Monday, August 6, 2012

Star Trek: Tidal Locking

Star Trek the Next Generation (1987-1994) (Picture)
Season 2, Episode 10
The Dauphin

During "The Dauphin" the crew heads to a planet engulfed in a Civil War. This planet rotates once per time it circles its sun, meaning that one side of the planet is always light and the other is always dark. This phenomenon is called tidal locking.

How does tidal locking work, does it actually happen, and what are the consequences?