X-303

From SGCommand

"This is Prometheus, otherwise known as the X-303."

—Samantha Carter

The X-303 was an interstellar spaceship built secretly on Earth using technology procured by Stargate Command.

Like its predecessor, the X-302, the X-303 is exclusively of Tau'ri construction, but incorporates a number of alien technologies, including inertial dampers, artificial gravity and an antigravity system that allows the vessel to hover in midair. Its sublight engines are capable of boosting it from the surface into orbit in less than thirty seconds, and the ship incorporated a larger version of the Naquadriah-based hyperdrive developed for the X-302. The version incorporated into the X-303 included a buffer designed to compensate for Naquadriah's inherent instability. (SG1: "Prometheus", "Memento")

The most notable difference between the X-303 and its predecessor is in size. Whereas the X-302 was designed as an air and space superiority fighter, the X-303 was designed instead as the U.S. Air Force's first capital ship. Spanning up to 15 decks and capable of carrying more than a hundred personnel, the X-303 could in fact contain eight X-302s within its hangar bay.

Contents 1 History 2 Technology 2.1 Communications 2.2 Inertial Dampeners and Artificial Gravity 2.3 Shields 3 Engines 3.1 Anti-Gravity Pod 3.2 Deceleration Thrusters 3.3 Hyperdrive 3.4 Sublight Engines 3.5 Landing Gear 4 Armaments 4.1 Railguns 4.2 Missile Batteries 5 References and notes 6 External links 7 Gallery

[edit] History

The X-303 was constructed in an underground hangar facility designated Area 37-92/NV, under the project name "Prometheus". Its development was so large an undertaking that maintaining its secrecy proved impossible, with information leaking to reporter Julia Donovan with the Inside Access news program. In an attempt to minimize the potential damage of the project's disclosure, the President of the United States agreed to give Donovan, her producer, and a camera crew a tour of the X-303, claiming the alien technology it incorporated was in fact salvaged from a UFO that crashed near Fairbanks, Alaska in 1978.

During the tour, the ship was taken over by the camera crew, actually rogue NID agents working at the behest of Colonel Frank Simmons. The agents successfully managed to steal the ship and take it into hyperspace before being overpowered by SG-1. However, the hyperdrive, which was configured for Simmons by the Goa'uld inhabiting Adrian Conrad, malfunctioned and transported the ship instead to an unknown destination. (SG1: "Prometheus")

In what came to be the ship's first mission, the Asgard took the X-303 to their home galaxy in the hope that it could be used to trap the Replicators inside a time dilation field. During this mission, the Asgard also modified the ship's shields and engines to their maximum potential, correcting the faults in the vessel's hyperdrive. (SG1: "Unnatural Selection") After the successful completion of this mission, the Asgard provided shields for the ship in advance of its formal shakedown cruise as a gesture of gratitude. (SG1: "Disclosure")

Ultimately, the X-303 entered active service, taking the designator BC-303 and the name Prometheus. In this capacity, it served as the flagship of the Tau'ri fleet under the auspices of the Office of Homeworld Security, and received additional upgrades from the Asgard. Though plans were made to construct an entire fleet of BC-303s, the introduction of the Daedalus-class battlecruisers rendered the craft obsolete, leaving the Prometheus as the sole vessel in its class. (SG1: "Enemy Mine", "Moebius, Part 1")

The design plans for the X-303 (without the Asgard upgrades) were provided to the Russian Federation in 2002 along with those for the X-302; however, the Russians have apparently not constructed any such vessels.

[edit] Technology

Earth's first interstellar capital ship was built using both Earth-based and alien technology. Without the engineering of Earth's alien allies, the Prometheus would never have been possible.

[edit] Communications

Prometheus had a variety of means to communicate within and between ships. There were traditional telephones located in corridors and rooms throughout the ship for intra-ship communications. There was also the capacity to integrate the system to wireless radio headsets. The ship also has an intercom system for ship wide messages. It could be activated on the bridge by one of the stations and could also be triggered directly from the commander's chair. (SG1: " Prometheus", "Beachhead", "Prometheus Unbound")

The Prometheus was equipped for both audio and video communications outside the ship as well. Despite communications satellites being down, Prometheus was able to establish a secure video transmission directly to the Oval Office, which displayed on monitors above the main window/viewer display. (SG1: "Lost City, Part 2") A side viewer also displayed video communications that integrated with alien ships, such as the Asgard and Goa'uld. (SG1: "New Order, Part 2", "Beachhead") The ship could also broadcast audio-only messages on multiple frequencies (SG1: "Memento"), and included the additional feature of translating the broadcast into Goa'uld. The communications, however, couldn't penetrate Ancient shielding, as was evidenced upon the discovery of the caves of Avalon in the Glastonbury Tor. The Prometheus had two communications arrays symmetrically placed on the rear section of the ship. (SG1: "Avalon, Part 1")

[edit] Inertial Dampeners and Artificial Gravity

The Prometheus had inertial dampeners and artificial gravity technology, which gave its passengers a smooth ride, much like that taken within a fast elevator. When Julia Donovan's filming crew turned out to be rogue NID agents who stole the ship, Carter was trapped on a level which didn't have the artificial gravity systems in place and she experienced zero gravity when the ship was taken into space. (SG1: "Prometheus")

