Not to rain on anyone's parade, but - the Miranda was designed for a five year mission, meaning a big crew to account for the specialist roles that migyht be needed, which started out exactly evenly balanced between males and females and now has a bunch of children. Like, at least 20 people to begin with, more likely twice that, and she is Large as fenspace vessels go, despite the fact that most of the internal volume is just the crevices between fuel tanks, supported by spaceframes and papered over on the outside with tarp material that got 'waved for durability. Rather than purpose-built cabins, a house trailer was incorporated for each set of crew quarters, split between single and double occupancy at launch with a couple of empties.
The sheer size of a radio telescope array is not to be underestimated. Most likely, the Miranda closes in on Trek-canon size, though I haven't yet gotten to looking up details - I've been offline again for the most part. A much more likely use for the Midnight in relation to the alien contact, is in a couple of years when the USS Miranda nearly arrives at Starbase 2 (running out of fuel just close enough to the system to get a radio message to them to get someone out there for pick up) and word of finding an alien time capsule gets out, Midnight gets sent the direct course to go looking for the aliens that left it. This nicely brings the aliens plot back to the realm of PCs, as well, instead of NPCs who only exist as dim shadows on a purpose built ship. The Miranda then gets refitted, and heads out on a new five-year mission, either in a new direction, or more likely as backup for the Midnight, with some bigwig diplomatic types aboard... but of course, anyone who can strap on what they think are enough fuel tanks is going to be blasting out that way as soon as they can anyway, so any hopes the 'danes might have of a controlled first contact situation and formal negotiations pretty much lie with Rhodes, and whoever they can cram in as extra hibernatorium passengers.
- CD
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
The sheer size of a radio telescope array is not to be underestimated. Most likely, the Miranda closes in on Trek-canon size, though I haven't yet gotten to looking up details - I've been offline again for the most part. A much more likely use for the Midnight in relation to the alien contact, is in a couple of years when the USS Miranda nearly arrives at Starbase 2 (running out of fuel just close enough to the system to get a radio message to them to get someone out there for pick up) and word of finding an alien time capsule gets out, Midnight gets sent the direct course to go looking for the aliens that left it. This nicely brings the aliens plot back to the realm of PCs, as well, instead of NPCs who only exist as dim shadows on a purpose built ship. The Miranda then gets refitted, and heads out on a new five-year mission, either in a new direction, or more likely as backup for the Midnight, with some bigwig diplomatic types aboard... but of course, anyone who can strap on what they think are enough fuel tanks is going to be blasting out that way as soon as they can anyway, so any hopes the 'danes might have of a controlled first contact situation and formal negotiations pretty much lie with Rhodes, and whoever they can cram in as extra hibernatorium passengers.
- CD
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows