Thehyperdrive (occasionally calledwarp drive)[2][3] was a vitalstarship engine system that allowed vessels to enterhyperspace to traverse the vast distances of space faster thanlightspeed. The hyperdrive was thus a key technology in the foundation ofgalacticsociety,trade andwar. The construction and working principle of a hyperdrive were based onHyperdrive Theory. The term described the engine and all components required for its use, such as thehyperdrive motivator orhyperdrive field guide.
In numbers, the hyperdrive allowed travelers to traverse agalaxy spanning over 120,000light-years in only a few hours or days, the exact travel time depending on a number of factors including destination, point of origin, route, and class of hyperdrive.
The hyperdrive was generally built from atitanium-chromium compound. This compound was specially designed to allow hyperdrives to withstand the continual stress caused by traveling between the dimensions ofrealspace and hyperspace.
Hyperspace was a dimension of space-time that could only be entered at faster-than-light speeds. The process of entering hyperspace was known as a "jump." The hyperdrive used a trans-physical effect to launch astarship beyondlightspeed and into hyperspace, making use of supralighthypermatter particles to make the hyperspace jump without changing the ship's complex configuration of mass and energy.[4]
To enter hyperspace, the starship'spilot would enter commands via theparalight system, a combination of mechanical and electro-optical subsystems that translated the commands into a set of corresponding reactions within the hyperdrive power plants. The process of a hyperspace jump began with the collection ofgammaradiation by thehyperdrive field guide. Thehyperdrive motivator, the primary lightspeed thrust initiator, built up and modified the collected radiation in afusion generator through several kilometers of charge planes, effect channels, or looped superconducting wire. To enter hyperspace, the hyperdrive'shorizontal boosters would provide energy to the motivator's ionization chamber to begin ignition that would release the radiation through thealluvial dampers. The energy release caused ripples in the space-time matrix, allowing the ship to propel off the ripples into hyperspace.[4]
Certain hyperdrives usedantimatter as fuel, stored in specialanti-matter pods, though it remains unclear how this integrated with other hyperdrive mechanics.
Upon exiting hyperspace, an unknown technology was used to decelerate the starship. Both entrances into and exits from hyperspace createdwake rotation andCronau radiation that produced a detectable signature often used to reconnoiter fleet movements or by planetary customs authorities.
Safety mechanisms[]
Inertial dampers were used to protect the ship, crew, and cargo from being crushed by the tremendous acceleration of the jump. Once in hyperspace, anull quantum field generator helped stabilize the vessel and kept it from prematurely emerging from the alternate dimension.Shields also protected the ship from fatal collisions with interstellar gas and dark matter particles. To prevent the relativistic passing of time while in hyperspace, starships usedstasis fields attuned to hyperdrive levels to keep organic crews or cargoes "in time" with the standard galactic dimension. The alluvial dampers made use of a servo-controlled plate to regulate the flow of ion particles from the hyperdrive, thus controlling the amount of thrust. Other technologies, such as the4-axial stabilizer andhyperdrive regulator, kept the ship from being ripped apart by the physics of hyperspace travel. To prevent overheating, hyperdrives made use of overheat failsafes, like ahyperspace shunt ortranspacitor.[4]
A hyperdrive could only initiate a jump into hyperspace when reasonably free of the gravitational pull of a majorcelestial body. Sublight engines were used to liberate the starship from a body'sgravity well before the ship could jump. Hyperdrives included an automatic failsafe that cut out the hyperdrive when a gravity well was detected in the navigational path. While this prevented a collision in the event of an astrogational error, the failsafe was exploited by engineers to create artificial gravity wells, such as those used on ImperialImmobilizer 418 cruisers orHapanmass mines, to either pull starships from hyperspace at a specific location or to prevent them from fleeing into hyperspace. This, of course, relied on either knowledge of a starship's travel pattern or being situated along a particularly popular hyperspace route. Some systems allowed an override of the failsafe, but it was known to have disastrous effects.
