Science Directorate

The uniformed space exploration arm of the Harmony of Horizon, the Science Directorate operates dozens of science vessels in and outside of the borders of the Harmony.

The Science Directorate prefers to recruit its officers and crew directly out of the Harmony's academic institutions, though it also accepts transfers from the Harmony's other uniformed space services. When accepted into the Science Directorate prospective officers and crew are run through an intensive educational program (one year for general crew, and two for officers) intended to supplement recruits' academic education with the skills they'll need to operate in a Uniformed environment. Most crew and officer recruits are trained at the Sanctuary Fleet Training Center, the Antaria Valley Advanced Cognition School, or the Stellar Science University of Stickine.

Culturally, the Science Directorate is known for being more unconventional and permissive of eccentricities than the Harmony's other Uniformed Space Services, and they are often considered somewhat unreliable by the Harmony's other Uniformed Services.

Doctrinally, as opposed to the Federation's focus on large capital ship sized Explorer ships operating as individuals, and the Commonwealth's focus on tightly grouped squadrons of small exploration capital ships, the Harmony's Science Directorate prefers to use loose nets of large cruisers to sweep regions of space outside of the Harmony's borders.

Active Ship Classes

 * Scientist class exploratory cruiser
 * Solace class cruiser?

Orders
Ships of the Science Directorate are arranged into a multitude of Orders, which up to several ships assigned depending on the size of the task.

Wolves in Sheep's Clothing
While legitimate scientific discovery is the raison d'etre of the Science Directorate, it also has a surprising role in terms of long-range raiding and scouting.

Hull Colours
The vessels of Harmony's Science Directorate are painted a nearly reflective white with black highlights, and the Science Directorate's personnel wear the standard pattern Harmony uniform with white and black coloration.

Estimated Fleet Strength
42-45 Scientist-class cruisers