Coridan ( planet ) Coridan was an inhabited Federation planet in the Coridan system , in the Alpha Quadrant , and homeworld of the Coridan s , a warp - capable humanoid species . As of 2151 , the planetary government was headed by an elected chancellor . The planet Coridan was rich in valuable resources , most significantly dilithium . ( ; ; ) History . In 2151 , Coridan had a population of three billion , with the majority living in several cities in the equatorial region . The capital city was surrounded by a shantytown , and there were almost as many bio - signs outside the city as there were within it . The planet was known for having the largest shipyard s in its sector , building advanced warp - capable vessels , some of which were rumored to reach warp 7 . However , Coridan was also embroiled in an internal conflict between the government , backed by the Vulcan High Command , and rebel forces , secretely supported by the Andorian Empire . The Vulcan agenda was to keep the planet ' s chancellorship stable while the Tau Ceti Accords prohibited any Andorian presence on the planet , which in turn assured Coridan ' s dilithium exports to . ( ) Chancellor Kalev invited Captain Jonathan Archer and Sub - Commander T ' Pol of to visit the planet , but they were captured by rebels and held for ransom . As a result , a commando force led by Sopek , the Vulcan senior officer of the sector , as well as the Andorian Imperial Guard , led by Shran , who was thereby violating the Tau Ceti Accords , came to assist the rescue . ( ) A year later , in 2152 , Jonathan Archer , playing the role of a smuggler , claimed to have outrun a customs vessel near Coridan . ( ) In 2155 , Coridan took part in talks on Earth to form a Coalition of Planets . Here , the Coridans rejected the Tellarite proposal of a trade embargo against the Orion Syndicate . The Coridan representative claimed his people had been trading with the Orions for centuries and that the accusation of Orions attacking Tellarite freighters was slander . ( ) Over the next century , Coridan became under - populated to the point that it could not defend its dilithium mines . In 2268 , Coridan sought admission to the United Federation of Planets . However , due to the wealth of minerals available on Coridan and the presence of illegal mining operations , Coridan ' s admission was a controversial subject between Tellarites and Vulcans . The Babel Conference was convened to settle the matter and ultimately approved Coridan ' s admission , although Orion Smugglers initially tried to sabotage the meeting . Ambassador Sarek of Vulcan was credited with achieving the consensus towards admitting the planet to the Federation . ( ; ) Shortly before the start of the Dominion War , Kandra Vilk moved from Deep Space 9 to a neutral world near Coridan . ( ) During the Dominion War , Coridan ' s dilithium mines came under attack by the Dominion in 2374 , due to their strategic importance . Gelnon left Kudak ' Etan in command of the while he and his ship left to launch an attack on Coridan . ( ) Appendices . Background information . " CORE - ah - don " was the pronunciation for this planet ' s name from the script pronunciation guide for " Sarek " . In the first draft script of " Shadows of P ' Jem " ( written while the episode had the working title " Untitled Andorians Return " ) , the capital city of Coridan was referred to , in dialogue , as " an architectural marvel " and , in the stage directions , as featuring " crystalline , high - rise buildings , " which Archer speculated " must be a half - kilometer tall . " The planet was spoken about as having " fabrication facilities " better than any on Earth . In the stage directions from the same early script , the planet was also described as having a " cloud layer " whose coloration wasn ' t identified , to be depicted on " a bright , sunlit day . " However , in the final draft of the script , Coridan was instead described as having grey clouds and a " crystalline city , " with the other descriptions no longer included in the script . In a deleted scene from , a news feed announced that Magustav Pachangara became the new chancellor of Coridan . Information on this planet appeared in a powerwall in the office of Admiral . According to " " ( p . 53 ) and " " ( " Federation Historical Highlights , 2161 - 2385 " ) , Coridan ( Coridan III ) was an planet in the Beta Quadrant . This planet was governed by The People ' s Republic of Coridan from its seat at New Coridan . The dominant species were the humanoid Coridans , who were warp - capable in 2093 . In the mid - 22nd century , the planet had a population of three billion . By the mid - 23rd century , a centuries - long civil war had reduced the population . In the late 24th century , the planet had a population of 185 million . According to " The Worlds of the Federation " , Coridan is the third planet in the Coridan system . It was called Desotriana by its natives . According to the RPG sourcebook " The Federation " , Coridan is the fourth planet in the Danthos system . According to the RPG sourcebook " Worlds " , Coridan is the fifth planet in its system . , the primary of the Coridan system , was located in the Alpha Quadrant on a star chart seen in the episode . Apocrypha . In the non - canon novel " The Good That Men Do " , Coridan was referred to as " Coridan Prime " , on the verge of developing warp - 7 technology . To prevent such advances from spreading to other Coalition of Planets member worlds , the Romulan s launched a vicious attack on Coridan , flying a vessel into the planet at maximum warp . Anti - matter from the suicide attackers ' ship mixed with Coridan ' s abundance of dilithium , causing a fireball that spread across the planet , killing billions . The planet ' s population was said to be further depleted by civil wars that continued after the Romulan attack . In " " , Coridan is described as a cold , dry , class - M world , with a chronically corrupt government , in the 2260s .