Cochrane Delta

Many people are unaware of the origins of Starfleet's current insignia. Many know that the insignia was adopted from original Enterprise insignia after its triumphant return under the command of James T Kirk. Until that time, each starship crew wore insignia unique to each ship. With the successful conclusion and public recognition associated with the Enterprise under Kirk, Starfleet choose the Enterprise insignia, the
Cochrane Delta, as its own.

The Delta

At the center of the delta is the star. In the insignia, the star represents command, but its older origins, before Starfleet, it represents light. The speed of light. 'E' equals 'M' times 'C' squared. Above the star is the upper, symmetrical curve. This represents the Einsteinian relativistic effects of time versus mass dilation. As you go faster, subjective time decreases. And at the same time, mass increases. The faster you go, the more massive you become, and therefore the more energy you need to continue to increase your speed. This curve shows the closer you get to light-speed, the more your mass and energy requirement increases, until at the very speed of light, the peak of the curve, your mass becomes infinite so you need infinite energy. On the right of the curve, the Clark corollary in Einsteinian physics shows that power consumption will drop off dramatically, but you cannot get past light-speed with out getting to light-speed first.

Conchrane physics changes the rules. A small volume of the Einsteinian continuum is distorted into something else where the restrictions of normal space-time no longer apply. The lower asymmetrical curve represents the peristaltic field-manipulation function. It is the bottom-line energy expenditure, well below infinity, easily obtainable from basic matter-antimatter reaction. But here its offset, separated, from the standard energy expenditure of normal space-time. Because the field is asymmetrical, because it doesn't reach peak power until after it's outside normal space-time.

It is the combination of these curves, and the star at its center, that represents Cochrane's faster-than-light principle, and now the symbol of Starfleet.

Author - Lt. Cmdr. Wayne N Snyder
Date - 9811.07

Bibilography - Federation by Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens