The primary source of power utilized in Federation starships was provided by the enormous amount of output energy produced by a controlled matter-antimatter reaction. This reaction typically occurred within the intermix chamber of a warp core, and was contained by a magnetic containment field. This reaction produced a considerable amount of heat energy in addition to the kinetic energy that was used by the vessel's propulsion system. This heat was supplanted by a plasma coolant system that was situated adjacent to the intermix chamber. The loss of coolant would inevitably result in the overheating and destruction of the intermix chamber, causing a warp core breach. (Star Trek Generations)