did not have time
on Vulcan to review
the philosophical disciplines.
Come on, Spock.
It's me, McCoy.
You really have gone where
no man's gone before.
What did it feel like?
It's impossible to discuss
without a common frame of reference.
You're joking.
A joke... is a story
with a humorous climax.
I have to die to discuss
your insights on death?
I'm receiving a number
of distress calls.
I don't doubt it.
Juneau, Alaska, clouds increasing 95%.
Tokyo. Total cloud coverage.
All power from reserve banks.
Leningrad has lost
all electrical power.
Cloud coverage 100%.
Temperatures decreasing rapidly.
What is the estimate
cloud cover of the planet?
78.6%.
Notify all stations.
Starfleet emergency. Red alert.
Switch power immediately
to planetary reserves.
Switching now.
Red alert.
We are now on red alert.
Attention, attention. Red alert.
Mr. President,
even with planetary reserves,
we cannot survive without the sun.
I'm well aware of that, Admiral.
Ambassador Sarek,
I'm afraid you're trapped here with us.
There seems to be no way
we can answer this probe.
It's difficult to answer
when one does not
understand the question.
Mr. President...
perhaps you should transmit
a planetary distress signal...
while we still have time.
Admiral.
What is it?
Overlapping distress calls
and now a message from the federation.
On screen.
This is the president
of the United Federation of Planets.
Do not approach Earth.
The transmissions
of an orbiting probe
are causing critical
damage to this planet.
It's almost totally
ionized our atmosphere.
All power sources have failed.
All earth-orbiting
starships are powerless.
The probe is vaporizing our oceans.
We cannot survive
unless a way can be found
to respond to the probe.
Further communications
may not be possible.
Save your energy.
Save yourselves.
Avoid the planet earth at all costs.
Farewell.
Can you let us hear
the probe's transmission?
Yes, sir.
On speakers.
Spock, what do you make of that?
Most unusual.
An unknown form of energy
of great power and intelligence,
evidently unaware
that its transmissions
are destructive.
I find it illogical
that its intentions are hostile.
Is this its way of saying " Hi there"
to the people of the Earth?
There are other forms
of intelligence
on Earth, Doctor.
Only human arrogance would assume
the message must be meant for man.
You're suggesting the transmission
is meant for a life form
other than man.
At least a possibility, Admiral.
The president did say
it was directed at Earth's oceans.
Uhura, can you modify
the probe signals
accounting for density
and temperature
and solidity factors?
I can try, sir.
I think I have it, sir.
This is what it would
sound like underwater?
Yes, sir.
Fascinating.
If my suspicion is correct,
there can be no response
to this message.
Excuse me.
Where are you going?
To test my theory.
Bones, you stay here.
No way.
Somebody's got to
keep an eye on him.
Spock?
As suspected.
The probe's transmissions
are the songs sung by whales.
Whales.
Specifically, humpback whales.
That's crazy.
Who would send a probe
hundreds of light-years
to talk to whales?
Whales have been on earth
far earlier than man.
10 million years earlier.
Humpbacks were
heavily hunted by man.
They've been extinct
since the 21st century.
It's possible that
an alien intelligence
sent the probe to determine
why they lost contact.
My God.
Spock...
could the humpback's
answer to this call
be simulated?
The sounds, but not the language.
We'd be responding in gibberish.
Does the species exist
on any other planet?
Negative.
Humpbacks were indigenous to Earth,
Earth of the past.
Well...
We have no choice.
We must destroy the probe
before it destroys earth.
That would be futile.
The probe could render us
neutral easily.
We can't just turn away.
There must be an alternative.
There is one possibility,
but I cannot guarantee