Technology in Stargate

This article provides a list of most fictional technology made use of in the television shows Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis.

Each race also has a main list with greater detail and completeness.

The most important piece of technology in the universe: the Stargate

Throughout the Stargate science-fiction cosmos, a number of technologically advanced races and societies have produced a variety of highly advanced weapons, tools, and spacecraft.

Whilst it would seem implausible that they are all generally designed to for the ease of use of a human, the explanation is simple. Many of these societies are the descendants of humans who were carted across the galaxy as slaves thousands of years ago by the evil race called the Goa'uld.

Other than these human civilizations, the Ancients (or Alterans), one of the most technologically advanced race known throughout many galaxies, are in fact the predecessors of humans (which they've termed their "second evolution"), accounting again for their designs being based around the human form (e.g. the snug size of a puddle jumper).

By liaising with these races and learning from them, Earth too has begun to create its own futuristic technology. All such technology is SCI-classified top secret, and is used solely by the SGC and its SG teams, or in Atlantis.

Tau'ri technology

The Tau'ri, commonly known as humans of Earth, have developed many technologies based on what SG teams have brought back from trips to other planets via the use of the Stargate on Earth. Whilst Earth's level of technology prior even to Stargate travel far supersedes the level found on most planets throughout the galaxy (and indeed others), Earth's technology still remains crude compared to the larger races that they do not surpass. However with the exploration of the Ancient city, Atlantis, and with the Asgard giving all their technology and knowledge to them before their destruction, Earth's technology will leap forward in the future possibly rivalling that of the Ancients and Asgard.

Iris

The Iris, closed, over the Stargate

A titanium and trinium barrier that can open and close over the Stargate, which blocks incoming traffic through the Stargate when closed; developed to prevent incoming hostile alien races, or weapons from reaching Earth. This is achieved by preventing molecular reintergration and reconstruction due to the close proximity of the Iris to the Event Horizon of the Stargate. The original Iris was made of pure titanium. Later versions of the Iris were made of a Titanium/Trinium composite (Primarily after the SGC accidentally dialed to a planet that was being pulled into a black hole, which pulled the original Iris into the gate). Trinium is not found on Earth, and so must be mined at offworld mining sites. The Iris can only be opened or closed by either a handprint detection device usually operated by one of the Gate Technicians, or a manual lever located in the Gateroom used primarily in case of emergencies such as a power outage at the SGC with a simultaneous incoming wormhole. SGC operating procedures dictate that the Iris is closed for all incoming traffic, unless first identified by means of a special IDC transmitted by a device nicknamed the 'GDO' (Garage Door Opener). This ensures that only known friendlies are allowed safe arrival to Earth. On rare occasions (and against SGC regulations), the commanding officer present has allowed entrance based on Radio communications alone. The Iris has never actually been breached by hostile forces while closed, although it did come close on one occasion by the attempt of a Goa'uld using a particle beam generator to melt through it. On the other hand, the Iris has been circumvented by aliens on more than one occasion (Thor, for example, managed to remotely disable the Iris before it was closed, and the Tollan appeared to do the same to allow the Nox to rescue them from Earth in the episode Enigma), but it has never actually been penetrated with the exception of two of the Tollan, who used a Tollan Phase Shifting device to walk through the Iris, without actually damaging it. Nerim sent his cat through first to prove that he was friendly, while High Minister Travell was less cordial.

Spacecraft

BC-303 Prometheus

Daedalus orbits Lantea

After five or more years of researching alien technologies discovered on offworld missions, along with billions of dollars of work, several prototype models, and several failures, Earth was eventually able to construct its first glider vessel based on alien technology. That was the X-301, an Earth/Goa'uld hybrid. The craft ultimately failed, because of its alien components. After the failed flight tests, the Air Force decided to attempt to build an all human built craft, with components based upon what they learned from alien tech, rather than actually integrating alien technology into it. This was the F-302, a small 2-man space-faring ship much like a highly advanced MiG or F-22 Raptor. F-302s are now the standard dogfighting attacker used by the military in the Stargate Program.

