Set phasers to YES! Star Trek: Discovery has been given the go-ahead and will be returning for season five.

While it may not have been the easiest series to watch if you're based in the UK (you can thank licensing awkwardness for that). Star Trek: Discovery finally has a long-standing home at Paramount+ alongside its franchise brothers and sisters, Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Star Trek: Lower Decks, and Star Trek: Prodigy.

Now it's just a waiting game for the latest instalments. So when are we going to see Star Trek: Discovery's next outing? And what can we expect? Here's everything you need to know.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5 potential release date: When will it air?

Now Playing: Star Trek: Discovery | Season 4 Official Trailer | Paramount+

Star Trek: Discovery season five was given the green light in January 2022, as part of a mega announcement regarding the future of the Star Trek Universe.

Alongside the announcement, it was revealed Picard will end with season three, and Strange New Worlds has been renewed for season two.

Unfortunately, beyond this, there's been no indication as to when it will be back on our screens. Even the previous series doesn't have a rough regular release slot, so we don't have that to go on.

Season 1 was released in September 2017, season two launched in January 2019, season three was in October 2020 and season four was in November 2021. See? No real correlation.

However, keeping with the show's tradition to get a series out once a year, we can hope that season five will land on our screens in the latter half of 2022.

We'll keep you updated when we know more.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5 cast: Who's in it?

While an official cast list hasn't been disclosed just yet, Sonequa Martin-Green has already confirmed she will be back in the lead role of Captain Michael Burnham.

As for the rest of the cast, we would expect all of your favourites to return, including Doug Jones as the starfleet Kelpien, Saru, Anthony Rapp as Paul Stamets, Mary Wiseman as Sylvia Tilly, David Ajala as Cleveland 'Book' Booker, Wilson Cruz as Hugh Culber and Tig Notaro as Jett Reno.

Then there's always the potential for some news faces to join too.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5 plot: What will happen?

Of course, the premise for season five is firmly under wraps, but now that season four is finished, we can start to theorise what lies around the next star system.

Speaking exclusively to Digital Spy, Sonequa Martin-Green said: "I can say that it's going to be refreshing. It's going to be invigorating. And I think it's going to be lovely – in the truest sense of the word."

She also suggested there will be a bigger attachment coming our way in terms of the Booker/Burnham romance, saying the pair will "always be tied together in some way".

Well... consider us intrigued!

"I think it's very much what they say in that last moment they have together in [the finale] – that Kwejian quote. It's very much that," she said.

The "Kwejian quote" (as in the language of Book’s homeworld) was "Kwakoni Yiquan", which we previously learned translates to: "We've parted a hundred times, may we part to rejoin a hundred more."

Which is very sweet, but also doesn't suggest an easy road for them to be endgame.

In season four, the series was focused on the emergence of a mysterious new life form later known as Species 10-C, as well as Ruon Tarka's (Shawn Doyle) villainous plan to put the whole universe at risk.

At the end of the season four finale, viewers saw the crew take control of the Species 10-C crisis and Earth and Ni'Var avoid the destruction of the Dark Matter Anomaly, or DMA. As a result, the United Federation Planets welcomed Earth back.

Will Earth's return to the Federation mean that season five could feature more terrestrial action?

The show's director, Olatunde Osunsanmi, has revealed that season five will actually be combining new and old elements from the iconic franchise as way to capture the essence of the original series. Trekkers rejoice!

"The galaxy's a big place where incredible things can happen. Season five is shaping up to be... all I can say is that – it's not time travel – but we go back into the past to get further into the future," he told ScreenRant.

"There's this old version of Star Trek that exists. And this new version that's been created by Alex but there's a lot of things we still love about the old version.

"So it's about pulling from there... not necessarily stories or characters but more themes, and process, and how those stories are told and applying it to what we do in the future. And that includes [Burnham's] character and things she does as a Captain."

Source - Digitalspy