USS Voyager
USS Voyager was transported 70,000 light-years into the far side of the Delta quadrant, in 2371, by the Caretaker (a.k.a Nacene). This point of the delta quadrant is so far away from earth that it would take 75 years to reach Federation space even at maximum warp. Q says that Humans weren't supposed to be in the Delta Quadrant for another 100 years.

Voyager was assumed lost until the crew managed to use an old array network to contact Starfleet Command in 2374. They were also able to send hundreds of kiloquads of data about this previously uncharted quadrant. When the array network was destroyed, the crew feared that they would never hear from Starfleet or their families again. Starfleet Command managed to contact Voyager through the project pathfinder led by Reginald Barclay in 2376. This opened the possibility for the crew to contact Starfleet headquarters and their families if needed.

Voyager picked up a few new crewmembers from the Delta quadrant. Neelix and Kes signed on in 2371 after the crew helped rescue Kes from the Kazon. They encountered The Borg In 2374 and helped Seven of Nine to regain her humanity after being assimilated by the Borg approximately 20 years earlier. Other species that originate from the Delta Quadrant include the Vidiian, Talaxians, Ocampa, Malon and the Hirogen.

Other starships/vessels
Other vessels pulled into the Delta Quadrant by the Caretaker's coherent tetryon beam includes The Equinox, Chakotay's maquis raider and the Cardassian missile Dreadnought.
Seven and her parents, who were exobiologists, travelled to the delta quadrant with their ship The Raven to research the borg. Their experiment back-fired and they were all assimilated. Friendship 1, which was a probe launched from Earth in 2067, carrying a message of peace to other worlds was also found on a planet in the delta quadrant.

Phenomena carrying Voyager
closer to earth:
- Kes' gift (9,500 light years)
- Malon vortex (2,500 light years)
- Borg slipstream (10,000 light years)
- Borg transwarp (20,000 light years)
- Vaaduar space corridor (200 light y)
- Graviton catapult (600 light years)
- Borg transwarp hub (all the way)

Click on the map to the right to find out more about Voyager's path towards alpha quadrant and earth.