A submarine was a type of watercraft which could operate underwater. Submarines were used by military organisations on Earth from the 20th century, as well as on other planets.
Specifics[]
Earth submarines of the 20th and 21st centuries maneuvered via a rudder and diving planes. A periscope could be extended upward and above the waterline for surface observation and navigation. A control room operated weapons, helm and navigation. These vessels also had sonar equipment and an engine room. The vessels were armed with torpedoes. (TOS novel: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 2)
Two-man Federation submarines that could descend safely to a medium depth were used for recreation and oceanographic research. Deeper dives were possible in more structurally-reinforced four-man submarines, which were deployed on salvage missions and archeological expeditions. (FASA RPG module: Trader Captains and Merchant Princes (2nd edition))
Small- and medium-sized Federation submarines had microfusion power plants, but could not remain submerged longer than 96 hours. A 10-person sub had a fusion reactor engine with unlimited range and could carry 20 metric tons of cargo. (FASA RPG module: Star Fleet Intelligence Manual)
They could be crushed by high pressure if they went too deep in the ocean. (TNG - The Sky's the Limit short story: "Among the Clouds")
Early submarines navigated by closely following underwater charts. (TOS novel: Challenger)
Earth submarines had a box-like or cylindrical configuration. (Star Trek Adventures RPG module: The Command Division)
The UFP/ITA Guide to Goods and Services provided details about Federation submarines. The reference was excerpted for an article in Spacelanes magazine. (FASA RPG module: Spacelanes: The Magazine of Interstellar Trade)
In the Federation, a submarine could be purchased for 50,000 credits. (Heritage Models RPG module: Adventure Gaming in the Final Frontier) A two-man sub cost 50,000, while a four-man version cost 85,000. (FASA RPG module: Trader Captains and Merchant Princes (2nd edition))
Combat tactics[]
Submarine warfare was often compared tactically to space battles of the Earth-Romulan War, but a sub's maneuverability relied upon gravity. (TLE novel: Catalyst of Sorrows)
In war, a submarine would surface, fire weapons, then submerge to disappear from enemy ships. (TOS - Rihannsu novel: The Empty Chair)
Nuclear submarines were capable of firing Tomahawk missiles with a range of 1,500 kilometers. (TOS novel: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 2)
Depth charges were used against submarines. (DS9 novel: Antimatter)
During "silent running" operations, a submarine would quiet all internal noise, including conversation and machinery, to prevent detection. (SKR novel: Second Nature, DS9 - Rebels novel: The Conquered)
Material could be jettisoned by ejection tubes, a trick to create the illusion of debris and imply that the submarine had been hit and destroyed. (TOS - Star Trek 1 novelization: Balance of Terror)
If a missile were fired at it, a submarine could launch a noisemaker in hopes of attracting the missile to that target instead. (DS9 - Mission Gamma novel: This Gray Spirit)
To enable communications without surfacing, a long wire would be extended to the surface that was able to receive and send transmissions. (DS9 - Rebels novel: The Conquered)
History[]
Trill developed military submarines in ancient times on Trill. (ENT - The Romulan War novel: Beneath the Raptor's Wing)
In the 20th century, Admiral Hyman Rickover pioneered the naval submarine fleet of the United States. (TOS novel: Excelsior: Forged in Fire)
World War II subs hunted enemy U-boats. (TOS novelization: The Wrath of Khan)
A quieter magnetohydrodynamic propulsion system was invented for stealth. (SKR novel: Second Nature)
On 7 February 1994, Khan Noonien Singh's nuclear reactor-powered SGK Kaur submarine destroyed an Akula-class sub before being sunk by a mine in the Adriatic Sea. Gary Seven was thankful most submarine activity was unseen, keeping Khan's activities from being noticed by the United States or Soviet Union. (TOS novel: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 2)
In the 21st century, surplus submarine hulls were reconfigured into DY-500-class starships for cargo hauling. (TOS novel: Prime Directive)
A great-uncle of Malcolm Reed served aboard naval submarines on Earth. (ENT episode: "Minefield")
23rd century aquashuttles could operate as submarines. (TOS novel: From the Depths)
In 2265, the USS Enterprise abruptly crashed into the ocean of the globular planet. The disabled starship was towed by a submarine crewed by Sigma fishmen. (TOS comic: "Nor Any Drop to Drink")
In 2267 on Timshel, James T. Kirk traveled aboard the Nautilus, a tiny submarine designed to study the mammalian wampus. (TOS novel: The Joy Machine)
In 2267, Zefram Cochrane compared a starship's approach toward the event horizon of the TNC 658137 quantum singularity to the submerging of a submarine — they would endure greater pressure as they got closer, but would also be less detectable. (TOS novel: Federation)
In 2274, Kirk and Leonard McCoy visited the Soroya, a large submarine plankton harvester that operated under sheets of ice on the planet Nordstral. The sub had a bridge and sickbay, but crew areas were reduced to maximize the cargo bay area, which could hold millions of tons of plankton. (TOS novel: Ice Trap)
In 2276, James T. Kirk regarded combat where most of the vehicles used cloaking devices as being similar to 20th century submarine warfare. (TOS - Rihannsu novel: The Empty Chair)
In the late 23rd century, the Darbva Defense Complex on Klinzhai was located deep underground and could only be reached by transporter or a corridor accessible by a submarine. (FASA RPG module: The Klingons: Game Operation Manual)
In the 24th century, submarine battles from Earth literature were known to Thule G'Dok Glemoor, tactical officer of the USS Enterprise-C. (TLE novel: Well of Souls).
