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Primary hull

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The primary hull, also known as the main section or saucer section, was a major component of the overall hull structure on many starship designs. The primary hull usually contained some of the most important areas on the ship, such as the bridge, computer core and crew quarters. In some designs in case of a mishap the primary hull could separate from the secondary hull. The primary hull (or saucer section or saucer module) is a major component of the overall hull structure of a starship. In many starship designs, the primary hull is usually located above and in front of the secondary hull of the vessel. The primary hull of a starship often contains the most vital systems and facilities that are essential such as the bridge, computer cores, sickbay, science labs, and crew quarters. However, due to safety concerns, the main propulsion systems are usually housed in the secondary hull of a starship. On many Federation starships, including the Constitution-, Excelsior-, Miranda-, Nebula-, Akira-, Ambassador- and Galaxy-classes, the primary hull was usually referred to as the saucer section, because it had a roughly circular shape while the Intrepid-class starship has a diamond shaped primary hull saucer section and a Sovereign- class starship has an oval shaped primary hull saucer section, the Defiant-, Nova- and Prometheus- class starships had a triangle or a U-shaped primary hull saucer section and the Daedalus- and Olympic- class starships had a sphere shaped primary hull. (TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint" )

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The primary hull (or saucer section or saucer module) is a major component of the overall hull structure of a starship. In many starship designs, the primary hull is usually located above and in front of the secondary hull of the vessel. In the Federation, the primary hull is commonly referred to as the saucer section due to the rougly spherical shape that had been used in starship design since the NX-class starships of the 22nd century. This spherical design later carried into future starship classes such as the Constitution and Galaxy classes. (Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation) The primary hull of a starship often contains the most vital systems and facilities that are essential such as the bridge, computer cores, sickbay, science labs, and crew quarters. However, due to safety concerns, the main propulsion systems are usually housed in the secondary hull of a starship. Since the 23rd century, Starfleet has often deployed starships that were capable of saucer separation. This capability would allow the primary hull to serve as a lifeboat that would allow the crew of a starship to escape a catastrophic disaster such as a warp core breach or loss of antimatter containment. However, this capability was extended in the 24th century aboard some starship classes, such as the Galaxy-class, which would allow civilians and non-essential personnel to escape in the primary hull, while the secondary hull, which was equipped with the main armaments, would go into battle. (TNG episode: "Encounter at Farpoint"; movie: Generations; et al.) The ability was extended even further towards the end of the century with the introduction of the Prometheus class which could routinely separate in a tactic called multi-vector assault mode where a single ships breaks into three parts to attack from multiple directions. (VOY episode: "Message in a Bottle") An unusual hybrid starship encountered by the USS Enterprise-D in 2370 included a Starfleet style saucer. (TNG comic: "Strategy") The primary hull, also known as the main section or saucer section, was a major component of the overall hull structure on many starship designs. The primary hull usually contained some of the most important areas on the ship, such as the bridge, computer core and crew quarters. In some designs in case of a mishap the primary hull could separate from the secondary hull. The primary hull was often referred to as the saucer section on Starfleet designs as they were circular in shape. The primary hull was usually located above and forward of the secondary hull, sometimes connected via a interconnecting hull. On many Federation starships, including the Constitution-, Excelsior-, Miranda-, Nebula-, Akira-, Ambassador- and Galaxy-classes, the primary hull was usually referred to as the saucer section, because it had a roughly circular shape while the Intrepid-class starship has a diamond shaped primary hull saucer section and a Sovereign- class starship has an oval shaped primary hull saucer section, the Defiant-, Nova- and Prometheus- class starships had a triangle or a U-shaped primary hull saucer section and the Daedalus- and Olympic- class starships had a sphere shaped primary hull. (TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint" ) The primary hull typically contained most vital systems on board a starship, including the main bridge, computer core, captain's ready room, conference room, sickbay, science labs, Captain's quarters, crew quarters, transporter room, ten forward, mess hall, holodeck, corridor and other crew support systems. It does not generally house the warp drive or any major engineering systems, although in many cases it does contain its own impulse drive. Ships capable of saucer separation were designed for this purpose in order to have the primary hull serve as a lifeboat for the crew in the event of catastrophic damage to the warp core or a loss of antimatter containment. It is for this reason the majority of crew comforts are nestled into the primary hull. The Galaxy class saucer section was also intended to act as a temporary means of escape for nonessential and civilian crewmembers while the secondary hull dealt with a dangerous situation. It can operate independently of the secondary hull and reconnect with its drive section after the resolution of a crisis. For this reason, it contains duplicates of many systems in the stardrive section, including a large shuttlebay/cargo bay complex, a torpedo launcher in the docking cavity for rear defense, and deflector array. (TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint" ) Saucer sections on some starships, like the Galaxy-class, are even equipped to make planetfall and landing, although not all are designed to return to space following a landing. (VOY: "The 37's"; Star Trek Generations)