franchise-star-trek-tng-technical-manual1

11.3 PHOTON TORPEDOES11.3 PHOTON TORPEDOESThe tactical value of phaser energy at warp velocities,and indeed high relativistic velocities, is close to none. Asgreater numbers of sentient races were encountered in thelocal stellar neighborhood, some of which were classified asdefinite Threats, the need for a warp-capable defensiveweapons delivery method was recognized as an eventualnecessity. Rudimentary nuclear projectiles were the first to bedeveloped in the mid-2000s, partly as an outgrowth of debrisclearingdevices, independent sensor probes, and defensivecountermeasures technology.Fusion explosives continued to be deployed throughoutthe latter half of the twenty-second century, as work progressedon lighter and faster ordnance. Late in the developmentof the first true photon torpedoes, a reliable technique fordetonating variable amounts of matter and antimatter hadcontinued to elude Starfleet engineers, while the casing andpropulsion system were virtually complete. On the surface,the problem seemed simple enough to solve, especially sincesome early matter/antimatter reaction engines suffered regularcatastrophic detonations. The exact nature of the problemlay in the rapid total annihilation of the torpedo's warhead.While most warp engine destructions due to failure of antimattercontainment appeared relatively violent, visually, the actualrate of particle annihilation was quite low.Two torpedo types were being developed simultaneously,beginning in 2215. The first was a simple 1:1 matter/antimatter collision device consisting of six slugs of frozendeuterium which were backed up by carbon-carbon disks anddriven by microfusion initiators into six corresponding magneticcavities, each holding antideuterium in suspension. Asthe slugs drove into the cavities, the annihilation energieswere trapped briefly by the magnetic fields, and then suddenlyreleased. The annihilation rate was deemed adequate toserve as a defensive weapon and was deployed to all deepinterstellar Starfleet vessels. While a torpedo could coastindefinitely after firing, the maximum effective tactical rangewas 750,000 kilometers because of stability limits inherent tothe containment field design.The device Starfleet was waiting for was the second type,made operational in 2271. The basic configuration is still inuse and deployed on the Galaxy class with a maximumeffective tactical range of 3,500,000 kilometers for midrangedetonation yield. Variable amounts of matter and antimatterare broken into many thousand minute packets, effectively increasingthe annihilation surface area by three orders ofmagnitude. The two components are both held in suspensionby powerful magnetic field sustainers within the casing at thetime of torpedo warhead loading. They are held in twoseparate regions of the casing, however, until just aftertorpedo launch, as a safety measure. The suspended componentpackets are mixed, though they still do not come intoForward launcherSaucer Module launcher11.3.1 Photon torpedo launchers