It was not long before Earth too was able to create its first (and for a long time, only) interstellar battlecruiser, the Prometheus. Whilst the F-302 is generally sufficient to successfully challenge its alien equivalent, the Prometheus was still far inferior to the highest class of battlecruiser owned by most other prominent races in the galaxy. Later, with the assistance of the Asgard, Earth was able to create a more advanced class of ship, the Daedalus-class Deep Space Carrier.

• F-302: The standard interceptor used by U.S. Space Forces. It is space-capable and even hyperspace-capable for short distances (This is generally considered a failed system, and probably disabled in most F-302's. Also to accomplish that feat, it requires an amount of Naquadria to power the hyperdrive, which most fighters are unlikely to have because of the rarity and expense of the element). It carries modified air weapons. A large wing of these defended Earth against the fleets of Anubis in the season 7 finale, "Lost City", and was the first time that such attack was attempted.
• BC-303 Prometheus Battlecruiser: The first experimental combatant ship produced as an Earth/alien-hybrid, designed to combat Goa'uld motherships such as the Ha'tak. The Prometheus uses missiles as primary weapons. The Prometheus was destroyed in Season 9. No more Prometheus-class vessels have been constructed in favor of the new Daedalus-class battlecruiser.

• Daedalus-class 304 battlecruiser: Earth's second-generation line of starships; the first ship of its class was named the Daedalus after Daedalus, the engineer and architect of Ancient Greek mythology. Much later, the second ship of the class was named the Odyssey with the registry number of 'PB3865' (first seen in 'Off the Grid'), after the Homeric poem of that name. The third, constructed only by the end of Season 9, was the Korolev, most likely named after Sergey Pavlovich Korolev, the Soviet Union's chief rocket engineer during the space race, between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. In the Season 9 finale the Korolev was destroyed. Also, in the Season 3 finale of Stargate Atlantis, a new ship was introduced called the Apollo.Template:Crlf This class of starship is a significant improvement over the Prometheus design. It has a sleeker shape and a larger, more powerful array of engines than its predecessor. Its weaponry includes rail guns, dorsal tube-launched missiles, tactical nuclear weapons, Asgard Beam Weapons, and a cargo bay with a unit of F-302s. The biggest difference in the 304's design is its abandonment of much of the Goa'uld technology in favor of Asgard technology, including shields, sensors, beam technology, hyperdrive engine, and (at least in the case of the Daedalus) an actual Asgard controlling the finer points of the ships operation. However, these ships still possess Ring Transports, which is in fact Ancient technology, rather than Goa'uld as was originally assumed. After the upgrades made to the Daedalus battle cruisers, the Tau'ri now have the most powerful space ship compared to other races. The new beam weapons on board are capable of destroying both Aurora-class battleships and Ori motherships with a few shots. All USAF Daedalus battlecruisers are named after elements of Greek mythology.

Weapons

• FIM-92 Stinger
• FN Minimi
• FN P90
• M9/Beretta 92FS 9mm
• M136 Rocket Launcher (AT4)
• M4A1 Carbine
• M16A2 assault rifle
• M60 and M60E3
• M249
• C4 Demolition charges
• AA-12 Automatic Shotgun
• MP5-N
• G3 SG-1
• G36
• MP7
• GAU-5/A, GAU-5A/A (variants on the Colt Commando design)
• M203 40mm grenade launcher
• M2 Browning machine gun

Ancient technology

The Ancients—also known as the "Alterans" (Lanteans in Stargate: Atlantis)—were amongst the most advanced race ever to live (along with the Ori and possibly the Asgard) that has yet been discovered by the SGC. They were driven almost to extinction 10,000 years ago due to their centuries long war with the Wraith, after their defeat they left Atlantis and returned to Earth. There they later achieved Ascension; thus only one or two Ancients have ever been encountered, although in Stargate: Atlantis, many Ancients have been encountered and twice entire ships of Ancients have been found, once when the intergalactic gate system was put into place (Episode 309-310, The Return, Part 1-2), and then when Atlantis's long range sensors were re-activated (Episode 209, Aurora).

