Alpha and Beta Quadrant star chart which depicts Rigel
Rigel (or Beta Orionis) is a blue supergiant star (spectral class B8Ia) and the primary of the Rigel system, located about 770 light years from Sol. The star is in or near Federation space. (TNG: "Conspiracy")
See also: Rigel Cup, Rigel-class Template:RigelSystem
Backround
Rigel was mentioned as a small note on a very large star chart graphic created for TNG: "Conspiracy." It was the image behind the chair in the room where Dexter Remmick was killed. It appears to be located within an outlined block, which may indicate that it was surrounded or was even a part of Federation territory at the time. In TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise," Rigel was also listed, in an alternate timeline, on a tactical situation monitor showing the progress of the Klingons in their war with the Federation.
Although not canonically established, some assume that another star with a similar-sounding name exists much closer to Sol, thus explaining how the Enterprise NX-01 could reach this star at all, or how planets orbiting Rigel could be out-of-reach (TOS: "Mudd's Women") and highly populated (TOS: "The Doomsday Machine") at the same time. Possibly, "Rigel" was sometimes refering to "Rigil Kentaurus," another name for Alpha Centauri. However, a hypothetical second Rigel created to cope with those problems is called Beta Rigel in the Star Trek Star Charts.
External Links
- Rigel at Wikipedia
- Rigel at the Internet Stellar Database