8 September: The Starship Enterprise

On this date in 1966, the Starship Enterprise first appeared on TV. Here are 10 things you might not know about it.

1. The original Enterprise which appeared in the 1960s TV series is 953.7 feet long, more than the length of three football fields. The Enterprise in The Next Generation series is more than twice that long at 2,103 feet.
2. Gene Roddenberry was originally going to call it USS Yorktown after a WWII aircraft carrier.
3. The registration number, NCC 1701, was based on twentieth-century aircraft registration codes. Its designer, Matt Jeffries had been a bomber pilot during the second world war. The N signifies a ship registered in the United States and C means a civil vessel. Jeffries added the extra C purely and simply because he thought it "looked neat." It does stand for something in the Star Trek Universe, though - Naval Construct Contract. USS stands for United Space Ship. Jeffries' design was so practical that he was later hired by the US Navy to design ships for them.
4. The Enterprise was an exploration vessel rather than a warship, but was equipped with pretty powerful weaponry that it could use if it had to. It had photon torpedoes and phaser banks and would be capable of destroying a Klingon ship, possibly even a planet by allowing particles of matter and antimatter to commingle in a reaction chamber regulated by a dilithium crystal. When the particles interact, they destroy each other, giving off enough energy to allow the ship to warp into space.
5. The first Enterprise had a crew of 430 people. The bigger Enterprise from The Next Generation could carry 1,012 people, including crew members' children. The colours of the shirts the crew wear are significant in that they show at a glance which job a person does. Gold shirts are worn by commanders, blue by science and medical personnel and red by support services like engineering, communications or security. A landing party will typically include a minor character in a red shirt who is usually the one who gets killed.
6. How does the warp drive work? By by allowing particles of matter and antimatter to commingle in a reaction chamber regulated by a dilithium crystal. When the particles interact, they destroy each other, giving off enough energy to allow the ship to warp into space.
7. The highest safe warp speed is 9.2 although warp 10 is possible. It's known, however, to have odd effects like turning people into giant salamanders. However, by The Next Generation technology had advanced to the extent that it was possible to travel at warp 13.
8. In a dire emergency, the "saucer" section can separate from the rest of the ship to save the crew, although separated from its engines the saucer can't move anything like as fast.
9. The original Enterprise has six recreation rooms and a bowling alley (which was never seen in the series). Later versions also have holodecks.
10. The first notable vessel called Enterprise was a French sailing ship captured by the British Royal Navy in 1705 and renamed HMS Enterprise. The Royal Navy had 14 more ships called Enterprise and the US has 8 warships with the name. The name was given to a recon balloon by Thaddeus S.C. Lowe during the US Civil War, and one of the Space Shuttles was called Enterprise. It was originally going to be called Constitution but Star Trek fans campaigned to have the name changed.

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Obsidian's Ark

Teenage years bring no end of problems. Daniel Moran's include getting hold of computer games his parents don't think he should have; a full blown crush on the beautiful Suki from Zorostan; maintaining his status as a prefect and getting his homework done. He must also keep from his parents and sister the fact that he is a superhero with a sword from another world.

Trish wonders how to get science whizz Tom to notice her; how to persuade him that the best way to stand up to the school bully is to fight back. She doesn't want her friends, especially not Tom, to know she is a genetic variant with superpowers. Little does she know that Tom has secrets of his own.

Suki struggles to make friends at school when she cannot understand everyday cultural references, and they all suspect her of being a terrorist. She, too, has a secret, but is it what her classmates assume?

When Daniel stumbles upon a plot by an alliance of supervillains to plunge the world into war, he tries to alert the established superheroes, but none of them believe him. When the Prime Minister's only daughter, Yasmin Miller, is abducted, Daniel knows the villains' plan is underway. It seems humanity's only hope may be Daniel and the ragtag bunch of teenage superheroes he recruits. Can he pull together, not only his own team, but the older heroes as well, in a bid to save the Earth from a devastating war?

Themes: 

Superheroes; Coming of age; Leadership; Kidnap and rescue; Aliens; Friendship and rivalry; Terrorism; Secrets.

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