California Class

California Class Super Arks

Designed at the same time as the Africa Class, the California Class was one of the first designs of Super Arks available during the United Earth's Second Exodus period. It had three slightly different versions, all capable of transporting 20,000 colonists as well as their supplies as far as 1000 light years depending on the version and the use of extra fuel tanks.

Based on the NOAH Class, it originally was not manufactured using mass production levels. Within five years after the launch of the first California Class it undervent a redesign and started to be mass produced.

California Arks were 750 meters long and had a main cylindrical body with a diameter of 320 meters. They were slow and not very maneuverable, these Arks were unarmed and most of the passengers were kept under Sleep Inducers. Almost all ship functions were automatic or robotic. From Engineering to Navigation. The Ship master only had to control the course and make sure all systems worked as they should. The systems on one ark could be slaved to those on board another ship.

Some Planets received only one Ark, but usually at least 2-3 Arks went together in a Convoy.

It was the only Ark designed to take off again after landing on a planet with a gravity of 10 m/s2. While some other early arks could also take off again after landfall, they could only do so from objects with a gravity of 1.75 m/s2 or less.

In 2150 they underwent a second redesign to incorporate ISAH Pods.