Hyperspace

Hyperspace is a popular superluminal form of transport used in many sci-fi universes, including Star Wars.

Hyperspace in Star Wars

Starships in Star Wars use hyperdrives to enter hyperspace. The exact nature of hyperspace is largely unknown, but there are various ideas as to what it is, such as:

• Hyperspace being another dimension of space, one where the lightspeed barrier is non-existent
• A parallel universe
• Simply the way the universe is viewed when traveling faster than light

Hyperspace in Other Science Fiction

Starships in Babylon 5 accomplish interplanetary and interstellar journeys by traveling through hyperspace. In B5, hyperspace is essentially a separate universe that ships can enter or exit through vortexes opened by jump gates or jump engines. Hyperspace essentially creates shortcuts between locations in real space, because the distance between equivalent points in the two universes is not the same. Hyperspace is mostly empty of matter, but it is filled with energy moving in random ways that can make navigation difficult; ships must follow routes carefully mapped and marked with beacons or risk becoming lost.