# 14-14 Designing Voyager with Rick Sternbach

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-trek-files-a-roddenberry-star-trek-podcast-6385998/14-14-designing-voyager-with-rick-sternbach
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-trek-files-a-roddenberry-star-trek-podcast-6385998/14-14-designing-voyager-with-rick-sternbach.md
Podcast: [The Trek Files: A Roddenberry Star Trek Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-trek-files-a-roddenberry-star-trek-podcast-6385998)
Published: 2025-12-09T17:35:00+00:00
Episode link: https://thetrekfiles.trekfm.libsynpro.com/14-14-designing-voyager-with-rick-sternbach
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/thetrekfiles/14-14_Voyager_designs_1994.mp3?dest-id=631303
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-trek-files-a-roddenberry-star-trek-podcast-6385998/episodes/14-14-designing-voyager-with-rick-sternbach
Duration seconds: 1524

## Resource

Before it was a spoon-shaped ship lost in the Delta Quadrant, the U.S.S. Voyager was a series of sketches, foam-core models, and engineering daydreams from the mind of artist and tech consultant Rick Sternbach . As we continue marking the 30th anniversary of Star Trek: Voyager , Rick returns to The Trek Files to walk us through the behind-the-scenes process of designing one of Trek's most distinctive starships. From the early design directives—"smaller, leaner, faster"—to the collaborative process with producers like Rick Berman and Jeri Taylor , we explore how Voyager took shape on paper and on screen. Along the way, Rick and Larry discuss the evolution of Voyager's signature articulated nacelles, the integration of set blueprints into exterior design, and the legacy of real-world science and scientists (including Minsky and Bussard) that informed Trek's fictional tech. And yes, Rick even drops a bit of headcanon about post-Delta Quadrant refits to the Intrepid-class. Is the EMH evidence that Voyager's computer is sentient? Did the Voyager design secretly borrow from The Runabout ? Could curvier nacelles have saved the timeline? This week, we boldly go into the mind of one of Star Trek's most influential designers. Documents and additional references: Star Trek: Voyager concept art and related documents The Trek Files Season 14 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today !

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-trek-files-a-roddenberry-star-trek-podcast-6385998/episodes/14-14-designing-voyager-with-rick-sternbach/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-trek-files-a-roddenberry-star-trek-podcast-6385998/14-14-designing-voyager-with-rick-sternbach.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.