Gravity well
Gravity Wells
A gravity well is a phenomenom created when an object of sufficient mass is present in space to distort spacetime around itself. These wells emit waves and particles which can be detected by a ships inbuilt gravitational capacitor and are used to "navigate" at FTL speeds. When the warp drive is activated, the gravity capacitor locks to the gravity well designated as a target (e.g. a planet or asteroid belt), the ship is aligned to the target and enters FTL speed. Once within the required range of the well, the FTL vacuum bubble is dispersed.
Artificial Gravity Wells
Objects such as stations and stargates do not have sufficient mass to produce a gravity well strong enough to lock to, as such, artificial gravity wells are installed which generate a strong enough signal to allow a warp drive to lock on.
The on-board "bookmarking" system
All ships have a built in bookmarking system. A pilot can create a bookmark at any point in space they are located in. This stores the spatial co-ordinates in the navigational computer and these are fed back into the gravity targeting systems when the FTL drive is activated causing the ship to drop out of warp at the required coordinates. These bookmarks are unique to each pilot but can be exported and traded to others.