STARGATE ATLANTIS
UNIVERSE
Just what the
Stargate Atlantis universe will look like, and how it will differ from its predecessor? GateWorld has the scoop on the technology, ships, villains and more! Beware of
spoilers for the new series below -- especially the premiere episode, "Rising", as well as for
SG-1's Season Seven finale!
THE TECH. A team of scientists has been pouring over the Ancients' Antarctic outpost since SG-1 discovered it buried a mile beneath the ice in "The Lost City," and have learned that only people with a very rare gene are able to operate the intuitive technology found there -- one person in 16,000, to be exact. Dr. Rodney McKay is a brilliant scientist who works to interface Earth technology with that of the Ancients, but is frustrated by the fact that he himself does not possess the gene. Another of the scientists, however -- Dr. Beckett -- does possess the gene and accidentally launches an Ancient attack drone from the outpost. They also quickly learn that Major Sheppard has the gene; the ability to use the Ancients' tech will come in very handy when the team reaches the lost city of Atlantis in the distant Pegasus galaxy.
Vital to the operation of the city (and to the team's ability to gate to another galaxy) is the Z.P.M., an Ancient power module that was probably the basis for the device O'Neill constructed in "The Fifth Race" while under the influence of the Ancients' library of knowledge. Atlantis is powered by three of the devices.
As hoped, the lost city is indeed a treasure trove of advanced technology, which includes such things as a universal translation device. Each team member travelling off-world receives one, which is capable of instantly translating virtually any language encountered.
THE SHIPS. As an accomplished pilot, Sheppard is particularly interested in a bay of Ancient ships discovered in Atlantis. The ship of choice is nicknamed "Puddle Jumper," as it is designed to travel through the Stargate. In fact, the ship has a miniature dialing device on the main console, allowing remote-access dialing of the Stargate. It is also equipped with stealth mode, allowing it to become invisible. The ship seems to operate in part by reading the pilot's thoughts. The jumper is large enough to seat at least two at the forward controls, and at least six in the rear.
The enemy possesses advanced ships too, of course. The Wraith Dart is a small, maneuverable ship capable of gate travel. It is described as oily black, sharply pointed and with a glowing underside. The Wraith planet has a Stargate in orbit, indicating that it's rather common to travel the Stargate network by ship in this part of the universe.
ATLANTIS. The lost city of the Ancients is an island unto itself, surrounded by a vast body of water on the surface of a planet in the Pegasus galaxy (... eventually). It has been abandoned by the Ancients but left in perfect condition, and the team from Earth must begin the task of exploring it. Atlantis is equipped with a powerful energy shield, which is vital to protecting the new base of operations from enemy attack. Within the city is, of course, a Stargate -- but one unlike any previously seen.
THE STARGATE. The chevrons are blue on the Atlantis gate, and, of course, the symbols themselves are different in this galaxy. Instead of physically spinning, the inner track spins in a pattern of light. The brightly-lit symbols also rotate around much faster than Earth's gate.
The team accesses the gate's control systems -- more like a computer than a D.H.D. -- along with a new library of addresses, most of which are presumably for the Pegasus galaxy's gate network. After dialing another world, the tried-and-true system of M.A.L.P. probes and G.D.O. transmitters are still used. At the touch of a button, the gate may be protected by an iris-like energy shield.
THE WRAITH. They are the enemy that defeated the Ancients themselves long ago. The Wraith are a hive-based species with a queen, and horrifically feed off the life force of other beings. They maintain a thousand worlds populated by beings used for food. The Wraith are described as having pale green-tinged skin and black eyes, and have an incredible power to regenerate -- so much so that Dr. Beckett speculates that they may not even die of old age the same way that humans do. They also appear to have some form of psionic ability.
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