Mar Oscura Nebula

TheMar Oscura Nebula was adark matternebula that was located in asector of theAlpha orBeta Quadrant. It contained severalclass Mplanets.

In2367, theUSSEnterprise-D became the first mannedFederationstarship to explore this nebula.

Using a series of specially modifiedphoton torpedoes, theEnterprisecrew was able to illuminate thenebula. Studying the scans taken of the Mar Oscura,Lieutenant CommanderData found that thedark matterdensity was nearly one order of magnitude higher than in similar nebulae. It was soon discovered that, due to the unusual preponderance of dark matter, smallgaps in the fabric of normal space had formed, causing part of the ship to momentarily phase out of normalspace each time theEnterprise collided with one of these deformations. This made navigation in the nebula extremely hazardous and even resulted in thedeath of acrewmember,Lieutenant junior gradeVan Mayter. In order to safely exit the nebula,CaptainPicard piloted ashuttlecraft ahead of theEnterprise-D, so he could detect the deformations ahead of time and relay thecourse corrections to the ship. As Picard was piloting the shuttle, a deformation collided with the shuttle'sstarboardimpulse nacelle, necessitating an emergencytransport of Picard back to the ship moments before the shuttle was destroyed. With only one millionkilometers remaining to the outer perimeter,CommanderRiker ordered theEnterprise out of the nebula. (TNG: "In Theory")