Object

Mariposa Cloning Unit (Artificial Womb)

A coffin‑sized Mariposa artificial womb (Cloning Unit #1): a cylindrical steel-and-polyglass incubation pod with a domed, fogged observation port and scorched/rimmed panels. Inside, viscous bio‑gel cradles a half‑formed humanoid (or developing replicas), with braided nutrient and neural conduits, status LEDs, and ruptured vents that produce acrid smoke when opened. The unit is central to the scene where Riker forces open an access hatch and crew members (Pulaski, Geordi, Riker) react with horror; it is tied to events implicating Granger and his clones.

2 appearances

Purpose

To incubate, nurture and contain developing cloned humanoid bodies—serving as an artificial womb and containment apparatus for tissue differentiation, organogenesis, and controlled maturation of clones prior to activation or removal.

Significance

Functions as the forensic nucleus that exposes an illicit cloning operation, provokes Riker's purge of developing duplicates, and precipitates the armed standoff with Granger; it concretizes the episode's ethical conflict over bodily autonomy, reproducible identity, and militarized reproduction.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S2E18 · STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION — Up the Long Ladder

Riker's Visceral Purge of the Cloning Lab

A banked artificial womb functions as the primary forensic horror: when Riker opens its door smoke vents and a half-formed human replica is revealed. Its exposed contents catalyze Riker's moral revulsion and the act of destruction, marking the unit as the crime-scene focal point.

Before: Sealed, fogged and banked in the laboratory; vents leaking smoke suggest prior damage or containment failure.

After: Door forced open and its developing occupant destroyed; smoke still present and unit effectively compromised as evidence and active production point.

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S2E18 · STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION — Up the Long Ladder

Granger's Reinforcements: Armed Standoff in the Cloning Lab

A banked artificial womb (the second cloning unit) is opened to reveal another nascent duplicate; it functions as corroborating evidence of systematic cloning and becomes the second target of Riker's destructive action after Pulaski's assent.

Before: Sealed, fogged, and emitting smoke with a partially formed human replica inside the viscous nutrient gel.

After: Opened and evacuated of viable developing tissue — the revealed clone is destroyed and the unit vents smoke and contamination into the lab.

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