The UNSS Amity was a UNSF Verne-class starship operating in the mid 21st century. In 2065, under the command of Captain Peter O'Brian, the Amity received a distress call from a "nonviolent alien vessel" adrift near the orbit of Neptune. Responding to the call, the Amity rescued the surviving 42 Vulcan crewmembers, including its captain, Sparon. This encounter marked the official first contact between humans and Vulcans. Amity CMO Miguel Ortez noted in his report that the Vulcans were the first "completely alien" race thus far encountered (in contrast to very human-like Alpha Centaurans). (TOS reference: Spaceflight Chronology, TOS novel: Strangers from the Sky)

This information has been contradicted canonically by the TNG movie: Star Trek: First Contact.