Maelstrom
this unusual area of space, located near the Relgim Sector, was dominated by a huge, nebula-like cloud of charged space dust and raw energy. This combination of attributes scrambled most starship sensor systems, hindered their communications, and confused hyperdrives and navigational computers. Thus, most ships were forced to revert from hyperspace to realspace in order to traverse the Maelstrom. This led to a rise in piracy near the Maelstrom, since the ships coming out of hyperspace had very little warning of what lay near the cloud, and they could not send a distress signal to ask for assistance.