Science Fiction’s Ten Coolest Spaceships

Science fiction is undoubtedly one of the world’s most widely appreciated entertainment mediums, and spaceships are one of the genre’s key aspects. Space exploration wouldn’t be possible without vehicles of some sort. Whether transport ships, warships, or ships of exploration, spaceships make it all possible. Most of them are pretty cool-looking and do some pretty impressive things.

Sci-fi fans have seen ships from every quadrant of the galaxy and beyond, from lightspeed to phaser canons to cloaking devices, and they never cease to amaze. Over the decades, the debate over whose ship is best has raged. Could the Enterprise take on a Star Destroyer? Could Serenity outmaneuver the Rocinante? Here, we will put any doubts to rest. These are the ten best spaceships in science fiction!

Related: 10 Weapons That Belong in Science Fiction

10 The Executer – Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi

Darth Vader’s flagship, the Executer , is a Super Star Destroyer or Executer-Class Star Dreadnaught. Designed by Lira Wessex, this ship class was the Imperial fleet’s most powerful. At 62,335 feet (19,000 meters) in length, it could reach 62 moh (100 km/h) before calculating a hyperdrive route. These starships had a crew of 280,784 and could carry 38,000 troops and support staff. The Executor-class possessed long-range sensors and had consumables for six years.

Vader killed Grand General Cassio Tagge, who initially was in command of the Executer and had spoken out against the construction of a second Death Star. Vader took control of the ship and Tagge’s fleet. Rebel Alliance intelligence reports the construction of over a dozen Executer-Class ships by the Battle of Endor. Those captured after the Empire’s fall were deconstructed for parts by the New Republic.^[1]

9 The Razorback – The Expanse

Also known as the Screaming Firehawk, the Razorback is one of the fastest ships in the Expanse universe. The Razorback, a wedge-shaped, modified Series 6 Sunflare ship, is a stripped-down racing vessel with oversized engines optimized for speed and famously piloted by Julie Mao. About 82 feet (25 meters) in length, it is built for racing and only seats two.

Chrisjen Avasarala and Bobbie Draper used the Razorback to escape from Jules-Pierre Mao’s yacht. Later, Bobbi and Alex Kamal used the sleek ship on several missions. The ship’s oversized engines give it a tactical advantage. However, there is a drawback to that kind of speed. When pulling such high-gravity maneuvers, the pilot must inject themself with a drug cocktail, which ultimately leads to Kamal’s death. The Razorback might be too fast for her crew’s good, but she’s gotten them out of some tight situations.^[2]

8 NCC 1701-D The Enterprise – Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek is one of the most prolific science fiction franchises ever and has captivated viewers since the mid-1960s. While there have been many Starfleet vessels and several others named Enterprise, the “D” was the best. It had 42 decks and a crew and passenger complement of 1,014 people. The D could maintain Warp 9.6 for twelve hours. She had twelve phaser arrays, two torpedo launchers, a supply of 250 photon torpedoes, and hundreds of antimatter mines.

The ship was protected by a high-capacity shield grid that could operate on multiple frequencies. This Enterprise could separate its saucer section during emergencies, allowing for many tactical options that a single ship could not offer. Perhaps the most fascinating accessory available on the D was the holodecks, which could recreate any place, time, or story ever written or existed and allow crew members to live in it. The adventures of this Enterprise ship and crew are legendary in the lore of fiction and Starfleet.^[3]

7 Serenity — Firefly

Set in the 26th century, this series follows the nine-person crew of the Firefly-class vessel Serenity, a small transport ship, as they earn a living through various legal and illegal means in a post-Civil War galaxy. Set in 2517, Firefly series creator Joss Whedon designed her from stem to stern. She is the property of Captain Malcolm Reynolds and piloted by Hoban “Wash” Washburne, husband of first mate Zoe Alleyne.

While this fictional universe is impressive with technology and interstellar travel, that travel is slow, akin to steamship travel in the Victorian era. Malcolm modified her cargo bays with hidden smuggling compartments capable of defeating most scanners. But it wasn’t just cargo space and creature comforts that made the Serenity. With a whole load of fuel and an empty payload, Serenity could travel up to 400 A.U. before refueling, which is pretty good for an outlaw ship in the Verse.^[4]

6 Millennium Falcon – Star Wars

Possibly the most famous spaceship ever created, piloted by Han Solo. While initially called a “hunk of junk,” the Falcon has got it where it counts. The Millennium Falcon, designated originally YT 492727ZED and formerly known as the Stellar Envoy, was a Corellian YT-1300 light freighter built about 60 years before it helped blow up the Death Star. Lando Calrissian and Han Solo modified comfort, tactics, and secret smuggling compartments.

