1903 The Wright Brothers build and fly the first
motorized airplane in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, proving that man does not
need wings to fly. ( Enterprise exploration timeline, historical
accounts, "North Star" )
1905 Albert Einstein introduces his special theory
of relativity and quantum theory, and introduces the idea of space-time.
Einstein also predicts that the speed of light is the absolute velocity in
the universe and that mass and energy are equivalent and transposable.
(Enterprise exploration timeline )
July 28, 1914 World War One begins on
Earth. It is a savage conflict, and of such impact that it becomes known at
the time as the War to End All Wars. On the Mirror Earth, the conflict
also rages. (historical accounts, opening sequence for "In a
Mirror Darkly, parts one and two")
July 16, 1916 In a famous speech, Lenin states his
belief that imperialism is caused by capitalism. (historical accounts)
October 5, 1917 The Bolshevik Revolution in
Russia. (historical accounts).
November 11, 1918 World War One ends
(historical accounts)
1925 The Cardassians achieve warp capability.
(Star Trek Star Charts, p. 35)
March 17, 1926 The historic first flight of a
liquid-fuel rocket when Robert Goddard's ungainly assemblage lifts itself 41
feet at Pakachoag Hill near Auburn, Massachusetts. (historical
accounts)
May 20, 1927 Aviator Charles Lindbergh makes the
first nonstop solo transatlantic airplane flight in his plane, the Spirit of
St. Louis, and galvanizes world interest in avionics. ( Historical
account. Lindbergh's plane is shown in the opening credits of Enterprise.
)
1930
Dr. Leonard McCoy is sent back through time to New York City of this era by
the Guardian of Forever and is ultimately taken in by Dr. Edith Keeler.
Kirk and Spock come back to this time in search of McCoy, and Kirk discovers
that in order to prevent changing history, he must prevent Bones from saving
Edith Keeler's life. ("City on the Edge of Forever")
Also in 1930, famed aviator Charles Lindbergh manages to
secure money from the Guggenheim Foundation to fund Robert Goddard's rocket
research. (historical accounts, mentioned in article on StarTrek.com
about Goddard footage in opening sequence of Enterprise)
November 21, 1931 The motion picture "Frankenstein,"
starring Boris Karloff, is released. (this movie is watched by the
Enterprise crew in "Horizon")
January 30, 1933 Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor
of Germany. He and the Nazi Party would lead Germany into World War Two. (historical
accounts)
Also in 1933 In the Delphic Expanse, on the Xindi
Homeworld a war that would last 100 years begins between the six species of
the Xindi. (100 years before destruction of Xindi Homeworld - "The
Shipment")
October 3, 1936 The U.S.S. Enterprise (CV-6), a
United States aircraft carrier which served in World War Two, and that was
one of the most successful warships in history, was launched in Newport
News, Virginia. (contemporary accounts.)
July 2, 1937 Aviator Amelia Earhart, who captured the
world's attention as the first woman to match Lindbergh's transatlantic
flight, vanishes somewhere over the Pacific Ocean while circumnavigating the
globe. ( Enterprise exploration timeline ) Earhart is
later discovered to have been one of three hundred humans taken from Earth
to the Briori Homeworld, some 70,000 light years away in the Delta Quadrant.
( "The 37's" (VGR)., Earhart is seen in the opening credits of
Enterprise. ) Earhart was a role model to Kathryn Janeway.
("The 3t's")
September 1, 1939 World War Two begins as Nazi
Germany invades Poland. (historical accounts) (In the Mirror
Universe, this conflict may have begun the series of events that resulted in
the formation of the Earth Empire. "In a Mirror Darkly, parts one and two"
- in the sequence, an Imperial Earth logo in shown over top of a clip
showing what appear to be 1940's era German stormtroopers marching in
formation.)
1940 The North American Mustang aircraft,
designed initially to meet a British requirement for fighter service in
Europe, became the leading US fighter in the European Theater of Operation
during the final months of the war. The Mustang was designed and rolled out
in 117 days. It was first flown on October 26, 1940. Later, Mustangs
served in nearly every combat zone, including the Pacific. (P-51
Mustangs were featured in "Zero Hour", and in "Storm Front")
June 22, 1940 France falls to Nazi Germany.
