9.0 Overview
An overview of the years 2151-2175, an era that continued the Pax Federationis while confronting two great dangers—the brutal Klingon Empire abroad and the “Back-to-Earth” movement at home—alongside the development of warp superconvoys, the loss of the USS Valiant, the discovery of the Water World of Hydra II, the Kepler Series black-hole probes, and Daystrom's duotronics that made the transporter possible.
This era continued the Pax Federationis, the Federation Peace, that had prevailed for almost half a century. But like all times, there were tragedies and atrocities to counterbalance the ever-expanding exploration and technological breakthroughs. It seems an unyielding principle that as much as mankind grows in scope and dominion, so too the dangers grow to threaten the hard-won progress.
Two dangers in particular arose to confront man during this period, one external and one internal. It was too much to expect the Romulans to be the only aggressive major power abroad in the galaxy. But even their cunning ferocity was scant preparation for the unparalleled bestiality of the Klingon Empire. Though hostilities were just barely avoided in the first confrontation with the Klingons, subsequent bloody ambushes have placed the Federation on notice that there is a deadly powerful enemy ready to conquer and pillage at the first opportunity.
The other danger sprang up in conjunction with man's bicentennial of spaceflight in 2157. This was the famous “Back-to-Earth” movement of the late twenty-second century. This surprisingly popular movement was filled with those who felt the present space expansion had gone far enough, further, they claimed, than the Earth could possibly control. This sentiment gained momentum throughout this period, finally coming to a head in the next era at the strife-torn Babel Conference of 2177.
Other crises were more quickly mastered. For instance, one of the renowned FLYING FORTRESSES, the armored starships used to transport the galaxy's most precious commodities among planets, was plundered of a new, experimental deflector prototype by the Klingons. If they had succeeded in getting clearly away, the balance of power in the galaxy might be quite different than it presently is. Luckily, the superior warp speeds of the Federation starships of that time ran down the Klingons, who were forced to jettison the deflector prototype and scramble back to the safety of their bellicose empire.
Also, the aftershock of the Phi Puma supernova that claimed the KEPLER continued to be felt, as it sent its star-jarring concussion in all directions at the speed of light. One heavily populated world, Bayard's Planet, had to be completely evacuated before its star exploded in a chain reaction nova. Luckily, a new breakthrough in spaceflight capability had been achieved prior to the crisis. The mammoth warp superconvoys were developed to transport the vast amounts of raw materials needed for the Federation's industrial plant. Powered by linked configurations of warp tugs, these superconvoys could carry a hundred freighter containers and more at warp speeds. This capacity was stretched to the limit in the evacuation of Bayard's Planet. With an emergency refitting for life-support transport, superconvoys managed to remove ten million inhabitants from the doomed planet before it blew apart from concussive shock. Today, these superconvoys have grown even greater, with warp speeds of four and more and the capacity to dismantle and transport whole planets. No one can soon forget the sight of these immense superconvoys, with their string of freighters trailing off to the vanishing point.
Exploration was not neglected during this era, though the loss of the KEPLER had sparked renewed interest in the utility of unmanned probes. In fact, a whole new series of probes, the “KEPLER Series,” was constructed to investigate the black hole phenomenon, one of the most mysterious astronomical entities and the original focus of the KEPLER's tragic research effort. Telemetry readouts have provided convincing proof that these black holes distort the space-time fabric sufficiently to create a “gate” between our universe and parallel universes. This is a subject of ongoing research to this stardate.
Unfortunately, this era had its own starship tragedy. The USS VALIANT, the second interstellar ship to bear that name and which was likewise lost, vanished from the galaxy in the vicinity of Vendikar. Space was and still is filled with unknown, deadly dangers. And indescribably natural wonders. The Water World of Hydra II was discovered in this time, a world completely covered by ocean. And beneath the unbroken waters was found one of the pinnacles of civilized culture: the incomparably beautiful Water Ballet of Hydra II. Up to a thousand trained dancers swim exquisite, patterned epics of immemorial antiquity, and to watch a performance of such a timeless epic is truly an unforgettable experience.
Finally, two technological innovations took place during this era, one leading synergistically to the other. In 2171, the Earth physicist, Daystrom, introduced the revolutionary concept of duotronics into computer applications, and the already astounding potential of modern computers was multiplied a thousandfold more. With this new capability, the seemingly insurmountable technical problems that had stymied efforts to transport humans could be overcome. The transporter was perfected, man was beamed through space, and now this piece of equipment is standard on all modern starships.
Technological breakthroughs and tragedy, new enemies and new wonders, this period was filled with conflicting forces pulling it first forward with future promises and then backwards with age-old enmity. These forces would continue into the next era, producing the gravest crisis the UFP has ever faced and also producing the most advanced starships the Federation has ever known, the Constitution Class ships—the just pride of the Star Fleet.