uss mars star trek

• April 25, 2024 | Prep Begins For ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Season 3 Finale; Cast And Directors Share BTS Images
• April 25, 2024 | Jonathan Frakes Sees Opportunities With Streaming Star Trek Movies, Weighs In On “Filler Episodes”
• April 25, 2024 | Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Reflects On Its Choices In “Mirrors”
• April 24, 2024 | Coffee Table Book On The ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Makeup Artistry Of Glenn Hetrick Coming In September
• April 24, 2024 | ‘William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill’ Documentary Arrives On VOD On Friday

Construction History Of USS Titan And More ‘Star Trek: Picard’ Behind The Scenes Details Revealed

| March 15, 2023 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 28 comments so far

The main ship for season three of Star Trek: Picard is the USS Titan-A, which has been described as a sort of refit of Captain Riker’s USS Titan. This complicated history is now being explained along with some more insights and fun bits from behind the scenes with the  Star Trek: Picard cast and crew.

Titan’s complicated construction tied to Mars Attack

We got our first clues about the new USS Titan with the official log released ahead of the season, with some more explained in the first episode, tying the ship’s origins to Riker’s Titan, seen Star Trek books and Lower Decks . We are now learning more thanks to production designer Dave Blass who shared an image showing the new Titan and Riker’s Titan during the refit process…

Here is some early concept art that we did of the two USS Titans during the refit process. It was a fun exploration of how things might have happened. Artwork by John Eaves with modeling by @_Pundus_ #StarTrekPicard pic.twitter.com/24jThOADz0 — Dave Blass (@DaveBlass) March 9, 2023

In that thread, Blass also shared some detailed explanations from designer Mike Okuda…

Why reuse and not just replicate? Like Dilithium, and Latinim, there are lots of materials that can’t be replicated. Sadly Voyager found this out the hard way as Nacelle components are made of a composite of polysilicate verterium and monocrystal cortenum. Can’t be replicated. 16 Years ago the Federation lost the Utopia Planitia Fleetyards, this was not just machinery, and infrastructure but raw materials that are used to manufacture ships. A disaster of that scale, caused a massive of upheaval in the starship construction process. #StarTrekPicard Even with industrial-sized replicators, reuse of large objects will often make sense. Mass equals a lot of energy, and converting it back and forth involves a tremendous amount of energy. And since no process can be 100% efficient, conversion comes at a cost. For relatively small objects, this cost is acceptable, especially compared to the cost of lugging around five years’ worth of food, or an entire inventory of spare parts. But for industrial-sized objects, there will likely be circumstances where it makes more sense to recycle instead of replicate. – Mike Okuda

The mention of the loss of the Utopia Planitia Fleetyards is referring to the Attack on Mars seen in flashbacks from season one of Picard (and Short Treks “Children of Mars”).

Attack on Mars

A closer look at Titan

Yesterday Blass shared a detailed chart from designer Doug Drexler explaining all the exterior components of the new Titan…

Lot's of questions over the last few weeks about the USS Titan NCC-80102-A. Master Starfleet Shipbuilder Doug Drexler has put this handy chart together with the tech involved in this amazing ship as a gift to the best fans in the world. #StarTrekPicard pic.twitter.com/N2tKvdfS9N — Dave Blass (@DaveBlass) March 15, 2023

Going inside, Mike Okuda shared some insight into the panel designs for the Titan’s transporter room.

I based the Titan's transporter room panels on the displays in the Enterprise-D transporter. Animation by Andrew Jarvis and Noah Schloss. Lead graphic designer: Geoff Mandel. Art director: Liz Kloczkowski. Production designer: Dave Blass. Star Trek Picard streams on Paramount+. pic.twitter.com/ECIPkHe7B7 — Michael Okuda (@MikeOkuda) March 12, 2023

Why holodeck works when the rest of ship is out of power

In last week’s episode, there was some fan debate about how the Titan’s holodeck had its own power that could not be shared with the rest of the ship. Blass answered critics by noting this isolated power situation has precedent from Star Trek: Voyager .

Lots of folks concerned about why the power is on in the Holodeck and not the rest of the ship. Let's take a trip to visit with our friends on the USS Voyager to learn a bit about Holodecks and power. #StarTrekPicard pic.twitter.com/vcNMElgwL1 — Dave Blass (@DaveBlass) March 12, 2023

More bucket

Terry Matalas returned to the subject of the Changeling’s bucket seen in episode 4 offering more explanation for it appearing just like Odo’s bucket.

Or it's stored in Starfleet replicators. If you want the plot point to work? "Actually, it's super easy! Barely an inconvenience." @theryangeorge https://t.co/mb1NK6Tlq3 — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) March 15, 2023

Last week’s episode featured space lifeforms and showrunner Terry Matalas shared the final concept design from Neville Page to get a closer look.

One of the final concepts for the Rytonian Space Babies by the brilliant @NevillePage #StarTrekPicard pic.twitter.com/liJ77PfgM1 — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) March 15, 2023

Terry followed that up with a better look at a full rendering.

VFX rendering of the adorable Rytonian Space Babies. If anyone makes merch, please send me some! I love these kiddos. They were "delivered" (get it?!) by this group of hardworking geniuses: @jzvfx @shawnvfx @virtualbri @NevillePage #GhostVFX #StarTrekPicard #StarTrek pic.twitter.com/SqlGOArp9C — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) March 15, 2023

Celebrate Frontier Day

Frontier Day is an important celebration that has been mentioned a few times in season three, including showing some posters for the event. Blass shared a better look at these posters revealing they were designed by Laz Marquez.

Celebrate "Frontier Day" with these amazing posters by @lazmarquez I had followed him for years and knew his passion for Star Trek. I just had to wait for the right opportunity to use his work in the show. pic.twitter.com/GdJw3PCmwp — Dave Blass (@DaveBlass) March 7, 2023

Jeri talks history with Terry

As a guest on The Talk , actress Jeri Ryan mentioned how she and Terry Matalas both got their start in the franchise at the same time way back on Voyager . Terry shared this clip on Twitter talking about how lucky he has been and what a surprise it was for her to bring it up.

How many PA gigs change your life and give you a lifelong friend? I’ve been very, very lucky. This was a cool surprise. #StarTrek pic.twitter.com/zpMzVJpgoV — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) March 12, 2023

Finally, we have a couple more bits about hair, firstly Jonathan Frakes shared an image of himself, cinematographer Crescenzo Notarile, and Michael Dorn as the finalists at “Beard Festival.”

Finalists at Beard Festival pic.twitter.com/A6x8tm4hk8 — Jonathan Frakes (@jonathansfrakes) March 14, 2023

And Terry shared a nice pic of Dorn as Worf with his hair down.

