Star Trek Beyond: 5 Ups And 3 Downs (The Science Edition)

1. That. Effing. Nebula

Right, there was a lot that was good in Beyond, it's Star Trek of course there is, but I just can't let that nebula slide. Here, we have the same problem that we so often have with asteroid belts: Scale.

One of the central plot devices is that this nebula is uncharted and dangerous. We're treated to gorgeous visuals of pretty clouds of gas and precarious asteroid fields and it is established in the Trek universe that nebulae are difficult to navigate.

Unfortunately, the writers have failed to take into account just how big space is. What looks like a great cloud of prettily coloured gas through our telescopes is actually a vast region of space, sometimes hundredS of lightyears across with virtually nothing in it. Many nebulae are actually less dense than the most perfect vacuums we can produce on Earth and you have to look through all kinds of filters and lenses just to see the damn things.

In the same way that flying through an asteroid field would likely be a relaxing, incident-free day, you probably wouldn't even notice if you flew through a nebula. Sorry.