A spatial torpedo
The warhead of a spatial torpedo
Spatial torpedoes were torpedo weapons carried aboard Starfleet ships during the 22nd century. Prior to the installation of phase cannons on Earth starships, these torpedoes were the most powerful weapons in the standard ship's armament.
Specifications
Spatial torpedoes were a somewhat ineffective weapon against an opponent with deflector shields, as the torpedoes would bounce off the shields at impact and detonation. Also, the torpedo engine made the weapon so slow that it could be shot down with point-defense particle weapons prior to impact. (ENT: "Fight or Flight")
Unlike the later photonic torpedoes, the loading and firing of spatial torpedoes was partly a manual process. Inactive torpedoes were stored on racks in the armory. When a ship engaged in combat, the torpedo was removed from its holding rack and placed on a launching rail, which inserted the torpedo into its firing tube. The torpedo could then be fired, either from the tactical console on the bridge or the firing console in the armory. (ENT: "Fight or Flight")
One type of spatial torpedo was the Triton class. These torpedoes share similar detonation layouts to cloaked Romulan mines that Enterprise NX-01 encountered in 2152, deployed in a system annexed by the Romulan Star Empire. (ENT: "Minefield")
Spatial torpedoes were part of the original armament inventory of Enterprise, and could be launched from six points on the ship's hull: four forward tubes, attached to the armory, and two aft. The ship was equipped with experimental photonic torpedoes prior to the starship's mission to the Delphic Expanse, but Enterprise kept its complement of spatial torpedoes. (ENT: "The Expanse")
Background
This form of torpedo was never named on-screen. The naming of these torpedoes as spatial torpedoes is based on Startrek.com using the term. Template:St According to Startrek.com, the spatial torpedoes also contained more contact-explosive yields and ingredients than the photonic torpedoes. Template:St
The spatial torpedoes were designed by John Eaves. He sketched out various possible configurations, ranging from a conventional ICBM to the highly futuristic. Executive Producers Rick Berman and Brannon Braga ultimately opted for a design that was somewhere between these extremities. (Star Trek: The Magazine Volume 2, Issue 7, p. 55)