Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery Season 4, Episode 6 - "Stormy Weather".
One detail in the latest episode suggests that the USS Enterprise may exist in Star Trek: Discovery's 32nd century and, if so, its new mission changes Star Trek canon. In Star Trek: Discovery season 4, Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and her crew face a Dark Matter Anomaly AKA the DMA, a massive gravimetric anomaly that threatens the United Federation of Planets. After the DMA destroyed Kwejian, Book's (David Ajala) homeworld, Discovery's top minds have been trying to learn all they can about the anomaly, which was sent from outside the galaxy by Unknown Species 10C.
Back when Star Trek: Discovery season 2 was still set in the 23rd century, the eponymous starship fought side-by-side with the USS Enterprise. Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), the Enterprise's Captain, took command of the Discovery as they chased the Red Angel across the galaxy, which ultimately led to the Starfleet heroes stopping the rogue A.I. called Control from wiping out all organic life in the galaxy. The USS Discovery left the Enterprise behind when it time traveled one way to 3189, just as Michael Burnham bid goodbye to her adoptive brother, Spock (Ethan Peck), forever. Of course, with Spock (Leonard Nimoy) as its First Officer, the Starship Enterprise achieved legendary status under the command of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner). The USS Enterprise-D and E commanded by Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) continued the starship's legacy in Star Trek: The Next Generation's 24th-century era.
The Enterprise's existence in the 32nd century may have been finally confirmed by Captain Saru (Doug Jones) in Star Trek: Discovery season 4, episode 6, "Stormy Weather." At the start of the episode, Saru gave a status update to Captain Burnham about Starfleet investigating a subspace rift left behind by the DMA. The Kelpien casually mentioned that, "Enterprise noted heated plasma. Voyager charted ionized particles." This could, of course, refer to past iterations of the ships, but the lack of firm confirmation leaves it open to interpretation that a contemporary Enterprise exists in the 32nd century. After not being mentioned at all in Star Trek: Discovery season 3, Saru simply stating that the Enterprise exists without the show giving the legendary starship any fanfare was a bit of a shock. Meanwhile, Saru noting that the Enterprise and Voyager teamed up to investigate the DMA is the first canonical instance of the two headlining Star Trek ships working together because Picard's Enterprise and Captain Katheryn Janeway's (Kate Mulgrew) USS Voyager never interacted in the 24th century.
The 32nd-century Enterprise also wasn't seen and was just spoken of in one line of dialogue, which is disappointing. After all, Star Trek: Discovery revealing starships and other Starfleet constructs named after legacy characters has become a growing tradition since the show shifted its setting to the 32nd century. Already, the USS Nog, the Archer Space Dock, the USS Janeway, and the NSS T'Pau have been introduced in Star Trek: Discovery seasons 3 and 4. The Archer Space Dock, named for Captain Jonathan Archer of Star Trek: Enterprise, even got a touching unveiling complete with his show's theme music. Naturally, Trekkers would have hoped the long-awaited first mention of the USS Enterprise in the 32nd century would have gotten the trumpeting the Archer Space Dock received.
Hopefully, Star Trek: Discovery will actually show the USS Enterprise in season 4. Until it does, there are numerous questions Saru name-dropping the Enterprise leaves behind: Who is the Captain of the Enterprise in 3189? Is the Enterprise still the flagship of the Federation, the status it received in TNG? Which generation of the Enterprise is it? The newest canonical incarnation of the Enterprise previously seen was the Enterprise-J, but that was a 26th-century starship in Star Trek: Enterprise's Temporal Cold War storyline. However, it's fitting that when the Enterprise finally was mentioned in Star Trek: Discovery season 4, it was in an episode directed by Jonathan Frakes, who played Commander William T. Riker, the First Officer of the Enterprise-D and E, in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Star Trek: Discovery streams Thursdays on Paramount+.