Star Trek: 10 Secrets Of The USS Kelvin You Need To Know

10. USS Landlubber

The USS Kelvin was initially conceived of by production designer Scott Chambliss and director JJ Abrams as akin to the USS Reliant; described by illustrator Ryan Church as "a foil to the Enterprise, it looks less majestic and sexy, and it's instantly distinguishable from the Enterprise."

Oh, and it's not the USS Kelvin, it's the USS Iowa.

During the development of Star Trek (2009), the ship whose destruction would begin the film was actually called the USS Iowa, NCC-1201.

According to screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, the name Iowa was intended to be a "nod" to the line in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home which established James T. Kirk's birthplace as Iowa (he only worked in outer space).

Ultimately, though, the writers thought better of trying to bend Star Trek continuity to fit the new film's plot, calling the idea "too radical".

Still, in order to make this version of Kirk's birth work within established lore, Orci and Kurtzman reasoned that, had the Narada not attacked the USS Kelvin, the ship would have safely returned to Earth where Jim would've been born in Iowa as almighty canon intended.