Among their many achievements, their transportational methods deserve considerable praise, having built extremely advanced ships, flying cities, and the entire Stargate network. Much of the Ancient's weapon technology was used or designed for use in the centuries-long war with the Wraith in the Pegasus Galaxy.

For the longest time, the Ancients were a bygone mystery and their relics were prized beyond all other things due to their extreme rarity. At the beginning of the eighth season of Stargate SG-1, the exact location of the Lost City of the Ancients, Atlantis (the source of the well-known Earth myth), was discovered and an expedition was sent there. This began the sister-show Stargate Atlantis, from where the majority of knowledge pertaining to the Ancients and their technology has been found.

City Ship

Atlantis's skyline

The city of Atlantis, as the center of the civilization of the Ancients, is both a city and a spaceship in itself; possibly the most deadly of all Ancient ships. Due to the astronomical power requirements to power the city as a ship, it has only known to have been done twice when the Ancients moved the city to the Pegasus Galaxy and in the last episode of season 3 when the city is moved to escape an enemy replicator laser. The city is the setting of the show Stargate Atlantis, and still holds many secrets. There are at least two other city ships in the Pegasus Galaxy: one which is partially underground on the planet found in the Atlantis episode The Tower, and the other which is controlled by the Asurans.

Drone weapon

The drones are perhaps the most fearsome weapon the Ancients ever created. In standby mode, they look like squids, and when they are activated they glow bright yellow. The drones themselves are normally controlled by an Ancient control chair, but vessels like the puddle jumpers and the Aurora class Ancient warships use another controlling method. Also a new kind of replicator warship has been seen to fire multiple drones upon enemies on ground and other ships. The drones can be ordered to explode on impact, or just act as controlled bullets. They are also unaffected by all types of Goa'uld shields.

Puddle Jumper

A puddle jumper in space

A tube-shaped spacecraft developed by the Ancients for quick transportation and reconnaissance missions through the Stargate; it is the standard vehicle of Atlantis. It has high maneuverability and hovering vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capability. The vehicle is equipped with six Ancient drone weapons (three in front of each drive pod), a remote DHD, inertial dampeners and a stealth device that can generate complete invisibility, on occasion this stealth device can be converted into a Shield. Two of these ships are also known to possess time-travel technology.

Ring Transporter

Rings in the middle of a transportation

A teleportation system that works on similar principles to the Stargate, and is a kind of short-distance corrollary. The devices come with "platforms". When activated, a set of five rings (some times seven) descend onto (or ascend from) the platform to form a cylinder; anything inside the cylinder is then transported to a complementary platform somewhere else. Although used heavily by the Goa'uld, they were originally built by the Ancients

Stargate

A Stargate activating

The Stargates were created and distributed by the Ancients across several galaxies, along with DHDs (Dial Home Devices) to control them. A traveler may use any Stargate to travel to any other Stargate in the same galaxy so long as he knows that Stargate's "address," a combination of at least seven symbols that must be entered on the DHD in the correct sequence. However, only under certain conditions is intergalactic travel between Stargates possible. For example, in order for a Stargate in the Milky Way galaxy to dial one in the Pegasus galaxy a Zero Point Module or suitably powerful source of energy is needed to establish a connection. Furthermore, with the exception of the gate located in the city of Atlantis, Stargates in the Pegasus galaxy were specifically designed to be incapable of dialing to gates outside of that galaxy in an attempt by the Ancients to prevent the Wraith from spreading to other galaxies.

Because the Goa'uld are scavengers, they claimed that they were the builders of the Stargates to make the populations of the planets they enslaved worship them as gods; their true originators were only discovered much later.

Zero Point Module (ZPM)

O'Neill acquiring a ZPM from 3000 B.C.

The Zero Point Module is an Ancient power source, used to power their cities and outposts using zero-point energy. It is more powerful and efficient than any energy source on Earth, and can last for thousands of years. While the energy output is huge—significantly larger than that of Naqahdah generators—the ZPM is based on an irreversible thermodynamic process and will ultimately reach its maximum entropy limit, at which point the ZPM becomes useless. The devices are the only things capable of powering most of the most valuable technology in Atlantis, and are thus highly sought after.