(historical accounts)
June 22, 1941 German forces invaded the Soviet
Union. (historical accounts)
September - December, 1941 The Nazi invasion of the
Soviet Union continues. German forces reach the gates of Leningrad in the
north. By this point, they had taken Smolensk in the center and
Dnepropetrovsk in the south. German units reached the outskirts of Moscow in
early December. However, the Russians are able to stave off the Nazi
advance and Moscow remains in Soviet hands. (historical accounts)
March 9, 1941 Auschwitz Concentration Camp
becomes operational, the center of the Nazi plot to exterminate the Jewish
people as well as Gypsies, Slavs and other 'undesirables'. By the war's end,
some 11 million non-combatants were murdered by the Germans or their agents
of which 6 million were Jews. (historical accounts)
December 7, 1941 The bombing of Pearl Harbor brings
the United States into World War Two. (historical accounts)
November 1942 In mid-November 1942, the Soviet army
launched a massive counteroffensive against the German Sixth Army, some
250,000 soldiers trying to conquer Stalingrad in bitter hand-to-hand
fighting. German forces fail, and this marks the peak of Germany's
expansion and the beginning of it's decline. (historical accounts)
September 6, 1943. Winston Churchill gives his
famous speech on Anglo-American brotherhood at Harvard University. (historical
accounts)
June 6, 1944 Anglo-American forces land at Normandy,
France in the largest amphibious operation in human history to begin the
liberation of western Europe from German tyranny. (historical accounts)
May 5, 1945 Nazi Germany
Surrenders. World War Two ends in Europe (historical accounts)
September 9, 1945 Japan
surrenders to the Allies aboard the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay
following the U.S. detonation of primitive nuclear devices over Hiroshima
and Nagasaki ending World War Two (historical accounts)
1947 Quark and Rom accompany Nog on his way to
Starfleet Academy, when their shuttle "Quark's Treasure" is thrown back to
the year 1947 and crashes near Roswell, New Mexico. The three Ferengi are
responsible for the so-called Roswell Incident. Officials keep the incident
a secret, and claim the object was a weather balloon. People begin to
believe beings from outer space are visiting Earth. ( "Little Green
Men", ; Enterprise exploration timeline )
October 14, 1947 Test pilot Chuck Yeager
travels faster than the speed of sound in a new rocket-powered plane, the
Bell X-1 Glamorous Glennis. Yeager's supersonic flight begins the Jet Age.
( Enterprise exploration timeline , this event is shown during
the opening credits of Enterprise.)
May 14, 1948 Reestablishment of the State of
Israel marking the political return of the Jews to their ancestral homeland,
also the beginning of the most intractable ethnic conflict in modern human
history (historical accounts)
1949 Dr. Henry Starling is born in the United
States. (speculation based on age on actor).
April 4, 1949 NATO is formed as an alliance of
western powers, in large part to deter Soviet expansionism. This is one of
the formative events of the 40 year Cold War between the Communist and
western powers. (historical accounts)
c. 1950 The Vulcans begin to expand outward in
their exploration of space, and soon encounter the Andorians and the
primitive people of Earth.
1953 The Andorians and Vulcans first encounter each
other, leading to two centuries of border conflict. The initial contact is
promising, but the Andorians prove to be duplicitous. (200 years before
"Proving Ground")
1954 Denoblia first begins its generally
successful use of genetic engineering. (200 years before "Borderland')
October 4, 1957 The Space Age, and the so-called
space race, begins when the USSR puts an artificial satellite, Sputnik-1,
into orbit around the Earth. ( contemporary accounts, Enterprise
exploration timeline )
October
1957 Shortly after the launch of Sputnik, a Vulcan survey vessel was
dispatched to study the vehicle, and to do surveys of the planet.
(Carbon Creek, Enterprise exploration timeline)
November 1957 Three weeks after having arrived in
Earth orbit the Vulcan survey vessel had a serious systems failure, and the
crew was forced to attempt an emergency landing on the Earth. (Carbon
Creek, Enterprise exploration timeline)
The Captain of the four person vessel was killed during the
crash landing, and the ship rendered inoperable. The remainder of the crew,
T'Mir (great grandmother of T'Pol), Mestral and Stron survived on rations,
determined to avoid the Earth humans and prevent contamination of their
culture. It was their hope that the Vulcan High Command would soon respond
to their distress signal.
However, five days after the rations ran out, T'Mir and
Mestral decided to walk to the nearby town of Carbon Creek, Pennsylvania,
where they assumed disguises and were able to obtain food. Although their
identities remained secret, this was the first contact between Vulcans and
the people of Earth.
After a time, the Vulcans came to believe that rescue would
not ever come, as so they took jobs in Carbon Creek, and began to interact
with the townsfolk, who remained unaware of the true identities of their
alien neighbors.
The three Vulcans became cherished members of the community,
particularly Mestral who saved a number of miners from a cave-in, and who
took to dating one of the local women.
