Star Trek legend George Takei demands royalties after seeing US Space Force logo

Star Trek fans might be setting their phasers to kill after seeing the new US Space Force logo.

US President Donald Trump unveiled the new military arm's official logo on Saturday (NZ time), and it didn't take long for fans of the long-running sci-fi franchise to note its similarity to that of Starfleet, the fictional space navy which employed William T Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard.

"After consultation with our Great Military Leaders, designers, and others, I am pleased to present the new logo for the United States Space Force, the Sixth Branch of our Magnificent Military!" Trump tweeted.

George Takei, who starred as Hikaru Sulu in the original series, responded quickly.

"Ahem. We are expecting some royalties from this," he tweeted.

CNN reporter Jim Acosta presented the two logos side-by-side, letting followers connect the dots. 

Both logos are circular with the name of the organisation and department around the edge, both have stars in the background, and both have a triangular shape with something orbiting it. 

The only major difference is the Space Force has MMXIX on it, the year it was founded in Roman numerals.

Star Wars writer Chuck Wendig simply tweeted "jfc", which stands for "Jesus f***ing Christ".

Others noted the new Space Force logo isn't remarkably different to that used by the former Air Force Space Command, which the Space Force replaced.

Then again, the Space Command didn't come into existence until 1982, 16 years after Star Trek debuted on television.

Others joked the logo of Star Trek's evil Terran Empire might have suited Trump better, considering Star Trek's message has been one of peace and harmony, rather than division.

If it is a homage, it wouldn't be the first or second from a US space-focused agency. NASA's first space shuttle was called Enterprise - the same as the ship Kirk captained in 1966.

The new logo bears no resemblance at all to a bunch of mock-ups unveiled last year, which took inspiration from 1960s-era NASA graphic design.

Star Trek's official Twitter account has been silent on the matter, keeping focused on the premiere episode of its new series, Star Trek: Picard. 

Source: www.newshub.co.nz