I can see that. Also, with the relative absence of portholes on the saucer, coupled with the extra nacelles, the linear asthetic and greebling, it seemed more like a Destroyer-type vessel than anything like an explorer.
Constellation-Class Starships
- Thread starter BolianAuthor
- Start date
I can see that. Also, with the relative absence of portholes on the saucer, coupled with the extra nacelles, the linear asthetic and greebling, it seemed more like a Destroyer-type vessel than anything like an explorer.
The number and color of the bay door match those of the Reliant:
http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/twokhd/twokhd0116.jpg
http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/twokhd/twokhd0877.jpg
http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/twokhd/twokhd0116.jpg
http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/twokhd/twokhd0877.jpg
Yeah I noticed that too. Has there been other episodes with a Constellation class firing her phasers? The only doubt I have of whether that is an actual phaser housing is that they had to install the wargame lasers and Riker and crew could have added the lasers unconventionally
As to the requirement for a big nav deflector - I'm not so sure one is really needed. The Reliant ships never had one and did fine
Plus, the ships (in TOS and TFS at least) didn't always fly straight ahead which probably necessitated a navigation deflector network that would allow 360 coverage (probably part of the shields)...Edit: While looking over the screencaps from "Peak Performance" I thought it was interesting that the nacelles had the blue glow despite the lack of antimatter
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Some of the fanon plans I've seen for the Oberth and its siblings have put three small shuttle bays in the saucer module (forward, port and starboard) due to the small dimensions of the overall design). I've seen some other designs (such as destroyers following the FJ school, having only a saucer and nacelles) having an elevator unit on the dorsal surface of the saucer for storage. So it seems logical to me that the Constellation could have an Oberth type system for its small craft.
The story in "Peak Performance" hinged on the Hathaway having no antimatter (thus no m/am power). Wesley snuck aboard a little antimatter for a 2 sec warp 1 burst. But the screenshots I refer to with the nacelles powered up blue are before when the antimatter was brought over.
So basically the blue glowing lights are just running lights that have no bearing on the status (which is not turned on from lack of fuel) of the warp drive.
We do see the blue light disappear when the E-D does a dilithium swap in "Skin of Evil", or when the E-nil-refit goes to impulse in ST:TMP, or when various calamities unexpectedly deprive a starship of power. But none of this unambiguously establishes that the blue light can only be on when there's antimatter in the system.
Perhaps the glow indicates the presence of warp plasma in the system, but only antimatter can energize that plasma so that warp speeds can actually be attained?
It would still be odd for the Hathaway to have plasma flowing through her warp propulsion system in the wargames. If there was to be no actual use of the warp engines, why generate and circulate the plasma?
Which reminds me of the issue of those blue domes on the impulse engines, and the blue dome on the NX-01, and the idea that this would be a device that manipulates the warp field. One theory is that impulse drive can only be achieved if a warp field is being manipulated into an inertia-defying subspace field - and that the ships with the blue domes do this by manipulating the main warp field generated by the warp engines, while ships that lack the domes have special warp field generators elsewhere for generating the inertia negator field. Thus, any ship featuring the blue dome (and the Constellation has two) would have to have blue glow in the nacelles as well whenever attempting impulse maneuvering...
Rather convoluted, I admit - especially considering that the blue domes on the Constellation model were apparently painted opaque!
Timo Saloniemi
Perhaps the glow indicates the presence of warp plasma in the system, but only antimatter can energize that plasma so that warp speeds can actually be attained?
It would still be odd for the Hathaway to have plasma flowing through her warp propulsion system in the wargames. If there was to be no actual use of the warp engines, why generate and circulate the plasma?
Which reminds me of the issue of those blue domes on the impulse engines, and the blue dome on the NX-01, and the idea that this would be a device that manipulates the warp field. One theory is that impulse drive can only be achieved if a warp field is being manipulated into an inertia-defying subspace field - and that the ships with the blue domes do this by manipulating the main warp field generated by the warp engines, while ships that lack the domes have special warp field generators elsewhere for generating the inertia negator field. Thus, any ship featuring the blue dome (and the Constellation has two) would have to have blue glow in the nacelles as well whenever attempting impulse maneuvering...
