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1. How does the Sphere work?

Here is what the show has told us about how the Sphere works:

The Sphere was built using alien technology recovered from a UFO that crashed near Roswell, N.M., in 1947. However, the Back Step team's understanding of that technology is incomplete. Consequently, the team's ability to predict and control the Sphere's behavior isn't terribly reliable.

The Sphere is powered by a reactor that creates its own gravitational field. Within that gravity field, space and time become elastic and can be distorted. Operation Back Step's scientists have theorized that the aliens use this characteristic of gravity to navigate to other worlds, such as the Earth.

It's the size and power of the reactor that imposes the seven-day maximum limit on how far in time the device can travel. Josef Vukavitch's craft, seen in As Time Goes By, was much larger and powered by a different kind of reactor, and was thus able to make a much longer Back Step. Sadly the NNL team wasn't able to salvage the technology aboard his craft. The Sphere's fuel is the lethally radioactive "Element 115," of which a limited amount was recovered from the Roswell UFO. The fuel is used to send a pulse of energy into the reactor from a console in the hangar.

It's not clear whether the reactor is actually on board the Sphere or is located in the hangar at NNL. Ballard referred to the black box containing the fuel as the "core," a word generally used in connection with a reactor. However, in A Dish Best Served Cold, Ballard said the reactor (whether it's in the Sphere or out in the hangar) had melted after Rance blew up the Sphere, but then the team was able to launch the Sphere that had been lost in the Amazon jungle, suggesting that the reactor must have been on board the Sphere.

The Sphere itself doesn't move, but the Earth does--it rotates around its own axis and is constantly revolving around the Sun, which is also moving, revolving around the galaxy at the blistering pace of one revolution every 266 million years. That means the Earth is not in the same place today that it was seven days ago. In theory, that can be used to navigate the Sphere right to where the team wants it to go. In practice, the geographic navigation is the least reliable aspect of the Sphere's operation (see Section II, 4., Where has the Sphere landed?), and that caused the Sphere to be dangerous in its early trials. Seven chrononauts who went before Parker were killed when the Sphere ended up floating in space or buried underground; another one was lost for many years in the Amazon and presumed dead. And this same kind of malfunction could and has occurred as Parker is piloting the Sphere, too. (Buried Alive)

To counteract this navigational problem, the Back Step team invented a kind of "fine-tuning knob," a joystick-like control that the pilot uses to line up with points on a computer graphic in a process called "flying the needles." But flying the needles is difficult, especially when hurtling through another dimension, and Parker can't always get it right.

Traveling in the Sphere is strenuous and painful. Because certain laws of "physics as we know it" are being violated, not all of the outer molecules of Parker's body actually accompany him all the way to his destination. Parker's ability to keep his head while enduring pain is one of the main reasons he was chosen as the team's chrononaut. He usually loses a micro-layer of skin and ends up sweaty, sooty and bleeding at the end of each time-jump. He's also had his suit catch fire, lost a filling and suffered miscellaneous other (mostly minor) injuries. The Sphere itself seems to suffer damage during a Back Step, spewing sparks and smoke whenever it lands. It also tends to fry miscellaneous electronic devices, including Parker's cell phone and the built-in homing beacon that's supposed to make it easy for the people at NNL to find it after it's landed.

The Sphere won't launch without a pilot on board, and in fact Dr. Mentnor has said that without a qualified pilot, it'll blow itself to bits on launch (A Dish Best Served Cold). He didn't specify what's meant by "qualified," nor did he explain why the Sphere couldn't be piloted by a robot, rather than a human being. As it powers up, a strong electrical field forms around the Sphere.

Equipment in the Back Step compound sends out a "temporal compensating wave" to stop the time displacement and finish the Back Step. If this wave is not generated, a "time-loop" is created, in which similar events repeat over and over again at a set interval. (Come Again?)

Other capabilities attributed to the Sphere (mostly as a result of malfunctions, damage or other unexpected factors) include the healing of injuries inflicted shortly before the Back Step (but see Section I, 7., Inconsistencies and unresolved issues), the ability to cause the chrononaut temporarily to revert to the mental state of a child and the ability to split the chrononaut into two individuals who look identical but have different personalities.

The Sphere's operations depend to some extent on wider government systems, such as the HAARP communications system that's used as a navigational aid. On a couple of occasions, that dependence has proved a liability when the crisis motivating the Back Step has affected those systems (HAARP Attack, Parker.com), preventing or complicating the launch of the time jump.

