A Ship component is part of a ship that is either cosmetic or functional. Functional components, for example a weapon or sensor, are called equipment and determine the properties of the ship.
Engines
Interstellar Drives
An interstellar drive determines the 
Moves of a ship, and, by extension, the fleet, on the galactic map.
Sublight Drive
A sublight drive determines the 
Tactical Speed of a ship during ship combat.
Weapons
Weapons come in three basic types: 
Beam weapon, 
Missile weapon and 
Kinetic weapon. Each weapon type has a specific range, fire rate, accuracy, defensive counter, and generally required construction resource. All weapons of the same type are combined into a single attack. Each type of weapon has a set of corresponding augment and fleet support modules.
Defenses
There are three basic types of defense that can be placed on ships: 
Armor (counters Kinetic weapon), 
Shields (counters Beam weapon), and 
Point defense (counters Missile weapon). An attack first does damage to the corresponding defense. Once a defense is exhausted, the next attack reduces the 
Hit Points of the ship. Several Hit Point augments are available to increase Hit Points and thus absorb more damage after defense depletion. Each type of defense has a set of corresponding fleet support modules.
Modules
Life support
Life support components extend the 
Ship Range, the maximum distance a ship can be from a planet or starbase.
Sensors
Sensors extend the 
Sensor Range, that maximum distance a ship can see. The Subspace Sensor also makes a ship immune to the effects of nebulae.
Utility modules
Utility modules define the fundamental function of a ship. Examples include the Colony and Constructor modules, which classify a ship as a Colony ship and Constructor, respectively.
Carrier modules
Carrier modules can launch fighters during ship combat. The role of the fighters depends on the module type.
Repair modules
Repair modules restore the Hit Points of a ship after ship combat through 
Tactical Repair.
Targeting modules
Targeting modules increase the 
Accuracy a ship during ship combat. These were removed from the game by 
.
Jamming modules
Jamming modules increase the 
Dodge of a ship during ship combat. These were removed from the game by .
Special end game components
Once a civilization has learned the technologies needed for a research victory, some special components become available.