USS Enterprise ( NCC - 1701 ) - wikipedia USS Enterprise ( NCC - 1701 ) For other versions of the fictional ship, see Starship Enterprise. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( August 2007 ) USS Enterprise USS Enterprise First appearance `` The Cage '' Affiliation United Federation of Planets Launched 2244 General characteristics Class Constitution Registry NCC - 1701 Auxiliary craft 7 × 7 man shuttlecraft Armaments 2 electromagnetic launch Photon Torpedo tube 3 Dual Phaser banks Defenses Deflector Shield Grid Propulsion 4 dual Impulse Power Units 2 Space Warp Propulsion Units Power Dilithium - focused matter / anti-matter reaction chamber Length 288.646 metres ( 947.00 ft ) USS Enterprise ( NCC - 1701 ) is a starship in the fictional Star Trek universe, depicted in four network television series, six feature films, and countless books and fan - created media. The original Star Trek series ( 1966 -- 1969 ) features a voice - over by Enterprise captain, James T. Kirk ( William Shatner ), which describes the mission of Enterprise as `` to explore strange new worlds ; to seek out new life and new civilizations ; to boldly go where no man has gone before ''. The ship 's design `` formed the basis for one of sci - fi 's most memorable images, '' though the ship has gone over many changes over the course of its television and cinematic appearances. A refit version of NCC - 1701 appears in the first three Star Trek films. The 2009 Star Trek film, which takes place in an alternate timeline, features a re-conceptualization of the original Enterprise. The original ( though refitted ) starship was destroyed in Star Trek III : The Search for Spock. Contents 1 Origin and design 1.1 Television 1.2 1979 Motion Picture refit 1.3 2009 reboot 2 Depiction 3 References 4 External links Origin and design Television The 11 - foot ( 3.4 m ) model donated by Paramount to the Smithsonian in 1974 Star Trek art director Matt Jefferies was the primary designer of the original Enterprise, which was originally named Yorktown in series creator Gene Roddenberry 's first outline drafts of the series. Jefferies ' experience with aviation led to his Enterprise designs being imbued with what he called `` aircraft logic ''. The ship 's `` NCC - 1701 '' registry number stemmed from `` NC '' being one of the international aircraft registration codes assigned to the United States ; the second `` C '' was added as Soviet aircraft used `` CCCC '' and Matt Jeffries combined the two as he believed a venture into space would be a joint operation by the United States and Russia. According to The Making of Star Trek, `` NCC '' is the Starfleet abbreviation for `` Naval Construction Contract '', comparable to what the U.S. Navy would call a hull number. The `` 1701 '' was chosen to avoid any possible ambiguity ; according to Jefferies, the numbers 3, 6, 8, and 9 are `` too easily confused ''. Other sources cite it as a reference to the house across the street from where Roddenberry grew up, while another account gives it as the street address of Linwood Dunn. Jefferies ' own sketches provide the explanation that it was his 17th cruiser design with the first serial number of that series : 1701. The Making of Star Trek explains that `` USS '' should mean `` United Space Ship '' and that `` Enterprise is a member of the Starship Class ''. The ship 's class was officially changed to Constitution Class with the release of the Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual in 1975, even though all previous references identify it as Starship Class. The first miniature built for the pilot episode `` The Cage '' ( 1965 ) was unlit and approximately 33 inches ( 0.8 m ) long, commonly referred to as `` the three foot model ''. This model was constructed almost entirely of wood and was made by Richard C. Datin in his shop. It was eventually modified during the course of the series to match the changes made to the larger model before and after shooting of the second pilot, and appears on - set in `` Requiem for Methuselah '' ( 1969 ) after some damage sustained in storage had been partially repaired. The second miniature built for the original pilot measures 11 feet 2 inches ( 3.4 m ) long and was built by a small crew of model makers ( Volmer Jensen, Mel Keys and Vernon Sion ) supervised by Richard C. Datin, working out of Jensen 's model shop in Burbank, California ( although the larger base components were subcontracted to a shop with a large lathe ). It