Hyperspace Mountain

Hyperspace Mountain is a Star Wars-themed overlay to the Space Mountain roller coaster attractions at three Disney Parks. The Disneyland version opened as part of the Season of the Force event on November 14th, 2015, and the Hong Kong Disneyland version opened June 11th, 2016, as part of the Star Wars: Tomorrowland Takeover event. On May 6th, 2017, the update opened in Disneyland Paris under the name Hyperspace Mountain: Rebel Mission.
Utilizing the animation projection infrastructure used in the ride's earlier Halloween-themed Ghost Galaxy overlay, laser effects, and a newly recorded arrangement of assorted John Williams scores performed by the London Symphony Orchestra, the attraction put guests into a dogfight between X-wing starfighters and TIE fighters at the start of the Battle of Jakku.
The changes to the Hong Kong and Paris versions of the ride have become permanentOfficial Hong Kong Disneyland attraction pageOfficial Disneyland Paris attraction page, while Disneyland temporarily changes the theme seasonally. The ride returned to its original "classic" Space Mountain format at Disneyland on June 1st. Hyperspace Mountain returned temporarily in 2018 on May 4th in celebration of "Star Wars Day," and returned on that same date in 2019. The changeover happened again on April 29th, 2022 in time for May 4th, until Space Mountain's return on July 5th. The dates for the 2023 changeover was May 1st to June 4th, while the 2024 changeover is set to run during Season of the Force from April 5th to June 2nd.
==Official summary==
Rocket Right onto the Battlefield
Fend off crossfire from swarms of Rebel X-wing starfighters and Imperial TIE fighters amidst an intergalactic onslaught!
Your mission begins with a briefing from Admiral Ackbar—the Rebel Alliance needs help flying reconnaissance vessels to survey an Imperial Star Destroyer. After being escorted into hyperspace by an elite X-wing squadron, you arrive only to find the Star Destroyer waiting with a swarm of TIE fighters—it's a trap!
As Rebel forces valiantly battle Imperial vessels, you're caught up in a barrage of blaster fire. Maneuvers become more intense as you join the Rebel squadron for one final, courageous assault on the menacing Star Destroyer. It's an epic Star Wars combat scene taken straight from the films—but hurry, Hyperspace Mountain is only open for a limited time!
==Plot summary==
The attraction queue is mostly left in its standard form, though graphics and a brief pre-show and safety film set up the simple story. The Hong Kong installation added an X-Wing hangar mockup to an outdoor portion of the queue. Admiral Gial Ackbar sends out a brief holo-transmission to a group of New Republic reconnaissance pilots to investigate an Imperial Star Destroyer near Jakku. He also announces the 77 Squadron—flying as "Blue Squadron"—will provide support for the mission. Much of this back story is not mentioned in the Paris version of the ride, since there is only a safety video featuring a human woman, and no appearance by Ackbar.
After boarding the reconnaissance vessel (portrayed by Space Mountain's sled-like rocket vehicles), the recon team and Blue Squadron make a jump through hyperspace. Upon arrival at Jakku, a group of TIEs ambushes the team. The recon vehicle ducks and weaves its way through the dogfight and assorted laser-fire from either side. With the TIE squadron destroyed, Blue Squadron is able to make a critical destructive hit on the Star Destroyer's bridge area and make a quick jump through hyperspace back to the base.
==Media==
File:Hyperspace Mountain logo.jpg|Promotional poster for Disneyland version
File:Hyperspace Mountain HKDL.jpg|Promotional poster for Hong Kong Disneyland version
File:Hyperspace Mountain Paris poster.jpg|Promotional poster for Disneyland Paris version
==Appearances==
==Behind the scenes==
Space Mountain originally opened at Disneyland on May 27th, 1977, two days after A New Hope first premiered in theaters (Walt Disney World's version had opened two years earlier). In 2005, as part of Disneyland's 50th Anniversary, the attraction underwent a significant overhaul including a new sound system and digital projection infrastructure that would allow for alternative versions of the attraction. The first variation was Rockin' Space Mountain, followed a few years later by a more involved Halloween overlay borrowed from Hong Kong's park, Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy. That more successful overlay added additional projection hardware in 2007.
In 2015, to promote The Force Awakens and act as a stop-gap until the Star Wars-themed expansion to Disneyland opened, Disney announced a promotional event called "Season of the Force" located in Tomorrowland, consisting of an The Force Awakens themed-update to Star Tours: The Adventures Continue, a clip show of the entire saga entitled Path of the Jedi, an update to the Jedi Training Academy entitled Trials of the Temple, the Star Wars Launch Bay exhibit, and Hyperspace Mountain.
Disney Imagineers consulted with Lucasfilm Story Group to ensure Hyperspace Mountain would fit into the canon timeline and decided to tell the story of the space battle portion of the Battle of Jakku, which also appeared in the novel Lost Stars and the Star Wars Battlefront video game. New starfighter animation and musical arrangements of John Williams' tracks were produced for the overlay.
The 77 Squadron takes its number from 1977, both the year when first premiered and when Space Mountain first opened at Disneyland park.
==Sources==
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*Official Hong Kong Disneyland attraction page
*Official Disneyland Paris attraction page
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==Notes and references==
==External links==
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Category:Real-world attractions