In the 2370s, the Oceanographic Institute on Nunanavik maintained a submarine for exploring undersea vents. During an extinction-level event in 2370, the crew was rescued by a starship. (TNG - The Amazing Stories short story: "Life Itself is Reason Enough")
Tom Paris enjoyed watching the submarine races at Palisades Park. (ST reference: Star Trek Cookbook)
In 2371, two deuterium refinery workers on Abassa VII disappeared while piloting a submersible in search of new deuterium concentrations in a trench 30,000 feet below the surface. (Star Trek Adventures RPG - Strange New Worlds: Mission Compendium Vol. 2 module: A Cry From the Void)
In 2375, when Paris first saw Monean research vessel aquashuttles launching into space, he wondered if they were submarines or starships. (VOY episode: "Thirty Days")
In 2376, Elias Vaughn was familiar with the submarine noisemaker tactic and had the USS Defiant's engineers develop something similar for one of the Avaril's shuttles. (DS9 - Mission Gamma novel: This Gray Spirit)
In 2379, Christine Vale, Scott Fillion and Emily Spitale discovered a Tezwan submarine docked in the Nokalana Sea on Tezwa. (TNG - A Time to... novel: A Time to Kill)
Fictional accounts[]
In 1969 following a mind meld with Roberta Lincoln, Spock recalled some images from her memories, including The Beatles' yellow submarine. (TOS novel: Assignment: Eternity)
A doughnut-shaped civilian submarine luxury liner in the year 2000 was powered with a fusion reactor. In eight hours, it was able to take Captain Proton from Hong Kong to Seattle, docking near a gift shop. (VOY - Captain Proton: Defender of the Earth short story: "The City of the Future")
In one of Julian Bashir's holosuite programs where he portrayed a secret agent, his character was picked up by a submarine near Iceland after having parachuted out of a dirigible. During a malfunction, Colonel Anastasia Komananov asked about the event. (DS9 episode: "Our Man Bashir")
Submarines[]
Classes[]
- Akula-class
- Los Angeles-class [1]
- Typhoon-class
- Plankton harvester
Vessels[]
- Cousteau [2]
- SGK Kaur [1]
- John Lilly [2]
- Nautilus (Europa submarine) [3]
- Nautilus (Timshel submarine) [4]
- USS Nautilus (SSN-571) [5]
- Soroya [2]
Fictional vessels[]
Appendices[]
Appearances and references[]
Appearances[]
- TOS comic: "Nor Any Drop to Drink"
- VOY - Captain Proton: Defender of the Earth short story: "The City of the Future"
- TNG - The Amazing Stories short story: "Life Itself is Reason Enough"
- TNG - A Time to... novel: A Time to Kill
- Star Trek Adventures RPG - Strange New Worlds: Mission Compendium Vol. 2 module: A Cry From the Void
References[]
- TOS - Star Trek 1 novelization: Balance of Terror
- FASA RPG module: The Klingons: Game Operation Manual
- FASA RPG module: Trader Captains and Merchant Princes (2nd edition)
- FASA RPG module: Star Fleet Intelligence Manual
- FASA RPG module: Spacelanes: The Magazine of Interstellar Trade
- TOS novelization: The Wrath of Khan
- TOS novel: Prime Directive
- TOS novel: From the Depths
- DS9 novel: Antimatter
- DS9 episode: "Our Man Bashir"
- VOY episode: "Thirty Days"
- TOS novel: Assignment: Eternity
- ST reference: Star Trek Cookbook
- DS9 - Rebels novel: The Conquered
- TOS novel: Challenger
- DS9 - Mission Gamma novel: This Gray Spirit
- ENT episode: "Minefield"
- TLE novel: Well of Souls
- TLE novel: Catalyst of Sorrows
- TOS - Rihannsu novel: The Empty Chair
- TNG - The Sky's the Limit short story: "Among the Clouds"
- TOS novel: Excelsior: Forged in Fire
- ENT - The Romulan War novel: Beneath the Raptor's Wing
- SKR novel: Second Nature
- TOS novel: Federation
- TOS - Rihannsu novel: The Empty Chair
- Star Trek Adventures RPG module: The Command Division
External links[]
- Submarine article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
- Submarine article at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.