Fans around the world celebrate Star Trek Day every September 8th to honor the legacy Star Trek and series creator Gene Roddenberry have made on popular culture around the world.

On September 8, 1966, a television series pilot known as Star Trek introduced American television audiences to the science fiction series. It was the first time a science fiction series would explore morality through pop fiction narratives. The series put actors in the forefront making scientific arguments, while providing peaceful solutions to problems and encouraging multicultural unity.

Star Trek follows the adventures of the starship USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) and its crew. The series is set in the Milky Way galaxy, circa 2266 through 2269. The ship and its crew are led by Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), First Officer and Science Officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and Chief Medical Officer Leonard H. “Bones” McCoy (DeForest Kelley). Each episode begins with the speech that ends with the line “Where no man has gone before.”

Star Trek also stars Nichelle Nichols as Uhura, James Doohan as Montgomery “Scotty” Scott, Eddie Paskey as Lieutenant Leslie, George Takei as Hikaru Sulu, Walter Koenig as Pavel Chekov and Majel Barrett as Christine Chapel.