On the other hand,hyperdrive inhibitors prevented starships from getting out of hyperspace near bodies registered as stars by astrogation computers.[5]
History[]
Possibly the first hyperdrive was thehyperspace tractor beam, used by theCelestials in1,000,000 BBY. This early hyperdrive demanded massive amounts of power, supplied by gravity wells, although this type of hyperdrive was rendered obsolete byhypergates, which functioned on similar principles.
Though theColumi developed interstellar travel nearly100,000 years before theBattle of Yavin, it is not known if they developed a true hyperdrive; what is known is that the fragile race soon gave up their interstellar travels to focus on other scientific and mental pursuits. The firstinterstellar space drive known to make use of hyperspace was developed by theRakata, who built theirInfinite Empire around technology using thedark side ofthe Force to travel through hyperspace.
Around25,053 BBY, almost two hundred years after the fall of the Infinite Empire, the peoples of the planetsCorellia andDuro finally discovered ways of working around the Force-attuned components of the Rakata technology and produced their own version of the hyperdrive; theDuros also independently created such workarounds. Within twenty years, the technology had stabilized to the point of general use, and the Corellians began to sell hyperdrives to nearby star systems (though some considered the trade practices of the Corellians during this era to be exploitation). The earliest hyperdrives would be considered slow by the standards of the early third decade ABY. Limited in range and often unreliable, hyperdrives gradually advanced to allow increasingly large ships to travel increasingly longer distances with greater safety, ease and speed.
The development of the hyperdrive was not limited to theCore Worlds. TheTionese of theTion Cluster developed their own version of the hyperdrive by fusing bits of Rakatan technology with fixed-positionhyperspace beacons, which allowed travel within a defined area but was dangerous when venturing outside the "lighthouse" network. This kept the Tionese isolated from the rest of the galaxy for millennia, though they occasionally encountered the growingHutt Empire.
Explorers began to test the realm of hyperspace while prospectors attempted to gain rights to what they anticipated would be profitable routes. Hyperspace exploration was a risky but profitable business. The development of thePerlemian Trade Route and theCorellian Run established the earliest stable system of hyperlane travel. Astrogation maps became valuable commodities as scouts explored new planets, species and regions.
As the Republic began to process the incredible inflow of new information, theRepublic Spacelane Bureau was formed, and Coruscant became the navigational center of the Republic with the coordinates zero-zero-zero. The Spacelane Bureau fought to end private control of information regarding hyperlanes and established a protected set of beacons for major pathways to liberate them from the control of privately held charts. The technology allowed for agalactic economy to form fueled by standardized currency and the Core language ofBasic. At the same time, the arrival of hyperdrive technology to warring worlds, such asAndo, produced disastrous results. The development of navigational computers to handle complex astrogation calculations did away with the need forhyperspace beacons andjump gates, and ended the reliance on established routes; as long as a pilot knew where he was going, the NavCom could take him there.
Over time, the hyperdrive became increasingly commonplace. Beyond the early foundation of the Republic, theGreat Hyperspace War and subsequent expansion, hyperdrives allowed for many terrible wars and periods of tremendous prosperity. From the founding of the Republic forward, hyperdrive technology continued to be one of the driving features of galactic society.
Despite rapid advances in hyperdrive technology, the systems were too large to be practical for most small spacefaring vessels. Even by the last century of the Republic, manystarfighters made use ofhyperdrive rings andhyperdrive sleds to achieve superluminal travel. By the end of theClone Wars, it was more common for starfighters and freighters to make use of onboard hyperdrives. During the establishment ofPalpatine'sNew Order, hyperdrive-enabled ships commonly carried backup hyperdrives with a usual capacity of 10 lightyears.[1] Few spaceworthy vessels relied upon larger, hyperdrive-enabled starships for transport.
