hyperdrive was a starship engine system that allowed vessels to enter hyperspace to traverse the vast distances of space faster than lightspeed.

The construction and working principle of a hyperdrive were based on Hyperdrive Theory. The term described the engine and all components required for its use, such as the hyperdrive motivator or hyperdrive field guide.

In numbers, the hyperdrive allowed travelers to traverse a galaxy spanning over 120,000 light-years in only a few hours or days, the exact travel time depending on a number of factors including destination, point of origin, route, and class of hyperdrive.

The hyperdrive was generally built from a titanium-chromium compound. This compound was specially designed to allow hyperdrives to withstand the continual stress caused by traveling between the dimensions of realspace and hyperspace.