Asgard technology

The Asgard are the founders of the Norse mythology (posing as gods for benign purposes). They are technologically superior to any other race in the known universe except for the Ancients and the Ori (however the Asgard may have surpassed the former races in certain fields, such as beaming and cloning technology, and possibly weaponry). Their ships are capable of traversing thousands of light years of space in minutes, and are capable of operating with as few as one Asgard on board, suggesting that their ships possess highly advanced AI. They have also mastered advanced holographic projection and transporter technologies.

They do not reproduce due to their incapability to do so because of their cloning and mind transferal processes which has caused the decay of the Asgard genome. While the Asgard once maintained a large fleet of ships with defensive capabilities, their fleet size has decreased due to their struggle with the Replicators. As a whole they are not a militaristic race although they do enforce a protectorate that protects member planets from the Goa'uld, and they strongly disapprove of the use of their technology for aggressive purposes. All Asgard technology now belongs to the Tau'ri, a gift to them before their destruction.

Beaming technology

Crew members beam off the Prometheus

The Asgard beaming technology is the most advanced teleportation system ever seen, instantly transporting a person or object(s) from one place to another over massive distances (essentially "Star Trek teleportation", except more distance is allowed). Unlike the Ancient Ring Transporter, the object in transport does not need to be on a platform, and can be beamed to anywhere, not just another platform. This technology is a great military advantage (the ability to beam anything anywhere), but also provides great usefulness in society.

The Asgard aboard the beaming-technology-enabled ship usually control it because they do not approve of the Earth militaries' idea of beaming weapons onboard enemy ships because it could be used against them.

Asgard beaming technology also has the advantage of being able to transport objects of great size and mass. It has proven capable of transporting objects the size and mass of a modern skyscraper.

It is used in conjunction with Asgard sensors which lock on to the person or objects that needs transporting. The sensors operate through a satellite-type dish located on the ship that is doing the beaming. It is possible to teleport people and objects without the sensors by locking on to radio signals.

Cloning technology

Since the Asgard are unable to reproduce sexually because of this technology, they have nearly perfected cloning technology. Unfortunately, they can't build very large populations with this technology because of an inability to simultaneously create multiple clones. To preserve particular lives, a new body is cloned and the old consciousness is transferred into a new body using the Mind Transferral technology. The technology for mind-transferral is unique to the Asgard, and also highlights the Dualistic themes that the show often explores. A cloned Asgard has a very primitive mind, almost no mind at all, until it receives a transferral.

Holographic communication technology

An Asgard hologram

This is one of the most advanced communication devices known in the Stargate universe. The user appears as a whole holographic person, capable of transmitting voice and video through an active Stargate or even solid matter, such as inside buildings and underground chambers. The main difference is that the user is also able to see and hear their target's surroundings. This was demonstrated in season 2 (Thor's Chariot), where members of SG-1 conferred with Thor, as well as several other occasions. This is done by stepping into a special communication circle, where they are isolated from their original surroundings and projected to their target destination. The target need not possess any receiving device.

Matter producing technology

Seen in the very last episode of Stargate SG-1, after the Asgard install all their technology on the U.S.S. Odyssey. It is capable of producing food, water, air, and other things (for example, a cello or plants). This technology was possibly first seen in the episode New Order when Jack, while still in stasis and connected to the ship's computer, created the original anti-replicator weapon used against the replicators that were attacking Thor's ship. Another explanation could be that Jack rearranged the atomic structure of one thing to reform it into the anti-replicator weapon.

Mind-transferral technology

The Asgard have a unique technology that allows them to preserve an individual's consciousness by transferring it into a computer system (essentially, storing it digitally). This system is used to maintain an Asgard's mind until it is ready to be transferred to a new clone body.

Thor's Hammer

Thor's Hammer scans SG-1.