Classes[]
Hyperdrive Classifications
The superluminal speed of a hyperdrive was rated on an inverse scale: the faster the hyperdrive, the lower the rating. These ratings, generally called "Classes," provided a quick, although often inconsistent or inaccurate, idea of a ship's hyperdrive speed. The hyperdrive class acted as a multiplier for a given base travel time. Thus, a Class 2 hyperdrive took twice the base time to travel a given route, while theMillennium Falcon's Class 0.5 took only half the base time.[1][6][7]
By the end of the Clone Wars, most military starships were using Class 3 or Class 2. During theGalactic Civil War, military capital ships and starfighters were generally equipped with faster Class 1 or Class 2 drives, industrial freighters and haulers with Class 3 or Class 4, and civilian starships with Class 5 or above. Many vessels mounted backup hyperdrives of much higher—that is, slower—class than their primary hyperdrive.
Some starships, such as theMillennium Falcon andDash Rendar'sOutrider, underwent aftermarket modifications to achieve their ratings (Class 0.5 and Class 0.75, respectively), although tampering with the generally stable technology of a hyperdrive was considered dangerous.Boba Fett'sSlave I had a class 0.7 hyperdrive. Hyperdrives built by those outside the sphere of the Galactic Republic,Galactic Empire andNew Republic, such as the HapanFroond-class hyperdrive, were not classed in the standard system, as controlled comparisons were difficult to attain. SomeZonama Sekotan ships were able to achieve a Class 0.4 by combining high-class hyperdrives with organic technology,[8] as did theBes'uliik starfighter via fusion ofVerpine andMandalorian technology.[9]
Malfunctions[]
Sometimes, the hyperdrive malfunctioned while in operation. Many things could result; however, most consequences are unknown and usually fatal.
The hyperdrive light flashes as it is activated as a ship attempts to dock.
Still, some malfunctions did not have such grim conclusions. Faultyrelativistic shielding could expose passengers to the altered space-time continuum, causing a journey which seemed a few hours to actually take centuries in the real world.Bosbit Matarcher was known to have experienced this phenomenon. Some hyperdrives have also rattled out of their casings, destroying the engines, if not the entire ship.[10]
Around5000 BBYJedi MasterRelin Druur sabotaged the hyperdrive aboard the Sith DreadnaughtHarbinger. But instead of disabling the hyperdrive, he merely damaged it. Normally the ship's safety features would have prevented it from jumping to hyperspace with a damaged hyperdrive. However, due to extensive damage toHarbinger's bridge, the safety features did not engage, and the ship traveled through spaceand time, arriving in41 ABY.
During theSky Battle of Quell,Ahsoka Tano,Aayla Secura and theclone troopers with them were trying to dock with theResolute soAnakin Skywalker could receive medical attention. The ship started taking damage, and the hyperdrive was activated, causing them travel through hyperspace close to a star. Luckily, they were able to stop the ship by cutting all power and forcing a system restart.[11]
TheThorsen field driver was also a component that could fail. Although its failure did not stop a ship from entering hyperspace, it could cause physical damage to the ship and the crew when reaching lightspeed.[1]
A power drop in the hyperdrive—caused by, for example,mynocks chewing the cables—could increase the travel time.[1]
Behind the scenes[]
While the majority ofStar Wars Legends material uses the classification system described above,The Thrawn Trilogy byTimothy Zahn uses an opposite system: the lower the rating, the slower the hyperdrive.
TheTIE Defender has a Class 2 hyperdrive despite the speed chart inThe New Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels indicating otherwise. The guide seems to have accidentally copied the TIE Interceptor stats for the TIE Defender.
"Warp drive" is the primary means of propulsion for vehicles inStar Trek. Many earlyStar Wars tie-in media products mistakenly used this term for the faster-than-light drives ofStar Wars ships, which are properly known as "hyperdrives".
225-year Old Man's Secret? Time Dilation —HoloNet News Vol. 531 #48(original site is defunct)
Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Jedi Crash"