When we let his hair down… #HotWorfFriday pic.twitter.com/W17ZNUhpYo — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) March 10, 2023

Keep up with news about the  Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com .

Related Articles

Collectibles , Star Trek: Picard , TOS

Star Trek Coffees Launching In May With Several Blends

Books , Review , Star Trek: Picard , VOY

Review: Action-Packed ‘Star Trek: Picard: Firewall’ Reveals Seven’s Compelling Quest For Identity

All Access Star Trek Podcast , Discovery , Lower Decks , Star Trek: Picard , Star Trek: Prodigy , Starfleet Academy , Strange New Worlds

Podcast: All Access Goes To SXSW For The ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Season 5 Premiere

Star Trek: Picard

‘Picard’ Season 2 Was Rewritten After Paramount Deemed It “Too Star Trek,” Says EP

So they recycled the old Titan into the new one. The phrasing they used in the Logs post on Instagram wasn’t very clear on that. Still doesn’t fix the scaling issue though.

I honestly would’ve rather that they used one of the STO Luna -class variants.

The Luna class titan is 454 meters long and the constitution lll class titan-a is 560 meters long the original shangri la titan savvik commanded was 295 meters long according to official size chart released by bill Krause

Those are some deep cuts into Holodeck power systems, surprised the canonistas missed that (particularly the scene with Kim, which explains how the sources are incompatible), but it seems Picard’s use of them is fairly consistent with what we’ve seen in the past after all.

I remembered them since the old AOL boards were seething with people up in arms about holodecks being on in a low power emergency.

But they’ve still never explained to me why the lights went out for Captain Proton in “Night.” ;)

I love how they have a backstory (aka: explanation) for every “inconsistancy” people have pointed out. Although I’m not looking for a discussion, all I wanna say is: they’re trying really hard to sell it, and I apreciate the effort. But that doesn’t mean I have to buy it. Some things (like the holodeck power situation) are very obvious behind the scenes reasons and not from-the-get-go thought up Trek things (even back then). Not there’s anything wrong with that, but jus admit to it. That would be less farfetched than any explanation currently served up.

Same thing with the Titans. First it was a new ship, then it was a refit (or whatever came first). Now they spun a story that kinda works for both. Okay, fine.

I’m not sure why this is a problem for anyone. This is Star Trek as it’s always been: they do things for dramatic and/or real-world reasons, and come up with justifications for it later for canon. That’s always been part of the fun of Trek, or at least, among me and my friends back in the day.

Dude. It’s just a tv show. Not real. Not real.

Not sure what your reply has anything to do with my comment, which is obviously about writing.

Can Worf’s hair get its own spinoff?

is this the first time we’ve ever seen Worf’s ears?

I think this season is the first time, yes. I’d mentioned it before, around the time they released the first promo images, and nobody refuted the observation so far.

It’s fine enough, but I would’ve preferred that they kept them hidden. It changes his looks in that it makes his his hair appear quite a bit thinner when compared to this lush AGT locks.

Glory to you…and your haircare products!

That thin-ass wig? LOL

Yeah not buying the retrofit thing. Seems like the script was never adjusted to align better with the ship design that was ultimately chosen.

Yes, that’s because they did what works best for the show, rather than what works for canon nerds, and then found the justification later. That’s the right choice!

Well it seems fairly obvious if you dig deeply enough. One, Matalas has said he is a big fan of the TOS era ships and the Titan A looks like as close of a Ship to the 1701 A as we have gotten in years. Second, and this is just IMHO, “Titan” serves 2 purposes. Obv the first is the call back to Riker’s command. But the second is that it was a named used in 12 Monkeys.

Am I the only one who finds the eyeballs on the space squids makes ’em look creepy?

Also, glad that VOY acknowledged that the Holodeck power sources are incompatible with the rest of the ship. While watching the Picard episode I remembered from VOY that the Holodecks had their own power sources (otherwise TPTB couldn’t use the Holodeck all the time), but I did not know their power sources were incompatible. I’m not a fan of VOY (find it to be written like poor fan fiction than actual good television) but that’s impressive.

I think the space babies were inspired by a Keane painting…

While I appreciate the “refit” angle and trying to make it so that the Titan is still “Rikers ship”…I think calling it a refit is a bit overly generous just like how the jump from the TOS Enterprise to the TMP “refit” is likely a little much, but at least in that case you can use your minds eye to see how the core of the ship is likely still the same spaceframe, etc.

The jump from the Titan to the Titan-A is beyond that ability given that not only is the saucer different (basically a jumbo Connie) but the bridge is completely different from what we’ve seen on Lower Decks for the Luna class also, so its clearly not the same bridge.

I can buy the warp core, engine components, computer core, etc being reused..but that doesn’t really warrant calling the Titan-A a refit..no more than saying the Enterprise CVN-65 is the same as the Enterprise CV-6 just because some components were ceremoniously reused. Plenty of ships have had components of others used to refit them (IE USS Nevada used some of the guns from the wrecked USS Arizona) but that doesn’t then replace the identity of the original ship.

Calling it the Titan-A is fine, trying to call it a refit is not, IMO.

The designation of starships with an extra letter has always been arbitrary. It’s never been consistent, and doesn’t matter.

Thats not the point I was making, but yes I know

I feel for the writers and producers. On one hand having the Titan is good for the story. On the other hand TOS movie era tech and starships are just so much cooler than their TNG counterparts. I appreciate the attempt at a compromise; I think saying it’s a new ship honouring the Titan, not a refit is the answer. All they had to do was change the jazz joke to something like “No jazz filling this ships computer banks” or “When you took her out on her maiden mission Riker, you didn’t have to upload all the jazz on this ship too. Took me a while to delete” or something. Whatever, the Titan A is cool, just wish we got to see the adventures of Saavik’s Titan

my head canon had always held that the saucer itself was salvaged from a much older ship, given the old-style phaser cannons that coexist alongside the TNG phaser strips

That Titan refit makes zero sense but yup, it’s Star Trek. They shouldn’t have made another Constitution, we already have one in SNW. Titan’s still a great model though!

This is the only thing about it that might bug me a little, particularly if we’re getting more of it, as a Titan spin-off. You’d think that, just for marketing purposes, they’d want two drastically different ships leading their shows, but there are a lot of very similar elements that, to casual non-Trekkies, might cause visual confusion at first glance.

Wow lots of awesome stuff here to dig into!!!

Honestly, I wasn’t very accepting of the notion that the Titan-A is a “refit” of Riker’s Luna-class Titan at first given how different the shape and size are between the two… However, I’m now totally convinced by Mike Okuda’s explanation!

