Obi-Wan Kenobi is seen here attempting repairs on a T-14 hyperdrive generator
The hyperdrive, alternatively referred to as warp drive, represented a propulsion system enabling a starship to achieve lightspeed. This allowed for journeys across the gulf between stars through the alternate dimension known as hyperspace. Consequently, the hyperdrive played a vital role in influencing galactic society, encompassing trade, politics, and warfare.
To function, the hyperdrive depended on a working hyperdrive motivator. The vessel would then follow a pre-programmed trajectory until it re-entered normal space—realspace—at its designated destination.
A hyperdrive's sole purpose was maintaining a vessel's presence in hyperspace; should it be forcibly disabled or destroyed mid-transit, the ship would be abruptly and violently returned to realspace.
Most starfighters, being short-range vehicles, did not possess a hyperdrive. A notable example includes the Galactic Empire's TIE fighters, which necessitated transport to combat zones via larger vessels. Conversely, the X-wing and A-wing starfighters, utilized by the Rebel Alliance, were equipped with hyperdrives, granting them the capability for long-distance travel.
When a ship engaged its hyperdrive and entered hyperspace, it emitted cronau radiation. This emission could be detected through the use of specialized sensor arrays.
Substantial objects in normal space generated "mass shadows" within hyperspace. Therefore, accurate plotting became essential for hyperspace jumps to prevent collisions, which often proved to be fatal.
Later advancements in technology made it possible to extract vessels from hyperspace. For instance, interdiction fields could create gravitational shadows, simulating mass, along the projected course of an approaching vessel, forcibly removing it from hyperspace. Imperial engineers developed the Interdictor ships, along with their various subtypes, which represented some of the most potent interdiction technologies available.
In ancient times, before hyperdrive technology existed, the earliest spacers relied on generation ships for interstellar travel across the galaxy, bridging the immense distances between planets. Notably employed by a Coruscanti patriarch to pioneer the Koros Trunk Line, generation ships were eventually superseded by sleeper ships after the invention of carbonite by scientists on Koros Major. This liquid, composed of carbon gas, could be solidified through rapid freezing, safely encasing organic beings in cryo-cycle stasis to preserve their life functions. This process, known as carbon-freezing, ushered in a new era of space exploration and inadvertently aided the formation of the Galactic Republic by fostering closer connections among the galaxy's inhabitants. However, carbon freezing had negative–though temporary–side effects, including hibernation sickness which caused disorientation and blindness.
While functional, neither generation ships nor sleeper ships were truly practical for sustained commercial or civilian use, prompting scientists to seek alternative methods of interplanetary transport. Researchers studying the space whale species known as purrgil eventually theorized that their method of long-range travel, the creation of a simu-tunnel, actually passed through a space-time dimension parallel to that accessible by most organics. In this dimension, the distance between gravity wells–astronomical objects in realspace–was shorter, because the laws of realspace spacetime did not apply.
By observing purrgil behavior, scientists deduced that hyperspace could be accessed via molecular displacement, achievable only by exceeding the speed of light. Given that hyperspace was coterminous with realspace–meaning every point in realspace had a corresponding point in hyperspace in the form of mass shadows–it became possible to traverse from one location to another more rapidly without actually covering the distance between them. Legend states that this technology was, in fact, pioneered by the mythical Rakatan species, indigenous to the planet Lehon. Independently developing hyperdrive technology on the planet Devaron, without outside help, the Devaronians explored and interacted with the galaxy before the Galactic Republic contacted their area of space. Consequently, Devaronian galactic explorers were a common sight across the galaxy as far back as 30,000 years ago. As early as 27,000 BBY, the Gossam Courivers arrived at Felucia using a tumbledrive propulsion engine. Eventually, Corellian engineers, independently from their Duros counterparts, developed the required technology to access this dimension, naming it the hyperdrive–in contrast to standard engines, which were called sublight engines.