 

2. What happens when Frank Parker Back Steps?

This subject has sparked more debate than anything else about the series. Here is what the show has told us:

For starters, when Parker and the Sphere arrive in the past the rest of the team doesn't know what's happened to motivate the Back Step until he contacts them. When Parker arrives, only he knows about the events that are to come in the next seven days, because those events haven't happened yet for the others.

In the Pilot episode, we're told that Parker's mere arrival changes history to some extent, and the series has made that point repeatedly, sometimes in small things, sometimes in large differences. (Ex., in Daddy's Girl, one of the Serb captors is shown teasing the Americans with an apple in the original timeline. After the Back Step, the apple sequence doesn't happen.) In an interview on Paramount's official site, executive producer Christopher Crowe says this changed-past factor is part of the "bible" that was written to govern how the Sphere is used in episodes.

But what happens when the Sphere launches?

First, let's talk about what doesn't happen: Multiple Parkers are not created by a Back Step. The one case where multiple Parkers were created was caused by a modification to the Sphere that resulted in a malfunction. And in the cases when the Sphere has landed in the hangar, we don't see two of them. Under normal conditions, there is only one Frank Parker, and thus he can't meet himself coming and going after a Back Step.

What does happen is that Parker and the Sphere vanish. And hoo-boy, are we glad the writers finally cleared this up! (See the episode titled Buried Alive, in which Dr. Mentnor clearly states that the Sphere has disappeared from the hangar.) Some fans have hypothesized that this could be an explanation of why Parker's kept so firmly under wraps at NNL--it would be a security breach if he suddenly disappeared at a time when outsiders could see it happen. Note that people elsewhere can see the Sphere when it lands outside the hangar.

Some episodes have featured imagery indicating that time is running backward during the Sphere's flight, suggesting the "tape rewind" theory of how this could work. The theory is that a Back Step is like time being rewound like a videotape, but one of the characters (Parker) isn't subject to the rewind and thus is capable of changing what's on the tape when he rejoins the action. Or as Osco eloquently put it: "You watch a show up to a certain point, when suddenly one of the characters blasts out of the TV set in a little sphere and floats in your living room as you rewind. That character isn't on the tape as you rewind, so he's not there...until you stop rewinding and he drops back onto the videotape. Thus begins the new 'timeline.'"

The series has been inconsistent about showing time "rewinding," making some fans skeptical that the intent of the writers and producers is anything more meaningful than to add a cool special effect for us to watch while Parker's flying around in the Sphere. However, in the episode Tracker, Olga mentions the "rewind" effect as part of the Back Step experience, indicating that what we see onscreen is actually what Parker experiences when flying the Sphere.

Also in the second season, the Sphere is seen traveling through a very Sliders-esque tunnel special effect. Whether that's intended to mean anything or is just there because it looks cool is anybody's guess. (It does, however, look very cool.)

 

3. But what happens at NNL?

Here are some of the things we know and some common theories.

First, remember that only Parker knows what happened to motivate the Back Step. Thus it seems logical that the crew left behind at NNL never has remembered (and never will remember) the actual launch of the Sphere because, from their perspective, it hasn't happened yet. Only Parker is in a position to remember the launches after the Sphere has landed.

But we have now been told that the team at NNL knows a Back Step has occurred because the Sphere vanishes. At that point, there's an alarm that goes off (a klaxon that sounds like the last groan of a dying moose).

Also the team members have witnessed the Sphere landing in the cradle at NNL on several occasions. In particular, Ballard observed something when the Sphere lands in the hangar while he's there (Come Again?), although the audience doesn't see what he sees.

So the team does know that Back Steps have occurred. There's no reason they wouldn't remember what happens after Parker lands the Sphere, unless a second Back Step is launched within a few days. Likewise, what they learn from Parker in debriefing would be recorded, and unless another Back Step undid that record-keeping within a few days, it would remain in place.

It also appears that there are is some kind of automatic, manual or electronic record kept of each launch. In Come Again?, Ballard offers to check "the error log," when Parker reports an unusual flash he observed on landing. Presumably, to keep this log from being subject to changing when the timeline changes, it would be kept on board the Sphere.

 

4. Where has the Sphere landed?

(Most information for this section kindly provided by Jon Stipe.)

