Editing Warp Drive (section)

==History==
[[File:2018-07-29 14 24 37 Sign at the entrance to the Northrop Grumman Space Center at Warp Drive along Atlantic Boulevard in Sterling, Loudoun County, Virginia.jpg|thumb|right|[[Northrop Grumman]] facility entrance sign using the street name]]
[[Orbital Sciences Corporation]] was founded in 1982 to provide [[rocket engine]]s and parts to [[aerospace]] and defense customers public and private. It has always been [[corporate headquarters|headquartered]] in [[Northern Virginia]], like many other [[Arms industry|defense contractors]]. In 1993 it moved into its current complex in Sterling.<ref name="Archived orbital history">{{cite web|title=Milestones|url=http://www.orbital.com/CorporateInformation/Milestones/1990-1999/|date=2014|access-date=March 9, 2016|archive-date=April 5, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140405071618/http://www.orbital.com/CorporateInformation/Milestones/1990-1999/ }}</ref>

At that time the short street where Orbital was located was known as [[Steeplechase (horse racing)|Steeplechase]] Drive. In 2011 the company's executives, who were [[Star Trek fandom|fans]] of ''[[Star Trek]]'', asked the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors to formally rename the street Warp Drive, after the [[faster-than-light]] "[[warp drive]]" propulsion technology used by the [[media franchise|franchise]]'s [[starship]]s. At the last meeting of the year, the board voted unanimously to grant the request.<ref name="Patch article">{{cite news|last=Smith|first=Dusty|title=For Loudoun's Steeplechase, It's Warp Drive|url=http://patch.com/virginia/ashburn/for-loudoun-s-steeplechase-it-s-warp-drive|newspaper=[[Patch Media|Ashburn Patch]]|date=December 8, 2011|access-date=March 9, 2016}}</ref>

Officially, the county said the change was made to "improve the identity and to better integrate the Orbital campus." But supervisors were less formal when discussing the issue, which had originally been on a consent agenda. Several cast their votes with [[catchphrase]]s from [[Star Trek: The Original Series|the original ''Star Trek'' series]]. "To Orbital, [[live long and prosper]]," said Stevens Miller, who lived in Sterling. Board member Eugene Delgaudio asked, "Can you give me any speed, [[Scotty (Star Trek)|Scotty]]?",<ref name="Loudoun Times-Mirror article" /> incorrectly using a [[Scottish English|Scottish accent]] as he did so.<ref name="Patch article" />

One supervisor, Jim Burton of the Blue Ridge District, tried to be serious. He reminded the board that "warp" had other meanings. "You need to think about it before you vote on it" he warned. "Would you prefer '[[Beam me up, Scotty]]?'", the board's chairman replied. In the end the vote was unanimous.<ref name="Loudoun Times-Mirror article" /> "What more uplifting motion could there possibly be than something that will literally make law out of a Star Trek joke?" concluded Miller. "It's a great idea. I look forward to driving on Warp Drive myself." Orbital agreed to reimburse the county for the approximately $500 it would cost to replace the street sign.<ref name="Patch article" />

The online ''[[Patch Media|Ashburn Patch]]'' noted how the name change reflected the changes to Loudoun County in the past two decades. While the western portion of the county has stayed largely rural and agricultural, as evoked by the street's original name of Steeplechase Drive, eastern Loudoun has grown tremendously during that same time as many businesses, in particular high-tech defense contractors like Orbital, have located in the area. "So Orbital's request to change the name of the road along its perimeter from Steeplechase Drive to Warp Drive brings to mind the county's dichotomy," it observed. "Out with the horse-racing theme and in with space."<ref name="Patch article" />

On September 18, 2017, [[Northrop Grumman]] announced plans to purchase Orbital for $7.8 billion in cash plus assumption of $1.4 billion in debt.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://www.orbitalatk.com/news-room/publications/files/NG_PR.pdf | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180127143225/https://www.orbitalatk.com/news-room/publications/files/NG_PR.pdf | archive-date = January 27, 2018 | title = Northrop Grumman to Acquire Orbital ATK for $9.2 Billion | publisher = Northrop Grumman Corporation | date = September 18, 2017 | location = Falls Church and Dulles, Virginia | format = PDF}}</ref> Orbital shareholders approved the buyout on November 29, 2017.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://news.northropgrumman.com/news/releases/orbital-atk-shareholders-vote-to-approve-acquisition-by-northrop-grumman|title=Orbital ATK Shareholders Vote to Approve Acquisition by Northrop Grumman|website=Northrop Grumman Newsroom | date = November 29, 2017 | location = Falls Church, Virginia | publisher = Northrop Grumman Corporation | access-date = July 23, 2018}}</ref> The FTC approved the acquisition with conditions on June 5, 2018, and one day later, Orbital was absorbed and became Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems.<ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2018/06/ftc-imposes-conditions-northrop-grummans-acquisition-solid-rocket|title=FTC Imposes Conditions on Northrop Grumman's Acquisition of Solid Rocket Motor Supplier Orbital ATK, Inc.|publisher=Federal Trade Commission|date=June 5, 2018|access-date=June 6, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://spacenews.com/acquisition-of-orbital-atk-approved-company-renamed-northrop-grumman-innovation-systems/ | title=Acquisition of Orbital ATK approved, company renamed Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems | first = Sandra | last = Erwin | date = June 5, 2018 | work = SpaceNews | access-date = July 23, 2018}}</ref>