It is now much easier to imagine that the Luna-class Titan probably suffered massive damage after its last mission (much like how the Enterprise-E ended up in Nemesis), and Starfleet probably judged that it had reached the end of its operational lifetime (which was also helped by Riker and Troi’s departure to settle on Nepenthe to take care of their dying son). However, with the destruction with the Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards (which was an event I admit to having totally blocked from of my memory), shipbuilding resources are low, so it was easier to salvage pieces from the Luna-class Titan (like computer core, warp coils, and so on) and use them to complete the construction of an entirely new ship, hence the Titan-A. This would therefore explain why Shaw had to purge the computer of Riker’s jazz music and why the nacelles are “20 years old.”

The only problem is that the shipbuilding situation with Starfleet in the PIC period is still somewhat sketchy… If the destruction of Utopia Planitia hampered Starfleet’s production capacity, then how did they build so many Zheng He-type starships as seen in PIC’s season 1 finale? And if the destruction of the shipyards happened in 2385 and the Enterprise-F was launched in 2386, how did they still manage to complete the massive building of the Odyssey-class a mere year after the incident? Was the Sagan-class Stargazer therefore also built using salvaged parts from the Constellation-class Stargazer (which would explain Picard’s line but wouldn’t make much sense given how old the old NCC-2893 was)?

USS Mars (NCC-525)

• Edit source
• View history

The USS Mars (NCC-525) was a Saladin -class destroyer - of the MK VIIA Siva -subclass - in Federation Starfleet service in the mid-to-late 23rd century . ( Star Fleet Technical Manual )

• 1.1 Delta Dynamics
• 1.2 Orion Press
• 1.3.1 Appearances
• 3 External links

Alternate continuities [ ]

Delta dynamics [ ].

The original Siva configuration

In this continuity, the Sivas were a sub-class of the Syracuse -class destroyers.

USS Mars (NCC-525) was a Syracuse -class destroyer —of the Siva destroyer subclass—in Star Fleet service during the the mid- to late- 23rd century . The newbuild members of the subclass were intended to enhance the fleet's escort capacity through the adoption of the radically new dilithium -regulated propulsion systems and the PB-31 nacelle with its FWD-1 (and later FWD-1A) coils. The changes to support the new power generator required a profile change from the Syracuse -style saucer. In order to accommodate the operational, tactical, and support equipment the ship needed for its continuing anti-capital/anti-installation role, the saucer had to be modernized.

Siva Flight II

In 2250 , the remaining Siva and Saladin vessels, as well as eight Monoceros from the Hermes -class scouts , received upgrades of the external hull, warp nacelle, pylon, and weaponry. The new PB-32 nacelle provided cruise and maximum speeds of warp 6 and warp 8, while the weaponry was completely replaced: the torpedo systems were modified to support forced-intermix warhead supply equipment and the six phase cannons were replaced by an equal number of less massive—but far more adaptive—Type VII phaser emitters. The bridge was provided a lower target profile by being “sunk” half a deck into the surrounding superstructure. And, for utilitarian purposes, a powerful tractor beam emitter was mounted on the pylon’s trailing edge, midway between the saucer and the nacelle. ( Delta Dynamics : Star Fleet Starship Recognition Manual : Report #292 : Syracuse Destroyers )

Orion Press [ ]

Mars was one of the ships assigned to Task Force Four during the Kelvan War in 2285 . ( Orion Press : In Harm's Way )

Tamerlane [ ]

In 2257 , the Mars performed a rescue operation of the USS Diana . Then- Lieutenant JG Julienne Cochrane , the ship's transporter chief, participated in the rescue. ( Tamerlane )

Appearances [ ]

The USS Mars is only referenced in the fan comic Tamerlane .

See Also [ ]

External links [ ].

USS Mars (NCC-525) article at Memory Beta , the non-canon Star Trek wiki.

• Star Fleet Starship Recognition Manual : Report #292 : Syracuse Destroyers
• USS Tamerlane official website
• 1 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G) (Excalibur class)
• 2 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-H) (Endurance class)
• 3 Dominion War

'Star Trek: Discovery' season 5 episode 5 'Mirrors' is a quality installment, but weighed down by another anchor of nostalgia

This entire episode was more than likely written for the sole reason that the sets from "Strange New Worlds" could be utilized.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Star Trek: Discovery" season 5, episode 5

The chase across the galaxy for the Progenitors MacGuffin continues, offering chances to insert stand-alone, episode-length adventures along the way. And this week's installment, entitled "Mirrors" features a brief and very random reminder that the Mirror Universe exists. 

And that alone would've made an genuinely enthralling episode, but...Alex Kurtzman et al could not resist the temptation for an utterly pointless and thoroughly unnecessary throwback to the USS Enterprise. Honestly, these people have a serious problem, they should seek help. 

To put all of this into context, the crew of the USS Discovery continue their pursuit of Malinne 'Moll' Ravel (Eve Harlow) and L'ak (Elias Toufexis) and that chase leads them to er...well, you know, a giant, space-time swirly orifice that fills the viewscreen. Apparently, it's some sort of wormhole that's spectacularly unstable because of the constant matter/anti-matter reactions that are taking place at the opening. It's actually more than a little reminiscent of the inside of the V'ger spacecraft from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" and that's just fine. 

Watch Star Trek on Paramount Plus: Get a one month free trial  

Get all the Star Trek content you can possibly handle with this free trial of Paramount Plus. Watch new shows like Star Trek: Discovery and all the classic Trek movies and TV shows too. Plans start from $4.99/month after the trial ends.

But it's what they find inside that grinds gears. Since the Discovery is too big to squeeze through the constantly opening and closing orifice, Capt. Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Book (David Ajala) take a shuttle through only to find...the ISS Enterprise. Yes, indeed, last seen (and only seen, actually) in the epic "The Original Series" episode "Mirror, Mirror" (S02, E04).

While beaming back to the USS Enterprise during an ion storm, Kirk, McCoy, Scotty and Uhura materialize aboard a almost-identical Enterprise in a parallel universe. Here, the United Federation of Planets has been replaced by the Terran Empire and its inhabitants are violent and cruel. Their only hope is to artificially reproduce the effects of the storm to facilitate a return to their own universe. (" I mperial S pace S hip replaces the traditional " U nited S pace S hip.")

And while the idea of finding a derelict, 900-year-old starship from the latter half of the 23rd century is a great idea, in the name of the Great Prophet Zarquon, why-oh-why did it have to be the Enterprise? There are — at least — 10 other Constitution Class starships that could've been potentially chosen and thus still allowing the updated sets from "Strange New Worlds" to have been used. 

Get the Space.com Newsletter

Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!