[edit] Shields

The Tau'ri do not possess shields of their own design, instead utilizing reverse enginered Goa'uld shields, however, these shields were replaced with shields of Asgard origin, which were donated to them in thanks for the help the Tau'ri had provided the Asgard in their conflict against the Replicators. Asgard shielding was first equipped to the Prometheus and eventually the Daedalus-class, allowing the Tau'ri to better confront the warships of the Goa'uld. However, with the invasion of the Ori, the shields of the Prometheus proved virtually ineffective against the powerful weapons of the Ori. (SG1: "Disclosure", "Memento", "Ethon")

[edit] Engines

[edit] Anti-Gravity Pod

The Anti-Gravity Pod was housed in the lower portion of the rear of the ship, as labeled on the Venting Sequence display. The Prometheus most likely used this feature in entering and exiting its subterranean bay on Earth, in softening an off-world landing, and in hovering or maintaining a stationary position above the ground as it did in Antarctica in order to protect SG-1's cargo ship during Anubis's attack. (SG1: "Lost City, Part 2", "Grace")

[edit] Deceleration Thrusters

Declaration thrusters were used to slow the Prometheus down. They were situated on the front side of the large rectangular hyperdrive engine sections and were seen being used by SG-1 when they landed on the planet Hala. (SG1: "Unnatural Selection")

[edit] Hyperdrive

The hyperdrive engines were first powered by the powerful, but highly unstable, mineral called naquadria in the form of a Naquadria reactor core. A buffer was installed to prevent the reactor from going critical due to naquadria's inherent instability. Later, new hyperdrive technology was installed by the Asgard. Between that time, however, the ship operated on a temporary adaptation of a hyperdrive engine from an al'kesh. The rectangular hyperdrive nacelles were seen on either side of the ship's rear section. The hyperdrive engines glowed blue when activated. (SG1: "Memento", "Grace", "Covenant", "Endgame", "Gemini", "Prometheus Unbound")

Hyperdrive control systems were protected with codes, but these codes could be overridden by someone who was familiar with the crystals used in these control systems. An engine coolant system ran through the length of the slender midsection of the ship and into the rear where the engines were located. Spatial gases could interfere with the even flow of power to the hyperdrive emitters and thus prevent a hyperspace window from becoming fully formed. When the power to the hyperdrive emitter was reduced, it was possible to create a partial shift into hyperspace which could take the ship out of the surrounding space-time temporarily. (SG1: " Prometheus", "Grace", "Prometheus Unbound")

If the Prometheus were ever called upon to take a trip to the Pegasus galaxy using its Asgard hyperdrive engines, it would take approximately 18 days, as this is the amount of time that Daedalus-class ships are able to make the trip with their Asgard hyperdrive engines. (ATL: "The Intruder") (SG1: "Ripple Effect")

[edit] Sublight Engines

Sublight engines enabled the Prometheus to accelerate to 110,000 miles per second, which was over half the speed of light (186,000 miles per second). An ignition module had to have been calibrated to within a 1% margin of error in order for the engines to start. If outside this margin, the module would burn out, and the engines would fail to start. Sublight engines placed the Prometheus in Earth's orbit in less than 30 seconds. (SG1: "Prometheus")

The control relay for the sublight engines was located on Deck 8. Sublight engines have varying output, which is controlled through the ship's helm. One such output was referred to as "emergency thrust" and was used when the Prometheus left Antarctica to meet Anubis's fleet in Earth's orbit. (SG1: "Lost City, Part 2")

[edit] Landing Gear

The Prometheus had a tripodal landing gear system with one leg in the front of the ship and two in the rear. The slender mid-section of the ship had no support. The ship needed to engage the deceleration thrusters in order to obtain a stationary point above the planet surface before landing. Most likely, the anti-gravity pod assisted in the landing process. The landing gear operated just like that on a jet airplane and could be retracted back into the body of the ship. (SG1: "Unnatural Selection", "Memento", "Prometheus Unbound")

[edit] Armaments

Prometheus-class ships contain an array of powerful conventional weapons.

[edit] Railguns

The 303s have 16 railguns, which have become standard on F-302s and all Daedalus-class vessels for ship-to-ship combat. Just a few shots are able to take out a Death Glider relatively quickly and deal a large amount of damage to Al'kesh and Ha'taks. (SG1: "Prometheus Unbound", "Ethon")

[edit] Missile Batteries

The 303s have 12 missile batteries and naquadah enhanced nuclear warheads. These missiles are able to take out a Death Glider relatively quickly and deal a large amount of damage to Al'kesh and Ha'taks. However, Ori shields are significantly more difficult, practically impossible, to pierce. (SG1: "Prometheus Unbound", "Ethon")

[edit] References and notes

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3} Stargate SG-1: The DVD Collection 2

[edit] External links

• X-303 in Kathleen Ritter's Lexicon.

[edit] Gallery

The Prometheus in space	The Prometheus is destroyed	X-303 schematics	Prometheus over P4C-452
Prometheus at the almost-formed Supergate	The Prometheus' reactor core explodes over Tagrea	Prometheus is destroyed over Tegalus

Tau'ri spaceship classes
Fighters	( X-301 )  · ( X-302 )  · F-302
Battlecruisers	( X-303 )  · BC-303  · 304