snip

The Science Officers set to the tasks assigned by Stovik.

One thing that was immediately clear was the massive spikes of sensor noise flooding the Sentinel’s sensors as soon as they entered the system. This barrage of input overloaded the gravimetric, electromagnetic, and subspace sensor bands.

No efforts were made to identify the source of this noise at the time. Instead, the team had worked to filter or block it while attempting to identify targets and support the battle effort.

As a result, the readings they did have of the battle were coarse identifications, vague compared to what the sensors normally provided. Those three bands were the primary avenues for detecting and identifying ships. The scientists were still looking for a means to identify the real ships hidden among their duplicates… but their efforts had yet to bear fruit.

As Stovik sat at the console, it was clear that the noise had disappeared as the Klingon vessels jumped to warp. The noise dropped in stages over the few seconds it took for all the vessels to warp out.

Similarly, the sensor “ghosts” started dropping out during that same window. It did not match the same pattern as the noise reduction, however. The ghosts faded in stutters rather than vanishing all at once.

Gamemaster Mal Fet

Stovik reviewed the compiled sensor analysis before tapping his combadge.

=^= Stovik to Lieutenant Kross. Science has completed its preliminary review of the battle telemetry. Upon entering the system, significant interference saturated the gravimetric, electromagnetic, and subspace sensor bands, substantially degrading our ability to distinguish genuine vessels from the duplicate contacts. =^=

His attention shifted to the timeline assembled on his display.

=^= The interference ceased in stages as the Klingon vessels departed at warp. The duplicate contacts disappeared during the same interval, although their decay pattern did not directly correspond with the reduction in interference. This suggests the two phenomena are related, but not necessarily generated by the same mechanism. We have not yet identified a reliable method of distinguishing genuine contacts from the duplicates. Science will continue analysis. =^=

Stovik closed the channel and returned his attention to the sensor records.

Stovik
Science Specialist