Physics and Star Wars
To estimate the effects of the second Death Star, Minton looks into its mass. According to estimated data from some students of Lehigh University, the steel mass needed for building one would be around 770 kilograms times the mass cubed in weight. This would give the Death Star of about ten to the power of nineteen kilograms in mass. Using this data, Minton produces equations that lead him to conclude the fragments would hit the moons surface so hard causing craters almost four times the size of the Chicxulub crater in Mexico. This impact would cause a planetary firestorm and vaporize all lifeforms on the moon.
Star Wars: Jedi Knight
In the first level of "Dark Forces", which is set prior to "A New Hope", Katarn recovers the plans to the Death Star, a heavily armed space station capable of destroying entire planets. The Rebel Alliance uses the plans to find a weakness in and then destroy the Death Star. Katarn then aids the Rebels in stopping the threat of the Imperial "Dark Trooper" project. Despite the successful missions on behalf of the Alliance, however, Katarn does not join their cause. "Dark Forces II" begins several years after the destruction of the second Death Star in "Return of the Jedi", when Katarn is informed of the exact details of his father's death. His father, Morgan Katarn, had discovered the location of "The Valley of the Jedi", a source of great Force power, but a Dark Jedi named Jerec murdered Morgan in an attempt to find the location. Katarn travels to the Valley of the Jedi while learning the ways of the Jedi himself. Eventually, he confronts and defeats Jerec, avenging his father's death. However, Katarn still does not join the Jedi Order, instead using his powers for the New Republic, and taking on an apprentice with a similar history to himself; Mara Jade. During this time, Katarn learns of a Sith temple on the planet Dromund Kaas. There, Katarn is corrupted by the Dark Side of the Force. However, Jade is able to convince him to return to the Light and they leave together.