Stargate Program

The entrance to the Cheyenne Mountain Complex in Colorado, home to Earth's Stargate Command in the Stargate universe.

The Stargate Program is a fictional special access program that plays a key role in the Stargate franchise: it surrounds the operations of the Stargate on Earth. The core of the Stargate Program is Stargate Command (SGC), based at the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station near Colorado Springs, Colorado. During the run of Stargate SG-1, the NID is most critical of the Stargate Program, while the program is extended through the establishment of the Office of Homeworld Security/Homeworld Command and the International Oversight Advisory (IOA). The Atlantis Project as seen in Stargate Atlantis is part of the Stargate Program but works independently during season 1 of the show.

Despite alien attacks such as in "Lost City" and "Ex Deus Machina", all attempts are made throughout the series to keep the existence of the Stargate Program secret, assuming there would be mass panic if the public found out. Several alternate-universe episodes address the public reaction to the revelation of the Stargate Program.^[1][2] Nevertheless, some conspiracy theorists in the series assume extraterrestrial activity at the highest levels of the military.^[3] A very few select civilians such as Pete Shanahan and Jeannie Miller are also aware of the existence of the Program.

Earth and the Stargate

Following a backstory spanning millions of years, the modern history of Earth's Stargate Program begins when the Stargate is unearthed in Egypt in 1928. The device is eventually brought to the United States in 1939 to keep it out of Nazi hands and eventually installed in a facility in Creek Mountain, Colorado (Cheyenne Mountain in Stargate SG-1).^[4] In the events of the Stargate film, Dr. Daniel Jackson deciphers the workings of the Stargate as part of Project Giza run by Catherine Langford and under the oversight of General West, USAF. A team is sent through to the planet on the other side, where they encounter and defeat the malevolent Ra, freeing his slaves. Under the belief that there was only one possible destination through the Stargate, no further missions are planned through the Stargate and the program shut down.

The Stargate SG-1 premiere "Children of the Gods" reveals the existence of another grave extraterrestrial threat to Earth, Apophis, and that there are in fact thousands of planets accessible through the Stargate. As a result, the United States establishes Stargate Command, under the command of General Hammond, USAF, inside Cheyenne Mountain and commissions nine teams (which increases to many more in the later seasons) to travel through the Gate to assess threats, open negotiations with other civilizations, and procure technology to defend Earth. The first SG mission to Apophis' homeworld, Chulak, sees the defection of Jaffa warrior Teal'c to Earth. In the early seasons of Stargate SG-1, SG teams from Earth fights battles against Apophis and the Goa'uld System Lords. Along the way, they make offworld allies including the Tok'ra^[5] and the Asgard,^[6] support a growing rebellion amongst the Jaffa,^[7] and encounter a dangerous new threat from another galaxy, the mechanical Replicators.^[8] The Stargate Program also endures challenges from its own government; the ambitious Senator Robert Kinsey seeks to shut down and later control the SGC,^[9][10] and the activities of the unscrupulous N.I.D. threatens to destabilize Earth's offworld relations.^[11]

Season eight of Stargate SG-1 sees the final defeat of the System Lords and the Replicators, changing the political face of the galaxy.^[12] Dr. Daniel Jackson also discovers the address for the Ancients' Lost City of Atlantis in the Pegasus galaxy, and the international Atlantis Expedition is formed. In Pegasus Earth discovers more enemies, including the life-consuming Wraith and the nanite Asurans.^[13][14] A new enemy, the Ori, is introduced in the ninth season of SG-1. Their story arc is concluded in Stargate: The Ark of Truth with the defeat of the last Ori, the Ascended being Adria, and the turning of her armies.