Not only is the Falcon the only ship to make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs, but it was also personally involved in blowing up both Deathstars and is known as a symbol of freedom throughout the galaxy. She has appeared in two film trilogies, countless novels & comic books, and several television appearances. The Millennium Falcon is one of the fastest and coolest ships in the galaxy.^[5]

5 The Battlestar Galactica – Battlestar Galactica

Famous for the most successful reboot in sci-fi history, the Battlestar Galactica is an epic generational ship in search of a home called Earth. This Colonial capital ship combines the functions of an aircraft carrier and a battleship. It was designed and deployed after the outbreak of hostilities between the Cylons and Colonials. Under the command of Commander (later Admiral) Adama, the Galactica survives a near-genocidal nuclear strike by the Cylons.

Adama leads a ragtag fleet of human colonists searching for the legendary 13th colony, Earth. The Galactica contains both a complete Raptor (military transport ship) and Viper (single-person fighter) complement and roughly 5,000 people. The Galactica is the first and only Colonial ship to complete an FTL jump into and out of the inner atmosphere of a planet. The adventures of the Galactica and its crew are as legendary as any in the fictional universe.^[6]

4 NCC 75633 The Defiant – Star Trek

The original Defiant was NX-74205, designed by Starfleet to combat the Borg. By 2370, however, the Borg threat had been temporarily neutralized, but war with the Dominion was becoming more likely. Recently promoted Captain Benjamin L Sisko had helped design the Defiant after the attack at Wolf 359 and requested it be pulled out of mothballs in response to that Dominion threat.

While the Defiant is officially classified as an escort ship, she is undoubtedly known as Starfleet’s first warship and is heavily armored. The initial problem with the Defiant was that it was too heavily armored and nearly flew itself apart during shakedown tests. This ship has four phaser canons, three phaser emitters, four forward and two aft photon/quantum torpedo launchers.

Additionally, the Defiant has ablative armor to complement its shields and a maximum warp speed of 9.6. That ship was destroyed in DS9’s final run, but they replaced Sisko’s ship with the USS Sao Paulo, renamed the Defiant NCC 75633. As Commander Riker once said, “That’s one tough little ship!”^[7]

3 The Tardis – Doctor Who

The most important thing to know about this time-traveling police box is that it’s bigger on the inside than on the outside. Doctor Who has enjoyed decades of success over two incarnations and is still running today. TARDIS is an acronym for “Time and Relative Dimension in Space.” Since 1963, the TARDIS has traveled time and space piloted by The Doctor and their companions.

TARDISes are built with a “chameleon circuit,” a camouflage technology that changes the ship’s exterior to blend into the environment of whatever time or place it lands in. The Doctor’s TARDIS always resembles a 1960s London police box because it’s a British show. This ship also acts as a universal translator.

The TARDIS is always shown to be strong enough to tow other ships and planets and can even withstand black holes. It can also generate a “perception filter” that causes people to ignore it. It can produce a giant, invisible air bubble around its exterior, allowing occupants to survive in an area lacking oxygen. It can even create a bridge-tunnel for occupants to cross over to other ships or a space station.^[8]

2 The Rocinante – The Expanse

Originally commissioned as the MCRN Tachi, she was stationed aboard the Martian flagship, the MCRN Donnager, when an unknown force attacked it. Prisoners aboard the Donnager escaped the attack aboard the gunship Tachi. On the run from both the Martian and Earth governments, the survivors renamed her the Rocinante (Roci).

Resembling a tall, slender structure, the ship is designed with a floor-by-floor layout starting at the drive cone and reactor and extending “upwards” to the flight deck and sensor systems. Its facilities include a machine shop, galley, crew quarters, medical bay, storage area, command center, and flight deck. Roci also has a lot of guns; she is a gunship, after all. The ship’s heavy hitter is a railgun, capable of firing 1-kilogram UNN-issue tungsten rounds at approximately 32,742 feet/second (9,980 meters/second). Additionally, Roci carries six canons, two torpedo launchers, and four reconnaissance drones. Three of them are named Pearl, Lee, and Lifeson.^[9]

1 Old Bessie (The Planet Express Ship) – Futurama

Owned by Professor Farnsworth and painted electric mucus green, Old Bessie has traveled to every corner of the galaxy, survived black holes, navigated through asteroid belts, and seen new worlds. She uses dark matter and a dark matter accelerator to move the universe around it instead of moving the ship itself. It’s reasonably well fortified, with a laser cannon and two torpedo tubes (although four are shown inside the vessel). Old Bessie’s shielding has held up against countless missiles, yet the ship falls victim to such things as rocks while parked, thanks to cartoon physics.

In specific episodes, Bessie develops a personality and becomes a self-operating robotic ship, but it doesn’t last. Old Bessie has an unending supply of gadgets and weapons to help her crew complete their overly complicated deliveries. She has never failed to get the job done, making her one of the coolest spaceships in all of science fiction.^[10]