Thor's Hammer is a device that Thor created to protect a race of humans that had come to worship him as a god after he overthrew a Goa'uld that was presiding over the planet in question. The device works by scanning a targets DNA structure and searches for specific anomalies. Once detected, the target with the aberrant DNA is blocked from entry using a beaming device to transport the target into a cave system. In the case of the planet (and for the purposes of the episode in which it was featured), the device singles out Goa'uld DNA. The "Hammer" device itself is located in the exit hall of the cave system. If a Goa'uld or army of Jaffa attempted to mount an attack on the planet via Stargate, they would be transported into and trapped in the caves that housed this device. The name in this case comes from the shape of the door the device is housed in, being roughly hammer or "T" shaped. If a Goa'uld or Jaffa should pass through the device, the symbiote carried within would be destroyed. This would free the host of a Goa'uld (which could eventually kill the host as well), but would kill a Jaffa since they cannot survive without the symbiote.

Other technologies

The Asgard also have something to the effect of the Ancient Repository of Knowledge on their ships which contain the database of all their knowledge. How much of this knowledge an Asgard can actually store in his mind is still unknown, but it is probably a large bit as Anubis was able to take several key pieces of technological data from Thor's mind in only a little bit of time before he was thwarted.

The Asgard appears to have a strong mind, since Thor was able to download his brain into a Ha'tak, taking control of it and sending it to Earth as a gift. Also, Thor was able to resist the brain downloading implant for a while.

Goa'uld technology

The Goa'uld were for the longest time the major power of the [[Wikipedia:Milky Way |Milky Way]] and held an evil tyranny. They are a strictly parasitic race. They rely on hosts for life, Jaffa for strength, and deception for power. Their technology is no different. The Goa'uld are scavengers, and their technology is a conglomeration of the discoveries and ingenuity of multiple races, including the Ancients. Very few items they claim as their own were actually invented by them.

All (or the vast majority) of their technology contains, in some form or another, naqahdah, the material of which the Stargates are constructed. This material also flows in Goa'uld veins, and is often used as a key to their technology, much like the ATA gene of the Ancients. The devices of the Goa'uld, it will be noted, are mostly warlike in nature, reflecting the megalomanic nature of the species.

Death Glider

A small and fast attack fighter, generally piloted by a Jaffa in service of a System Lord. Mainly used in attack but can be modified as reconnaissance vessels or transport ships for passengers. These are the basic ships of the Goa'uld.

Ha'tak mothership

A Ha'tak in space

The Goa'uld Mothership, once the most powerful standard vessel in the Goa'uld fleet. It is shaped like the Great Pyramids of Egypt, upon which it can land (according to SG-1, when the Goa'uld enslaved Egypt 5000 years ago, they commissioned the pyramids specifically as docking pads). The Ha'tak is equipped with powerful energy weapons that can destroy an entire city with only one blast, and it is able to travel in hyperspace. They are often the residences and main transports of System Lords.

Since the fall of the System Lords, most Ha'tak vessels are controlled by other groups, such as the Free Jaffa Nation and the Lucian Alliance.

Sarcophagus

SG-1 inspects a sarcophagus.

A chamber shaped like a coffin that, when activated, heals the living or revives the dead within. Repeated use of a Sarcophagus may be addictive and has been shown on humans to alter thinking toward seeking power. According to Stargate legend, the sarcophagi of ancient Egypt were built to emulate the look of these devices (in pre-technological attempts to heal the dead Pharaohs).

Staff weapon

Energy Staff Weapon

A long staff wielded by the Jaffa of multiple System Lords. It is made of a metallic substance, with curved decorative lines carved into it. Bumps exist along its length to allow the wielder to grip it more easily. At the end, an almond-shaped ornament houses a small container of liquid-naqahdah, which powers the staff's ability to fire blasts of charged plasma. The weapons are primarily used to intimidate, causing large explosions. A staff blast can be survived, but will cause significant burning and excruciating pain.

Tacuchnatagamuntorons (Tac)

A Tacuchnatagamuntorons (Tac for short) is a weapon shaped in the form of a small ball. It fires small energy bursts at its targets, serving as automated defences for a stationary position. They are a heat seeking weapon used by the Tok'ra when they do not possess the personnel or weaponry to sufficiently guard a location.

The first and only appearance within Stargate SG-1 was in "Deadman Switch".