Program components

Stargate Command

The core of the fictional Stargate Program is Stargate Command (SGC), a publicly undisclosed military unit organized under the Department of the Air Force, and based at the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station near Colorado Springs, Colorado.^[15] (and at Creek Mountain Facility, a fictional name for Cheyenne Mountain in the Stargate film). Although on-base support personnel wear patches of Air Force Space Command (AFSPC), it has not been clarified whether or not Stargate Command itself is a component of that organization or a separate entity. Stargate Command, also referred to by its codename "Area 52",^[9] is tasked with operating the Stargate on Earth and coordinates exploration and diplomatic relationships through the Stargate. Long-term research of alien technology is usually moved from the SGC to Area 51 in Nevada. Stargate Command is constituted and activated in the pilot episode of Stargate SG-1, "Children of the Gods", when the Goa'uld threat is first recognized. The writers considered replacing Stargate SG-1 with a new show named Stargate Command after SG-1's eighth season,^[16] but the Sci Fi Channel decided to continue SG-1 for two more seasons instead.

Facility

Footage of Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado, such as the blast doors into the complex, were shown in the Stargate series.

The SGC base, where most episodes of SG-1 begin and end, is the main setting in Stargate SG-1 and occasionally features on Stargate Atlantis. Half a dozen stock shots of Cheyenne Mountain were filmed at the beginning of the series and re-used until season 8, but the producers did not decide until the beginning of season 9 to film new shots, thinking that Stargate SG-1 would be cancelled after each current year.^[17] The interior of the SGC base, together with the Atlantis set, is filmed at stages 5 and 6 at The Bridge Studios in Vancouver, Canada. In 2009, the sets were redressed to portray Icarus Base from Stargate Universe, after which the sets were finally struck after standing for a dozen years.

Like the real Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station,^[15] the SGC extends many levels beneath the ground (officially called sub-levels), thus protecting the base from most forms of attack including indirect nuclear detonations. In the Stargate universe, the base also serves to contain biological, chemical or alien hazards to the outside world by means of a 'lockdown' status.^[18] The briefing room and the SGC Commander's office is located at level 27, while the Embarkation Room (commonly known as the Gate Room) with the Stargate and an elevated Control Room are at level 28. A long ramp in the middle of the Gateroom leading up to the Stargate allows vehicles (such as the M.A.L.P. robot probe) to enter the Stargate.^[19] The Stargate may be lifted in and out through a ceiling that can open.^[20] The real Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station denies fan theories of the existence of a Stargate in their Command Center.^[15]

The Stargate is equipped with a metallic barrier called the Iris to prevent hostile aliens from entering the SGC. Off-world SG teams additionally carry a GDO to identify themselves to the SGC. If nevertheless faced with an alien invasion, the facility has a self-destruct mechanism, which has been activated on more than one occasion on the show. According to Colonel Samantha Carter, the self-destruct is not powerful enough to destroy the Stargate or to disconnect an active wormhole, but it would bury the gate under 1000 metric tons of rock to stop incoming travelers.^[21]

Organizational structure

The SGC is typically commanded by an active-duty U.S. Air Force commissioned officer with the grade of major general, and is staffed by a mixture of military and civilian subject matter experts, military support personnel (e.g. members of the Air Force Security Forces and Air Force Medical Service), and several SG teams, most notably SG-1. Stargate Command began operations with 9 SG teams;^[22] at the time of season 10's "Uninvited", there were at least 25 SG teams.^[23] The majority of the teams are U.S. Air Force with some U.S. Marine Corps, civilians and later U.S. Army as well. Military forces of foreign nations have been included as the existence of the Stargate was revealed to other countries (the first were the Russians, agreed to in "Redemption (Part 2)", first seen in "The Tomb"). A chosen few extraterrestrials (Teal'c, Jonas Quinn, and Vala Mal Doran) have also been allowed to join the SG teams. These off world teams usually operate as teams of four, although that is not a requirement.^[20]

The first leader of the SGC is Major General West in the film, followed by Major General George Hammond from season 1 through 7. Major General Bauer briefly replaces Hammond, who retires under duress in season 4's "Chain Reaction". Dr. Elizabeth Weir becomes the first civilian commander of the SGC after Hammond's reassignment in season 7's "Lost City". When Weir leaves the SGC in season 8's "New Order" to be in charge of the Atlantis Expedition early in Season 8, Brigadier General Jack O'Neill takes over for season 8 until he replaces Hammond as the leader of the Homeworld Security/Homeworld Command in early season 9.^[24] Major General Hank Landry is leader of the SGC in seasons 9 and 10 and the two direct-to-DVD SG-1 films.

