USS Challenger (NCC-10540)

The USS Challenger (NCC-10540) was an Ambassador-class starship operated by the Federation Starfleet in the mid-24th century. In mid-2339, it was assigned to patrol the border with the Cardassian Union.

The Challenger was among the first production batch Ambassador-class ships, making it a sister ship to the USS Tempest (NCC-10535) and the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C). The Challenger was named for two early human spaceflight craft - one of the lunar landing craft in the planet's first series of crewed visits to the satellite, and a space shuttle named for the lander that was later lost due to a malfunction during launch.