Armstrong class

Developed in the late 22nd century to continue, with the Venture Class Light Cruiser, the exploration missions of the rapidly aging Daedalus Class Explorer, the Armstrong class Cruiser drew on many of the elements of the Daedalus for its own design. Like that ship, its main section was a spherical hull, though its sphere was far more ovoid that that of its predecessor. The sphere attached directly to the forward dorsal section of a cylindrical Engineering hull. Mounted on the sphere were a Magnusson-class laser, a rocket launcher, and a wide variety of sensor palletes. Unlike the Daedalus, the Armstrong came equipped with transporters, that technology having finally been adapted for starship use a decade before the class's launch.

Noteworthy Vessels/service records/encounters:

• USS Armstrong, prototype;
• USS Tereshkova, NCC-243, lost due to unexplained causes while exploring Kellinan Reach (2203);
• USS Grahd, NCC-301, transported humanitarian aid and terraforming technology to the starving inhabitants of Locarus VII (2305);
• USS Cape Canaveral, NCC-362, explored coreward sections of Federation space, and beyond (2306-2310).