Starbase 339
Starbase 339 is a Jupiter-class Federation starbase currently assigned to Fourth Fleet's Task Force 17. Located in the rimward stretch of Federation space, SB-399 primarily acts as a research station, its extensive laboratory facilities dedicated to the study and analysis of data and artefacts brought back to Federation space by TF17's missions of deep space exploration. It also acts as a hub for survey missions of the under-explored systems and phenomena in this remote stretch of Federation territory.
History
The station was built in the pre-Dominion War era, at the height of one of Starfleet's greatest ages of exploration. Understanding of the powers in the rimward region was only just developing, with contact made with the Children of Tama and relations with the Sheliak Corporate improving. With neither presenting a military threat, Starfleet's interest in the region was primarily scientific, and SB-339 was built as a hub of low-level exploration and study to expand their understanding of the region.
In the decades since, SB-339 has been increasingly outshone by other priorities, with more resources going to local diplomacy or industry. With Starfleet's downturn post-Mars, the station quietened further to a sleepy research outpost, studying an increasingly thin collection of data from fewer and fewer missions of deep space exploration. When Starfleet turned its attention back to the stars, SB-399 was an afterthought again, as exploration beyond the rimward border was deemed too heavy a duty to be shouldered by a small Jupiter-class.
But with the establishment of Olympia Station on the rimward border a sector away, SB-339 has seen a massive influx of findings from exploration missions flooding its laboratories. With the station falling under the control of TF17, it is expected that SB-339 will enjoy further rejuvenation as a research hub further into the 25th century.
Mission Operations
As a Jupiter-class station, Starbase 339 is configured to act primarily as a research facility. Its extensive laboratories are equipped and crewed to handle vast quantities of data and objects of interest gathered from deep space missions of exploration, and have recently been refit with even more cutting edge equipment since its assignment to TF17, one of the premier deep-space exploration units of the fleet. While ships will often transmit or have couriers deliver data to SB-339 rather than attend themselves, science teams are encouraged to remain involved in the research of their findings, with SB-339's scientists keen to maintain lines of communication in case of follow-up queries during their studies - particularly if those ships visit the starbase directly. This study is SB-339's primary purpose, and gives the station an atmosphere of collegial academia, where research and scientific understanding comes before any concerns of politics or danger.
With the rimward frontier under-explored, SB-339 also acts as a hub for ships to conduct survey missions of systems and phenomena within Federation space that have been poorly charted, or not investigated at all. These are usually conducted by smaller ships not suited to long-term travel beyond the border, and the Jupiter-class station is able to provide sufficient supply and support for such vessels. While these findings are rarely auspicious, they are, by definition, still exploring the unknown, and SB-339 stands ready to provide support for anything those ships come across - and to study anything that they find.
The station's prestige as an outpost for exploration has risen with its assignment to TF17. While the above operations remain its priority, it also acts as a secondary headquarters for TF17 missions venturing beyond Federation space. At SB-339, ships can stop off, assess what data is already collected about their heading, liaise with task force staff, and perhaps meet with colleagues. Any and all major resupply, refit, repairs, or intensive preparations for any missions heading beyond the rimward border, however, will likely necessitate an additional stop-off closer to the border: at the frontier Olympia System's main Starfleet station, Olympia Station.
In Play
- SB-339 supports TF17 operations near the rimward frontier, but is primarily a research facility and hub for survey missions focusing on the Federation interior. It is a centre of thoughtful study of data collected by other exploration missions, or quieter local scientific ventures.
- The atmosphere on SB-339 is that of an academic hub, highly collegial and intellectual. This is not a station concerned about strategic threats or local politics - everyone's eyes here are turned to the stars. Crews that have been on deep space exploration missions will often be welcomed in the labs of SB-339, whose scientists study the data they collected in depth and are usually delighted to hear more of the events surrounding the missions.
- As a stop-off point for missions beyond Federation space, SB-339 is useful more for administrative purposes such as checking in with TF17 staff, or if preparations need to be made with the research facility. For serious preparations at the last stop before deep space, ships should visit Olympia Station. Olympia's vastness, however, can render SB-339 a closer, more tight-knit hub for TF17's staff - something of a 'club house' for those preparing to venture beyond the border.
- The Federation rimward frontier is under-explored. SB-339 supports and launches survey missions of systems and phenomena inside Federation space in the area. This can be a great hook for exploration missions set around ships unsuited to venture far from Federation territory for months at a time - the unknown might be a little tamer here, with help closer to home, but you still never know what you'll find.