An Official Battlestar Galactica Glossary*

* (or "what the frak are they talking about, anyway?!")

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Actual — Term used to refer to the commanding officer of a vessel during radio communications. One would ask to speak to "Galactica actual" to converse directly with its commander, who would identify himself or herself by saying, "This is actual."

Ambrosia — Popular alcoholic beverage

Beast, the — Nickname for the battlestar Pegasus

Bucket, the — Nickname for the battlestar Galactica

Blackbird — Stealth fighter built by Chief Tyrol in the episode "Flight of the Phoenix." Covered in a carbon composite skin, the Blackbird is invisible to dradis and, when operating in deep space, almost imperceptible to the naked eye. In the episode "Resurrection Ship, Part 1," Starbuck uses the Blackbird to fly undetected into the Cylon fleet and take reconnaissance photos.

"Boxed" — Cylon term for the cold storage of Cylon memories, usually employed when a reborn Cylon is unable or unwilling to integrate back into Cylon society

C-Bucks — Nickname for the Caprica Buccaneers, a Pyramid team representing the colony of Caprica

Caprica Six — Name given to the Number Six Cylon who was responsible for the infiltration of the Colonial Defense Network. This infiltration allowed the Cylon fleet to overwhelm the defenses of the Twelve Colonies and the Colonial Fleet, leading to the near-annihilation of the human race. Caprica Six and the Number Eight model Sharon who infiltrated the Galactica are considered "heroes of the Cylon."

CBDR — "Constant Bearing, Decreasing Range." Describes a collision course between two objects.

Chamalla — Natural extract used as an alternative, holistic treatment for a variety of ailments, including cancer. Priests often use chamalla in religious rituals because they believe it induces visions with which they can predict the future. While taking chamalla to treat her breast cancer, President Laura Roslin had visions that predicted events foretold in the sacred Scrolls of Pythia.

Cubits — Colonial unit of currency

Cylon Centurion — Metallic variety of Cylon that later evolved into the more advanced, human-looking variant. Also known as "chrome-jobs" and "toasters."

Deck Gang — Refers to personnel on Colonial space vessels who are responsible for the repair and maintenance of military or civilian aircraft; also referred to as "knuckledraggers"

Dradis — Colonial Military equivalent of radar

Frak — The Battlestar Galactica equivalent of the "F-Word"

FTL — "Faster-than-Light." Actually a misnomer when used to describe the space-folding drive employed by the Galactica and ships in the Colonial fleet capable of making instantaneous "jumps" across vast distances in space. Colonial Military reconnaissance aircraft known as Raptors are capable of making short jumps to scout ahead of the fleet. Priming an FTL drive for a jump is referred to as "spooling up."

Full Colors — The "Royal Flush" of Pyramid Poker

Human-Cylon Hybrid — Offspring of Helo and Sharon. Mastering biological reproduction is a major objective of the Cylons.

New Caprica — Planet located inside a nebula that blinds Cylon sensors. Colonized by order of newly elected President Gaius Baltar and named in honor of a devastated colony world. Invaded and occupied by Cylon forces within one year of being settled.

Nugget — Pilot with little or no experience

Picon Panthers — Commander Adama's favorite Pyramid team

Pyramid — Sport popular throughout the Twelve Colonies. Resembles a combination of basketball and rugby.

Quorum of Twelve — Political council with representatives from each of the Twelve Colonies

Resurrection Chamber — Liquid-filled chamber designed for the rebirth of slain human-form Cylons. Rebirth is often traumatic, so other Cylons are present to ease returning Cylons back into the world.

Resurrection Ship — Vessel employed by Cylons to resurrect Cylons who die far from their homeworld. The exact range of the Cylons' "upload" ability is not known, but Cylons operating more than several light-years from the homeworld require these ships as an essential support mechanism.

RFN — "right frakking now"

Sacred Scrolls — Set of writings that form the basis of the polytheistic Colonial religion. They contain a history of humanity and recount life on Kobol before the great exodus and the legend of Earth. The Scroll of Pythia is believed by some to foretell humanity's current exodus from the Twelve Colonies.

Sit-Rep — "situation report"

Skin-Job — Slang term used by humans for the human-looking variety of Cylon

Stims — Stimulants, often used to function for long periods of time without sleep. In the episode "33," Viper pilots resorted to taking stims when they were forced to fend off Cylon attacks every 33 minutes for five consecutive days without rest.

Tylium — Mineral that can be refined into a vital fuel and power source for space vessels. In the episode "The Hand of God," Apollo leads a Viper squadron against a Cylon-controlled tylium refinery.