Newton class

The Newton Class was an faster-than-light interstellar explorer vessel employed by both the United Nations of Earth and Union of Sol in the closing years of the 21st century and opening years of the 22nd century. The ships of this class proved to be a major cornerstone in establishing humanity's presence among the stars. The Newton class was developed as an addition to the fleet, alongside the operating Segan class and the new Archimedes class.

Comparison with the Segan
In most regards, the Newton class was a direct upgrade to the previous Segan class. The Newton was constructed with a more compact habitat tube, which spun at much greater speed than the Segan's habitat ring. The Newton also had a more extensive sensor array and a more extensive hangar capacity for shuttlecraft and planetary landers. Finally, the Newton had a much greater Faster-Than-Light cruising speed than the Segan, due to its efficient hull profile.

These improvements did come along several downsides, however. The rapidly spinning habitat drum caused great hull stress and a severe internal coriolis effect, which required stamina and constitution from its passengers and crew. The constant hull stress meant that the ship was fragile when hit by micrometeorites. Another downside was the inferior capacity for both internal and external storage, due to the increased hangar size. This meant that the ship had to be resupplied much more frequently than the Segan Class.

Use
Due to the makeup of upsides and downsides of the Newton class, most ships of the class were assigned to extended planetary survey missions, and rapid courier roles for both personell and material transports.