The USS Cayuga (NCC-1557), USS Constellation (NCC-1017), USS Defiant (NCC-1764), USS Excalibur (NCC-1664), USS Exeter (NCC-1672), USS Hood (NCC-1703), USS Intrepid (NCC-1631), USS Lexington (NCC-1709), USS New Jersey (NCC-1975) and the USS Potemkin (NCC-1657). And those are just the ones that are canon. Another new vessel could just as easily have been introduced as it's not unknown for Nu-Trek to bring brand new ships to the line.

And of course Burnham makes reference to the fact that her brother, Spock, served on this ship, which is probably another reason why the Enterprise was forced upon the writers. And according to some extremely rushed exposition, most of the crew escaped the weird wibblywobbly wormhole and went on to lead peaceful and productive lives — we assume somewhere not too far away given how long ago it happened and the current location in deep space — in a somewhat Space Seed scenario. Another interesting throwaway remark from Burnham was, "Crossing between universes has been impossible for centuries now," which shuts down that potential story avenue rather abruptly. 

But let's also focus on why this episode could've been near-faultless if only someone could counsel Paramount showrunners on how to ween themselves off of nostalgia addiction. This week we get to see the whole Moll and L'ak backstory...and it's rather good and to add to that, Book and Moll confront the fact that they're distantly related. You know, because that makes things much more absurd orderly. (See how Burnham had to be related to Spock.)

The pacing of this episode, and with the exception of using the Enterprise, when any other Constitution Class starship could've worked — and served to expand the Mirror Universe a little bit — this is an enjoyable episode. It's a shame though that this is following the same cookie cutter seasonal storyline template by relying very much on a quest to follow while having standalone episode-long adventures to fill in the gaps, but hey, it can't be much worse than last season. So, there's that.

The fifth and final season of "Star Trek: Discovery" and every other episode of every "Star Trek" show — with the exception of "Star Trek: Prodigy" — currently streams exclusively on Paramount Plus in the US, while "Prodigy" has found a new home on Netflix.  

Internationally, the shows are available on  Paramount Plus  in Australia, Latin America, the UK and South Korea, as well as on Pluto TV in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland on the Pluto TV Sci-Fi channel. They also stream on  Paramount Plus  in Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In Canada, they air on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and stream on Crave.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].

When Scott's application to the NASA astronaut training program was turned down, he was naturally upset...as any 6-year-old boy would be. He chose instead to write as much as he possibly could about science, technology and space exploration. He graduated from The University of Coventry and received his training on Fleet Street in London. He still hopes to be the first journalist in space.

Netflix releases official trailer for Jennifer Lopez mech combat sci-fi film 'Atlas' (video)

James Webb Space Telescope documentary returns to IMAX theaters this week for Earth Day. Watch exclusive clips here (video)

Boeing's Starliner spacecraft is 'go' for May 6 astronaut launch

Most Popular

• 2 Russian cosmonauts make quick work of space station spacewalk
• 3 Curiosity rover may be 'burping' methane out of Mars' subsurface
• 4 Boeing Starliner 1st astronaut flight: Live updates
• 5 Lego reveals NASA Artemis rocket, Milky Way galaxy sets coming in May

Memory Beta, non-canon Star Trek Wiki

A friendly reminder regarding spoilers ! At present the expanded Trek universe is in a period of major upheaval with the continuations of Discovery and Prodigy , the advent of new eras in gaming with the Star Trek Adventures RPG , Star Trek: Infinite and Star Trek Online , as well as other post-57th Anniversary publications such as the ongoing IDW Star Trek comic and spin-off Star Trek: Defiant . Therefore, please be courteous to other users who may not be aware of current developments by using the {{ spoiler }}, {{ spoilers }} OR {{ majorspoiler }} tags when adding new information from sources less than six months old (even if it is minor info). Also, please do not include details in the summary bar when editing pages and do not anticipate making additions relating to sources not yet in release. THANK YOU

• Memory Beta articles sourced from episodes and movies
• Memory Beta articles sourced from novels
• Memory Beta articles sourced from short stories
• Memory Beta articles sourced from novellas
• Memory Beta articles sourced from video games
• Federation worlds
• Alpha Quadrant planets
• Fourth planets
• Earth colonies
• Federation colonies
• Sector 001 planets
• Quadrant 0 planets
• View history

Mars (Sol IV) was the fourth planet in the Sol system and the capital planet of the Confederated Martian Colonies , a Federation Member State .

• 3 Alternate timeline
• 4.1 Bodies of Water
• 4.2 Settlements
• 4.3 Points of Interest
• 5.1 Notable Martians
• 5.2 Other Martian Residents
• 6 In fiction
• 7.1 Apocrypha
• 7.2 Connections
• 7.3.1 Appearances
• 7.3.2 References
• 7.4 External links

Overview [ ]

Technological breakthroughs made after first contact with the Vulcans made terraforming Mars much more feasible, and warming the planet was accomplished in a fraction of the time 21st century scientists had predicted. Water and oxygen were liberated from the subterranean permafrost and genetically engineered bacteria were introduced into the terrain. This began the terraforming process. There were colonists on Mars as early as 2103 , but they needed atmospheric suits in order to breathe outside a biosphere. Not quite one hundred years after that, Mars possessed a breathable atmosphere . The earliest colonists utilized local Martian resources to build habitable structures, including basaltic regolith. Refined and mixed with water, it forms a crude concrete . This process was far more efficient than trying to bring building materials from Earth . ( VOY novel : Mosaic , DS9 novel : Space Camp )

In spite of undergoing the process of terraforming as early as the 22nd century , by the 24th century water covered only 10% of the surface of Mars. Most of it was concentrated in small fresh water lakes which were the result of impact craters. As of 2350 the atmosphere of Mars was fully breathable by Humans , although ultraviolet radiation from the sun still required some measure of protection before stepping out onto the surface. ( Decipher RPG module : Worlds )

In 2385 , the planet was rendered uninhabitable by the Attack on Mars , which ignited the atmosphere. 14 years later , the atmosphere was still burning. ( PIC episode : " Remembrance ")

History [ ]

The Core walks on Mars.

