The Death Star created an incredible level of mystique and wonder the moment the superweapon was first introduced in A New Hope. So large it could be easily mistaken for a small moon and powerful enough to completely destroy a planet, the Death Star and its inner workings have continued to captivate audiences through the generations that have followed.
This continued interest has made the Death Star a true cultural icon recognized by people outside of Star Wars fandom. This interest has made the Death Star the subject of humorous if not well-researched studies that try to understand how such a weapon would function in our world.
One such study was conducted by the British energy supplier Ovo, who calculated the cost of operating the Death Star for a single day. Ovo’s calculations concluded that it would cost 7.8 octillion (7,800,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) dollars to run the superweapon for one Earth day. The reputable financial magazine Forbes also calculated the cost of actually building the Death Star by our real-world standards.
Forbes calculated that constructing the Death Star would cost approximately 825 quadrillion (825,000,000,000,000,000) dollars. Other humorous subjects concerning the Death Star includes whether the Empire was insured for the battle station and if it was morally right for the Rebellion to not only destroy the Death Star but also kill the millions of innocent technicians, janitors, and support staff that resided on the station.
In recent years, there have even been GoFundMe pages attempting to raise enough money to actually construct a functioning Death Star. Although these cases are often hilarious and great fun to ponder, they show the incredible impact the Death Star has made with science fiction, energy science, politics, and other aspects of modern culture. One subject of interest concerning the Death Star is the details of daily mundane life on board the station.
In order to better understand what daily life was like on the superweapon, it is important to understand some of the technical aspects of the Death Star.
Technical Details
The name Death Star was not the official name of the superweapon but was instead known as DS-1 Orbital Battle Station. The design and construction of the Death Star were internally known as Project Stardust and, in its early stages, the Death Star was often referred to as the Ultimate Weapon. Although a second Death Star would be under construction towards the end of the Galactic Civil War, this article refers to the first iteration of the weapon or the Death Star I.
The Death Star I had a width of one hundred and sixty kilometers, making it similar in size to a small moon. A hypermatter reactor was used to power the battle station and it was equipped with a planet-destroying MK I Superlaser and 768 tractor beam emplacements to control the movement of ships near the station. The onboard armaments of the battle station were also extremely impressive, boasting 15,000 turbolaser batteries, 2,500 Super Blaster 920 laser cannons, and the same amount of ion cannons.
Onboard Personnel
Depending on the current mission of the Death Star, there could be anywhere from 1,186,295 to 1,206,293 personnel onboard the station. The Imperial Navy and Army each had a garrison onboard that numbered 342,953 military personnel, including 25,984 stormtroopers. Although the number of onboard staff and personnel was immense, there were generally enough private bunks constructed to allow most staff to receive one within three to six months following their arrival.
Unlike other Imperial outposts, the Death Star had comforts such as recreational areas, state-of-the-art cantinas, decent food, and even the ability of personnel to purchase costly treats and luxuries. Stormtroopers who were off duty were known to gather in the station’s zero-gravity filtration system to play prohibited and often violent ball games.
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