Puddle Jumper

<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

A Puddle Jumper is a spacecraft in the Stargate universe that is capable of atmospheric and space flight. The puddle jumpers were created by the Ancients and were stored in some of their outposts, including Atlantis.

The ships were named by John Sheppard, who got the name from the puddle-like appearance of the event horizon of the stargate. As a pilot, Sheppard would also have been aware of the use of the term puddle jumper in aviation, meaning a small commercial aircraft. This fits in with other Stargate terms, such as GDO (Garage Door Opener), which use the name of common technology for extraordinary devices.

1 Design
2 Other Uses
3 Key Episodes

Design

The puddle jumper was mainly designed to fit though the Stargate. It is divided into two parts: the control area and the cargo hold. The cargo hold has enough room for a team of five or six people to fit in. To exit the ship, you must go though the cargo hold and down a ramp.

The puddle jumpers are equipped with weapons, an advanced engine, a cloaking device, a DHD, and a mental interface.

Mental Interface

The mental interface requires the user to have the ATA gene, and is used to pilot the ship. The interface makes flying much simpler than traditional methods. Lt. John Sheppard and General Jack O'Neill have a natural affinity for Ancient technology and the puddle jumpers and fly them with relative ease. Dr. Carson Beckett and Dr. Rodney McKay can also operate the puddle jumpers but both admit to a lack of real expertise.

Weapons

The main weapons in a puddle jumper are the Ancient Drone Weapons. The common theory is that the puddle jumper has at least 8 drones.

DHD

Each puddle jumper is equipped with a Dial Home Device, which allows the teams to dial any stargate from the ship. Once the gate is active and the ship is within range, the ship goes into autopilot mode aligning itself with the stargate, shutting down and pulling in the engines, and preparing to enter the gate. This autopilot mode enabled Lt. Aiden Ford to escape Atlantis at the end of The Siege, Part 3. Ford did not posses the ATA gene enabling him to fly the ship. He dialed the gate from the Puddle Jumper and the jumper guided itself towards the stargate from the puddle jumper bay.

Engine

The Puddle Jumper is equipped with an engine design that allows it to travel though the stargate. When going though the stargate, the rear engine hatches closes and the speed is limited. After going though the stargate, the rear hatches can open and give the puddle jumper much more speed.

In the episode "Thirty-eight Minutes," a puddle jumper became damaged during a Wraith battle. The rear engine was unable to retract before entering the gate and the ship became stuck half way through. Using a tedious process of trial and error, McKay was able to find the right command to force the engine to retract just before the gate reached its automatic shutdown point.

The puddle jumpers are too small to accommodate a hyperdrive engine. As a result, its range is limited and it is strictly a short-range craft. It can take several hours to traverse a solar system.

Cloaking Device

The puddle jumper has a cloaking device that can be increased in size to fit two jumpers. This cloak has come in handy on many occasions. The cloak from a puddle jumper has been tied in to Atlantis' shield generator rendering the city invisible. The cloaking capability has also been reversed and used as a shield.

Other Uses

As seen in the Season 2 episode "Grace Under Pressure," the puddle jumper can be used as a submersible. Its depth is limited to a few hundred feet before its hull begins to buckle under the water pressure. The depth the jumper could dive was extended by Dr. Radek Zelenka when he turned the jumper's cloak into a shield.

In the Season 1 episode "Before I Sleep," a modified jumper was used as a time machine. A similar machine was also seen in the Stargate SG-1 episodes "Moebius, Part 1" and "Moebius, Part 2." Both machines were destroyed.