Automatic mining facilities were set up on Mars during the late 20th century utilizing DY-100 vessels. ( ST reference : Federation: The First 150 Years )

Verna Mitrios was the first person from Earth to set foot on Mars. ( ST - The Lost Era novel : Serpents Among the Ruins )

The first humans to walk on Mars were an international team of astronauts sometime after 2009 . A crucial member of the team was The Core . ( ST performance: " Star Trek Live " )

Earth's Ares IV over Mars in 2032

Mars was one of the first planets colonized by the Human race, who began their efforts in 2103. ( VOY episode : " The 37's ") It became the first fully established colony of United Earth . Colonization of the planet involved a primitive form of terraforming that involved Zubrin craters where each transparent nanoplastic membranes being placed around each crater on the surface whereupon an alteration of each few thousand hectares of lands biosphere. Thus, an attempt was made to terraform the world; one crater at a time. To oversee the development process of Mars surface, Earth awarded a license to a business body known as the Consortium that handled the terraforming and development of the planet. ( TOS novel : Preserver )

In the purges that followed the Eugenics Wars , many of the offspring of Khan Noonien Singh 's augmented followers secretly resettled areas like Mars, Alaska , Luna , and the Sahara Reclamation Zone , where life was hard enough to ensure few people asked probing questions. ( TNG novel : Infiltrator )

Among those that migrated to Mars included the southwestern Native American tribes who refused to surrender their sovereignty to the United Earth government. These groups formed their own tribal nations on Mars such as the Hopi-Pueblo who settled on the planet by 2109 . ( ENT - The Romulan War novel : Beneath the Raptor's Wing )

Within just a few years, however, a general uprising known as the War of Martian Independence occurred in support of Martian sovereignty ( ENT - The Romulan War novel : Beneath the Raptor's Wing ) The incident brought about the destruction of Gundersdotter's Dome and the assassination of Rayla Gundersdotter by Consortium militiamen with the business organization having its license revoked. ( TOS novel : Preserver ) This movement culminated with the drafting of the Fundamental Declarations of the Martian Colonies , which became one of the most important documents addressing individual rights in Federation history ( TOS episode : " Court Martial ") and in the independence of the Martian colonies and establishment of the Confederated Martian Colonies with the Assembly of the Martian Colonies being its ruling body. Despite this being the case, the Martian Colonies became little more than a political satelite of the United Earth government and was considered less important compared to Alpha Centauri III and Earth which had much larger populations on their surface. ( ENT - The Romulan War novel : Beneath the Raptor's Wing )

A council of religious scholars on Mars came up with Local Planetary Time , which was based on Vulcan look-up tables and charts that Vulcan ships had been using to keep their time that of Vulcan . ( DS9 - Millennium novel : The War of the Prophets )

The Verteron array fires.

In 2155 , Mars was the site of the Verteron Array , a powerful device designed to keep asteroids and other planetoids away from Earth and other important locales in the Sol System. That year, the anti-alien terrorist group known as Terra Prime attempted to hijack the array to destroy the headquarters complex of the United Earth Starfleet in order to force all non-Humans out of the Sol System. The attempt failed with the intervention of the crew of Enterprise (NX-01) . ( ENT episodes : " Demons ", " Terra Prime ") As part of Humans' colonization efforts, Mars was in the process of being terraformed in the mid- 22nd century , by redirecting comets to impact the planet and release their frozen gases into the thin Martian atmosphere. ( ENT episode : " Terra Prime ") In the early stages of the Earth-Romulan War , there were many fears that the Romulan Star Empire would strike at Mars. ( ENT - The Romulan War novel : Beneath the Raptor's Wing )

Mars was the location of the city of Utopia Planitia, and Starfleet 's Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards . ( VOY episode : " The 37's "; TNG episode : " Encounter at Farpoint ", DS9 episode : " Emissary ") In 2161 , the Confederated Martian Colonies became one of the first states to join the United Federation of Planets after its founding. ( ST reference : Star Charts .) Beginning on reference stardate 1/9010 , the Mars shipyards were a major contributor of ships to the growing numbers of Loknar -class frigates entering service. ( FASA RPG module : Federation Ship Recognition Manual )

The Martian Federation Councillor was among those being briefed about the Genesis Device in 2286 . ( TNG novel : The Genesis Wave, Book 1 ) In 2376 , Mars was listed as the host location of a current or past marathon. ( New Worlds, New Civilizations short story : " The Footfalls of Tradition ")

As of 2378 , Mars' population 133.8 million. However, in the early 2380s , another figure gave it as in the hundreds of thousands. ( ST reference : Star Charts ; Decipher RPG module : Worlds )

In 2385 , during the Attack on Mars , the colonies and Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards were destroyed, killing 92,143 and igniting the atmosphere, which was still burning by 2399 . ( PIC episode : " Maps and Legends ")

Alternate timeline [ ]

In an alternate timeline in which Khan Noonien Singh won the Eugenics Wars , the Khan was also the first Human to set foot on Mars. ( ST - Myriad Universes novella : Seeds of Dissent )

Geography [ ]

Bodies of water [ ].

• Lake Cassini
• Lake Huygens
• Lake Lowell
• Copernicus Lake
• Lake Phillips
• Hershel Lake
• Mapler Lake
• Apallinaris Lake

Settlements [ ]

• Bradbury City
• Bradbury Township
• Burroughs City
• Fort Lincoln
• Gundersdotter's Dome
• Martian Colony 3
• New Chicago
• Utopia Planitia
• Valles Marineris
• New Clinton
• Phillipstown
• Burroghs City
• Popé Pueblo
• Robinson Township
• Sagan Station
• Utopia colony

Points of Interest [ ]

• Bradbury Spaceport
• Endurance University
• McKay University
• Morris Magtronics
• Thermal Station Alpha
• Thermal Station Beta
• University of Mars

The Carl Sagan Memorial Station on Mars.

Notable Martians [ ]

• Lieutenant Sean Hawk , conn officer of the USS Enterprise -E .
• Dr. Marat Lon , terraformer
• Doctor Sonek Pran , history professor at McKay University and advisor to several Federation Presidents
• Lieutenant Mira Romaine , of the USS Enterprise
• Doctor Simon Tarses , of the USS Enterprise -D and Deep Space 9
• Ensign Vanessa Theriault , of the USS Sagittarius
• Chief Rupi Yee , of the USS Sugihara

Members of Jean-Luc Picard 's family were also among the earliest Martian settlers. ( TNG movie : Star Trek Generations )

Other Martian Residents [ ]

• Jaresh-Inyo , former President of the United Federation of Planets (and native of Grazer ) retired to Mars after leaving office in 2372 , and was dematerialized there following his death in 2380 . ( ST novel : Articles of the Federation )
• Leah Brahms and Benjamin Sisko resided on Mars while stationed at Utopia Planitia.
• Lieutenant Scott Fillion of the USS Enterprise -E was from Mars and his son Jason still resided there in 2379 . ( TNG novel : A Time to Heal )

In fiction [ ]

In the literature of the 20th century science fiction series The Adventures of Captain Proton , Mars was known to Earth children for its canals and sandstorms, as well as for having a race of "stone-eaters". ( ST - Captain Proton: Defender of the Earth short story : " The Planets of the Future ")

In the year 2000 , the Martian governor was found dead holding a mysterious note in his hand that had alien writing on it. ( The Adventures of Captain Proton episode : " A Hero Falls ")

Later that year, Dr. Chaotica raided the Space Laboratory on Mars to acquire the final component of his mind control ray , the amplitude modulator . Once it was in place, Chaotica fired the ray at ace reporter Buster Kincaid , then ordered him to kill Captain Proton . ( VOY - Star Trek: Explorer short story : " Kill Captain Proton! ")

Appendices [ ]

Apocrypha [ ].