February 1958 Three months after their first having
entered town, the Vulcans were contacted by a rescue vessel. In order to
help fund the college fund of a young student named Jack, T'Mir apparently
sold a patent for a Velcro like material. Mestral decided to not return to
Vulcan, and instead remained on Earth.
T'Mir and Stron returned to Vulcan, and indicated to the
Vulcan authorities that Mestral had died in the crash. T'Mir took along
with her a purse from Earth which ultimately was passed down to her
great-granddaughter, T'Pol.
Mestral presumably lived the remainder of his life span on
Earth, perhaps some 150 years. ("Carbon Creek")
1960 Earth's first radio telescopes devoted solely
to the search for extraterrestrial life go online. ( Enterprise
exploration timeline )
April
12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin is the first human to achieve orbital space
flight. His craft, Vostok I, circles the Earth once. The craft is ground
controlled because there is doubt that the human body can withstand such a
journey. (historical
accounts)
May 5, 1961 A Mercury Redstone 3 (MR-3) rocket
carries Commander Alan B. Shepard, Jr., on his historic sub-orbital flight.
Alan Shepherd became the first American in space. (historical accounts)
Feb 20, 1961 John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit
the Earth. (historical accounts)
The first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the U.S.S. Enterprise
CVAN-65 is commissioned. (later redesignated CVN-65. Sources:
Enterprise exploration timeline , Captain Archer has a picture of
the U.S.S. Enterprise on the wall of his cabin, and there is picture shown
to Ilia of this ship in Star Trek-The Motion Picture. This U.S.S. Enterprise
is featured in Star Trek IV, and a public address message by Scott Bakula
saluted the crew of the Enterprise in 2001.)
June 4, 1967 Responding to an imminent Arab League attack,
Israel strikes first catching the Arabs off guard. Israel handily expels the
Arab League from the disputed territories of Gaza, Golan, Judea and Samaria
- of particular importance is the return of Jerusalem to Jewish control for
the first time in 1900 years. (historical accounts)
1967 Captain Braxton's 29th century timeship, Aeon, crash lands
on Earth, 30km north east of Phoenix, Arizona. The crash is witnessed by
the young Henry Starling who steals the ship, and appropriates the
technology. Over the next 29 years, Starling would build a huge
multinational corporation by gradually introducing future technologies into
the marketplace, and profiting from its sale. Braxton ended up living as a
homeless person, whose tales of time travel were dismissed as lunatic
ravings. Future's End, Parts I & II (VOY)
Note: It is unclear how much of these events were wiped out when the
Voyager crew "restored" the timeline. Some technologies clearly remained in
the resorted timeline, such as the Doctor's mobile emitter. It is also
interesting to note that these events happened before Gary Seven's return to
Earth, and he was unable to effect them.
1968 Note: Star Trek History's Point of
Divergence. This is the point where the Star Trek timeline
and the actual events of history begin to most clearly diverge. Although
some events have been shown to be slightly different in the Star Trek
universe in years prior to 1968, it is with the episode "Assignment: Earth"
featuring Gary Seven that we first see a clearly divergent history, that is
not "fixed" at the end of the episode. Indeed, Spock determines that the
U.S.S. Enterprise intervention in 1968 was, in fact, an established and
important part of history.
In that episode, 1968 is shown to be a year of such critical
importance that aliens have sent an emissary, Gary Seven, to help guide the
Earth. In addition, Starfleet actually sends the Enterprise back in time to
do historical research (likely one of the first such temporal research
missions attempted by the Federation).
It could of course be argued that 1968 was a critical year in many ways
in our own history. However, the key reason for the initial involvement of
both Gary Seven and the Enterprise crew is the destabilizing effect of the
deployment of space based nuclear missile platforms by the United States,
something which did not happen in actual history, and is a significant
departure from real events.
March 29, 1968 Having arrived in the 20th century,
the Enterprise crew and the mysterious Gary Seven both try to prevent an
nuclear conflict, however, they hinder each other in doing so. Ultimately,
the two groups join forces and are able to destroy a nuclear weapon in the
atmosphere about 100 miles above the surface. (date based on airing of
episode)
July 13, 1969 After nearly colliding with a black
hole, The U.S.S. Enterprise (NCC-1701) is accidentally sent into Earth's
past and accidentally captures a U.S. Air Force pilot. ( Date is
calculated from radio announcer who referred to 'next Wednesday's moon-shot'
- one of Trek's less well known accurate prognostications was that Apollo 11
would be launched on a Wednesday "Tomorrow is Yesterday" (TOS).)
July 20, 1969 First manned lunar landing.
The crew of Apollo 11, Neil A. Armstrong, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., and
Michael Collins, set down in the Sea of Tranquility, collect moon rocks, and
return to earth. ( Enterprise exploration timeline on
Star Trek.com, several images from
the Apollo missions are shown during the opening of Enterprise.)
