subspace transceiver network is the active system linked tothe transporter for personnel locator and coordinate lock-onfunctions. A minimum of three transceivers covering a givenportion of the spacecraft sky coverage must be available forreliable transporter lock. The maximum reliable distance forroutine transport is 40,000 km, owing to the median matterstream blooming tolerance of 0.005 arc-seconds, thoughsubspace communications by the medium-power networkcan extend to some 60,000 km.Normal contact with the <strong>star</strong>ship, if externally initiated, isdivided into two basic types: Starfleet personnel, especiallythose persons directly assigned to the ship, and non-Starfleetagents. Away Team members will call directly to the Bridgeor other active departments during the course of their work.Normal contact from outside agents will be held by Security forpresentation to the captain or other senior officers. Emergencytransmissions will usually be passed without computerdelay for appropriate action.Standard encryption/decryption, plus enhanced securityencryption protocols, are handled by FTL processorswithin the main computers. Starfleet encryption algorithmsare rotated and updated on a random schedule. Multipleprivate key portions are retained with the <strong>star</strong>ship computers,and the public portions are transmitted to Starfleet-issuehardware, such as handheld instrumentation, communicators,personal access display devices, and other pieces of expendablegear vulnerable to possible capture by Threatforces. Calling for a secure channel on either the spacecraftor remote side will be detected by the main computer, whichwill place higher encryption schemes in standby mode toawait confirmation by command personnel.With certain non-Starfleet subspace transmission protocols,particularly for data burst receiving, protocol matchingdelays may be forced by the computer until matrix translationvalues are calculated and applied in realtime. True Starfleetburst modes, as designed into the standard and medicaltricorders, allow rapid emergency transmissions of storedinformation via the subspace system. Single antenna coverageis acceptable, though the physical layout of the antennagroups assures at least two arrays will be visible if thespacecraft is in line-of-sight of a transmitter.8.4 SHIP-TO-SHIP COMMUNICATIONSThe most energetic and far-reaching communicationspossible from the USS Enterprise encompass ship-to-shipand ship-to-<strong>star</strong>base transmissions. These will typically spanfrom hundreds of Astronomical Units to tens of light years, farbeyond the capabilities of the lower-power subspace transceiverunits already described.The communications system designed into the <strong>star</strong>shipcomprises ten ultra-high power subspace transceivers. Eachis a trapezoidal solid 6x4 meters by 3 meters thick, set belowthe hull skin layer. The antenna array is the only deviceimbedded within the outer 11.34 cm of the skin. It is tied to therest of the transceiver by a direct field energy waveguide.Since the operation of the long-range units can take placeat both sublight and warp velocities, the internal arrangementof the transceiver allows for a greater number of major assemblies,including a sublight signal preprocessor, a warp velocitysignal preprocessor, an adaptive antenna radiating elementsteering driver, Doppler and Heisenberg compensators, acombined selectable noise/clutter eliminator and amplifierstage, and a passive ranging determinator. As with the shortrangesystem, signal encryption/decryption is handled by themain computer.All Starfleet <strong>star</strong>ships are able to transmit and receivevoice and data via subspace, at a maximum transfer rate of18.5 kiloquads/second. Calls between ships during lowactiohlevels are usually initiated by a hailing signal packet,which contains all pertinent information relating to the callingship. The call, usually directed toward upper-tier commandpersonnel, can be held for routing to the proper destination bySecurity or Ops. Routine voice and data exchanges betweenscientific, <strong>technical</strong>, and operational departments aboardboth vessels can be cleared by Security once contact hasbeen established.Crisis action levels, especially during Red Alert, can seenormal hailing signals circumvented, depending on the exactsituation. As with the other communications modes, calls canbe closed out by either active controls, direct voice commands,or the aural monitoring functions of the main computeras it processes contextual cues.STARBASE CONTACTSCommunications with <strong>star</strong>bases are handled in a similarmanner. Depending on the action level and distance from the<strong>star</strong>ship, voice contact with a <strong>star</strong>base can be routed throughnumerous Starfleet Command tiers. As face-to-face exchangestake place, information is constantly moving alonghundreds of other high-speed subspace channels. Starshiplogs are downloaded along with volumes of collected information,including vehicle hardware and crew performance, sensorscans, strategic and tactical analyses, experiment results,and many other areas. Uploads to the <strong>star</strong>ship include new
8.4.1 Ship-to-ship communicationsFederation <strong>star</strong>shipat great distanceSubspacerelay networkIfStarfleet commprotocolstEnterpriseFederation <strong>star</strong>shipwithin close contactrange(A)StarbaseUniversaltranslatorOther commprotocolsOtherspacecraftUnknownspacecraftadditions to the galactic condition database, Starfleet clocksynchronization values, compilations of other <strong>star</strong>ship downloads,flight advisories, mission orders, and other informationnecessary to the smooth running of a <strong>star</strong>ship. While dockedat a major <strong>star</strong>base, voice and data are normally transferredby the ODN.NOW STARFLEET CONTACTSMost of the key interstellar-capable cultures in the MilkyWay have come to use subspace frequencies in the interestof rapid communication. To echo an old saying, it's the onlygame in town. As such, even those that have had dealingswith the Federation but are not members usually have gonesome way toward adopting some common protocols, if only tointeract with Starfleet vessels. Those who do not use standardvoice and data translation routines, especially newlyencountered races, can nevertheless be dealt with if theEnterprise main computers can perform adequate signalanalyses and produce viable algorithms for use with the universaltranslator.the Prime Directive by all concerned departments. PendingFederation policy determinations on the specific contact,Starfleet's traditionally conservative interpretation of the PrimeDirective's noninterference requirements may result in subspacechannels being closed down or set to higher encryption,if it has been determined that a new contact is usingsubspace radio.In many cases, however, dedicated survey and contactships will precede <strong>star</strong>ships as large as the Galaxy class,performing pathfinder missions, making cultural contacts,and compiling the required communication information. Thepossibility always exists, however, that a certain small percentageof true first contacts will be made by the Enterprise,activating a series of events designed to insure adherence to
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