Status of unmanned probes in the 24th century

[Xerxes1979]

if you accept that the Federation is two years travel across at it widest, is it reasonable to assume that most exploration beyond charted space is done by probes?

How big do you think unmanned probes are and how are their missions chosen?

The only probes we see onscreen have been tiny, mostly photon tube sized of limited duration. Something that would be traveling tens of thousands of lightyears would need to be runabout size or greater.

Take system J25. A probe launched early in the 24th century could easily be half way there or more by TNG.

Does most knowledge comes from starships on deep space exploration, subspace observatories like the Argus array or unmanned probes?

Can probes even be used effectively if they can't get to their destination without violating the territory of warp cabable spieces?

 

[Mysterion]

There was a fan-published technical manual awhile back (while TNG was still on, IIRC) that imagined a series of unmanned probes that were basically Galaxy class warp nacelles fitted with appropriate sensor equipment. This seems like an interesting and workable idea to me.

 

[Timo]

We have little or no idea of the size of the single long range probe we saw, Friendship 1. The detail on that model would be sufficient for portraying the probe as starship-sized, which would be a logical way to explain the observed speed and range.

Friendship 1 is basically the only probe that verifiably crossed major intragalactic distances. The Quadros 1 probe mentioned in DS9 "Emissary" observed a star system in the Gamma Quadrant, but the probe (whether a single device flying through space, or an expansive scientific study which can also be called "probe") could have done that without ever leaving the Alpha Quadrant, too - via long base interferometry or the like. However, it shouldn't be unexpected if the Federation and various other cultures launched masses of probes resembling Friendship1. A multi-decade mission like the one conducted by the Voyager would be a perfectly viable mission type for a ship whose crew doesn't grow old and die, assuming that the onboard automation were able to keep the engines running for said decades...

Does most knowledge comes from starships on deep space exploration, subspace observatories like the Argus array or unmanned probes?

Many a Trek plot hinges on the inability of Starfleet to observe (at least in real time) the events in a star system unless it sends a starship to have a look. This includes fairly proximal systems like Ceti Alpha, as well as systems at some distance like L-374 - in both cases, the complete disappearance of entire planets went unobserved.

In two early TNG episodes, the extent of UFP-explored space is given as 11 or 19 % of the galactic volume. Telescopes can see trillions of times farther out today already, so "explored" apparently means either significantly more detailed knowledge, or then realtime knowledge... Or perhaps both. I'd say probes are important precursors to starships, but telescopes play little role in the acquisition of truly important knowledge on things such as alien cultures, their national borders, trade routes and resources.

Can probes even be used effectively if they can't get to their destination without violating the territory of warp cabable spieces?

The violations probably largely go unobserved by either side. It's extremely seldom that a culture is able to mark its borders with a system that tells intruders that they are trespassing, or to intercept an offender right at the border; it's far more typical for a random patrol to stumble upon an intruder and challenge him well past the point of intrusion. And that's with starship-sized intruders. Kirk was unable to spot NOMAD even at very short ranges, despite the power and speed inherent in the tiny device, so apparently small is stealthy even without the benefit of cloaking devices.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[throwback]

Timo,

In your survey of space probes, you missed the Vega Nine. Here is the Memory Alpha article on this probe - http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Vega_Nine_probe

 

[Timo]

Yup, I had completely forgotten about that one. (A nice example of Starfleet using the word "Vega" without referring to the star of that name, too - helps us in treating "Delta Vega" as a location completely unrelated to Vega...)

One wonders if Vega 9 was technologically incapable of making contact with Gomtuu, or merely instructed not to. Friendship 1 was quite active in contacting alien life, it seems, although only with dumb recordings rather than conversational AI routines.

Timo Saloniemi