Also in 1969.. Khan Noonien Singh, one of the first
of the genetic supermen, is born - a product of genetic engineering.
("Space Seed." Assumes Khan was put in suspended animation at age 27. Note:
Richardo Montalban was 46 at the time Space Seed was filmed.)
Later that same year, Dr. Stravos Keniculus, the first
cloned human, is born. (Speculation from "The Infinite Vulcan" -
animated.)
Dr. Henry Starling introduces a new computer chip in 1969
and his company, Chronowerx, starts the late twentieth century computer
revolution and comes to dominate the new industry. (Future's End, Parts
I and II)
1970 Captain Shaun Geoffrey Christopher is born in
the United States. conjecture from "Tomorrow is Yesterday." (TOS))
March 3. 1972 The Pioneer 10 Space Probe is launched.
During its Jupiter flyby, the space probe sends 500 images of this enormous
planet, and amazing technical data, back to Earth. (historical accounts)
Also this year, Henry Starling meets President Richard
Nixon. (speculation of date. picture of their meeting is briefly shown
in Future's End (VOY)) President Nixon is the most recent President of
the United States to be mentioned in Star Trek.
July 17, 1975 The US-USSR Apollo-Soyuz test
project achieves its goal of docking the two spacecraft safely in orbit.
(contemporary accounts)
July 4, 1976 Viking 2 lands on Mars at Utopia Planitia and sends
images from the planet's red surface to Earth. Viking conducts experiments
to discover the presence of microorganisms. The test results are debated.
(historical accounts)
1976 NASA unveils its first reusable orbiting craft,
or shuttle, named Enterprise (Space Shuttle OV-101). Flight testing
begins the following year. ( Enterprise exploration timeline ,
footage of the shuttle Enterprise being unveiled is used in
the opening credits of Enterprise. The shuttle was given this name
in 1976 after Star Trek fans sent over 400,000 letters to NASA. )
September 5, 1977
Voyager 1 launched, it was the first in that series to be sent to
explore the outer solar system.
October
26, 1977 The first spaceship Enterprise undergoes flight testing.
(historical accounts)
August 20, 1977 Voyager 2 launched it was the second in that
series to be sent to explore the outer solar system.
July 11, 1979 The American space station Skylab burns up
in the Earth’s atmosphere. (historical accounts)
April 12, 1981 - The Space Shuttle Columbia lift off from Cape
Canaveral, Florida, beginning the historic first shuttle flight into space.
(the ignited engines of the shuttle are shown just before launch and the
shuttle and fuel tank lifting off are both shown in the opening sequence of
Enterprise)
April 14, 1981 - Columbia landed on Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards AFB
at the conclusion of its first mission. (the Space Shuttle's desert
landing strip is briefly depicted in the opening sequence of Enterprise)
June 13, 1983 Pioneer 10 passes Pluto's orbit
boundary and becomes the first man-made object to exit Earth's solar system.
The probe carries an engraved plaque with a message of greetings from the
people of Earth. (historical accounts)
January
28, 1986 NASA's space shuttle Challenger explodes shortly after
lift-off, killing all seven on board including the first civilian in space.
The tragedy brings the space program to a temporary halt, pending an
investigation. (historical accounts)
February 20, 1986 The first human habitat to
permanently orbit Earth, the Mir space station, begins construction. Mir
becomes a shared resource and training ground for future space stations.(historical
accounts)
July 1986 A Klingon Bird of Prey piloted by Kirk and his
crew lands in San Francisco to take two humpback whales back to the future.
(sources: Star Trek Chronology, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.)
September 12, 1987 Voyager 3 is launched (conjecture)
October 15, 1987 Voyager 4 is launched (conjecture)
1992 Khan Noonien Singh rises to power, assuming
dictatorial control over one quarter of the planet Earth, from South Asia to
the Middle East. Khan is the product of genetic engineering and eugenics
experiments. (sources: Star Trek Chronology, Space Seed (TOS).) This
event, and the subsequent Eugenics Wars, are thus far the most divergent
elements of Star Trek's "future history.")
1992 The book, Chicago Mobs of the Twenties, is published.
("Piece of the Action")
1993 A group of eugenically bred "superior" humans or
Augments simultaneously seize control in some forty of the Earth's nations.
("Space Seed" (TOS))
Spock indicates that the situation degenerated when the Augments turned
against each other. ("Space Seed"). Arik Soong indicates that
some believe the war started when the humans attacked the Augments, while
other believed they turned against each other. ("Cold Station 12")
Whichever is the case, the Eugencis Wars began at this point, a war that
would cost some 30,000,000 lives in the official count, but unofficially is
thought by some to have reached as high as 35,000,000. ("Cold Station
12")
The Eugenics Wars begin.
