Hyperdrive

The hyperdrive, also known as warp drive, was a propulsion system that allowed a starship to reach lightspeed and traverse the void between stars in the alternate dimension of hyperspace. As a consequence, the hyperdrive was a key instrument in shaping galactic society, trade, politics, and war.

The hyperdrive required a functional hyperdrive motivator to operate. The vessel then traveled along a programmed course until it dropped back into normal space—realspace—at its destination.

A hyperdrive only functioned to keep a vessel in hyperspace, and should a hyperdrive be forcibly deactivated or destroyed during transit, the ship was violently and instantly pulled back into realspace.

Being short-range craft, most starfighters lacked a hyperdrive. This was notably the case with the Galactic Empire's TIE fighters, which had to be ferried to combat zones aboard larger ships. However, the X-wing and A-wing starfighters used by the Rebel Alliance were fitted with hyperdrives, allowing them to make long-range jumps.

Upon entering hyperspace, a ship emitted cronau radiation, which was possible to detect with specialized sensor suites.

Large objects in normal space cast "mass shadows" in hyperspace, thus hyperspace jumps required accurate plotting to avoid collisions, which were often fatal.

Later technologies could pull vessels out of hyperspace. For instance, interdiction fields created gravitational shadows, simulating mass, in the path of an oncoming vessel, yanking the vessel out of hyperspace. Imperial technologists developed the widely used Interdictor vessels and their various sub-models, some of the most effective interdiction technologies.

Text and facts from the “Hyperdrive” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.