Alternative sites

The last line of defense for the SGC is an off-world base called the Alpha Site, initially established as a settlement to evacuate a select number of the academic elite of the United States to in case of Goa'uld invasion. It later serves as an emergency back-up for the SGC, and off-world SG teams will contact the Alpha Site if they are unable to make contact with the SGC. As seen in season 6's "Allegiance", several of Earth's allies, mainly the Tok'ra and Rebel Jaffa, use this site as a secure location to hide from the Goa'uld. The Alpha Site also serves as the temporary home for any large groups of people that are evacuated from their own planets,^[25] and a testing facility for Earth's new prototype spacecraft.^[3] A similar concept exists for the Atlantis Expedition in Stargate Atlantis.

Although the Alpha Site is mentioned in season 2 of Stargate SG-1 (P3X-984),^[26] the first Alpha Site is only shown in the season 6 episode "Allegiance". The planet designated as P3X-984, in the storyline unknown to the Goa'uld,^[27] was shot in a gravel pit at Mount Seymour in North Vancouver.^[28] The set designers used a number of sets from season 4's "Prodigy" for the façade and filled the remaining gaps with the set decorator and transportation tents.^[25] After Anubis probes Jonas Quinn's mind in season 7's "Fallen" and learns of the first Alpha Site, a second Alpha site is built. Some months after its establishment, it falls under attack by several Kull Warriors in season 7's "Death Knell" and is abandoned. Peter DeLuise came up with this story idea when a large amount of wood was cut down in the Seymour River watershed in North Vancouver (where outside locations of Stargate SG-1 were often filmed), resembling the aftermath of an explosion.^[29] The third Alpha Site is built inside a mountain on P4X-650, and has a runway for the F-302.^[3] RepliCarter visits this facility in "Gemini", as part of a ruse to rid herself of Fifth and learn more about the Ancient Replicator disruptor.

Season 7's "Death Knell" mentions a Beta Site on an unknown planet as a back-up facility operated by the SGC. Other Beta sites are mentioned in alternate realities – one equivalent to the Alpha Site in season 1's "There But For the Grace of God", and another is mentioned in season 3's "Point of View". A Gamma Site is shown in season 9's "The Scourge" as a research outpost established on a planet with unique radioactive ionosphere 24,000 light years from Earth. The base has several F-302's attached to it. At any given time more than 30 scientists conduct research in several fields including biology, botany, entomology and physics. After the auto-destruct of this Gamma Site, a new Gamma Site relays a message in "The Pegasus Project".

Area 51

First mentioned in "Touchstone", Area 51 is a top-secret military facility at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada that serves as an alternate research site for the SGC. Many alien technologies brought back through the Stargate are studied or stored at Area 51.^[30] The X-301 fighter and its successor the X-302 are developed at Area 51.^[20][31] The Ancient control chair was moved to Area 51 a month before Stargate Atlantis S05E20 "Enemy at the Gate", due to it being in violation of international law, during an attack by a Wraith hive-ship powered by a ZPM (Zero-Point Module), at least a portion of the base is destroyed by two kamikaze darts, destroying the Ancient control chair in the process.^[32]

Starship development and operations

Earth's efforts to construct starships of its own using reverse-engineered alien technology begin in the season 4 episode "Tangent", with the less-than-successful X-301. In season 6, the X-302 (later F-302), the first spaceworthy Earth fighter, is introduced,^[20] along with Earth's first space battlecruiser, the Prometheus.^[33] Squadrons of F-302s are eventually stationed on Earth, Atlantis, the SGC's alternative sites, and its battlecruisers. In season 2 of Stargate Atlantis, the Daedalus-class battlecruiser is introduced, incorporating advancements that were tested on the Prometheus. Thus far, six Daedalus-class battlecruisers have appeared in the series: the Daedalus,^[34] the Odyssey,^[35] the Korolev (destroyed in season 9),^[36] the Apollo,^[37] the Sun Tzu, and the George Hammond (named the Phoenix in an alternate timeline).^[38] Except for the Korolev and the Sun Tzu, which are operated by the Russians and Chinese respectively, all Earth combat spacecraft are operated by the United States Air Force. The United States Senate Appropriations Committee considers the construction of Daedalus-class ships to be its top priority in terms of planetary defense.^[39]

