Nova-class

The Nova class was designed as a modern replacement for the long serving Oberth class science vessel. The requirement called for a ship capable of making relatively short duration missions; Starfleet intended to use these ships in the large unexplored areas between Federation controlled space, missions which would typically be staged out of Starbases and last for a few months up to a year at most.

The design of the Nova class vessel was based on the Defiant pathfinder ship. [5] This ship was of the right size and employed the latest warp field/hull geometry and propulsion technology. Starfleet replaced the warp core with a far less powerful version, reducing the top speed to Warp 8. Running the same nacelle design at much lower power greatly extended the operating life of the warp coils, reducing the ships refit schedule and making it easier to operate. The heavy weaponry was also removed, creating extra space for sensor arrays and scientific labs.

Used by

• USS Nightingale