The transporter has been a central piece of Star Trek technology since The Original Series in the 1960s, allowing crews to travel instantly between starships and planets. This version is associated with Star Trek: The Next Generation, which ran from 1987 to 1994 and updated the classic beam up effect for the Enterprise-D era. Clips of the sound spread online through fan edits, parodies and soundboards, where the shimmer alone instantly tells viewers a teleport is happening. It remains popular because few other effects communicate science fiction travel so clearly in just a few seconds.