During the conflict, Captain Jonathan Archer's Great-Grandfather is
involved in a campaign in North Africa. During that conflict, he contacts
enemy forces in a successful effort to allow some non-combatant civilians
time to get to safety. (Archer relates the tale in "Hatchery" - quote:
"My great-grandfather was in North Africa during the
Eugenics Wars. His battalion was evacuating civilians from a war zone when
they came under attack. There was a school full of children directly between
them and the enemy. If his men had returned fire, they might have hit it. So
he called the commander on the other side, got him to agree to hold his fire
long enough to evacuate the school." )
Whether the Eugenics Wars happened in the Mirror Universe is unknown.
1994 An organization that places dead loved ones into cryogenic
capsules orbiting Earth receives a brief surge of popularity. The hope is
that future generations will revive the departed. Among those frozen are
Ralph Offenhouse and Claire Raymond. ( Enterprise exploration timeline
, "The Neutral Zone" (TNG))
1996 Earth scientists announce the discovery of life
on Mars based on a Mars meteorite containing fossilized evidence of
primitive bacterial life. Other scientists do not draw the same conclusions
from this evidence. (sources: contemporary accounts, Enterprise
exploration timeline)
1996
Earth's Eugenics Wars end.
Khan Noonien Singh is overthrown.
Khan escapes his home world on the DY-100 class sleeper ship
S.S. Botany Bay along with 96 of his fellow "supermen."
(sources: Star Trek Chronology, Space Seed (TOS), Star Trek II: The Wrath of
Khan) This event is considered by many to have been a myth. All
records of the launch were not available to the public in the mid 22nd
century. ("The Augments")
Embryos that Khan planned to develop into genetically
augmented humans are recovered and placed in a secret facility known as Cold
Station 12. (Borderland)
At the end of the Eugenics Wars, Dr. Stavos Keniclius, Earth's first cloned
human, is banned from the community. The tyrants' altered Humans are
declared wards of the United Nations and are sent to live in a series of
camps in isolated areas. Gene engineering of Humans is banned, although
certain groups will pass on the forbidden knowledge. (Sources: "The
Infinite Vulcan" (TAS), "Space Seed" (TOS), Curt Danhauser's Animated Star
Trek Timeline )
Also in 1996 The crew of the U.S.S. Voyager arrives in
Los Angeles, and Janeway searches for a Henry Starling, a megalomaniac
businessman who has stolen a 29th century timeship. ("Future's End,
Parts I & II" (VGR)) It is clear from this episode that Los Angeles has
been spared the ravages of the Eugenics War.
1996 'Nightingale Woman,' a love sonnet, is written by Phineas
Tarbolde on Canopus. ("Where No Man Has Gone Before")
September 1996 Deep Flight One, a new personal submarine, is
launched. Sponsored in part by Television New Zealand, IMAX, National
Geographic Television and Rolex, DFI was launched in September 1996 from the
Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, California. (A personal sub that
looks very much like DFI is depicted in the opening sequence of Enterprise)
see
http://www.deepflight.com/subs/df1.htm
1997 Laws governing, and severely restricting, genetic
enhancement are passed throughout the Earth. Genetically enhanced embryos,
captured at the end of the Eugenics War are preserved since none of the
political powers at the time could figure out what to do with them.
July 4, 1997 The Pathfinder Mars Probe lands on
Mars and dispatches the six-wheeled rover Sojourner. (Contemporary
Accounts. Sojourner is shown during the opening credits of Enterprise.)
Also on July 4, 1997 Voyager 5 is launched (conjecture)
October 29, 1998 The launch of space shuttle
mission STS-95, otherwise known as the "John Glenn shuttle mission"
(Contemporary accounts. A shot of the mission crew during launch is shown
during the opening credits of Enterprise.)
November 20, 1998. The International Space
Station begins construction. (Contemporary Accounts. The International
Space Station assembly is shown during the opening credits of Enterprise.)
July
4, 1999 The sixth space probe in the Voyager series is launched and
continues studying the planets in Earth's solar system. (sources: Star
Trek: The Motion Picture, Enterprise exploration timeline )
1999 Astronomers witness the first extra solar planet
passing in front of a star, confirming that solar systems may be a common
phenomena in other parts of the galaxy and boosting the odds that
intelligent life exists elsewhere. (contemporary accounts, Enterprise
exploration timeline )
1999 The Millennium Gate is completed.
(VGR)
