To help streamline vessel identification, many regions of space (including all Nanotrasen-controlled space) utilize a three- or four-digit vessel prefix system that identifies the vessel's originating company or group, classification, and architecture. All long-range and communications-capable vessels are required to have a prefix to make communications with other vessels and space traffic control easier. Short-range shuttles not designed to stray far from their originating vessel are not required to have prefixes, but it is still advised.
Format
Vessel prefixes are in the form of "XYZ", where X denotes the company or group the vessel is owned by (usually the first letter of the group), Y denotes the vessel's classification, and Z denotes the architecture of the vessel, such as if it is a ship, station, or base. These are always in all capital letters and are placed before the ship's name.
Originating Company
Most companies use the first letter of their name for their vessels' prefixes. In cases of ambiguity, or if a company has multiple words in its name, it may use two or more letters instead. The following is a non-exhaustive list of examples:
- A: Antares Robotics Group
- AAR: Aether Atmospherics & Recycling
- BC: Bishop Cybernetics
- CP: Centauri Provisions
- EE: Einstein Engines
- FP: Focal Point Energistics
- FT: Free Trade Union
- GM: Grayson Manufactories Ltd.
- H: Hephaestus Industries
- M: Morpheus Cyberkinetics
- N: Nanotrasen Incorporated
- O: Oculum Broadcasting Network
- T: Major Bill's Transportation
- V: Vey-Medical
- W: Ward-Takahashi General Manufacturing Conglomerate
- WA: Wulf Aeronautics
- X: Xion Manufacturing Group
- Z: Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals
Vessels not flying under any corporation usually use the prefix "I", for independent.
Mission/Classification
The second letter denotes the vessel's mission or designed purpose. These can potentially change if a vessel is repurposed, but usually stay the same (it would be uncommon for a fighter to re-classify as a science vessel, for example). Different companies may use different letters, and there is no standard for which letter means what. Asking a vessel directly for its purpose may help in cases of confusion. The following is a non-exhaustive list of potential classifications:
- C: Command
- D: Defense
- E: Expedition
- F: Fleet/Freight
- G: General
- I: Industry
- L: Logistics
- M: Medical/Mining
- R: Research/Rescue
- S: Science
- T: Trading/Transportation
Architecture
The third letter denotes the architecture of the vessel; whether it is a spaceship, a station, a base, and so on. Some companies, especially those who use multiple letters in their origin, may omit this, and like with vessel classifications, there is no agreed-upon standard. The following is a non-exhaustive list of potential vessel architectures:
- B: Base (planetary ground station)
- S: Station (immobile space station)
- V: Vessel (mobile spaceship or other platform; this includes short-range shuttles)
Nanotrasen Policy
Nanotrasen installations follow the prefix system. Installations intended for permanent habitation or with longstanding missions always have a prefix. Short-range shuttles are not required to have a prefix but it is usually recommended. The following are some examples of notable Nanotrasen installations and their prefixes:
- NDV Marksman: Its prefix means Nanotrasen Defense Vessel, as it is a ship charged with defending the other Nanotrasen vessels around it. Although it is the flagship of its fleet, it is not classified as a command vessel.
- NSB Atlas: Its prefix means Nanotrasen Science Base, as it is a planetary installation whose main purpose is science.
- NSV Triumph: Its prefix means Nanotrasen Science Vessel, as it is a mobile spaceship whose main purpose is science.
- NTS Demeter: Its prefix means Nanotrasen Transport Station, as it is a permanent space station facilitating crew transfers and habitation within the Hadii's Folly system.
Exploration shuttles often use NEV (Nanotrasen Exploration Vessel) or NSV (Nanotrasen Science Vessel) as their prefixes owing to their primary missions being exploration and research of away sites. Search-and-rescue shuttles often use NRV (Nanotrasen Rescue Vessel), and security shuttles might use NDV (Nanotrasen Defense Vessel) for similar reasons. Ultimately, it is the shuttle's leader -- often the Pathfinder -- whose job it is to create a prefix and name for the shuttle.