Two-stage tele-probe rocket.
A telemetry probe (or tele-probe) was a type of probe technology in use by the Federation Starfleet during the mid-23rd century.
History and specifics[]
Telemetry probes were sub-light, unmanned spacecraft carried aboard Federation starships, particularly major research ships and Starfleet Intelligence vessels. Onboard systems conducted a variety of tests and collected detailed information. (FASA RPG module: Star Fleet Intelligence Manual)
A tele-probe was a thin rocket outfitted with sensors. It could be configured with an armor-piercing forward stage. Tele-probes were assigned to some Constitution-class starships as well as shuttlecraft.
In 2267, the shuttle Galileo (NCC-1701/1) was outfitted with a two-stage tele-probe rocket. The probe launched from underneath the shuttle to scan Zar's fortified compound on Zettin. Its forward stage blasted a hole through five inches of steel so that the second stage could fly unhindered within the facility. When it located Zar, the probe provided a weapon's lock for the shuttle's crew. (TOS comic: "The Void of Storms")
Single-stage probe in flight.
A tele-probe launched by the USS Enterprise explored the surface of Planet 656 along a close orbital route. The probe eventually discovered a blockhouse with a transmitter, the first sign of intelligent life it found on the perpetually cloud-covered world. (TOS comic: "Ground Zero")
Montgomery Scott launched a tele-probe on a continual orbit of Romulan-controlled Tekton while the Enterprise was camouflaged by a mass-nullifier. Because the probe was fast and small, Scott hoped it would be missed by planetary sensors. Before it was located and destroyed by Romulan rockets, it tracked down a missing landing party, transmitted an image of James T. Kirk communicating via sign language to a group of native Tektonians, and provided coordinates for the transporter. (TOS comic: "The Perithees Alliance")
In 2268, Pavel Chekov launched a telemetry probe into the space amoeba, but its signal was lost the moment it penetrated the creature's outer boundary. (TOS episode: "The Immunity Syndrome")
Pairs of telemetry probes were launched by the Enterprise in the year 2269 to investigate a temperature anomaly, an extreme heat effect that was later found to be a protouniverse expanding from a baryon conversion rift, in the Beta Castelli vicinity in sector 79F. These probes were cased in alphidium, and eventually stopped functioning due to melting of the outer protective shells. Two more were launched after those were lost, and then another pair. At the senior staff briefing aboard Enterprise, Captain Kirk commented he had never even heard of one defective probe in his career, let alone 6. Scotty was shocked at the possibility of melting the alphidium casings. (TOS novel: The Three-Minute Universe)
In 2270, an Enterprise telemetry probe tracked the location of Odib and Isitri fleets. It detected the Sao 533 star system, providing data on its gas giant and two class M moons, detecting a civilization on one of them. (TOS novel: Troublesome Minds)
In 2373, a telemetry probe from the USS Enterprise-E measured radiation traces to determine where the USS Slayton was destroyed, discovering a cloaking field within the Geminus Gulf. The probe transmitted visual information to the bridge viewscreen. Sean Hawk remotely directed the probe inside, but contact was lost less than one second after entry. Probe data allowed the Enterprise to adjust shield frequencies to match those of the field and enter without triggering an alarm. (TNG - S31 novel: Rogue)
Appendices[]
Connections[]
| Starfleet probe classes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| numbered classes | class-1 • class-2 • class-3 • class-4 • class-5 • class-6 • class-7 • class-8 • class-9 • class-10 | 
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Quadros series | Quadros-1 • Quadros-3 • Quadros-4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| other types | class-A • atmospheric • deep space • interface • microprobe • multispatial • sensor • Series Alpha • telemetry • Vega Nine | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References[]
- TOS episode: "The Immunity Syndrome"
- TOS comic: "The Void of Storms"
- TOS comic: "Ground Zero"
- TOS comic: "The Perithees Alliance"
- FASA RPG module: Star Fleet Intelligence Manual
- TOS novel: The Three-Minute Universe
- TNG - S31 novel: Rogue
- TOS novel: Troublesome Minds
External link[]
- Telemetry probe article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.