2373

The following events occurred in the year **2373** according to the Earth calendar and corresponds to the stardate period 50000 to 50999.

## Events

February
* Around this time the USS *Tobias* is assigned to relief efforts at Chal. (*ST* novel: *Avenger*)

March
* **Early March**: An anomaly created by the detonation of an isolytic warhead traps Starbase 364, the USS *Sally Ride*, USS *Dauntless* and a Tal Shiar warbird in temporal stasis. (*Shield of Tomorrow*: "The Battle for Narendra Station", "The Madwoman In a Box", "A Galaxy on Fire")

July
* **stardate 50893.5**: The Borg destroy the Federation colony on Ivor Prime, and proceed towards Earth. Starfleet engages the Borg Cube in the Battle of Sector 001. Upon destruction of the cube, a Borg sphere emerges. Creating a temporal vortex, the sphere travels to Earth's past in order to alter history. The USS *Enterprise* (NCC-1701-E follows in its wake, and manages to restore the proper timeline.(*Star Trek: First Contact*)
	+ *During this incident, Borg from the aborted timeline fire a tempral weapon at the* Enterprise*, causing a fracture in the space-time continuum. This results in a number of unstable alternate realities, most notably the First Splinter.* (Star Trek: Coda)
* **25 July**: The Cardassian Union joins the Dominion. Shortly thereafter, the Klingon Empire re-signs the Khitomer Accords and restores their alliance with the Federation. (DS9: "In Purgatory's Shadow", "By Inferno's Light")

October
* The virogen crisis intensifies as a seventh system is infected by the plague. Gamow Station on Alta Vista III is destroyed in an act of terrorism, leading to the discovery that the Symmetrist movement has engineered the virus. (*ST* novel: *Avenger*)
* **25 October**: The USS *Enterprise* crew discovers the hidden Symmetrist base on Tarsus IV, and puts an end to their plot. A cure is developed for the virogen, ending a year-long crisis which nearly destroyed the Federation. (*ST* novel: *Avenger*)

December
* **22 December (stardate 50975.2)**: The Dominion War begins with the Second Battle of Deep Space 9. For the safety of its people, the government of Bajor signs a non-aggression pact with the Dominion. Cardassian-Dominion forces retake possession of Deep Space 9, restoring its name to Terok Nor. (DS9: "Call to Arms")

## Personal

### Assignments and promotions

* Daniel Hunter is promoted to Lieutenant. (*Star Trek: Intrepid*)
* Circa this year or the previous year, Beckett Mariner graduates Starfleet Academy. Shortly thereafter, she is assigned to Deep Space 9, where she quickly accrues a sizeable tab at Quark's. (LDS: "We'll Always Have Tom Paris", "Hear All, Trust Nothing")

## *Stories*

* DS9: "Apocalypse Rising"
* *TNG* comic: *The Killing Shadows*
* DS9: "The Ship"
* *TNG* novel: *Rogue*
* DS9: "Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places"
* DS9: "Nor the Battle to the Strong"
* DS9: "The Assignment"
* DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations"
* VOY: "Future's End"
* VOY: "Future's End, Part II"
* DS9: "Let He Who Is Without Sin..."
* *DS9* novel: *Vengeance*
* DS9: "Things Past"
* *SA* comic: *War and Peace*
* *SA* comic: *Love and Death*
* *SA* comic: *Passages*
* *SA* comic: *Hide and Seek*
* *SA* comic: *X2*
* *SA* comic: *Return to the Forbidden Planet*
* *SA* comic: *A Prelude to War*
* *SA* comic: *Judgment*
* DS9: "The Ascent"
* VOY: "The Q and the Grey"
* *TNG* novel: *Slings and Arrows*: *A Weary Life*
* *TNG* novel: *Slings and Arrows*: *Enterprises of Great Pitch and Moment*
* DS9: "Rapture"
* DS9: "The Darkness and the Light"
* DS9: "The Begotten"
* DS9: "For the Uniform"
* VOY: "Blood Fever"
* *Star Trek: First Contact*
* DS9: "In Purgatory's Shadow"
* DS9: "By Inferno's Light"
* DS9: "Doctor Bashir, I Presume"
* *ST* novel: *Avenger*
* DS9: "A Simple Investigation"
* DS9: "Business As Usual"
* VOY: "Before and After"
* DS9: "Ties of Blood and Water"
* DS9: "Ferengi Love Songs"
* *DS9* comic: *Lwaxana Troi and the Wedding of Doom*
* *DS9* comic: *Four Funerals and a Wedding*
* DS9: "Soldiers of the Empire"
* *ST* comic: *Telepathy War*
* VOY: "Distant Origin"
* DS9: "Children of Time"
* *SA* comic: *Parent's Day*
* DS9: "Blaze of Glory"
* *NF* novel: *House of Cards*
* *NF* novel: *Into the Void*
* *NF* novel: *The Two-Front War*
* *NF* novel: *End Game*
* DS9: "Empok Nor"
* *SA* comic: *T'Priell Revealed*
* *SA* comic: *Culture Clash*
* DS9: "In the Cards"
* VOY: "Scorpion, Part I"
* DS9: "A Call to Arms"

## Background

* The exact placement of *Star Trek: First Contact* is uncertain. It provides us with stardate 50893.5, which would be circa 23 November (appealingly close to the film's release date of 22 November), but in-universe context makes this date exceedingly unlikely, if not impossible. For a variety of factors (see Memory Alpha), the *least inconsistent* placement is after "For the Uniform" and stardate 50485.2 (27 June) and shortly prior to "In Purgatory's Shadow"/"By Inferno's Light" and stardate 50564.2 (25 July).
* The climax of the novel *Avenger* takes place "Two years, two months, six days, eight hours and three minutes" after Data "developed a sense of humor" in *Star Trek Generations*, according to his conversation with Admiral McCoy.

## External link

* 2373 article at ***Memory Alpha***, the canon *Star Trek* wiki.
* 2373 article at ***Memory Beta***, the non-canon *Star Trek* wiki.
* 2373 article at ***Star Trek Expanded Universe***, the fanon and fanworks *Star Trek* wiki.

1. ↑ Precise placement for this film is highly subjective. The stardate converts to 23 November (nicely coinciding with the film's release on 22 November, 1996), but references in DS9 must place it prior to "In Purgatory's Shadow", roughly mid-year. However tempting it is to place the film in November, textual evidence indicates takes precedence over stardate conversion.