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Photon Torpedoes, not
to be confused with
Proton Torpedoes, are variable-yield matter/anti-matter
conversion weapons that have been in use in the Alpha and Beta
Quadrants for well over two hundred years. The term “Photon
Torpedo” is somewhat of a misnomer, as the actual operation of the
torpedoes has little to do, actually, with photons. The nickname
came into general use because the total conversion reaction that
occurs between the matter and anti-matter upon detonation yields
photonic energy across the electromagnetic spectrum.
The production and use
of photon torpedoes in the local part of the milky way is almost
universal, as nearly every known major spacefaring civilization
uses them to one extent or another as heavy armament for their
starships.
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It is suspected that the
Klingons were the first major military power of the Alpha and
Beta Quadrants to develop and use the photon torpedo, but this
information is speculative at best.
The warhead of a common Photon Torpedo is comprised of pellets
of matter and anti-matter suspended in a honeycomb-like
magnetic field matrix. Usually, these pellets are comprised of
deuterium and anti-deuterium, but oxygen/anti-oxygen and
neon/anti-neon loads are also commonly used. Sometimes, the
pellet setup is not utilized at all; other common
configurations include one or two large storage containers
separated by a magnetic membrane, or a core of matter
surrounded by a torus of antimatter, which collapses
directionally shortly after impact with a target.Usually, the matter and
anti-matter amounts in a photon torpedo are perfectly
balanced, and are collided by the force of impact with a
target, but this is not always the case. Some torpedo designs
utilize an unequal mix of anti-matter and matter, halving or
even sometimes quartering the ratio of matter to anti-matter. |
This process is commonly called
“bilking” the torpedo, as it forces the warhead to use some of
the local matter of the target in the total conversion
explosion. Typically, this process is not used, because the
differences in density and composition between the torpedo
anti-matter and the local matter tend to lower the effective
tonnage output of the warhead, but makes it extremely
effective against various armors as it is almost guaranteed to
take a chunk out of the hull of a ship provided it’s composed
of periodic matter.
Torpedo casings very widely
between governments and design classes, from centimeters-wide
bullet-like pointed casings, to meters long heavy containers
reinforced to bust through heavy armor and detonate inside of
a ship's hull. Their distinctive glowing effect, often seen as
shining pearls of red, orange, blue, or white, are a result of
a high-output
shield system which is activated upon the torpedo's
launch. The energy
shield provides some protection against interstellar
particulates and provides partial penetration power against
enemy shields. |
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It was this energy field which
helped the photon and
quantum torpedoes launched at the skirmish at Imatia to
pass unimpeded through the
concussion shields of
Sher Khal'Saad's star destroyers. This problem, like the
similar issue which occurred with StarFleet
phasers, has since been rectified by Imperial engineers.
Typically, photon torpedoes carry subspace and/or realspace
target acquisition, autonomous guidance and sensor equipment,
maneuvering equipment and a low-level passive warp field
generator (multi-mode sustainer engine). The latter allows
these projectile weapons to be effectively utilized at
hyper-light speeds. Before launch, Photon Torpedoes
commonly must be "armed" with antimatter, as they usually do
not carry live loads until they are launched into space. They
are often fired by electromagnetic or gravity railguns and are
small enough to be relatively difficult to target by even FTL
computer tracking systems. |
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