We know that the Sphere was launched at least seven times before Parker became its pilot, but we don't know where it landed on every one of those occasions. We have seen it floating in space after one failed mission; Donovan told Parker it had landed "deep underground" on at least one other attempt; Ballard mentions that it once landed underwater and in a volcano (that would hurt!); and once it came down in the Amazon jungle and was lost for many years. The Sphere's touchdown isn't shown in every episode, but since Parker became the chrononaut, here are the places where we know it has landed.
 

Pilot episode: Landed in the desert east of Las Vegas. No witnesses.  The Gettysburg Virus: A forest adjacent to the battlefield site in Gettysburg, Pa. No witnesses.  Come Again?: Safely back in its cradle at NNL (every time). Witnessed by Ballard and other NNL crew.  Vows: A park near the Washington monument in Washington, D.C. (both times). Witnessed by a bunch of picnickers - Parker covered each landing by telling them it was a publicity stunt for movies titled Mars Needs a Tax Break and Mars Needs a Tax Break II.  Doppelganger, Parts 1 and 2: In a desert near a forest, apparently some distance from the NNL complex (both times). No witnesses.  Shadow Play: The desert outside Los Angeles. No witnesses.  As Time Goes By: A wilderness area where young couples go to make out; apparently not too far from NNL. Two teen-agers are in the area when Parker lands, but they're too pre-occupied to notice. However, they do notice when Parker takes their car. (Note: An Indian boy and his grandfather observe Josef Vukavitch's time craft as it lands. They believe they've been visited by the sun god.)  Sleepers: On a hill, can't tell where. No witnesses.  HAARP Attack: The playground at an elementary school in Branchville, Va. Witnessed by a lot of children on the playground, one of whom eventually walked off with Parker's suit. Ramsey covers by pinning the event on NASA.  Last Card Up: Happywood Duck Campground, somewhere in Idaho. No witnesses.  Last Breath: Deep in the Arctic Ocean, near the site of a downed Russian nuclear sub. No witnesses.  Parkergeist: The cradle at NNL. Witnessed by crew at NNL.  Daddy's Girl: Bosnia, at 42 degrees, 17 minutes north, 20 degrees, 35 minutes west. Witnessed by a group of soldiers on the ground nearby.  There's Something About Olga: The cradle at NNL. No witnesses were seen.  A Dish Best Served Cold: Next to a highway somewhere near NNL. No witnesses.  Vegas Heist: Las Vegas. Unknown whether it was witnessed by anyone.  EBEs: Near the Mothership Diner, Payute Springs, Nev. No witnesses.  Walter: Somewhere in or near Los Angeles. Unknown whether it was witnessed by anyone.  Lifeboat: Unknown, but must've been somewhere at or near NNL. Unknown whether there were witnesses.  The Football: Unknown, but somewhere in or near Washington, D.C. Unknown whether there were witnesses.  Pinball Wizard: Landing site not shown.  Parker.com: Landing site not shown.  For the Children: Landing site not shown.  Two Weddings and a Funeral: Not shown, but probably at or near NNL. Shortly before the episode begins, Parker had landed the Sphere off the coast of Cabo San Lucas, almost deep-sixing a tuna boat. That one apparently was witnessed by the boat's crew.  Walk Away: The cradle at NNL. Witnessed by NNL crew.  Sister's Keeper: Just outside Henderson, Nev. Unknown whether there were any witnesses.  The Collector: Crashed through a wall at the Nebraska State Penitentiary. Witnessed by large crowds of people who had gathered for the execution of a notorious serial killer; it was probably broadcast on CZN. Fortunately, they just thought it was a meteor.  Love and Other Disasters: Not specified, but appears to be somewhere in France. Unknown whether there were any witnesses.  The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Not shown; no witnesses mentioned.  Time Gremlin: First time, in a forest, unknown where; witnessed by the "gremlin" clinging to the side of the Sphere. Second time, on the beach in Malibu; witnessed by a female jogger.  Buried Alive: Lost Hills Mines, Copper Springs, Colorado. No witnesses, but the Sphere's re-entry was caught on tape by a satellite camera and registered as a "seismic event" by two geologists in Colorado.  Backstepper's Apprentice: Landing site not shown. Witnessed (in a manner of speaking) by Morgan Walker, the kid who fell into the Sphere from the jetliner.  Deja Vu All Over Again: Landing site not shown, but presumed to be downtown Vancouver. No witnesses.

