The 2387 Supernova was a cataclysmic event in the year 2387, an unusually powerful supernova that destroyed the planet Romulus and led to a dissolution of much of the Romulan Star Empire. (TOS movie, novelization & comic adaptation: Star Trek)
This supernova killed millions of Romulans, dispersed the survivors, and forced the Empire to reorganize itself into the Romulan Free State. (Star Trek: Picard season 1)
Several other star systems were affected, with many on and off Romulus being caught unaware due to a Romulan policy of suppressing clear exchange of science data regarding the predicted blast. (PIC novel: The Last Best Hope)
History and specifics[]
- "The star went supernova… …consuming everything in its path. I promised the Romulans that I would save their planet… We outfitted our fastest ship. Using red matter, I would create a black hole, which would absorb the exploding star. I was en route, when the unthinkable happened. The supernova destroyed Romulus."
- —Ambassador Spock, 2258[src]
In the 2380s, the Romulan Empire and the Federation discovered that the primary star in the Romulan system would soon go supernova. In 2382.Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise-E was informed by the Starfleet CNC, Admiral Victor Bordson of the coming cataclysm. Picard was promoted to Admiral, given command of the new USS Verity and placed in charge of the evacuation. During this time, Utopia Planitia built Wallenberg-class transports to carry out the evacuation. Their construction was overseen by Commander Geordi La Forge and built by the Daystrom A500 androids provided by Commander Bruce Maddox. (PIC novel: The Last Best Hope; PIC episode: "Remembrance")
The Verity evacuated several worlds such as Ectis II and took the Romulans to Arnath and Torrassa. Picard received help from the warrior nuns of the Qowat Milat who helped evacuate over 250,000 romulans to Vashti. (PIC episodes: "Remembrance", "Absolute Candor")
Picard had to also deal with trouble with the Tal Shiar who killed several of their own people who would not comply with Imperial orders at Nimbus III. (PIC novel: The Last Best Hope)
Picard also had to face the Tal Shiar himself when they attempted to take the Verity at Yuyat Beta. (PIC - Picard: Countdown comics: "Issue 1", "Issue 2", "Issue 3")
Unfortunately, on First Contact Day in 2385, the A500s went went rogue, destroyed the evacuation fleet, and Mars. This had been deliberately carried out by a secret cabal of the Tal Shiar known as the Zhat Vash. Due to the attack, the evacuation was called off. (PIC novel: The Last Best Hope; PIC episodes: "Remembrance", "Maps and Legends", "The End is the Beginning", "Broken Pieces")
Hobus and the red matter[]
In 2387, the Romulan Mining Guild discovered signs of instability in another nearby star in Romulan space, Hobus.
- The narrative of Star Trek: Countdown did not mention the Romulan sun going nova, but other sources did mention that the circumstances of each star's instability were unusual, with the Hobus developments being considered suspicious after-the-fact (ST video game: Star Trek Online), and the Romulan sun's warning signs being scientifically abnormal (The Last Best Hope). While neither had a forthright explanation, it is in keeping with the extreme unlikeliness of two distant stars both developing sympathetic instability for a simultanous blast.
The Federation Ambassador to the Romulan Empire, Spock promised the Romulans and their senate that he would save Romulus. He also urged the Senate to evacuate the planet before the supernova arrived, but the senate ignored his warnings. However, when the supernova expanded the Senate gave the order for evacuation. However it was too late to save Romulus; Only the Praetor Chulan and several senators survived. During this time, Captain Nero of the Narada gave Spock the Red matter, but left in a attempt to save his wife and unborn child. When he arrived at what was left of Romulus, he took the praetor, killed and jettisoned him into space. Spock, using the Jellyfish, was able to contain the supernova. Unfortunately, Nero went after Spock after a black hole was created to absorb the supernova. The Narada went into the blackhole first followed by the Jellyfish. (ST - Countdown comics: "Number One", "Number Two", "Number Three", "Number Four"; ST movie, novelization & comic adaptation: Star Trek)
Aftermath[]
Following the Supernova, Picard's former XO of the USS Verity, Lieutenant Commander Raffaela Musiker spent the next 12 years trying to figure out why the attack on Mars happened. The Romulans were dispersed. Some chose to live on Earth while others continued to live on Vashti. The Empire was reorganized into the Romulan Free State with support of the Tal Shiar. Despite the reorganization, Romulans joined the Romulan Rebirth movement to revive their culture. It was not until 2399 that the truth about the Zhat Vash's involvement in the Mars attack was made public. (PIC episodes: "The End is the Beginning", "Maps and Legends", "Absolute Candor", "The Impossible Box", "Et in Arcadia Ego")
Despite the Zhat Vash's actions, the Vulcans and Romulans were able to continue working towards reunification. Eventually, the Romulans were allowed to return to their ancestral home. Eventually, Vulcan would change their world's name to Ni'Var. (DSC episode: "Unification III")
Creation of the "Kelvin timeline"[]
The Federation and Romulans believed that Nero, the Narada's crew and Ambassador Spock were killed when they entered the blackhole. In truth, Nero traveled back in time to 2233, created a new alternate reality and was captured by the Klingons after the Narada's attack on the USS Kelvin. Spock arrived in the new reality in 2258. There, Nero following his escape from Rura Penthe, spared Spock's life, took the Jellyfish and marooned him on Delta Vega. Using the Jellyfish's red matter, Nero attacked and destroyed Vulcan and planned to destroy Earth and other Federation planets in retribution. However, he was defeated by the USS Enterprise under James T. Kirk. (ST - Countdown comic: "Number Four"; TOS - Star Trek - The Q Gambit comics: "Part 1", "Part 6"; ST - Nero comics: "Number One", "Number Two", "Number Three", "Number Four"; ST movie, novelization & comic adaptation: Star Trek)
The Federation, during the Temporal War, learned of this alternate reality from a time soldier, Lieutenant Commander Yor from 2379. (DSC episode: "Terra Firma")
Appendices[]
External link[]
- 2387 Supernova article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.