Class 3 probe

The Enterprise launches a class 3 probe

A class-3 probe was a type of surveillance probe, that was carried aboard Federation starships in the 24th century. These probes were designed to survive a planetary landing and to be virtually undetectable by sensors.

In 2366, when Geordi La Forge was stranded on the surface of Galorndon Core, Wesley Crusher placed a neutrino beacon aboard a class-3 probe on the USS Enterprise-D. The probe was sent to land on the surface of the planet, where Geordi's visor was used to detect the neutrino particles. He was rescued when he found the probe and modulated the neutrino stream. (TNG: "The Enemy")

In 2374, Tim Watters launched a class-3 probe from the USS Valiant to gather information on the Dominion's new battleship. (DS9: "Valiant")

The same probe model was used to represent a scanner probe, and a class-1 probe in TNG: "Where Silence Has Lease" and the class 3 probe in "The Enemy"

According to the Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual (p. 116), the class-3 probe is designed as a planetary probe powered by a vectored deuterium microfusion propulsion system. It has a structural integrity field to allow planetary study from soft landings to subsurface penetrator and gas giant atmospheric study at up to 450 bar pressure. the probe has an on-board chemical analysis submodule.

See also

• Atmospheric probe
• Class-A probe
• Warning buoy