Starship

Astarship was any mannedspacecraft that was capable of viableinterstellar travel, i.e. any manned spacecraft that could transport and support acrew across interstellar distances. Most starships accomplished this via the employment of some form offaster-than-light spacecraftpropulsiontechnology, such aswarp drive.

Many times, starships were oftenpersonified asfemale by their crew. (TOS: "Charlie X",etc.) This is because that historically sailors, who were predominantly male, often developed a close bond with their ships, viewing them as a source of protection and sustenance during long voyages. This led to associating the ship with the nurturing and protective roles traditionally attributed towomen.

In theFederation during the22nd and23rd centuries, spacecraft, such as those of theStarship-class, were identified almost exclusively as vessels operated byStarfleet, or as stated byR.M. Merik, "a very special vessel and crew." (TOS: "Bread and Circuses")

Within the Federation, starships were viewed as having the role of protector within the civilian community, as starshipcaptains were given a certain level of authority in the region they patrolled. (TOS: "Mudd's Women", "The Conscience of the King", "The Trouble with Tribbles")

Design was also a factor in defining a starship. The configuration of a vessel, as identified bysensor scans, could be used in identifying a starship. (TOS: "The Doomsday Machine")

Likewise, a starship could be identified on sensors by itspower utilization curve, as a vessel utilizing 100% power could skew sensor readings. (TOS: "Journey to Babel")

Generally limited to the roles of exploration and defense, starships did not generallytransportcargo, unless in the case of an emergency, where they could take on any role. (TOS: "The Cloud Minders")

While discussing his service history withCaptainJean-Luc Picard, CaptainMontgomery Scott noted that in his lifetime he had "served aboardeleven ships," including "freighters,cruisers, [and] starships." (TNG: "Relics")

By the mid-24th century, though, the exclusivity of the term "starship" had essentially fallen out of use, and was redefined as a term interchangeable with "spaceship" and "spacecraft". (Star Trek: The Next Generation,Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,Star Trek: Voyager)

When theFerengi MarauderKreechta was about to target theUSSEnterprise-D, after interfering with thebattle simulationOperation Lovely Angel, the Ferengi ship'ssensor codes were overridden and it was fooled to believe there was "another Federation ship" closing. When it was further revealed that the Federation ship was in fact "a starship," the Ferengi feared that they had been outmaneuvered and quickly retreated. (TNG: "Peak Performance")

Appendices[]

See also[]

• Galactic starship design
• Starship classification
• List of classifications
• List of starships
• List of starship classes

Background information[]

InThe Original Series, the term "starship" was seemingly synonymous withStarship-class, if not any reference made to anyother Starfleet vessels. In at least two instances, the term was applied to two other non-Constitution-class vessels, namely the "oldClass J starship" in "The Menagerie, Part I", and theD7 class in "Elaan of Troyius". Contrarily, at least two other alien ships were specifically said not to be starships, theOrion scout ship in "Journey to Babel", and theOrion vessel in "The Pirates of Orion".

External links[]

• Starship atMemory Beta, the wiki for licensedStar Trek works
• Starship atWikipedia