Guide:Karekh

Karekh
Class Overview
Category	prospector
Operational	2261 - 2339
Constructed	125 (built: [[]]-[[]])
Dimensions
Length	35.0 m
Beam	26.1 m
Height	; Flt I: 6.9 m; Flt II: 7.0 m;
Mass	; Flt I: 9,140 mt; Flt II: 14,530 mt;
Performance
Cruise Speed	w 3.0
Max Speed	; Flt I: w 4.0; Flt II: w 5.0;
Endurance	1 year
Complement
Crew	; Flt I: 5-9; Flt II: 6-9; ; ;
Tactical Systems
Beam Weapons	; Flt I: none; Flt II: 1x fwd phaser IV emitter; ;
Shields	; 1-layer globular forcefield; 1x navigational deflector (ventral bow);
Laboratories	; prospector: 1x mineralogy; intel scout: 1x SIGINT;
Transporters	1x GP (2-pad); Mk III
Historical
Ships of Note	; SS Alexey Stakahanov (NAR-31473); USS Ariel (NCC-I904);
Canonicity
Design	FASA
Name	FASA
History	FASA ;

Background: Hobbyist's Guide

When Star Fleet in 2259 launched the Prospecting And Reconnaissance Integrated Scoutcraft program, the blatantly spelled-out intent was to procure just a single type of craft for both resource hunting and military scouting. Yet the challenges of improving upon the performance of the Mission scoutcraft were quickly found too great, and the conceptual dream of a warp 3/5+ light prospector gave way to mundane warp 3/4 reality. This was still an improvement over the Sulek family of prospecting vessels, and in 2260, Star Fleet agreed to bifurcating PARIS to the high-end Archer scouts and the Karekh series of prospectors.

Karekh held on to some Mission concepts, such as low-slung, solid state nacelles trailing behind the center of aerodynamic lift, extremely lightweight hull construction, and a ventral hatch for effortless equipment loading and offloading. Internally she was a prospector through and through, however: the two decks in the sleek, circular hull 19 m in diameter were optimized for long term habitation for a multitasked crew of five to nine. Versatile analysis systems were compacted and automated so that the powerful L-14 computer could turn the single humble assay room into a university-standard laboratory.

Spinoff technology from the Archer program further improved on the basic capabilities. A modern Mk III transporter was something of a luxury item aboard the fully landing-capable vessel. A ventral garage just aft of the saucer hull, in the engineering structure that also supported the engine booms, provided additional access by housing a pair of surface vehicles and full survey gear. The prospector was secured for underwater operations, and accepted a variety of fuel grades for both the main m/am reactor and the two small fusion backups integral in the impulse systems of the booms.

With the 21 m, 4,100 ton DB-40 engines at 60% power, warp 4 could be achieved and maintained for some 12 hours. Extra power could be channeled to powerful shields, but no armament was fitted on any of the 125 craft procured. Unlike Archer, the prospector was supposed to steer clear of trouble, even if the missions took the type much farther out than the lesser Sulek and Velikovski vessels. The vast majority of the vessels were delivered to civilian prospecting enterprises, with Star Fleet initially only taking possession of 12 hulls for SF Intelligence needs.

As prospecting operations wound down in the 2280s, surprisingly many of the Karekhs were still spaceworthy. In an attempt to re-enact the success of Project Locust, Star Fleet purchased 85 of the survivors and engaged in a refitting project that would give the vessels linear-excitation engines and a modest phaser armament. In functional terms, the project was a disaster, resulting in a grossly overweight design of poorly defined operational concept. Space within the range of the improved vessels was already thoroughly charted in mineralogical terms, and Exploration Command attempted in vain to find a meaningful deep space role for the type. The eventual niche for the upgraded Karekh class, dutifully filled until the late 2330s, was as pathfinders for colonization missions in low-risk regions.