Gurian, Gerald (May 4, 2008). "Bill Theiss Lost Interview". Startrekpropauthority.blogspot.com . Retrieved January 23, 2013. Gold trimming has also been seen on uniforms of different colors like red or blue, and is used to indicate the rank and command level of that member within that class in those cases. This is done by adding accents, piping, trimming, and embellishments. The ranking was also depicted by the number of stripes on the sleeve – the more stripes, the higher the ranking.

Some licensed Star Trek publications present some insignia that contradict the ones shown on screen or in other publications. For example, the second and third editions of The Star Trek Encyclopedia offer differing insignia for various Starfleet ranks. [23] Additionally, some Star Trek publications, including officially licensed ones, posit additional ranks that are not seen or mentioned in live-action productions. Explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations, boldly go where no one has gone before! The early first season episode " Charlie X" shows the captain and first officer of the Antares wearing a differently shaped insignia. As Roddenberry clarifiedPrequel era [ edit ] Star Trek: Enterprise [ edit ] Sailors of the Year for the year 2001 in Enterprise uniforms with members of the cast. Photo courtesy of US Navy The original series Starfleet uniforms do not include headgear of any sort, including the officer's combination cap and service side cap. Other uniform designs appeared briefly in individual episodes, always following the theme of a colored or differentiated shoulder yoke. Examples include cadet uniforms in several episodes (including " The First Duty"). Wesley Crusher's 'Acting Ensign' gray costume was never specifically identified as a uniform, but it also exhibited a shoulder yoke design.

The 29th-century officers in the Star Trek: Voyager episode " Relativity" wear chevron-like collar insignia (worn in a horizontal line like the pips and oriented pointing forwards towards the collar). Captain Braxton wears four gold chevrons (equivalent to four gold pips) and Lieutenant Ducane wears two gold chevrons (equivalent to two gold pips). The new Starfleet insignia is a silver diamond shape inset with a gold "Arrowhead" symbol facing to the left; this is probably a combination communicator and temporal beacon. The tunics have a quilted fabric in branch color on the right shoulder and sleeve (Blue for Command, Olive Drab Brown for Operations, and Gray for Sciences) and branch-color piping on the edge of the shoulder yoke. Rank for admirals (as worn by Admiral Alexander Marcus) is indicated by 1 to 5 paired diamond-shaped gold-metal "pips" worn on the flag officer tunic's shoulder-boards. Marcus is described as a fleet Admiral (usually equivalent to a NATO five-star military rank) and wears 5 paired gold pips on his shoulder-boards. There are other ranks mentioned in the movies (Kirk himself is offered the rank of Vice-Admiral in Star Trek: Beyond). If the rank scheme is similar to NATO ranks they would be: commodores wear 1 paired gold pip, Rear Admirals wear 2 paired gold pips, vice-admirals wear 3 paired gold pips, and admirals wear 4 paired gold pips. Alternatively, the rank of fleet captain (a senior grade of captain and brevet flag officer rank) is signified by 5 paired silver pips, and the rank of admiral is always signified by 5 paired gold pips regardless of grade.The rank indicators used in the pilots and the production series differed because Roddenberry and Theiss had not yet worked out a consistent system for officer-grade indicators on the uniforms; this they would do after the second pilot. In Enterprise, field officers and crewmembers wear duty uniforms consisting of a dark long-sleeved undershirt and blue jumpsuit with colored piping around the shoulders and, occasionally, baseball caps. There is also a desert uniform with khaki pants and white shirt. Both uniforms have a United Earth Starfleet patch (featuring the stylized arrowhead emblem) on the right upper arm, and a patch left upper arm denoting the ship one is serving on. Enterprise, set before all other incarnations, did not include characters who hold the ranks of lieutenant commander or lieutenant, junior grade. The highest-ranking admiral seen wears two sets of three-pip insignia.