The Atlantis Expedition

The Atlantis Expedition, is Earth's international mission to the Ancient city of Atlantis in the Pegasus Galaxy. The impetus for the creation of the expedition was the discovery of the Ancient outpost in Antarctica in the episode "Lost City". The reason that it is international is that it was felt that a project of such importance could not be the exclusive province of one nation, as well as the fact that according to American and international law, Antarctica is international territory and hence it would be technically illegal for the United States to operate any facilities without international participation or at least international knowledge. An international committee, originally called the Atlantis Committee was established, creating the first truly international body for the management of Earth's offworld affairs.^[40] It is composed of the representatives of several nations, but the leaders of the committee seem to be the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Russia, and China. However, numerous nations have sent people to Atlantis.^[13]

The majority of the off-world exploration teams are U.S. Marine Corps with some U.S. Air Force and multi-national civilian members. Multi-national soldiers from at least six countries (Russia, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Spain and South Africa) are assigned to the Atlantis base security unit. The Atlantis military component is originally led by Marine Corps Colonel Marshall Sumner, who after his death is replaced by Air Force Major John Sheppard, the second highest-ranking military officer at this time.^[13] From the personnel who first arrive in Atlantis, at least three teams are established during Atlantis season one. No official team designations are mentioned in the series. However, during the first season, director and creative consultant Peter DeLuise has called the teams 'Atlantis Reconnaissance Team 1', 'Team 2' and 'Team 3' (or AR-1, AR-2 and AR-3), and writer and executive producer Joseph Mallozzi has called the teams 'First Atlantis Reconnaissance Team', 'Second Atlantis Reconnaissance Team', etc.^[41][42] At the beginning of season 2, Sheppard is promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and instated as military component commander of the expanded Atlantis Expedition.^[43] A number of commissioned officers are established as team leaders, and several specialist teams are put together for single missions.^[44]

The Destiny Expedition

The Destiny Expedition is a reconnaissance mission to the previously unmanned Ancient vessel Destiny, which was part of an experiment to seed galaxies with Stargates. Millions of years prior to the expedition – perhaps even before the Ancients' war with the Wraith or Atlantis' move to the Pegasus Galaxy – the Ancients sent several ships across the universe, the first vessels are automated ships sent out to seed various galaxies with Stargates, and the second, Destiny, to follow-up, exploring and possibly colonizing the Stargate-seeded planets. The ninth chevron on a standard Stargate is used to travel to the Destiny. The experiment was abandoned when the Ancients ascended, leaving the ship unmanned in the void until the expedition's arrival.

The expedition plans to set off from the Icarus Base, a secret off-world research base set up by the SGC. However, a faction of The Lucian Alliance commanded by Commander Kiva who had Colonel Telford under their control and with his help attack the base, forcing the expedition to escape through the Stargate onto the Destiny. Due to their hasty escape, the people find themselves without adequate food, water, or supplies on an old, neglected, decaying ship with air leaks and failing life support. In addition, many people on the ship were never intended to go on the expedition, while others who were supposed to join it never did.

The Destiny travels on a preprogrammed course, following the first ship's path throughout the universe. Since it is impossible for the team to alter its course, there is no way to return to Earth. At each planet, the ship stops for a fixed amount of time for the crew to explore the world's truly alien landscapes and species. However, if a member of the crew is left behind when the ship leaves, the crew member is stranded, for there is no way for the crew to turn the ship around. Rush is left behind in Season one's Justice on a planet. Although he manages to return to the ship as he is captured by currently unnamed aliens and escapes to Destiny when the Aliens try to take the ship. Lt. Scott, Eli, Chloe and Sgt. Greer are forcibly left behind in Human.