Zat'nik'tel (Zat)

A ready-to-fire Zat

A commonly used weapon shaped like a small snake, the zat'nikitel is typically used to render a victim unconscious. One shot stuns, causing pain and/or unconsciousness, two shots kills the target (if it is living, but renders it inert if it is nonliving), and three shots disintegrate the target. The third shot had never been used after the "1969" episode, as the directors thought it made it too strong. Like most guns, they have a safety mode where the "snake" is compacted and flat, and in battle the "snake" jumps up to look "alert" and is then ready to fire (this is accompanied by a signature sound).

Ori technology

The Ori are essentially the same race as the Ancients. However, the two groups split millions of years ago to avoid a war. Thus, the Ori's technology is as advanced as the Ancients'. As a body, the Ori are completely Ascended, and they often use this to further enhance the effects of their technology. Overall, all of their efforts, including their technology, are for the purpose of garnering worshippers. For every person who donates his or her free will to the Ori, via an extremely complex metaphysical process, the Ori gain power, and hope to wipe out the Ancients.

Prior Staff

The staff is a tool used by all Priors. It is used to enhance and expand the power of their minds that create the psionic powers which make them so fearful. They could make a force-field, move objects of almost any size, cause plagues, cure anything like permanently damaged legs. Contrary to popular belief, the staff does not give the Priors their power, it only amplifies them.

"Supergate"

The Prometheus next to a Supergate

This is a Stargate-like device built out of hundreds of smaller devices. These devices are about four meters wide and ten meters long, the perfect size to fit through the Stargate. Once through the gate, they arrange themselves in a circle in orbit around a planet, creating a giant gate hundreds of meters in diameter, large enough to fit entire fleets through. However, the power requirements for this are immense, requiring that the planet and the Stargate on it to be turned into a quantum singularity in order to provide the intense gravitational energy necessary to feed the Supergate.

Like the Stargate, the Supergate only works one way once activated. In "Camelot", Samantha Carter stated that with the quantum singularity the gate could be sustained indefinitely and that if they could activate the gate on their side of the galaxy it could keep the Ori's forces from accessing the gate indefinitely.

Tok'ra technology

The Tok'ra, as an offshoot of the System Lords, use much of the same technology. However, the Tok'ra have developed some technology of their own. The Tok'ra do not like to be called Goa'uld, for their mission is to overthrow the System Lords, hating their evil. Because the System Lords continually attempt to hunt them down and destroy them, they are covert by nature and loyal to the last.

Crystal tunnels

A Crystal Tunnel

The Tok'ra's key method of hiding their bases from the Goa'uld are by having them built out of special crystals underground. These tunnels grow the way the Tok'ra want them and can be quickly collapsed when the Goa'uld discover a base.

Tretonin

A drug originally created by the Pangarans but further refined by the Tok'ra so it can be made without having to harvest symbiotes. It can be taken by a Jaffa to replace the need for a larval Goa'uld within them. The drug thus frees the rebel Jaffa from the last vestiges of their enslavement to the Goa'uld, but continued injections are needed.

Tollan technology

The Tollan are an extremely advanced human civilization. After their ancestors were taken from Earth by the Goa'uld, they were undisturbed for thousands of years, and so were able to develop highly advanced technologies. Once the Goa'uld realized the threat they posed, the Tollan had already advanced past them.

Ion cannon

Used to protect the Tollan planet of Tollana from Goa'uld attack. Tollana is protected by a planetary network of cannons, which automatically track and destroy threatening ships in orbit. They can also be operated manually, using a small control panel on the side of the weapon. A single shot can destroy a Goa'uld Ha'tak Mothership.

Tanith's ship however, in "Between Two Fires," could resist the Ion cannon's shot. This was perhaps due to the reason that Tanith's ship had been equipped with advanced shielding technology gained from Ancient knowledge, acquired by another Goa'uld later revealed to be Anubis.

Phase-shifting Technology

A form of technology the Tollan possess that allows an object or person possessing the necessary device/technology to pass through solid matter - possibly some sort of modification to the principle of molecular binding force (during the events of 'Enigma' the concepts of even the foundations of quantum mechanics are disparaged by the Tollan). The technology requires trinium and utilizes no circuitry, chips or moving parts and can be made small enough to be worn on the forearm. It is utilized in a bomb produced under duress for the Goa'uld and designed to penetrate the iris protecting Earth's Stargate.

