Guide:Sulek/Velikovski
| |
| Sulek / Velikovski | |
|---|---|
| Class Overview | |
| Category | prospector |
| Operational | 2253 - 2286
|
| Constructed | 282
|
| Dimensions | |
| Length | 18.3 m |
| Beam | 7.9 m |
| Height | 7.6 m |
| Mass |
|
| Performance | |
| Cruise Speed | w 3.0 |
| Max Speed | w 3.2 |
| Endurance | 3 years |
| Complement | |
| Crew | 3-5
|
| Cargo | 250 mt |
| Tactical Systems | |
| Shields |
|
| Historical | |
| Ships of Note |
|
| Canonicity | |
| Design | How Much for Just the Planet? (John M. Ford); Jason Lee |
| Name | How Much for Just the Planet? (John M. Ford) |
| History | How Much for Just the Planet? (John M. Ford); Timo
|
Background: Hobbyist's Guide
Star Fleet has supported interstellar prospecting operations since its founding. Most of the Exploration Command vessels carry sensors capable of rapidly assessing planetary resources. Through its ‘scientific subsidiaries’ like UESPA, VIS or ACI, Star Fleet also offers automated sensor packages to commercial vessels. However, it has seldom deployed specialized prospector vessels under its direct command.
The Sulek class of the 2250s is a significant exception to this rule. Necessitated by the dilithium revolution of the late thirties and early forties, the class was fielded by the Resources Division in considerable numbers to secure sources of the vitally important crystals for Federation use. Even though most of the vessels operated under NAR registries, their design was based on Star Fleet’s trademark military-scientific thinking and represents one of the few commercial successes of this approach.
Smaller than most Star Fleet surveyors, the Suleks required a crew of only three to five to operate. The hull was of anvil shape, with antimatter-powered warp engines semi-recessed in cowlings on the dorsal stern prong, and the single vectorable impulse nozzle between them. The minimal maintenance RMR-404 or RMR-406 reactor in the rounded “foot” of the anvil fed the propulsion units with power for a warp 3.2 maximum speed. There was no fusion or fission backup system, only a series of batteries for auxiliary power – the impulse engine was directly powered by first-stage plasma from the warp power system.
A navigational deflector and high power active sensor array also drew power from the reactor, being mounted directly ahead of it. Main prospecting sensors, some with deploying antennas, were housed in two stub wings on top of the anvil; the wings also provided some lift both in the aerodynamic sense and by virtue of built-in landing antigravs. Four folding legs and a ventral aft ramp catered for planetary forays.
Internally, the craft was divided into four small cabins, a combined mess/sickbay/social space/staging floor, a flight deck/survey center with two portholes for good visibility forward and down, a hygiene space and a single dorsally firing lifepod. On the lower semi-deck, survey resources included equipment and consumables holds and racks of miniature probes. Survey systems were generally tailored for only one or two target resources at a time. No weaponry was carried, nor was there a tractor beam available.
This minimal craft was optimized for one aspect only: it had an extreme endurance for a vessel of its size. Up to three years’ worth of life support and propulsive power could be coerced out of the design. In practice, every week of those three years was needed, as prospectors tried to maximize their active survey hours and minimize port calls in between. Furthermore, an average of fifteen planetfalls would be performed during a typical prospecting sortie. While dilithium could be sensed from across half a lightyear, non-emitting minerals like topaline or pergium had to be charted from low orbit, and findings verified on the surface.
The extreme stresses imposed on the ships led to a typical vessel lifetime of about twelve years. Some were able to operate several vessels in succession, but normally a prospector ran down his or her ship in a single bid for success. Nevertheless, between 2253 and 2269, dozens of findings of crucial economic importance to the Federation – and to the prospectors – were made by Sulek and improved Velikovski vessels.
Federation support was pulled from the last Velikovskis in 2286, as the political situation made government-backed prospecting operations all but impossible. Comparable design ventures have not been directly tackled by Star Fleet since, even though the organization maintains a keen interest in the prospecting business. Support of civilian research in the field still remains an important part of Fleet R&D; for example, the ASDB Danube runabout program has recently spun off improvements in commercial prospector design.
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