At the end of Season 1 Colonel Telford and some of Commander Kiva's Lucian Alliance faction find another power source and manage to 'gate' to Destiny and take control of the ship with devices they brought with them.

Oversight agencies

NID

The NID is a shadowy intelligence agency that appears throughout the run of Stargate SG-1, but also in the Stargate Atlantis episodes "Critical Mass", "Miller's Crossing" and "Outcast". Its official mandate is to provide vital civilian oversight of top secret military operations, but one of their unofficial primary goals is to procure alien technologies. The producers initially wanted to call the organization NRD for "No Real Department", but its sound and affinity to Joseph Mallozzi, Paul Mullie and Don S. Davis convinced them to rename it to "NID" instead.^[45] Although the acronym still stands for nothing in particular,^[46] the Stargate SG-1 Roleplaying Game says it stands for National Intelligence Department.^[47] The NID is made up of federal agents like Malcolm Barrett, bureaucrats like Richard Woolsey, and military personnel such as colonels Simmons and Harry Maybourne. A set of well-resourced illegal cells named the Rogue NID uses unscrupulous methods to achieve the goals of the official NID and is later replaced by the Trust. With the creation of the IOA, the NID becomes a more legitimate organization, working for the security of the Stargate program and aiding the SGC.

Throughout the run of Stargate SG-1, the work of the Rogue NID is associated with Colonel Harry Maybourne. The group initially uses the second Stargate unearthed in "Solitudes", and later bases their operations off-world or in disused warehouses throughout the Earth. The rogue elements justify their unscrupulous methods as defense from the Goa'uld attack on Earth regardless of considerations like inter-planetary diplomacy,^[48] criticising the diplomatic contacts and negotiations of the SGC as too slow. The leading shadow group of the rogue NID, "The Committee", are made up of various individual businessmen, politicians and corporations who wish to exploit alien technology for financial gain. The more prominent members of the rogue NID are later revealed to be Senator Robert Kinsey and Colonel Frank Simmons. The SGC puts an end to the rogue NID in "Smoke and Mirrors" after arresting and imprisoning the majority of its upper echelon.

The Trust is a shady interplanetary terrorist group composed of rogue ex-NID operatives and the international business and political cabal which funds them. The Trust is more radical in their methods and objectives than the Rogue NID, coming into direct conflict with the SGC and the U.S. Air Force several times. When the producers came up with story ideas for this group, they found that Alias had used all the names they could think of. It was not until several weeks after they had decided on the name "Trust" that they found out that Alias had used that name as well. Faced with the choice to either go with the Trust or with what Joseph Mallozzi called "The Former Rogue Elements of the N.I.D. Now Working for Private Interests Bent on Global Domination", they chose the first option.^[49]

After Vice President Kinsey still shows his strong ties to the rogue ex-NID agents in season 7's "Inauguration" and is subsequently forced into resigning, the SGC learns the name "the Trust" in season 8's "Covenant". The Trust use a Goa'uld ship in "Endgame" to launch an all-out attack on the Goa'uld with symbiote poison, without regard to Jaffa or Tok'ra life. Season 8's "Full Alert" reveals that the Goa'uld have successfully infiltrated and captured some of Trust members, providing an immediate power base for the Goa'uld; Ba'al has taken control of the Trust by "Ex Deus Machina". The Trust last appears in Stargate SG-1 in season 10's "Memento Mori", capturing Vala to find an infinite treasure, but they also appear in the Stargate Atlantis season 2 episode "Critical Mass", planting an explosive device in the City of Atlantis.