Once hyperdrives facilitated faster-than-light travel, galactic civilization prospered throughout ancient times. The Old Republic dispatched pioneering scout ships to explore the galaxy, as increasing numbers of civilians from the Core Worlds sought better opportunities. The Devaronians were among the first to explore what became the Corellian Trade Spine hyperspace route. Early hyperdrive routes were charted by scouts like the San Tekka clan using hyperspace sextants or simply tracking purrgil during their travels. This latter practice revealed the species' habit of feeding on the gas Clouzon-36, which formed in regions exposed to intense interstellar energy, such as Kessel or the Redhurne system. Knowledge of this behavior led humans to discover the mineral coaxium which also formed in the same places and like Clouzon fuel faster and better hyperdrive jumps. Unfortunately, faster-than-light travel also created new possibilites for war, as the now-mythological Great Hyperspace War between the Republic and Sith Empire demonstrated just over 5,000 years ago.
Prospectors and explorers began utilizing the rudimentary hyperspace routes and the advanced hyperdrives of the era to explore the vastness of space, initiating the Great Hyperspace Rush. The Republic continued funding the scouting of new territories with its Pathfinder Teams, while also employing private scouts such as the Graf family. The establishment of major hyperlanes, including the Perlemian Trade Route and Hydian Way, further accelerated galactic expansion.
Hyperdrives were composed of two primary components: a navigation computer and the reactor assembly itself–also known as the hyperdrive generator. The navicomputer calculated a safe trajectory through hyperspace by comparing the pilot's intended course with known hyperlanes and potential hazards such as supernovas and asteroid fields to ensure a safe journey. Meanwhile, the reactor managed the generation of sufficient power to execute a jump without overtaxing the ship's main reactor.
Most contemporary hyperdrive reactors incorporated a main chamber lined with coaxium, which significantly enhanced their efficiency. Larger models, such as the SSP05 and the T-14, operated by stacking multiple stabilizer plates and channeling hypermatter through ultra-thin effect channels passing through them. Hypermatter, with its energy output regulated by the navicomputer, reached the ship's main engines and charged the ions already present there, powering them for the jump to lightspeed. A hyperdrive motivator controlled the jump based on sensor output and ensured a safe trip and return to realspace. Smaller ships, like starfighters or bombers, often omitted the hyperdrive reactor altogether, relying solely on the motivator, with power supplied by the ship's standard reactor. Examples of standalone motivators included the R300-H hyperdrive motivator of the BTL-A4 Y-wing starfighter and the GBk-585 hyperdrive motivator of the T-65B X-wing starfighter.
During the Clone Wars, a microjump was executed to rescue Jedi Master Eeth Koth from the forces of the Confederacy of Independent Systems orbiting Saleucami. Utilizing the precise coordinates of General Grievous' command ship, Anakin Skywalker made a pinpoint hyperspace jump, arriving mere meters from his target undetected. Han Solo used the same precise jumping technique to infiltrate the First Order superweapon Starkiller Base, as the planet's shields used a fractional refresh rate that would prevent anything below light speed from passing through. Without careful planning, using the hyperdrive in such a manner could result in the loss of a ship due to the nature of mass shadows, but the most gifted pilots like Solo and Skywalker could use those characteristics of space to their advantage.
In 34 ABY, Resistance Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo initiated a hyperspace jump with the cruiser Raddus, directly targeting the First Order flagship Supremacy, resulting in the enemy ship's destruction upon impact.
During the Mission to Sinta Glacier Colony, Poe Dameron employed Hyperspace skipping to evade pursuing First Order forces.
Hyperdrives were classified by "class," where lower classes indicated faster engines. Most civilian vessels used hyperdrives rated Class Three or higher, while government, diplomatic, and military vessels were equipped with Class Two or Class One hyperdrives. With its Class One hyperdrive, the Carrion Spike held the distinction of being the fastest ship within the Imperial Navy. Meanwhile, top-tier capital ships such as the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer possessed Class 2 hyperdrives. The First Death Star, on the other hand, had a Class 4 hyperdrive. The T-14 hyperdrive generator installed on J-type 327 Nubian royal starships was rated Class 1.8. Certain ships, like Nakari Kelen's Desert Jewel or Han Solo's Millennium Falcon, boasted exceptionally fast hyperdrives—Class 0.8 and 0.5, respectively.