The Last Unicorn RPG The Dominion War Sourcebook: The Fires of Armageddon , published by Last Unicorn Games after they had lost their Star Trek licence, states that prior to the Breen attack on Earth in late- 2375 , the Breen fleet attacked the Mars Defense Perimeter .

Connections [ ]

Appearances and references [ ], appearances [ ].

• ENT episode : " Demons "
• ENT episode : " Terra Prime "
• ST performance: " Star Trek Live "
• Short Treks episode : " Children of Mars "
• PIC episode : " Maps and Legends "
• VOY - Star Trek: Explorer short story : " Kill Captain Proton! "

References [ ]

• ↑ ST reference : Star Charts
• ↑ Decipher RPG module : Worlds
• ↑ PIC episode : " Remembrance "
• TOS episode : " Court Martial "
• FASA RPG module : Federation Ship Recognition Manual
• TNG episode : " Encounter at Farpoint "
• DS9 episode : " Emissary "
• TNG movie : Star Trek Generations
• VOY episode : " The 37's "
• TNG novel : Infiltrator
• VOY novel : Mosaic
• DS9 novel : Space Camp
• ST - Captain Proton: Defender of the Earth short story : " The Planets of the Future "
• New Worlds, New Civilizations short story : " The Footfalls of Tradition "
• VOY video game : Elite Force
• DS9 - Millennium novel : The War of the Prophets
• TOS novel : Preserver
• ST reference : Star Charts
• TLE novel : Serpents Among the Ruins
• TNG novel : A Time to Heal
• Decipher RPG module : Worlds
• ST novel : Articles of the Federation
• ST - Myriad Universes - Infinity's Prism novella : Seeds of Dissent
• ENT - The Romulan War novel : Beneath the Raptor's Wing
• ST reference : Federation: The First 150 Years
• PIC episode : " Remembrance "
• ST video game : Klingon Academy
• ST video game : Infinite

External links [ ]

• Mars article at Memory Alpha , the wiki for canon Star Trek .
• Mars article at Wikipedia , the free encyclopedia.
• 1 Ferengi Rules of Acquisition
• 2 The Chase
• 3 Preserver (race)

• Election 2024
• Entertainment
• Newsletters
• Photography
• Personal Finance
• AP Investigations
• AP Buyline Personal Finance
• AP Buyline Shopping
• Press Releases
• Israel-Hamas War
• Russia-Ukraine War
• Global elections
• Asia Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East
• Election Results
• Delegate Tracker
• AP & Elections
• Auto Racing
• 2024 Paris Olympic Games
• Movie reviews
• Book reviews
• Personal finance
• Financial Markets
• Business Highlights
• Financial wellness
• Artificial Intelligence
• Social Media

Long-lost first model of the USS Enterprise from ‘Star Trek’ boldly goes home after twisting voyage

The first model of the USS Enterprise is displayed at Heritage Auctions in Los Angeles, April 13, 2024. The model — used in the original “Star Trek” television series — has been returned to Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, the son of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry, decades after it went missing in the 1970s. (Josh David Jordan/Heritage Auctions via AP)

Joe Maddalena, executive vice president of Heritage Auctions, left, and Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, the son of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry, shake hands over the recently recovered first model of the USS Enterprise at the Heritage Auctions in Los Angeles, April 13, 2024. The model — used in the original “Star Trek” television series — has been returned to Eugene, decades after it went missing in the 1970s. (Josh David Jordan/Heritage Auctions via AP)

Joe Maddalena, executive vice president of Heritage Auctions, left, and Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, the son of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry, view the recently recovered first model of the USS Enterprise at Heritage Auctions in Los Angeles, April 13, 2024. The model — used in the original “Star Trek” television series — has been returned to Eugene, decades after it went missing in the 1970s. (Josh David Jordan/Heritage Auctions via AP)

• Copy Link copied

DALLAS (AP) — The first model of the USS Enterprise — used in the opening credits of the original “Star Trek” television series — has boldly gone back home, returning to creator Gene Roddenberry’s son decades after it went missing.

The model’s disappearance sometime in the 1970s had become the subject of lore, so it caused a stir when it popped up on eBay last fall. The sellers quickly took it down, and then contacted Dallas-based Heritage Auctions to authenticate it. Last weekend, the auction house facilitated the model’s return.

Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, CEO of Roddenberry Entertainment, said he’s thrilled to have the model that had graced the desk of his father, who died in 1991 at age 70.

“This is not going home to adorn my shelves,” Roddenberry said. “This is going to get restored and we’re working on ways to get it out so the public can see it and my hope is that it will land in a museum somewhere.”

AP AUDIO: Long-lost first model of the USS Enterprise from ‘Star Trek’ boldly goes home after twisting voyage.

AP correspondent Margie Szaroleta reports on the return of the original model of the USS Enterprise from the TV show “Star Trek.”

Heritage’s executive vice president, Joe Maddalena, said the auction house was contacted by people who said they’d discovered it a storage unit, and when it was brought into their Beverly Hills office, he and a colleague “instantly knew that it was the real thing.”

They reached out to Roddenberry, who said he appreciates that everyone involved agreed returning the model was the right thing to do. He wouldn’t go into details on the agreement reached but said “I felt it important to reward that and show appreciation for that.”

Maddalena said the model vanished in the 1970s after Gene Roddenberry loaned it to makers of “Star Trek: The Motion Picture,” which was released in 1979.

“No one knew what happened to it,” Rod Roddenberry said.

The 3-foot (0.91-meter) model of the USS Enterprise was used in the show’s original pilot episode as well as the opening credits of the resulting TV series, and was the prototype for the 11-foot (3-meter) version featured in the series’ episodes. The larger model is on display at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.

The original “Star Trek” television series, which aired in the late 1960s, kicked off an ever-expanding multiverse of cultural phenomena, with TV and movie spinoffs and conventions where a fanbase of zealous and devoted Trekkies can’t get enough of memorabilia.

This USS Enterprise model would easily sell for more than $1 million at auction, but really “it’s priceless,” Maddalena said.

“It could sell for any amount and I wouldn’t be surprised because of what it is,” he said. “It is truly a cultural icon.”

Roddenberry, who was just a young boy when the model went missing, said he has spotty memories of it, “almost a deja vu.” He said it wasn’t something he’d thought much about until people began contacting him after it appeared on eBay.