was initially filmed by both Howard A. Anderson and Linwood G. Dunn at Dunn 's Film Effects of Hollywood facility, who also re-filmed later more - elaborate models of the ship, generating a variety of stock footage that was used in later episodes. Initially, the models were static and had no electronics. For the second pilot, `` Where No Man Has Gone Before '' ( 1966 ), various details of the 11 - foot model were altered, and the starboard window ports and running lights were internally illuminated. When the series was picked up and went into production, the model was altered yet again. These alterations included the addition of translucent domes and blinking lights at the forward ends of the engine nacelles, smaller domes at the stern end of the engine nacelles, a shorter bridge dome, and a smaller deflector / sensor dish. Save for re-used footage from the two pilot episodes, this was the appearance of the ship throughout the series, except for some detail added to nacelles for shots used in `` The Trouble with Tribbles ''. Two small ( 3 `` ) models were also made for the episode `` Catspaw '', one embedded in a block of lucite, bringing the total number of models used to represent Enterprise during the original series to four. While the three - foot model was lost during construction of a new model ( the refurbished version seen in the first movie ), the 11 feet ( 3.4 m ) model has undergone a historic restoration, having previously been displayed in the Gift Shop downstairs at the Smithsonian Institution 's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., and was unveiled in its new display position in the lobby of the Milestones of Flight Hall at NASM 's 40th anniversary celebration on July 1, 2016, which also roughly coincides with Star Trek 's 50th anniversary. Greg Jein created a model of the original Enterprise for the Star Trek : Deep Space Nine episode `` Trials and Tribble - ations '' ( 1996 ). Jein 's model was built to be exactly half the size of the larger of the two original models, and later appeared in the 1998 Star Trek wall calendar. In addition, a CGI model of the ship makes a brief cameo appearance at the end of the final episode of Star Trek : Enterprise, `` These Are the Voyages... '' ( 2005 ), and another CGI version was created for remastered episodes of the original Star Trek, based on the model in the Smithsonian. 1979 Motion Picture refit The `` refit '' Enterprise that appears in the first three Star Trek films was designed by Richard Taylor. Michael Minor, Gene Roddenberry, Joe Jennings, Andrew Probert, Douglas Trumbull, Harold Michaelson, and Jim Dow contributed in part to the final and finished look of Enterprise, while Jim Dow was in charge of building the model and created all the molds and structural processes. The ship was based on conceptual sketches done by Jeffries for the scrapped Star Trek : Phase II TV series. Paul Olsen painted the distinct `` Aztec '' paint scheme to provide an additional level of detail for the film screen, and to suggest the notion of interlocking panels providing tensile strength to the hull. The 8 - foot ( 2.4 m ) model was re-used as the USS Enterprise - A in the fourth, fifth, and sixth Star Trek films. Foundation Imaging created a CGI model of the ship for the `` Director 's Edition '' release of Star Trek : The Motion Picture to add footage envisioned but never shot by director Robert Wise. 2009 reboot USS Enterprise The re-conceptualized, `` alternate universe '' Enterprise in the 2009 Star Trek film First appearance Star Trek ( 2009 ) Affiliation United Federation of Planets Starfleet Launched 2258 General characteristics Class Constitution Registry NCC - 1701 Maximum speed Warp 8 Auxiliary craft Shuttlecraft Armaments Photon torpedoes Phasers Defenses Deflector shields Propulsion Impulse engines Warp drive Power Matter / antimatter Length 725m Enterprise was redesigned for the 2009 Star Trek film. Director J.J. Abrams wanted Enterprise to have a `` hot rod '' look while retaining the traditional shape, but otherwise afforded Industrial Light & Magic ( ILM ) `` tremendous '' leeway in creating the ship. Perhaps the most notable change was in the large engine cells, seen attached to the main body. The change applied a sleeker finish and shape to the otherwise simple cells of the previous ship. Concept artist Ryan Church 's initial designs were modeled and refined by set designer Joseph Hiura. This design was then given to ILM for further