Rather convoluted, I admit - especially considering that the blue domes on the Constellation model were apparently painted opaque!
Timo Saloniemi
No. More like what Timo said regarding warp plasma. The engine may be primed even if there is no antimatter available to actually put it into operation.
Perhaps the impulse reactors act as "spark plug" for the nacelles, getting 'em hot and "up to running temperature" before being fully powered by M/AM. Impulse engines get the coils energized and the current steady so things are ready to go when the main-reactor comes online and powers up the coils to generate a warp-bubble.Ah. The warp nacelles being powered by the impulse system seems to make the most sense from Timo's post - given what happens in that episode. A little convoluted, but okay
Those domes are the impulse deflection crystals, on TMP era ships they connect the M/AM reactor to the impulse engines to give them an extra boost, maybe in ships of those era the impulse engines can energize the plasma of the drive system as well, maybe as a backup or as an extra boost when the ship needs an extra kick at warp which might indeed be the answer why Hathaway had her warp drive glowing.
Ablative_Oberth
Lieutenant Commander
Intresting. Instead of the warp core powering the impulse engine... the impulse engine supplies plasma to the warp engines... The "intermix" chamber is where antimatter is introduced into the plasma stream, stirred and tuned with the dilthium.
Fascinating. Never thought about it this way before but it makes a surprising amount of sense.
The "cold" untuned fusion plasma can/is vented via the nacelles... A low level field is generated by the fusion plasma... blue glow. To achieve a higher field density you need higher temps and you need whatever exotic majics the crystal provides (tuned plasma stream)... that's where the antimatter comes in.
I've always felt that there were different designs and different "types" of warp engines... The TOS engines operate on a different principle than the Movie ones, which are different than TNG engines.
Trying to reconcile them as all the "same" causes problems... They can all be matter-antimatter engines driving field-generator coils... but how they DO that can be different from ship to ship.
Think of how a triple-expansion engine differs from a steam turbine... Both turn steam into rotary motion that drives a screw... different methodology but the end result is the same.
Fascinating. Never thought about it this way before but it makes a surprising amount of sense.
The "cold" untuned fusion plasma can/is vented via the nacelles... A low level field is generated by the fusion plasma... blue glow. To achieve a higher field density you need higher temps and you need whatever exotic majics the crystal provides (tuned plasma stream)... that's where the antimatter comes in.
I've always felt that there were different designs and different "types" of warp engines... The TOS engines operate on a different principle than the Movie ones, which are different than TNG engines.
Trying to reconcile them as all the "same" causes problems... They can all be matter-antimatter engines driving field-generator coils... but how they DO that can be different from ship to ship.
Think of how a triple-expansion engine differs from a steam turbine... Both turn steam into rotary motion that drives a screw... different methodology but the end result is the same.
Perhaps the Constellation Class, like the TMP refit Enterprise, channel phaser power through the warp drive for improved effectiveness?
True, the Hathaway is using her phasers at minimal power, but based on Decker's comments that the Enterprise's phasers went inoperative when the warp drive went out of balance (? - don't remember the exact statement), it might be that the nacelles must have plasma (even if provided by the fusion reactors) to provide any power to the phaser banks?
Just thought it would be good to refresh everyone on the particulars of "Peak Performance"...
Weapons for wargame:
"modified pulse lasers"
Status of warp drive when they board her...
RIKER: Now, what are the possibilities of warp drive?
LAFORGE: Not good. There are only a few dilithium fragments left in the holding clamps. Even if we had crystals that were intact, there's no anti-matter to fuel the drive.
RIKER: Any recommendations?
LAFORGE: No, sir.
WESLEY: We haven't got a prayer.
...
(Looking inside an empty warp core)
WESLEY: The lining's still smooth. We should to be able to do something with these dilithium fragments we scavenged.
LAFORGE: Sure, the system is functional. But without antimatter, what difference does it make?
WESLEY: Geordi, I have to return to the Enterprise.
...
