Battle of Ragnar Anchorage

Battle of Ragnar Anchorage
Galactica provides cover fire while the civilian Fleet escapes
Galactica provides cover fire while the civilian Fleet escapes
Summary
Conflict:	Second Cylon war
Date:	Days 1-6
Related Episode(s):
Place:	Ragnar Anchorage
Result:	Successful escape from Cylon-occupied Colonial space
Combatants Remnants of the Colonial Fleet Cylons Commanders Commander William Adama Basestar command Strength 1 battlestar, 40 Vipers, Raptors 3 basestars, associated Raiders Materiel Losses At least 8 Vipers Unknown, minimal Casualties 1,345 civilians Unknown, dozens of Raiders
[[Colonial battles chronology ({{{series}}})|Battle Chronology]]
Previous Next Battle of the Communications Relay Battle of Ragnar Anchorage Skirmish over the Red Moon

The Battle of Ragnar Anchorage is the successful breakthrough by battlestar Galactica from a Cylon blockade around Ragnar Anchorage, as well as the subsequent escape from its armada after being tracked and attacked for 5 continuous days (Miniseries, "33").

Upon receiving telemetry that many battlestars, including flagship battlestar Atlantia are destroyed, Commander William Adama assumes field command of the Colonial Fleet and orders any surviving units to rendezvous with his ship at a remote munitions depot, Ragnar Anchorage, for a planned counterattack.

Orbiting within the tenuous upper atmosphere of the gas giant Ragnar, the ammunition station holds critical ordnance needed by Galactica, which had destroyed its own munitions earlier as part of its scheduled decommissioning. The depot's location also offers effective cover against Cylon attack, as a particular form of electromagnetic radiation generated by the planet's upper atmosphere causes interference or damage to Cylon technology with sufficient exposure, and also jams any DRADIS detection, making assaults within the cloud threshold problematic at best.

Galactica is soon joined by a convoy of faster-than-light capable civilian ships rescued from the space-lanes surrounding Caprica by the recently appointed President Laura Roslin. With no other military vessels arriving at the designated coordinates, it is deduced that Galactica represents the last known surviving capital ship able to mount a counterattack against the new Cylon menace.

Despite the overwhelming odds, Commander Adama intends to proceed with a counter-offensive. However, after some persuasion by President Roslin, he realizes that they re in a no-win situation; Galactica is hopelessly outnumbered, the Colonies are destroyed, and he is surrounded by nearly 50,000 of mankind's only known survivors.

During a reconnaissance mission, Lieutenant Kara "Starbuck" Thrace discovers two heavily-armed Cylon basestars (and hundreds of accompanying fighters) in Ragnar's orbit, further lowering Galactica's odds in an offensive engagement. Adama subsequently decides to take the new rag-tag fleet away from the home solar system of the Twelve Colonies, towards the Prolmar Sector, never to return.

As FTL calculations will likely be distorted by the gas giant's ambient radiation, the Fleet will have to venture outside the protection of Ragnar's atmosphere to complete the necessary jump. Galactica leaves the Anchorage first and positions itself at the mouth of a storm on Ragnar's surface, acting as a shield for the remainder of the Fleet as they jump to the specified coordinates. With her batteries now fully armed, Galactica creates a defensive perimeter against the two basestars while her Vipers engage any Raiders attempting to attack the escaping fleet. A third basestar soon appears to pummel Galactica with successive missile strikes.

Once the last civilian ship is away and the last of the Vipers return to the flight pod, Galactica jumps as well. The Cylons enter the station shortly after the battle, and retrieve a suspected Cylon agent left there by the Colonials, a Number Five copy posing as a man named Aaron Doral.

Approximately one day after the struggle at Ragnar, the Colonials are surprised to find the Cylons still tracking and pursuing them, a feat which the vastness of space makes virtually impossible. They jump into range and attack every 33 minutes for five consecutive days, and over 240 jumps. However, when the Olympic Carrier (a passenger liner listed to carry over 1000 civilians) fails to join the Fleet after a jump, the Cylons fail to appear as well.

When the Olympic Carrier reemerges a short time later, a suspicious Commander Adama commands the 33-minute countdown to resume immediately. Adama's fears about the vessel are confirmed when the Cylons appear 33 minutes after its return, indicating it was used to track the Fleet throughout this time.

Galactica then detects a radiological signature emanating from the Olympic Carrier, which suggests that it was boarded by Cylons and now carries a nuclear warhead. Subsequently, Vipers are dispatched to intercept and destroy the approaching ship.

Ultimately Lee Adama makes the difficult decision to fire on the civilian craft, safe-guarding the remnants of mankind from a marauding enemy in the process. After the Fleet jumps once more, the Cylons are no longer able to immediately track their movements (33).