How does the Death Star gravity work?

Question

As we all know the Death Star is spherical. I don't know if it generates gravity on its own or has a gravity generator, but that's not important. I think we have basically two scenarios:

1. Gravity works the same way as Earth. If you are in the lower hemisphere, you are upside down, but that's normal for you.

   If that's the case, when would the gravity shift? What if you're taking an elevator, would it be same as in the Total Recall remake?

2. Everyone has the same gravity. Same as if you were in one big house.

   Now what if the trench ran in the lower hemisphere. Would the stormtroopers in the turrets be upside down?

I accept any sort of canon.

Answer 1

From the old West End Games D6 Roleplaying Game (Second Edition) supplement Death Star Technical Companion, Chapter Two: Technical Specifications, p. 16, right column:

Gravity within the battle station was handled by omni-directional gravity boosters built into the decks, walls and ceilings. These gravity boosters changed orientation as easily as flipping a switch, and they were designed to allow the gravity orientation to be altered from sector to sector, or even from corridor to corridor. While hangar bays imposed gravity perpendicular to the Death Star's core, adjoining corridors shifted the gravity orientation to coreward. In a situation where the gravity orientation changed from one section to the next, there were numerous warning signs. However, most gravity orientation transitions were accomplished by turbolifts, which employ gravity compensators oriented to the lift's floor. While the lift was in transit, it would rotate to match the orientation of the destination deck, while the compensators would keep the occupants perfectly comfortable and completely unaware that the gravity orientation had changed at all.

To go into the specifics of the question:

1. Gravity does -- for the most part -- work as on Earth (or any other celestial body), and you are upside down in the lower hemisphere, or rather, Space is always above you (which is a good thing while, for instance, manning a turbolaser battery).

   • The gravtiy changes are carefully marked wherever they occur (near a hangar, probably also near the core or the superlaser maintenance ducts - otherwise those poor guys would have to climb a 120km (or 160km in DS-2) long ladder). Elevators (i.e. turbolifts) have their own gravity, so the capsule rotates but noone inside feels it, you just get on and off and maybe in between the gravity has changed orientation a few times, but you wouldn't even know.

2. Only within a specific area do the people experience the same gravity.

Answer 2

This is an excerpt from the excellent Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy: The Ultimate Guide to the Incredible Locations of Episodes IV, V, and VI factbook. As you can see, gravity on the Death Star is generated locally. On the outermost layers of the vessel, the orientation is toward the centre. Once you go more than a few layer inside, the gravity is then stacked top to bottom.