Wesley has brought aboard a tiny amount of antimatter...
LAFORGE: The hard part's going to be calibrating the thermal curve necessary to start a controlled reaction.
RIKER: Assuming you can, can you regulate the reaction?
WESLEY: There's just enough crystal to do it. We plan to channel the reaction through the chips.
LAFORGE: Are we good?
RIKER: You're better than good. Great. Brilliant. It's going to be fun. Carry on.
..
And after some work...
LAFORGE: You'll have warp drive, Captain, though it may not be what you expected.
RIKER: I think that deserves some kind of explanation.
LAFORGE: We'll have warp one for about
WESLEY: Just under two seconds.
RIKER: That's not long enough for an escape, but used as a surprise it may give a strategic advantage.
...
And we do learn that the Hathaway was originally rendered "warp inactive". So the blue glow from the nacelles at the very beginning were either from the impulse systems or something that had no relationship to the status of the warp system.
RIKER: We have a limited, two-second warp capability.
KOLRAMI: Impossible! That ship was rendered warp inactive.
As to the original weapons on the Hathaway, those were stripped as well leaving just the wargame pulse lasers...
RIKER: She's really been stripped down, Captain.
KOLRAMI: The only offensive systems you'll need will be simulated by computer.
...
NAGEL: That's no ghost attacking the Enterprise. That's real!
WORF: We must assist, sir.
RIKER: With what? We have no offensive weapons.
Impulse powering or needing the warp nacelles seems to make the most sense in this case and it seems to be a TNG-specific thing, IMHO.
Weapons for wargame:
"modified pulse lasers"
Status of warp drive when they board her...
RIKER: Now, what are the possibilities of warp drive?
LAFORGE: Not good. There are only a few dilithium fragments left in the holding clamps. Even if we had crystals that were intact, there's no anti-matter to fuel the drive.
RIKER: Any recommendations?
LAFORGE: No, sir.
WESLEY: We haven't got a prayer.
...
(Looking inside an empty warp core)
WESLEY: The lining's still smooth. We should to be able to do something with these dilithium fragments we scavenged.
LAFORGE: Sure, the system is functional. But without antimatter, what difference does it make?
WESLEY: Geordi, I have to return to the Enterprise.
...
Wesley has brought aboard a tiny amount of antimatter...
LAFORGE: The hard part's going to be calibrating the thermal curve necessary to start a controlled reaction.
RIKER: Assuming you can, can you regulate the reaction?
WESLEY: There's just enough crystal to do it. We plan to channel the reaction through the chips.
LAFORGE: Are we good?
RIKER: You're better than good. Great. Brilliant. It's going to be fun. Carry on.
..
And after some work...
LAFORGE: You'll have warp drive, Captain, though it may not be what you expected.
RIKER: I think that deserves some kind of explanation.
LAFORGE: We'll have warp one for about
WESLEY: Just under two seconds.
RIKER: That's not long enough for an escape, but used as a surprise it may give a strategic advantage.
...
And we do learn that the Hathaway was originally rendered "warp inactive". So the blue glow from the nacelles at the very beginning were either from the impulse systems or something that had no relationship to the status of the warp system.
RIKER: We have a limited, two-second warp capability.
KOLRAMI: Impossible! That ship was rendered warp inactive.
As to the original weapons on the Hathaway, those were stripped as well leaving just the wargame pulse lasers...
RIKER: She's really been stripped down, Captain.
KOLRAMI: The only offensive systems you'll need will be simulated by computer.
...
NAGEL: That's no ghost attacking the Enterprise. That's real!
WORF: We must assist, sir.
RIKER: With what? We have no offensive weapons.
Impulse powering or needing the warp nacelles seems to make the most sense in this case and it seems to be a TNG-specific thing, IMHO.
Lazarus
Fleet Captain
I know this was posted a month ago, but what an interesting little piece of writing.
That's a very interesting historical write-up. Where did this come from?
Are there links to any similar write-ups for other ship classes?
This is made with parts I had lying around and is just thrown together, but here you go. What might have been:
Hey, that's pretty good!