“I don’t think I really, fully comprehended at first that this was the first Enterprise ever created,” he said.

He said he has no idea if there was something nefarious behind the disappearance all those decades ago or if it was just mistakenly lost, but it would be interesting to find out more about what happened.

“This piece is incredibly important and it has its own story and this would be a great piece of the story,” Roddenberry said.

Thankfully, he said, the discovery has cleared up one rumor: That it was destroyed because as a young boy, he’d thrown it into a pool.

“Finally I’m vindicated after all these years,” he said with a laugh.

Discovery Was Built On Earth Like USS Enterprise In J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek

WARNING: Contains SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery, season 5, episode 4, "Face the Strange". Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 4, "Face the Strange", reminds us that the USS Discovery was built on Earth, just like the USS Enterprise in the J.J. Abrams Star Trek movies. Written by Sean Cochran and directed by Lee Rose , "Face the Strange" catapults Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Commander Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie) through the personal history of the USS Discovery. From its construction in the 23rd century to the crew being killed by the Breen in the 32nd century, Discovery season 5, episode 4, covers the full spread of the starship's history.

Star Trek: Discovery season 1 established that the USS Discovery was still a new and groundbreaking vessel in 2256 . It's unclear exactly when Burnham and Rayner's trip to the in-construction USS Discovery takes place, but deck seven hadn't quite been completed on schedule. However, it's very clear from a glimpse of the outside world where Burnham and Rayner have traveled to, the San Francisco Fleet Yards on Earth, drawing a direct link with J.J. Abrams' version of the starship Enterprise from the Kelvin Timeline movies.

Star Trek: Discoverys Enterprise Crossover Made 1 Of Burnhams Crew Very Happy

Uss discovery was built on earth just like uss enterprise in j.j. abrams’ star trek.

The USS Discovery was built at the San Francisco Shipyards, something first mentioned way back in Star Trek: Discovery season 1 . "Face the Strange" reveals the location of the shipyard, via a glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge. This places Starfleet's San Francisco Shipyards somewhere in or around Starfleet Academy and Federation Headquarters. A huge amount of space must be required to construct starships, so it's possible that specialist platforms have been erected in the area around San Francisco Bay. The height of Burnham's view means that the audience don't see the ground, suggesting that the Crossfield-class starship could be constructed on a floating platform.

The Kelvin Timeline version of the USS Enterprise was also built on the Earth's surface, at the Starfleet Shipyard in Riverside, Iowa . However, while the majority of construction took place in Iowa, the Enterprise itself was launched from the San Francisco Fleet Yards. This draws a direct link with Star Trek: Discovery , suggesting that the nature of starfleet construction in the 23rd century was largely unchanged by the destruction of the USS Kelvin. However, the USS Discovery and the Kelvin Timeline USS Enterprise are still unique, because the majority of Star Trek 's starships are built in space.

Star Trek: Discovery was the first Star Trek show in 12 years, released after the three J.J. Abrams movies, which may account for season 1's reference to the Earth-based construction seen in Star Trek (2009) .

Starfleet Ships Are Usually Built In Space

In the Star Trek universe, Starfleet's ships are generally built in space, either at the Utopia Planitia Shipyards above Mars, or in various space docks. The USS Excelsior, first glimpsed in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock was being built and tested at Spacedock One. A century later, the USS Enterprise-D, USS Defiant and USS Voyager were all constructed at the orbital Utopia Planitia Shipyards. This makes the USS Discovery unique in the prime Star Trek timeline, as it's the only hero ship confirmed to be built on Earth. In fact, Discovery is unique among other starships in Star Trek: Discovery 's 32nd century timeline.

Starships in the 32nd century are built and refitted at Starfleet's Archer Spacedock , unveiled in Star Trek: Discovery season 4. The USS Discovery has made several trips to Archer Spacedock for repairs following its encounters with the Dark Matter Anomaly and the avalanche on Q'Mau. All of which proves that, while starships can be constructed on Earth, it's far more convenient and efficient for them to be built and repaired in space so that they're primed to join Starfleet's armada at the nearest opportunity.

Star Trek: Discovery streams Thursdays on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Discovery

Star Trek: Discovery is an entry in the legendary Sci-Fi franchise, set ten years before the original Star Trek series events. The show centers around Commander Michael Burnham, assigned to the USS Discovery, where the crew attempts to prevent a Klingon war while traveling through the vast reaches of space.

Star Trek (2009)

J.J. Abrams' 2009 movie Star Trek rebooted the iconic sci-fi franchise in a totally new timeline. When a Romulan ship travels back in time and alters the past, the lives of James T. Kirk (Chris Pine), Spock (Zachary Quinto), and the future crew of the USS Enterprise are drastically changed. In this new timeline, the Romulan Nero (Eric Bana) sets out for revenge on Spock, setting off a chain of events that reshape the entire universe.

Screen Rant

Did discovery reveal 32nd century enterprise (& change star trek canon).

Star Trek: Discovery confirmed the USS Enterprise exists in season 4's 32nd century and it's working alongside Voyager for the first time in canon.

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery Season 4, Episode 6 - "Stormy Weather".

One detail in the latest episode suggests that the USS Enterprise may exist in Star Trek: Discovery 's 32nd century and, if so, its new mission changes Star Trek canon. In Star Trek: Discovery season 4, Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and her crew face a Dark Matter Anomaly AKA the DMA, a massive gravimetric anomaly that threatens the United Federation of Planets. After the DMA destroyed Kwejian, Book's (David Ajala) homeworld , Discovery's top minds have been trying to learn all they can about the anomaly, which was sent from outside the galaxy by Unknown Species 10C.

Back when Star Trek: Discovery season 2 was still set in the 23rd century, the eponymous starship fought side-by-side with the USS Enterprise. Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), the Enterprise's Captain, took command of the Discovery as they chased the Red Angel across the galaxy, which ultimately led to the Starfleet heroes stopping the rogue A.I. called Control from wiping out all organic life in the galaxy. The USS Discovery left the Enterprise behind when it time traveled one way to 3189, just as Michael Burnham bid goodbye to her adoptive brother, Spock (Ethan Peck), forever. Of course, with Spock (Leonard Nimoy) as its First Officer, the Starship Enterprise achieved legendary status under the command of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner). The USS Enterprise-D and E commanded by Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) continued the starship's legacy in Star Trek: The Next Generation 's 24th-century era.

