Talk:Klendathu

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Contents 1 VFD results 2 Appearance 3 Name? 4 Some answers

[edit] VFD results

This article has survived a VFD nomination with the result of No consensus (split between keep and merge). --Allen3 ^talk 11:31, August 3, 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Appearance

In the book, the planets in question were subjected to saturation bombing with nukes prior to the MI landing. Does the book mention this at all? Saturation bombing would make a planet look pretty barren. Cheers User:Mikereichold | User_talk:Mikereichold 20:55, 2 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Name?

Whats the origin of the name "Klendathu" ? Are there any connections to Klaatu barada nikto? 05.07.06 14:00

[edit] Some answers

@Mikereichold: I assume you mean "In the movie, the planets in question were subjected to saturation bombing...", in which case here is my (lengthy) hypothesis:

"What I do know is the General dropped with us... He's radioactive debris on Klendathu..."

"Blasting the surface of their planet [Klendathu] would have killed soldiers and workers; it would not have killed the brain caste and the queens... We didn't have nova bombs at that time; we couldn't crack Klendathu open."

The above two quotes are taken directly from the novel, from which I conclude that:

- Klendathu was not hit by orbital bombardment prior to the ground assault. The objective was to root out the Bug infestation there and, as the second quote shows, orbital bombardment would not have accomplished the task. That is why a ground assault was made - so that the Mobile Infantry could get down into the Bug tunnels. Additionally, the first quote - and others in the novel - show that weapons used for bombardment would be nuclear, thus creating large amounts of radiation. While the M.I. powersuits are capable of taking heavy punishment, I doubt they could withstand the after-effects of a nuclear strike.

- Given the first quote, it seems almost certain that once all humans had been evacuated, the surviving Navy ships expended their munitions on the planet's surface; not so much to cause enemy casualties, as to boost human morale after the disasterous ground battle.

- If we assume that the Bugs are insectoid in nature, then it's only natural that they would choose to live on a sandy, barren world. Such a world would be ideal; since the Bugs live underground, they don't really care about the surface, but they do need to be able to tunnel easily.

As for connections to "Klaatu barada nikto", it's very possible that the name Klendathu is indeed derived from those words; the movie was released in 1951, seven years before Heinlein penned Starship Troopers, and it's quite likely that he saw it. However, I haven't been able to find any concrete evidence supporting or disproving this theory.

HTH. The Assimilator 06:09, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

Lets try to keep away from speculation. We need only to deal in what is directyly confrimed. --Eldarone 02:01, 20 August 2006 (UTC)