10 Huge Revelations From Star Trek: Khan
6. Did Kirk Really Know?
The wraparound story for Star Trek: Khan focuses on Dr Rosalind Lear, a researcher who petitions Starfleet to allow her to travel to Ceti Alpha V. She contends that Kirk, recently deceased by this point, marooned Khan on the planet while in full possession of the knowledge that Ceti Alpha VI was unstable.
While the previous entry discusses the exact cause for why VI exploded when it did, Lear's investigation raises the question - did the Enterprise conduct an adequate scan of the system before depositing Khan there? Captain Sulu is incensed at the mere suggestion that Kirk knowingly condemned these people to suffering, though even he concedes that it would be better to be sure. Kirk's logs, as indeed all deceased captains' logs, were classified upon his death.
Lear's research reveals that Kirk didn't know, nor could he have known, that VI would explode when it did. While the Enterprise did detect anomalies within the core of VI, they weren't enough to disqualify the system from colonisation at that point.
It was little surprise to the audience that Kirk wasn't aware of what would happen to Khan and his people but the question is given greater depth when one considers - Kirk never did bother to check on Khan, nor did Starfleet. In fact, the series only highlights how forgotten they truly were.
With all of the information sitting in its history banks, the Reliant still failed to notice a missing planet, nor was there any flag on the Ceti Alpha system at all. Kirk may not have been responsible for Khan's fate, but there is still plenty of blame to pass around.