 

5. Hey, what about that microchip?

In the Pilot episode, Parker was provided with a microchip (implanted under the skin just below his left armpit) that contained all the information necessary to prevent the terrorist bombing, in case he didn't make it back in good enough condition to tell the Back Step team what was about to happen. Since then, he's sometimes had a chip with him and sometimes not, which has raised questions for fans.

During his first Back Step, the time jump expelled the implanted chip with such force that it burst through not only Parker's skin, but his suit, as well (you know that's gotta hurt) and ended up on the deck in the Sphere. The implanted chip hasn't reappeared, and we don't blame Parker a bit for preferring it that way.

However, on at least two other occasions, he has had a chip on a chain around his neck (Doppelganger and EBEs). Sometimes the situation is such that it wouldn't be practical to outfit him with a chip, as in The Gettysburg Virus, where most of the rest of the Back Step crew was dead. But there have been other times where it would seem perfectly logical to give him a chip, and he didn't get one (HAARP Attack and Parkergeist) -- episodes where exactly the sort of thing the chip is meant to address actually occurred.

Is this part of the series producers' plan, or is it inconsistent writing? We don't know.

 

6. How can the fuel supply be a problem?

"All we need is a pulse to launch. Once that gravity field is created, the Sphere just travels, without the need for more fuel." - Dr. John Ballard, As Time Goes By

Another perplexing paradox has to do with whether the Sphere's non-renewable fuel supply is a logical reason to limit the events for which a Back Step can be authorized, and whether launching the Sphere actually depletes the fuel supply.

The fuel recovered from the alien space ship apparently can't be duplicated on Earth (it is aparently meant to be Element 115 on the periodic table). Thus, if that fuel should ever be used up, the Sphere would be dead in the water, so to speak. However, note that "Adam" the alien apparently was able to substitute power from a nuclear plant for his escape pod (Lifeboat), and on one occasion, a lightning bolt (generating 1.21 gigawatts, we presume) that struck the Sphere was able to launch it. (A Dish Best Served Cold)

In the Pilot episode, Dr. Mentnor said that each time a mission failed, the amount of the fuel available for future missions was reduced. He didn't say what would happen to the fuel supply in the case of a successful mission, and a persuasive argument has been put forward that the Sphere doesn't actually use up the supply of fuel that's already on hand. Here's how the theory goes:

There's a certain amount of fuel when the Sphere takes off. However, the Sphere lands at a point in the timeline when, as far as everything and everybody except Parker and the Sphere are concerned, the launch hasn't happened yet. And if the launch hasn't happened, no fuel has been used.

It all seems to hinge on whether there is any fuel on board the Sphere that gets expended during the Back Step (that's strongly implied by Mentnor's statement about losing fuel when Spheres are lost in failed missions). If that's the case, then that portion of the fuel really would be gone after the timeline is changed. But if all the fuel really is in the hangar (which has been indicated in episodes more than once), then it can be argued that the Sphere doesn't deplete its own supply.

7. Why can't Frank go back more than seven days?

Asture viewers have wondered what prevents Parker from making a number of Backsteps in succession in order to beat the seven day limit. Comments in later episodes (most notably Tracker in season 3) indicate that the Element 115 fuel cell is in some way depleted by each trip, and while not used up, it requires a recharge period of seven days before it can be used again with any degree of reliability. However, in the same episode, Frank is forced to use the Sphere again before the recharge period is up, and succeeds in making a short Backstep. It appears therefore, that the maximum temporal range of the Sphere is directly linked to the amount of time it has had to recharge. Though it takes seven days to reach its full charge, if allowed to charge for three days, for example, it is then capable of powering a Backstep with a maximum range of three days. Presumably, if the Sphere had a larger fuel cell, the range of the craft would be increased.

8. How do they get good at launching Back Steps?

But hang on a minute? If Parker undoes the events of the last seven days every time he Back Steps, then he undoes the launch itself. If that's the case, then every time the NNL team launch the Sphere, it's the first time they can remember doing it? How come they all look so calm?

We can only assume that before Frank joined the program (and afterwards, presumably), the NNL team conducted numerous drills, dry runs and simulations. In several episodes, mention is made of data gathered during simulations, and in at least one episode we see Donovan using a mock-up of the Sphere internals to test his endurance. When the time comes to launch the Sphere for real, the NNL team have already done it in dry runs a thousand times before. And that's why they look so damned cool.

Take me home. 

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