This year marks the 60th anniversary of Star Trek, and the celebration includes a new series called Starfleet Academy that looks back at the franchise’s past. The fifth episode was a pleasant surprise for fans of Deep Space Nine, centering around Avery Brooks’ character, Sisko, as a heartwarming tribute. The episode, titled “Series Acclimation Mil” and featuring the AI character SAM, explores what it means for her to serve as an emissary.
SAM is a unique character in Starfleet history – she’s an artificial intelligence that exists as a hologram. This makes her an interesting counterpart to the Doctor, who guides her at Starfleet Academy. Interestingly, the first scenes of the episode “Series Acclimation Mil” also address a long-standing question fans have had since the original series: just how many different alien races are there in the Star Trek universe?
Just How Many Races Are There in Star Trek?
The beginning of “Series Acclimation Mil” shows SAM considering just how extraordinary her circumstances are, and she does this by thinking about the vastness of the galaxy. SAM explains that by the late 32nd century, Starfleet has made contact with 4,633 intelligent species, totaling over 37 trillion individuals. While it’s not certain if that population number is up-to-date within the Star Trek timeline, the sheer number of alien races is remarkable.
By the time of Starfleet Academy, Starfleet had been exploring the galaxy for centuries, though a major event called the Burn caused a 120-year slowdown. While everyone knows about Captain Kirk and the original Enterprise’s missions, many other ships have undertaken similar voyages. Crews like those on the Voyager have also reached the farthest parts of the galaxy, and Starfleet has created advanced technology for faster interstellar travel. It’s likely that by now, Starfleet has encountered most significant alien species.
The new series Starfleet Academy introduces several alien races we haven’t seen before. For example, the Khionian Darem Reymi can even briefly survive in space. We also meet Genesis Lythe, the driven daughter of an admiral from the Dar-Shan, another new race. However, these races aren’t necessarily new to Starfleet itself; SAM’s records suggest they were encountered some time ago and are already logged among known alien species.
How Star Trek’s Population Compares To Star Wars
Comparing the number of inhabitants in Star Trek to other sci-fi universes is always interesting. Star Wars, for example, has a much larger and more crowded galaxy. The older Star Wars stories (though no longer official canon) described over 20 million different intelligent species. Humans in Star Wars primarily lived near the center of the galaxy, and their settlements were crucial to the creation of the Old Republic, which explains why humans held so much power. The Empire led by Palpatine intentionally favored humans and often discriminated against aliens.
The early days of Star Trek‘s Federation were heavily influenced by human perspectives. Humans were the driving force behind the alliance, successfully bringing races like the Vulcans together, which is why the Federation was originally based on Earth. However, Starfleet Academy has brought about significant change. The Federation headquarters has now moved from Earth to Betazed, signaling a shift in power and a lessening of human dominance within the organization.
The world of Star Trek will undoubtedly keep expanding as new alien civilizations are discovered. While Starfleet has a strong military training program at Starfleet Academy, the core of the Federation remains its dedication to exploration. We can anticipate many more daring missions into the unknown. Star Trek consistently celebrates explorers and leaders over soldiers, and that’s a fitting tradition for this beloved, 60-year-old series.
I’m a huge Star Trek fan, and I’m really curious to hear what everyone else thinks about Starfleet Academy! What are your thoughts? Let’s chat about it over on the ComicBook Forum – come join the discussion!
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2026-02-09 20:41