Science Equipment

Science Stations

Science stations I and II are the first two aft stations located directly behind the Tactical station on the upper level of the Main Bridge (different ship configurations may place this elsewhere). They are used by bridge personnel to provide real-time scientific data to command personnel. These stations are not assigned full-time technicians, but are available for use as needed. Station I is frequently manned by the CSO and additional scientists to Station II. In some cases, the science stations are used by personnel attached to secondary missions including researchers, science officers, mission specialists, and others who need to coordinate operations closely with the bridge. Science I and II are generally configured for independent operation, but can be linked together when two researchers wish to work cooperatively. The aft Science stations have priority links to Conn, OPS and Tactical. During Alert status, science stations can have priority access to sensor arrays, if necessary over ridding ongoing science department observations and other secondary mission upon approval of the CSO.

The Science I station incorporates an isolinear ship matrix panel that permits specialized mission profile programs to be loaded as needed, and also permits investigators to accumulate data for later study.

Primary functions of Science stations include:

• The ability to provide access to sensors and interpretative software for primary mission and command intelligence requirements and to supplement OPS to providing real-time scientific data for command decision making support.
• The ability to act as a command pst of coordination of activities of various science laboratories and other departments, as well as for monitoring of secondary mission status.
• The ability to reconfigure and recalibrate sensor systems at a moment’s notice to specific command intelligence requirements.

Tricorder

Main Article: Tricorder

The standard tricorder is a portable sensing, computing, and data communications device developed by Starfleet R&D and issued to starship crew members. It incorporates miniaturized versions of those scientific instrument found to be most useful for both shipboard and away missions, and its capabilities may be augmented with mission-specific peripherals. Its many functions may be accessed by touch-sensitive controls or, if necessary, voice command Tricorders are extremely compact and powerful sensory devices. In addition to containing a wide range of miniature electromagnetic, magnetic, audio, chemical and subspace sensors, tricorders also include extremely detailed databanks on a wide range of scientific and historical information. The computer in the tricorder can rapidly identify known lifeforms, materials and energy sources by comparing its sensory reading with its databanks. Tricorders can also attempt to analyze unknown lifeforms, materials or energy sources, although this could take up to an hour, during which the tricorder may still be used for other tasks. Tricorders also contain subspace communicators with ranges like those of personal communicators. The can send and receive data of all types from a starship computer or other distant source.

The normal range a standard tricorder is 2,000 meters for long range scans, 25 meters for short-range for short-range scans. All long-range scans are omni directional, but the user must aim the tricorder at a specific location to perform a short-range scan. Various types of ionic and other interference can greatly reduce the range of a tricorders scans.

PADD

Main Article: PADD

In its primary role aboard a starship, the personal access display device (PADD) is a handheld control and display terminal. Small, easily managed terminals and computers are in daily use throughout Starfleet, as a natural response to crew members’ needs to 1.) execute hardware functions in a variety of functions, and 2.) manipulate visual information and communicate that information to others aboard ship. Access to the ships computer and other pieces of equipment can be accomplished through he usual control display and larger terminal screens, of course, but the PADD has become a convenient adjunct to those panels.

Deflector Dish

Although the density of the interstellar medium is extremely low, significant hazards to navigation exits, especial for a starship traveling at relativistic or warp velocities. Among these are micrometeroid particulates, as well as the much rare (but more hazardous) larger objects such as asteroids. Even the extremely tenuous stray hydrogen atoms of the interstellar medium itself can be a dangerous source of friction at sufficient velocities.

The heart of the navigational deflector system is three redundant high power graviton polarity source generators. The flux energy output of these generators is directed and focused by a series of powerful subspace field coils. The main dish is attached to the actual emitter array. The dish is steerable under automatic computer control. Subspace filed coils are used to shape the deflector beam into two primary components. The first shields the ship two kilometers ahead of the ship. These low-powered fields are relatively static and are used to deflect the stray hydrogen atom as well as any submicron particles that escaped the deflector beam. The navigational deflector, also controlled by the subspace field coils, is a powerful tractor/deflector that sweeps thousands of kilometers ahead of the ship, pushing aside larger objects that may present a collision hazard.

Because the main deflector dish radiates significant amounts of both subspace and electromagnetic radiation, it can have detrimental effects on the performance of many sensors. Which is why the LRS array is located behind the main deflector, allowing sensors to ‘look’ directly through the axis of the fields.

Probes

Main Article: Probes

Automated sensor platforms propelled by micro fusion reactors or warp field sustainers, used to extend starships sensor range and sensitivity, to perform routine surveys, or to reconnoiter an area where a threat may exist. Probes can be retasked and piloted from the mother ship, although specialized scans typically require manual replacement of sensor pallets. All probes are roughly cylindrical and approx. 2 meters long, about the same size as a photon torpedo launcher.

There are nine classes of probes, classified by mission type. Increase in class number does not necessarily indicate a corresponding increase in utility, although it does usually indicate an increase in speed and range.