Tantalus Colony

The Tantalus Colony was a Federation penal colony, located on planet Tantalus V, that served as a prison and hospital during the late 23rd century. Violent criminals were imprisoned there for rehabilitation.

The facility contained a mix of surface and underground structures; patient housing, therapy, and staff offices were located underground. Above ground structures included the elevator head through which one accessed the patient facilities, as well as other buildings. Like all penal facilities, the Tantalus colony was protected by a force field that inhibited transporter traffic. To visit the planet or transfer cargo, it was necessary to contact Tantalus personnel and request the field be deactivated.

In 2266, Tantalus initially benefited from the leadership of Dr. Tristan Adams, whose theories on penology had revolutionized such facilities, transforming them from cages into "decent, clean hospitals for sick minds". Late in 2266, when Dr. Simon Van Gelder escaped from Tantalus, it was revealed that Adams had been conducting unauthorized and highly unethical experiments on patients and staff alike, subjecting them to an experimental therapy device, the neural neutralizer, in an attempt to learn more about such therapy. Ironically, Adams was killed by the neural neutralizer when an experiment he was conducting on Captain Kirk went awry, and Kirk escaped. After Adams' death, Van Gelder assumed leadership of the facility.

Individuals imprisoned on Tantalus were those generally deemed curable; the incurably insane of the galaxy were imprisoned on the Elba II asylum. (TOS: "Dagger of the Mind", "Whom Gods Destroy")

Mirror Universe

In the Mirror Universe James Kirk was sent to the Tantalus Colony for a psychiatric evaluation after he managed to kill the entire command crew of the ISS Farragut with the help of an energy being. There, he and Marlena Moreau discovered the Tanttalus Device which Kirk later used to kill Captain Christopher Pike and Number One, allowing him to assume command of the ISS Enterprise.