Science Stations

Science
Science stations I and II are the first two aft stations located directly behind the Tactical station on the upper level of the Main Bridge. They are used by bridge personnel to provide realtime scientific data to command personnel.

These stations are not assigned full-time technicians, but are available for use as needed. In some cases, the science stations are used by personnel attached to secondary missions including researchers, science officers, mission specialists, and others who need to coordinate operations closely with the bridge.

A typical example might be an ongoing study of stellar composition, normally handled down in the stellar spectroscopy lab, but which has occasional periods of large-volume observations better managed from the bridge. Another example would be the control of an automated probe, gathering interstellar dust samples from a hazardous area, later requiring specific ship maneuvers in order to successfully recover the probe and its samples.

Science I and II are generally configured for independent operation, but can be linked together when two researchers wish to work cooperatively. The aft Science stations have priority links to Conn, Ops, and Tactical. During Alert status, science stations can have priority access to sensor arrays, if necessary overriding ongoing science department observations and other secondary missions upon approval by the Operations Manager.

The Science I station incorporates an isolinear chip matrix panel that permits specialized mission profile programs to be loaded as needed, and also permits investigators to accumulate data for later study.

Science Station Functions
Primary functions of Science stations include:

• The ability to provide access to sensors and interpretive software for primary mission and command intelligence requirements and to supplement Ops in providing realtime scientific data for command decisionmaking support.

• The ability to act as a command post for coordination of activities of various science laboratories and other departments, as well as for monitoring of secondary mission status. • The ability to reconfigure and recalibrate sensor systems at a moment's notice for specific command intelligence requirements.