refinement and developed into photo - realistic models by Alex Jaeger 's team. ILM 's Roger Guyett recalled the original Enterprise being `` very static '', and added moving components to the film 's model. ILM retained subtle geometric forms and patterns to allude to the original Enterprise. The computer model 's digital paint recreates the appearance of `` interference paint '', which contains small particles of mica to alter the apparent color, used on the first three films ' model. Original design of Enterprise was notably bigger than the original Enterprise and was projected to be 367 meters length and between 170 and 180 meters wide but finally in the films it was upscaled to be at least 700 meters length and 330 -- 350 meters wide. Depiction Built between 2243 and 2245 in the Prime Star Trek timeline, Starfleet commissioned Enterprise in 2245. In Star Trek, the ship 's dedication plaque lists it as `` Starship Class '' ; later Expanded Universe and episode dialogue in `` Relics '', a Next Generation episode, establish the vessel as a Constitution - class starship. But according to Stephen Whitfield 's The Making of Star Trek, `` Enterprise - class starships have been in existence for about forty years '' at the time of the original series. The ship 's components were built at the Starfleet Division of the San Francisco Navy Yards and assembled in orbit. Star Trek : The Animated Series states that Robert April is Enterprise 's first commanding officer. After April, Captain Christopher Pike ( Jeffrey Hunter ) commands Enterprise for about a decade, and Pike is the commanding officer in the ( originally un-aired ) pilot `` The Cage ''. Throughout the first Star Trek television series, Captain James T. Kirk commands the ship on a five - year mission of exploration. Before the events of Star Trek : The Motion Picture ( 1979 ), Enterprise undergoes an 18 - month refit overseen by its new commanding officer, Willard Decker ( Stephen Collins ). In early scenes of the film, Decker describes the refit to Admiral Kirk as `` an almost totally new Enterprise ''. Star Trek novels and the semi-official fan - produced internet series Star Trek : New Voyages ( and the abortive planned TV series Star Trek : Phase II ) depict a second five - year exploratory mission under Kirk 's command between the events of the first and second films. Spock ( Leonard Nimoy ) commands Enterprise, serving as a training ship, at the beginning of Star Trek II : The Wrath of Khan ( 1982 ), but Kirk assumes command when the ship investigates problems with Project Genesis. USS Reliant, hijacked by Khan Noonien Singh ( Ricardo Montalbán ), inflicts substantial damage to Enterprise ; Spock sacrifices his life to save the ship. Shortly after returning to spacedock at the beginning of Star Trek III : The Search for Spock ( 1984 ), Enterprise is marked for decommissioning. Kirk leads his officers in stealing the ship in an attempt to restore Spock 's life. In the process, they are attacked by Klingons inflicting mortal damage on the ship ; to even the odds and gain a tactical advantage, Kirk is forced to destroy Enterprise by activating its self - destruct system. Star Trek IV : The Voyage Home ( 1986 ) opens with Kirk and his officers agreeing to return to Earth to face judgment for their actions in the previous film. En route ( in the Klingon vessel they had commandeered ), they travel back in time to stop a probe threatening to destroy Earth. Upon the success of their mission and return to the 23rd century, the charges against the crew are dismissed. Admiral Kirk is `` punished '' with a demotion in rank to captain and is given command of Enterprise 's successor, USS Enterprise, NCC - 1701 - A. In the 2009 film Star Trek, Enterprise makes its first appearance in an altered timeline while it is still under construction in a planetside yard in Riverside, Iowa in 2255. Captain Christopher Pike ( Bruce Greenwood ) commands Enterprise on its maiden voyage in 2258 to respond to a distress call from Vulcan although command later shifts to Commander Spock ( Zachary Quinto ) and, by film 's conclusion, Kirk ( Chris Pine ) is promoted to captain and receives command of the Federation 's flagship as his first assignment out of the academy. This version of the ship, like the movies it appeared in, was controversial for being a radical departure from the original. The re-imagined Enterprise appears in both 2013 's Star Trek Into Darkness and 2016 's Star Trek Beyond, where