NX Project
From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference
The NX Project, also known as the NX program or NX test program was Earth Starfleet's effort to develop a starship using the engine designed by the Warp Five program. Prior to the NX Project, Human ships were only capable of achieving warp 2.
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[edit] History
The NX Project was overseen by Commodore Maxwell Forrest from its initial stages in the early 2140s. During this time, the program fielded several test vehicles with prototype versions of the warp five engine. These prototypes were piloted by Commanders Jonathan Archer, A.G. Robinson, Gardner, and Duvall. Captain Jefferies was an engineer on the NX program, and Lieutenant Charles Tucker worked in his team.
After some initial progress at speeds below warp 2, the project quickly stalled sometime prior to 2144. Robinson's test flight of NX-Alpha ended in explosion after the engines were pushed slightly beyond warp 2. On the recommendation of the Vulcans observing the program, the project was indefinitely suspended. However, Lieutenant Tucker and Commander Archer believed the design fundamentally sound. Tucker's analysis showed the intermix ratio of the fuel flowing through the antimatter injectors proved to be the root of the problem. Tucker's corrections allowed the NX-Beta — illegally piloted by Archer and Robinson — to enjoy a more successful test flight.
Though their efforts were a contravention of direct orders, Tucker, Archer and Robinson had effectively confirmed the utility of the warp five engine. Nevertheless, the Vulcans required about a year of additional ground-based simulations following the NX-Beta flight. A final test flight, made by Duvall in the NX-Delta, would break the warp 3 barrier eight months after the Vulcan program of simulations concluded. Construction began five years thereafter on Enterprise (NX-01), and it was launched in April of 2151. At that time, another three vessels of the NX class were on the drawing board. Forrest was promoted to admiral, and he selected Archer as the ship's commanding officer, over the objections of Vulcan ambassador Soval. (ENT: "First Flight", "Broken Bow")
The Enterprise was joined by the Columbia (NX-02) in November of 2154, delayed from June due to engine trouble. (ENT: "The Expanse", "Affliction")
In 2154, Forrest was killed in an embassy bombing on Vulcan while saving the life of Soval. He was replaced by Admiral Gardner. (ENT: "The Forge", "Awakening")
[edit] Background
- If the NX Project continued to follow the order of the United States' space shuttle program, the NX-03 and NX-04 would be named Challenger and Discovery respectively.
- It is somewhat unclear just how long the NX Project remained a unique subdivision of Earth Starfleet. It is possible that the project proper ended after Enterprise was launched. This is perhaps suggested by the disappearance of the NX Project logo after 2151. It is notable the Enterprise crew wore only an Enterprise patch, whereas NX test pilots wore both the project logo and what appeared to be the emblem of their particular vessel on their flight suits. Following that logic, Enterprise crewmembers should have been wearing an NX Project logo, had the project still been regarded as an active subdivision of Starfleet.
[edit] Ships of the NX program
[edit] Test vehicles
[edit] NX-class starships
- Enterprise (NX-01)
- ISS Enterprise (NX-01) (Mirror universe)
- Columbia (NX-02)
- ISS Avenger (NX-09) (Mirror universe)
- At least two more planned