Wraith technology

The Wraith were the bane of the Ancients, a species that literally sucks the life out of humans for its food, thinks of humans as cattle, and "culls" planets for its "herd." They existed in vast numbers in the Pegasus Galaxy, and the two races were at war for centuries. Although Wraith technology is highly advanced it did not surpass that of the Ancients; according to the records in Atlantis, the Ancients won almost every battle with the Wraith, but due to the Wraith's simply massive numbers, they managed to cause the Ancients to fall back to Atlantis and eventually leave the Pegasus Galaxy altogether.

Wraith Dart

A Dart in space

The Wraith Dart is a small vessel used most times for culling. A culling beam sweeps along the ground and turns human life into energy, much like the Stargate, saving the humans to be rematerialized and fed upon later. The culling beam can also be used to transport Wraith soldiers, beaming them down while the dart is still in motion, as seen in "The Siege, Part II". Darts are stored in a Wraith Hive-Ship and are capable of incredible speeds. Wraith Darts are capable of traveling through Stargates.

Wraith Hive Ship

The Daedalus entering hyperspace under a Hive-Ship

The Wraith hive ship is one of the largest known spacecraft and the centerpiece of Wraith civilization. The ships themselves are living biological entities integrated with wraith technology. Their main weapons are powerful energy weapons capable of destroying medium-sized unshielded targets, such as defense platforms. Despite their mass, hive ships can land on planets. It has been evidenced that hive ships can remain buried under forest growth and act as a colony ship, where the Wraith hibernate for generations to centuries at a time.

The hive ships are hyperspace capable, though they can only make short jumps through hyperspace because of two factors. The first factor is the radiation encountered during hyperspace travel. This forces them to stop at regular intervals to allow their ships to heal from the radiation damage. The second limitation is that their hyperspace drives are inefficient. These limitations are what has confined the Wraith to the Pegasus galaxy for thousands of years. However, one Wraith hive ship was able to obtain technology from Atlantis that allowed them to modify their hyperspace engines for intergalactic travel, making them capable of reaching the Milky Way. This ship was successfully destroyed and this knowledge was (so far to our knowledge) not passed on to other Wraith.

Wraith Probe

Taking the form of a hovering metal sphere, these probes are used by the Wraith in "Sateda" and "Childhood's End." In "Childhood's End," the Wraith dispatched a probe to investigate a distress signal. The probe was dispatched through the Stargate and proceeded to scan the surroundings before presumably returning to the gate to relay its information back to the Wraith. However, the probe was intercepted before it could dial the gate (it is unknown whether the probe possessed its own DHD or was going to use the Stargate's DHD.

In "Sateda," several probes were dispatched by the Wraith to track the hunt of Ronon Dex. The Wraith overseeing the hunt was able to view images and sound relayed by the probes from the planet's surface while on a Hive in orbit.

Wraith Stunner

The Wraith Stunner comes in two main forms: pistol and rifle. Both versions of stunner emit a blue blast of energy that overwhelm the target's nervous system rendering them unconscious for several hours, but having no further side effects (apart from an uncomfortable "pins and needles" sensations upon waking).

The Stunner rifle first appeared in "Rising" and was the weapon of choice among the Wraith during the first season of Atlantis. Its basic design is a glowing chamber with a spike protruding from the back of the device. The stunning blast was emitted from the front of the device. From mid-season 2 onwards a second form of Wraith Stunner rifle was seen, this version was of sleeker design with an overall grey color.

The Stunner pistol first appeared in the Season 2 opener (Siege part 3). These new smaller versions of the stunner seem to function identically to their larger counterparts. The Atlantis crew adopted these stunners as personal side arms, similar to SG-1's use of the Zat.

Other technology

There are various other technologies that do not belong to prominent races, but are nevertheless significant or pivotal to the plot.

External links

• Gateworld — A massive site containing information on Stargate technology

Wikipedia

• Article at the French Wikipedia
• Article at the Italian Wikipedia
• Article at the Hungarian Wikipedia
• Article at the Russian Wikipedia