UNSS Courageous

Courageous was a vessel launched from Earth in the early 21st century, prior to the start of World War III. The Courageous suffered a malfunction in its propulsion system when it found itself unable to decelerate or disengage engines. Intended for in-system flight, Courageous instead left the Sol system and was lost, though Earth and Mars continued to receive periodic communication signals from the ship and its recorder markers for years to follow.

In 2243, a marker buoy from the Courageous was found fifty light-years from the mysterious Delta Triangle region. The data indicated it had been released only thirteen months after launch, leading to speculation that it had encountered a wormhole or other anomaly which allowed the pre-warp vessel to cross such a vast distance.