Office of Homeworld Security/Homeworld Command

The publicly unacknowledged Office of Homeworld Security/Homeworld Command' controls the Stargate Program (Stargate Command, including its associated research facility at Area 51 and the Alpha, Beta and Gamma sites), which were originally directly overseen by the President and the Secretary of Defense through the Joint Chiefs of Staff.^[19] Homeworld Security/Homeworld Command is located in the Pentagon, as seen in the Stargate Universe episode "Earth".^[50] The Homeworld Security/Homeworld Command also controls the F-302/BC-304 program and coordinates the oversight of the Ancient outpost in Antarctica,^[40] while the International Oversight Authority (IOA) holds direct (political) authority over the Antarctic base and the Atlantis expedition. The Office of Homeworld Security was established by President Henry Hayes after the events of "Lost City", with Lieutenant General George Hammond as its first leader. When Hammond retires from USAF active service and moves on to another government position, possibly Under Secretary of the Air Force, Major General Jack O'Neill takes over in early season 9.

International agreements

The United States, by virtue of its control of the Stargate, is largely responsible for Earth's interstellar policy in the Stargate franchise. More nations gradually come to take part in its use. Following the events of season 3's "Nemesis", Russia briefly establish their own Stargate program based in Siberia, which is terminated and merged with the United States program running out of Cheyenne Mountain shortly after season 4's "Watergate". The United States and Russia inform the other three permanent members of the UN Security Council (the United Kingdom, France, and the People's Republic of China) in season 6's "Disclosure", in the hopes of pooling their combined military resources to defend Earth against Anubis's fleet. The US President also informs long-time ally Canada about Stargate Command's fleet engagement plans in "Lost City".

After the defeat of Anubis's fleet and the subsequent discovery of the Ancient outpost in Antarctica, an international committee is established to oversee it and the Atlantis expedition. The five permanent members of the UN Security Council and the signatory members of the Antarctic Treaty (including Australia, Jamaica, Philippines, Portugal, Croatia and Spain) sign the Gate Alliance Treaty, which specifies that all acquired alien technology will be shared between the member nations, in exchange for assistance in keeping the program secret. However, in the following three years, the US military interprets the treaty to only apply to non-military technology, which the Chinese delegate mentions as a sore point in "The Scourge". Still, not all nations have been informed about the existence of the Stargate.

International Oversight Advisory (IOA)

The IOA (or International Oversight Advisory) is a civilian oversight committee, created after the United States and Russia revealed the existence of the Stargate Program to the other permanent members of the UN Security Council in season 6's "Disclosure". The IOA has also been referred to as the "International Oversight Committee" on the show, until producer Joseph Mallozzi realized during the writing of "The Ties That Bind" that the acronym IOC is already used by the International Olympic Committee.^[17] The IOA is in control of the Atlantis Expedition and also of funding, and approves any missions involving Atlantis or Earth's battle cruisers. Although not having direct authority over Stargate Command, which as a command of the United States Air Force is controlled by the United States Department of Defense,^[40] the IOA assigns a representative to the SGC in exchange for further funding in "The Ties That Bind". The writers originally wanted to set up an IOA watchdog character on SG-1 and possibly have Richard Woolsey on the base all the time, but season 9 already had so many new characters that the writers did not develop this idea.^[17]

The most prominent IOA member is Richard Woolsey as a US representative. Two other American IOA members are James Marrick (Currie Graham), shown in Stargate: The Ark of Truth, and Coolidge (Rob LaBelle), shown in "Midway". Representatives of other nations are shown in season 9's "The Scourge" – Russel Chapman of the United Kingdom (played by Andy Maton), Jean Lapierre of France (Mark Oliver), Chen Xiaoyi of China (Tamlyn Tomita), and Col. Chekov of Russia (Gary Chalk). When these representatives review operations at the SGC and Atlantis, members of both the SGC and the Atlantis expedition display a rather low opinion of the IOA. According to Dr. Elizabeth Weir in "No Man's Land", the IOA's inability to make final decisions is only a strategic maneuver to not take responsibility, therefore having a scapegoat (such as Weir herself) in case things go wrong. In Stargate Universe, Camile Wray is the highest-ranking surviving member of the IOA on board the Destiny and acts the ship's de facto civilian leader. In "Life", the IOA leadership on Earth stated their support for Wray to command the Destiny instead of Colonel Everett Young.

See also

• List of recurring Earth characters in Stargate SG-1
• List of Earth characters in Stargate Atlantis

References