A character in Star Trek: Voyager it took him ten years to get home instead of seven. After arriving in the Delta Quadrant, Captain Kathryn Janeway's (Kate Mulgrew) crew estimated that returning to the Alpha Quadrant would take 75 yearseven at maximum warp. That time has been shortened considerably with technologies like the quantum boost, Borg transwarp conduits, and a telekinetic parting gift from Kes (Jennifer Lien) that shaved 9,500 light-years off the trip's original 70,000 light-year distance. Ultimately, a future version of Admiral Janeway helped shorten the USS Voyager's journey to just seven years.
The USS Voyager also encountered delays that added time to the trip home. In addition to bypassing dangerous anomalies and space ruled by hostile aliens from the Delta Quadrant, Captain Janeway also maintained Starfleet's mission to explore and contact strange new worlds. One such delay occurred when the USS Voyager became trapped in the gravimetric gradient generated by a planet with a tachyon core in Star Trek: Voyager Season 6, Episode 12, "Blink of an Eye." The USS Voyager is only stuck there for a few days, but the planet's time difference means centuries pass for those on the surface.
Star Trek: Voyager's Doctor Spent 10 Years in the Delta Quadrant (Not 7)
Doctor's 3-Day Mission Became a 3-Year Stay
Star Trek: VoyagerThe Doctor (Robert Picardo) spent ten years in the Delta Quadrant, not seven years like the other original crew of the USS Voyager. The drastic time difference created by the planet's tachyon core in Star Trek: Voyager Season 6, Episode 12, "Blink of an Eye" means that one day on the planet is equivalent to 1.03 seconds on Voyager. The Doctor's three-day investigative mission should have lasted just three seconds, but the EMH signal was lost for several minutes, so when the Doctor returns, three years have passed for him.
As a hologram, the Doctor easily adapts to the time differential, which also - unfortunately - means the Doctor returns to life on Voyager with relative ease. The Doctor briefly reports that he built a whole new life while waiting for the mission to endwith a singing career, new friends, a long-time girlfriend and even a son. The people of this planet were clearly important to the Doctor and helped him with his overall character arc in becoming a person. Instead of, Star Trek: VoyagerThe frequent return to the status quo means that the narrative potential of the Doctor's three extra years remains unexplored.
Robert Picardo's USS Voyager Doctor exists in the 32nd century of Star Trek
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy's version of the doctor will have centuries to catch up?
The announcement of Star Trek legacy characters in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy reveals that Robert Picardo's USS Voyager Doctor exists in Star Trek32nd century. This does not necessarily mean that the Doctor has been actively operational for all 800 years between Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. Starfleet Academy's Doctor could be a backup copy like the 31st century version of Star Trek: Voyager Season 4, Episode 23, "Living Witness", but if not, the Doctor's ability to easily adjust to the planet's time differential in "Blink of an Eye" could point to another explanation.
As part of the crew of the USS Voyager-A in Star Trek: Prodigythe Doctor would return to the Delta Quadrant to right Voyager's mistakes. Voyager left the planet "Blink of an Eye" in hopes of learning to stabilize the time differential. The Doctor would still be the ideal crew member to go down and check in. If the time-dilated society accidentally overshot the stabilization of the differential, making it inverted in the following years, a brief mission to Star Trek: VoyagerThe Doctor's Doctor would amount to much more than just ten years in the Delta Quadrant... perhaps even centuries.