Related: Discovery's Janeway Tribute Hints At How Her Star Trek Story Ended

The Enterprise's existence in the 32nd century may have been finally confirmed by Captain Saru (Doug Jones) in Star Trek: Discovery season 4, episode 6, "Stormy Weather." At the start of the episode, Saru gave a status update to Captain Burnham about Starfleet investigating a subspace rift left behind by the DMA. The Kelpien casually mentioned that, "Enterprise noted heated plasma. Voyager charted ionized particles."  This could, of course, refer to past iterations of the ships, but the lack of firm confirmation leaves it open to interpretation that a contemporary Enterprise exists in the 32nd century. After not being mentioned at all in Star Trek: Discovery season 3 , Saru simply stating that the Enterprise exists without the show giving the legendary starship any fanfare was a bit of a shock. Meanwhile, Saru noting that the Enterprise and Voyager teamed up to investigate the DMA is the first canonical instance of the two headlining Star Trek ships working together because Picard's Enterprise and Captain Katheryn Janeway's (Kate Mulgrew) USS Voyager never interacted in the 24th century.

The 32nd-century Enterprise also wasn't seen and was just spoken of in one line of dialogue, which is disappointing. After all, Star Trek: Discovery revealing starships and other Starfleet constructs named after legacy characters has become a growing tradition since the show shifted its setting to the 32nd century. Already, the USS Nog, the Archer Space Dock, the USS Janeway, and the NSS T'Pau have been introduced in Star Trek: Discovery seasons 3 and 4. The Archer Space Dock, named for Captain Jonathan Archer of Star Trek: Enterprise , even got a touching unveiling complete with his show's theme music. Naturally, Trekkers would have hoped the long-awaited first mention of the USS Enterprise in the 32nd century would have gotten the trumpeting the Archer Space Dock received.

Hopefully, Star Trek: Discovery will actually show the USS Enterprise in season 4. Until it does, there are numerous questions Saru name-dropping the Enterprise leaves behind: Who is the Captain of the Enterprise in 3189? Is the Enterprise still the flagship of the Federation, the status it received in TNG ? Which generation of the Enterprise is it? The newest canonical incarnation of the Enterprise previously seen was the Enterprise-J, but that was a 26th-century starship in Star Trek: Enterprise' s Temporal Cold War storyline. However, it's fitting that when the Enterprise finally was mentioned in Star Trek: Discovery season 4, it was in an episode directed by Jonathan Frakes, who played Commander William T. Riker, the First Officer of the Enterprise-D and E, in Star Trek: The Next Generation .

Next: Everything Star Trek: Discovery Revealed About Season 4's Anomaly

Star Trek: Discovery streams Thursdays on Paramount+.

• View history

USS Enterprise

USS was an identifying prefix used before the names of sea-faring ships on Earth and space-faring ships of United Earth and United Federation of Planets . The abbreviation has alternately stood for " U nited S tates S hip ", " U nited S pace S hip ", and " U nited S tar S hip ".

History [ ]

As shorthand for "United States Ship," the US Navy used the USS prefix on the hulls of various sea warships, such as aircraft carriers and ironclads, including: USS Enterprise (CV-6) , USS Enterprise (CVN-65) , and USS Monitor . ( ENT : " Storm Front "; Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home ; TOS : " The Cage ")

According to Porter , a so-called " patriot ", after viewing the name " USS Voyager " on the stealth plane that crashed on his property in Arizona , " "U.S.S." equals Federal government . The Federal government is the Beast . " ( VOY : " Future's End, Part II ")

Some early spaceships from Earth, such as the USS Enterprise (XCV 330) , also placed the USS designation on their hull . ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

USS Enterprise and USS Columbia

Starfleet used the "USS" designation on certain computer graphics for United Earth NX-class starships , such as Enterprise NX-01 and Columbia NX-02 . However, they did not label the hulls of the starships, and the ships were not commonly addressed with the prefix. ( ENT : " Divergence ")

On Federation starships operated by Starfleet, the "USS" prefix was more prominently featured on the hull of the ship and as part of the starship's official title. USS was referred to as standing for either "United Space Ship" ( TOS : " The Cage ", " The Menagerie, Part I ", " Space Seed ", " The Gamesters of Triskelion ", " Patterns of Force ", " Assignment: Earth ", " Elaan of Troyius ") or "United Star Ship." ( TOS : " The Squire of Gothos ", " Court Martial ") This designation was used as early as 2167 on a Daedalus -class starship, the USS Essex . ( TNG : " Power Play ")

The same practice was also continued by the Federation in the alternate reality after the timeline was disrupted by the temporal incursion of the Romulan Nero . ( Star Trek )

Appendices [ ]

See also [ ].

• Earth starships
• Federation starships

Background information [ ]

In his original March 1964 Star Trek pitch (p. 3), Gene Roddenberry utilized the prefix "S.S." for his then-envisioned primary space vessel, Yorktown . While the abbreviation has a real world maritime counterpart signifying "Single-screw Steamship", Roddenberry refrained on that occasion from specifying the abbreviation, but it stands to reason he either assumed "Spaceship" or " Starship ", as hereafter indicated.

It was only after the series' pilot episode " The Cage " was picked up, and Roddenberry had worked out his initial pitch into the more fully worked out first version of The Star Trek guide internal document – famed in later Star Trek -lore under its "The Writer's Bible" denominator – that he amended the "S.S." to "U.S.S.", this time emphatically specifying the abbreviation to stand for "United Spaceship", and most certainly not for "United States Spaceship", as the old notion of traditional statehood had been abandoned in his vision of the future. (3rd revision, 17 April 1967, p. 1) Author Stephen Whitfield has related in his reference book The Making of Star Trek (p. 112) how Roddenberry had to actually mount a vigorous defense of the meaning of his new amended prefix against chauvinistic NBC network executives who were lamenting why it could not be "a good, safe patriotic United States spaceship."

USS Enterprise (XCV 330)

The first spaceship from Earth known to use "USS" was first shown in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , in a picture of the USS Enterprise (XCV 330) on display on the recreation deck of the refitted USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) . The placement of a desktop model of this craft in Star Trek Into Darkness suggests that the ship predates United Earth, so the USS designation may have still meant "United States Ship" at that point in history.

Shortly before Star Trek: Enterprise began its initial airing, Rick Berman implied that Enterprise NX-01 was purposefully without the "USS" prefix because it wasn't a Federation starship. ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 134 , p. 13) The use of "USS" by Starfleet before the formation of the Federation was only seen on a computer graphic in the Enterprise episode " Divergence ". This graphic had both the Enterprise and the Columbia designated with the USS prefix, which may have been a mistake on the part of the graphics designers, as neither ships' hull designation used "USS".

At a later point in time and in regard to the original prefix "SS", Gregory Jein, Inc. model builder Bruce MacRae and co-builder of the SS Vico studio model , has postulated the "SS" prefix to stand for "Survey Ship", a designation that actually fitted the "job description" of most such endowed vessels featured in the Star Trek live-action productions. [1]

External link [ ]

• United States Ship at Wikipedia