View source for Earth

'''Earth''' is the home of the lost [[Thirteenth Tribe]] in both ''Battlestar Galactica''  sagas.

== [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|In the Original Series]] ==
[[Image:Apollo_11.jpg|thumb|Boomer analyzing a Gamma frequency transmission (credit:Universal Studios/ABC)]]
[[Image:Colonial_technology_from_Earth.jpg|thumb|Athena runs a diagnostic on Starbuck's crippled fighter (credit:Universal Studios/ABC)]]

The lost Thirteenth Tribe settles on the planet Earth, its settlers having departed long ago from [[Kobol]] after the same environmental cataclysm which caused the [[Kobol#Great_Exodus|Exodus]] of the Twelve Tribes and made Kobol uninhabitable.  As stated in the [[Book of the Word]], the [[13th Tribe|Thirteenth Tribe]] left opposite the other [[Twelve Colonies|Twelve Tribes]], the information of their destination residing in the tomb of the [[Ninth Lord of Kobol]].  ([[Lost Planet of the Gods]])

Transmissions from Earth -- i.e. the [[Wikipedia:Project Apollo|Apollo Moon Landing]] -- were picked up by [[Apollo (TOS)|Captain Apollo]] in the [[Celestial chamber]] on an obsolete [[Gamma frequency]], though the copy of the transmission was destroyed in the attack on the [[basestar (TOS)|Cylon basestar]].  ([[The Hand of God (TOS)|The Hand of God]])

===Earth is Found===

In ''[[Galactica 1980]]'', Earth was discovered, but, much to the dismay of Adama and the survivors, the humans on Earth were underdeveloped and would not be able to defend themselves from the [[Cylons (TOS)|Cylons]].

Many fans of the Original Series feel that the events of "Galactica 1980" are apocryphal, dispite the airing of this information, preferring to consider Earth as undiscovered as of the conclusion of the Original Series. (''Regardless of its popularity, Battlestar Wiki maintains its canonicity for purposes of this encyclopedia.'')

===Notes===

Technology from Earth appears to be present at [[Athena (TOS)|Athena]]'s station in "[[Saga of a Star World]]." As she runs a diagnostic on [[Starbuck (TOS)|Starbuck]]'s [[Viper (TOS)|Viper]], the words "MADE IN USA" appear on the screen. ''This is obviously a cinematic goof, as the Colonials knew very little of Earth, much less the countries that populated it.''

== [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|In the Re-imagined Series]] ==

Earth is the alleged location of the [[13th Colony|Thirteenth Colony]], destination of the [[Thirteenth Tribe]] of [[Kobol]], as attested in the [[Sacred Scrolls]].  Earth is first mentioned by [[William Adama|Commander Adama]] during a speech made after funeral services in the wake of the devastating [[Cylon attack]] on the [[Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]], claiming that it is a real place and that top military leadership knew its location (see [[Miniseries]]).  In a private conversation with new President [[Laura Roslin]] immediately afterward, Adama admits that he has not the slightest idea where Earth may be, if it exists.  His true motivation was inspirational; he intended to bolster the morale of the population (especially his beleaguered crew) in the aftermath of the [[Cylon attack|near-annihilation]] of humanity.

While she is initially skeptical, going so far as to rebuke Adama for his dishonesty, [[Laura Roslin|Roslin's]] faith grows perceptibly throughout the events of the first season. This transition is at least partly due to her use of the hallucinogen [[Chamalla]] as an alternative treatment to her terminal breast cancer.  These hallucinations are increasingly interpreted as prophetic vision by Roslin, and they continue as the Fleet ultimately finds the legendary Kobol in "[[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]."

Eventually, a [[Arrow of Apollo|religious artifact]] is recovered which later aids in revealing the general location of Earth ([[Home, Part II]]).

In a mysterious chamber, the stars of the Twelve Colonies are represented in the twelve [[Wikipedia:Zodiac|Zodiacal]] constellations, as viewed from Earth, recognized by Roslin as the shapes of the original flags of the Twelve Colonies.  The chamber itself was intended by its builders to be a stylized replica of the night sky of the Earth, from which all twelve Colonies could be seen.  This is corroborated by [[Kara Thrace|Starbuck]], who quotes [[Sacred Scrolls|scripture]], saying that Earth was the place where the people of the Thirteenth Tribe could look up into the sky and see their twelve brothers.  [[Lee Adama|Captain Apollo]] also recognized the [[Wikipedia:Lagoon Nebula|Lagoon Nebula]], also represented in the night sky of the mystery chamber. This astronomical object is known to Fleet personnel, since [[William Adama|Commander Adama]] remarked that this celestial body would take some time to reach.

It's presumed that some sort of recording of the chamber was taken to allow the fleet to match the position of stars to the view from an potiential candidate for Earth.

==Is Earth the birthplace of Humanity in the re-imagined ''Battlestar Galactica''?==

Throughout the re-imagined series of ''Battlestar Galactica'', there has been evidence (both circumstantial and non-circumstantial) that humans of Kobol originated from the planet Earth and not Kobol itself. If humanity ''did'' originate from the planet Earth, then the Thirteenth Tribe of Kobol was ''returning'' to Earth, which could explain why the holographic star maps in the Tomb of Athena were made in a way to resemble the night sky on Earth as well as the location and name of the Lagoon Nebula.

==Notes==

* In one of the ''extras'' included on the five-disc DVD release of the first season of [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Battlestar Galactica]], Edward James Olmos (the actor portraying [[William Adama|Commander Adama]]) remarks in a very jocular fashion that they will never reach Earth.  Mary McDonnell (the actress who plays [[Laura Roslin]]) covers his mouth and tries to hush him while laughing.  Although loyal fans may question the trustworthiness of this statement, it is known that the creators keep a "[[Series bible|Bible]]" to the show, to which the actors presumably have access.

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