Wormhole A wormhole was a " tunnel " connecting two separate points in space - time . It consisted of two apertures in space - time connected by a conduit outside normal space , through subspace . Since this conduit was shorter than the distance between the two points in normal space , it allowed rapid travel between the two points . A tetryon scan of a wormhole would typically show up neutrino s , ionized hydrogen , theta - band radiation , and would certainly have to show quantum level fluctuation s . ( ) If a wormhole was large and stable enough , a starship ( or other traveler ) could travel through it . A wormhole could also connect two different points in time as well . As wormholes age they collapse , becoming smaller and are known as micro - wormhole s . ( ) Before knowing where the Harry Kim wormhole ended , Tuvok stated that there was a 75 % chance that it didn ' t lead to the Alpha Quadrant . ( ) Natural wormholes . Quantum singularities could act as wormholes . When " Voyager 6 " " " fell into a quantum singularity , at the time called a black hole , and reemerged in an unknown region of space , speculated by Captain Decker to be the " far side " of the galaxy . There it landed a planet of sentient machines , and became " V ' ger " . ( ) Wormholes and the possibility of using them for time travel had been recognized by Human scientist s since the 20th century . In 2368 , Captain Jean - Luc Picard of the agreed with " faux " historian Berlinghoff Rasmussen that using knowledge gained by means of time travel through a wormhole ( for example , in order to save an endangered planet ) could allow the " next Adolf Hitler " or Khan Noonien Singh to come into being . According to the captain , first year philosophy students had been asked the question ever since the first wormholes had been discovered . ( ) No known naturally - occurring stable wormholes had yet been discovered in the Alpha or Beta Quadrant s . The only likely candidate , the Barzan wormhole , was found to be unstable at its far terminus . However , several relatively stable wormhole - like phenomena had been reported in the Delta Quadrant . ( ; ) It was believed possible for wormholes to just form suddenly , and a newly - formed one might be known as a " baby wormhole " . ( ) Artificial wormholes . The only known stable artificial wormhole was the Bajoran wormhole , created by beings known to the Bajoran s as the Prophet s , who dwelled within . This wormhole was stable enough for long - term , two - way space travel between the Bajor system in the Alpha Quadrant and the Idran system in the Gamma Quadrant . ( ) " In the alternate 2259 , the Federation was engaged in wormhole research . The location of the research site was labeled on a map depicting a section of the Alpha Quadrant . This map was seen on a powerwall in the offices of Admiral s and at Starfleet Headquarters . " ( ) In the 2370 s , the Federation investigated methods of creating artificial wormholes . The project was headed by Dr . Lenara Kahn of the Trill Science Ministry , who eventually developed a workable theory that she tested aboard the in 2372 . The technique involved generating a subspace tensor matrix in the 25 , 000 - 30 , 000 range , and then sending out a magneton pulse using a target drone . The pulse would then interact with the matrix to produce a subspace distortion , which would become an opening in the space - time continuum . The first test of this technique produced a wormhole that was stable for 23 . 4 seconds . On the second test , a class - 4 probe was launched through the wormhole to simulate the passage of an interstellar spacecraft . However , the probe ' s shields unexpectedly interacted with the tetryon field , collapsing the wormhole and producing a massive graviton shock wave that heavily damaged the " Defiant " . ( ) The MIDAS array was able to create an artificial micro - wormhole that connected the Alpha Quadrant to the Delta Quadrant , but it was only stable for a brief moment . ( ) Warp engine imbalances were also known to create wormholes , as happened to the in the 2270s . While attempting to intercept an unknown alien " en route " to Earth , Captain Kirk ordered warp drive utilized before proper simulations had been completed , causing the " Enterprise " to become trapped in a wormhole for a brief period of time . The crew managed to escape after Commander Will Decker ordered Lieutenant Pavel Chekov to fire a photon torpedo at an asteroid , causing the wormhole to collapse and freeing the " Enterprise " . ( ) In 2375 , attempted to use a quantum slipstream drive but it overloaded on return to the Alpha Quadrant , trapping " Voyager " on an ice world and causing a causality paradox . This was corrected when Harry Kim and Chakotay sent a message back though time to their past selves , correcting the paradox . ( )