The speed of light, also referred to as light speed, or the warp threshold, is the velocity that light travels in a vacuum. This constant, usually denoted c, is exactly 299,792,458 meters/second.

The Phoenix, piloted by Zefram Cochrane, was Earth's first ship to be successfully equipped with a faster-than-light propulsion system. (Star Trek: First Contact)

The ability to travel faster than light was considered to be a major technological milestone in a species' development. The Federation typically subdivided civilizations and cultures on whether they had developed technology to exceed the speed of light. The species that had not yet achieved the level of technology required were placed in the pre-warp civilization category.

In 2254, the USS Enterprise encountered a faked distress call from SS Columbia created by the Talosians. The signal was keyed to register on sensors as an unknown object on a collision course which traveled with the speed of light. (TOS: "The Cage")

Contents 1 Faster-than-light technology 1.1 Subspace communications 1.2 Propulsion 2 Background 3 External link

Faster-than-light technology Edit

Subspace communications Edit

• See Subspace communications

Propulsion Edit

• See Propulsion

Background Edit

According to the Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual and The Making of Star Trek, the speed of light is equivalent to the speed of warp 1 on the scales used by Starfleet in the 23rd and 24th centuries.

External linkEdit

• Speed of light at Wikipedia