it is destroyed. A ship with matching hull number ( NCC 1701 ) is depicted in the 2015 Star Trek fanfilm Prelude to Axanar. In this film its portrayed to have been built in shipyard 's orbiting the planet Axanar during the Klingon Federation war. References ^ Jump up to : `` Star Trek Blueprints -- General Plans Constitution Class : U.S.S. Enterprise ''. CBS Paramount. Archived from the original on June 14, 2013. Retrieved September 27, 2016. The following ships of this class were constructed under authorization of the original articles of the United Federation of Planets (... ) Enterprise -- NCC - 1701 CS1 maint : BOT : original - url status unknown ( link ) ^ Jump up to : `` Wayback Machine ''. Web.archive.org. 6 December 2006. Retrieved 16 September 2017. Jump up ^ `` Class 1 Heavy Cruiser Plans '' ( JPG ). Cygnus-x1.net. Retrieved 2017 - 09 - 16. Jump up ^ `` Wayback Machine ''. Web.archive.org. 6 December 2006. Retrieved 16 September 2017. Jump up ^ `` The Enterprise Through The Ages ''. Empire. p. 3. Retrieved 2008 - 11 - 20. Jump up ^ Burr, Ty ( 2009 - 05 - 05 ). `` Star Trek ''. The Boston Globe. p. 1. Retrieved 2009 - 05 - 06. Jump up ^ `` Model, Starship Enterprise, Television Show, `` Star Trek '' ``. Retrieved 19 February 2015. ^ Jump up to : Okuda, Michael ; Denise Okuda ; Debbie Mirek ( 1999 ). The Star Trek Encyclopedia. Pocket Books. ISBN 0 - 671 - 53609 - 5. Jump up ^ Robinson, Ben ; Marcus Riley ( 2011 - 07 - 21 ). Star Trek : U.S.S. Enterprise : Haynes Manual. Simon & Schuster. pp. Forward. Jump up ^ Report : Visual Effects Magic Not Always High - Tech. startrek.com http://web.archive.org/web/20100114111750/http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/news/article/120394.html. Missing or empty title = ( help ) ^ Jump up to : Whitfield, Stephen PE ; Roddenberry, Gene ( 1968 ). The Making of Star Trek. New York : Ballantine Books. ISBN 0 - 345 - 31554 - 5. OCLC 23859. Jump up ^ `` Star Trek ''. BBC. Retrieved 2017 - 09 - 16. Jump up ^ Fine Scale Modeler, May 1998, page 8. Jump up ^ Magid, Ron. `` ILM creates new universe of Effects for Star Trek Generations ''. American Cinematographer, April 1995, p. 78. Jump up ^ `` Forgotten Trek Returns ''. Forgotten Trek. Archived from the original on 2011 - 10 - 03. Jump up ^ `` Star Trek 's U.S.S. Enterprise to Boldly Go Back to the Workshop ''. Retrieved 2014 - 09 - 14. Jump up ^ `` Original Starship Enterprise Model from the Star Trek TV Show ''. Retrieved 2009 - 04 - 21. Jump up ^ Tobias, Tracey ( December 2001 ). `` Redesigning the USS Enterprise NCC - 1701 ''. Star Trek : the Magazine. Fabbri Publishing. 2 ( 8 ) : 85. Jump up ^ Olsen, Paul ( 2013 ). Creating The Enterprise. Bristol, UK : STAR Books. pp. 91, 92, 93, 94. ISBN 0 9740407 11. Jump up ^ Hood, Jamie. `` Probing the Ships of Star Trek : the Motion Picture ''. Round 2 Models. Retrieved October 22, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Official Star Trek Site Updated With Final ' Dossiers ' + New Info Section + more ''. TrekMovie.com. Jump up ^ Jesus Diaz. `` How Big Is the New Enterprise Compared to the Old One ? ''. Gizmodo. Gawker Media. ^ Jump up to : `` How ILM came up with the new Enterprise for J.J. Abrams ' Trek ''. Sci Fi Wire. 2009 - 04 - 17. Retrieved 2009 - 04 - 21. Jump up ^ Plant, Bob ( 2009 - 07 - 23 ). `` Church of Trek ''. Round 2 Models. Retrieved 2009 - 10 - 04. Jump up ^ `` Enterprise, U.S.S. ''. Startrek.com. Retrieved 2007 - 08 - 28. External links USS Enterprise ( NCC - 1701 ) at Memory Alpha ( a Star Trek wiki ) USS Enterprise ( NCC - 1701 ) ( alternate reality ) at Memory Alpha ( a Star Trek wiki ) Spacecraft named Enterprise NASA Space Shuttle ( 1976 -- 1985 ) Virgin SpaceShip ( 2009 -- 2014 ) Star Trek starships ( Fictional ) Star Trek ships named Enterprise Ships OV - 101 NX - 01 NCC - 1701 NCC - 1701 - A NCC - 1701 - B NCC - 1701 - C NCC - 1701 - D NCC - 1701 - E Captains Jonathan Archer Robert April Christopher Pike James T. Kirk Willard Decker Spock John Harriman Rachel Garrett Jean - Luc Picard William Riker Edward Jellico Category : Star Trek Star Trek : The Original Series Episodes Season 1 The Animated Series episodes Films The Motion Picture The Wrath of Khan The Search for Spock The Voyage Home The Final Frontier The Undiscovered Country Characters Christine Chapel Pavel Chekov James T. 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Question: what does the ncc stand for on the starship enterprise
Answer: Naval Construction Contract