year is then seen through clips from "Babylon Squared."
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