Renée Picard's Europa Mission

In 2024 astronaut Renée Picard, an ancestor of Jean-Luc Picard, was preparing to fly the Europa Mission, an expedition to Jupiter's moon Europa. History would remember it as a turning point: the mission's discovery of life there helped humanity look outward again at a time when the planet was sliding toward crisis.

In 2401 the meddling of Q created an altered timeline ruled by a xenophobic Confederation of Earth. To set it right, Picard and his companions travelled back to 2024 aboard a Borg-modified La Sirena and found that the mission was the key point to protect. Geneticist Adam Soong, manipulated by Q, tried to sabotage it, and Renée herself, weighed down by doubt, came close to stepping aside.

With Picard's help and the intervention of his friends, the launch went ahead as planned and the timeline was restored. The episode also shows how much the 23rd- and 24th-century Federation owes to fragile, very human decisions taken in the early 21st century.