Jackson-Class Ship
Summary
The Jackson-class vessel was among the last starship designs of the Asgard. Its role in the Asgard fleet was similar to that of the Beliskner-class ship, as an exploratory/science vessel, as opposed to the O'Neill-class Warship. The first time we saw a ship of this class was in 7.03 "Fragile Balance." Its commander was Loki, an Asgard geneticist.
Technical Details
 Interior of Loki's Ship |
 Interior of Daniel Jackson |
 Daniel Jackson maneuvering |
The Jackson-class was perhaps the most advanced Asgard design ever. It was shown to be more of an exploratory vessel than the previous O'Neill-class, which was fitting considering Daniel Jackson's scientific past and Jack O'Neill's military past. It was equipped with all standard Asgard technology: Asgard holographic communicators, beaming technology, sensor cloaks, hyperdrives, shields, weaponry, etc. The unwarlike nature of this vessel was curious, considering it was seen before the end of the war with the Replicators. However, that was perhaps because the war was never about advanced technology, only advanced tactics. The Jackson could also have been a class never planned for use in the war, and more of a mobile research facility. It was known to communicate via subspace transmissions, utilizing them to communicate with other vessels and with the Replicator blocks.
The Jackson-class was used primarily as a laboratory, both for cloning and genetics technology and military technology for use against the Replicators. In the case of Thor's ship, Daniel Jackson, it possessed the ability to virtually design and manufacture new technologies. O'Neill's brain was interfaced with the ship and used to design an anti-Replicator weapon. This virtual design technology may have been just an extension of Asgard technology, and nothing specific to the Daniel Jackson. Loki's ship of the same type did not demonstrate this ability, but it was never called upon to do so, so it could quite possibly have existed in all Asgard ships. (7.03 "Fragile Balance," 8.02 "New Order Part 2")
The ship appeared to be large, similar in size to a Ha'tak. It was most likely more massive than the Beliskner- and O'Neill-class ships, although no exact scaling was given. Its engines showed no visible thrust when activated, similar to the O'Neill. However, its maneuverability was extremely advanced for its size. As Thor's demonstration on Hala illustrated, its agility nearly rivaled the Al'Kesh, a much smaller Goa'uld vessel. The Jackson shared design features with the Beliskner and O'Neill, for example the dual vertical rudders on the rear. This may have been due more to Asgard drive technology than Asgard aesthetics. The rest of the Daniel Jackson was separated along the center into two hull sections side by side, joined by two curving sections on the dorsal and ventral sides.
As for offensive and defensive capabilities, the details are not known beyond conjecture. It was stated that the Jackson is equipped with Asgard weaponry, most likely more capable than Beliskner-class, and less effective than the O'Neill-class. It was also shown, in a baseline configuration, to be inferior to Replicator ships. The Daniel Jackson commanded by Thor became equipped with the anti-Replicator weapon, thanks to Jack O'Neill's knowledge, and it was capable of affecting massive sections of a planetary surface. The weapon was also capable of penetrating shield technology and of ships as massive as a Ha'Tak-class. Even so, the Replicators were able to adapt to the technology after studying it. Replicator blocks were also capable of boarding the vessel like all other Asgard vessels. (8.11 "Gemini").
In terms of shields, the Jackson had shields more powerful than the Beliskner-class. In action, the shields of the Daniel Jackson survived over a dozen strikes from a Replicator-enhanced Ha'tak without damage. By comparison, this Replicator-enhanced Ha'tak annihilated a standard Ha'Tak with only two salvos. (8.02 "New Order Part 2")
Stargate References
The Daniel Jackson was the last known ship commanded by Thor. It was presumably with Thor and Heimdall when they were in another galaxy "dealing with a most sensitive matter", as Kvasir put it (9.13 "Ripple Effect"). It was used by Thor to save Jack O'Neill while he was incapacitated by an Ancient knowledge download. O'Neill's body was placed in suspended animation, and his mind was connected to the ship. There, he used the Ancients' knowledge to create the anti-replicator weapon using replicator disruptor technology. O'Neill's mind was later purged of the knowledge and O'Neill freed. (8.02 "New Order Part 2")
A ship of the same class (doubtful to be the Daniel Jackson, however) was also used by Loki, an Asgard geneticist. He was jailed by the Asgard for kidnapping human beings several decades ago, and was freed following the Replicator war. He was kidnapping humans to study their genetic code, attempting to solve the Asgard genetic problem. He would clone them while he studied them, so that he could do several days of testing and experimentation without being caught. After being freed, he kidnapped O'Neill. He chose O'Neill because O'Neill had been able to receive the Ancient knowledge, even if he was not able to retain it. However, what Loki didn't know was that at some point, the Asgard had placed a genetic marker into O'Neill. When he was cloned, the genetic marked caused O'Neill to age only to a teenager. Thor later fixed this error, and the teenaged O'Neill clone was allowed to live a normal life, enrolled in high school. (7.03 "Fragile Balance")
The Daniel Jackson was brought to Earth by Thor when the Replicators invaded the Milky Way galaxy and attempted to defeat the Goa'uld. It took on members of the SGC. Sam and Thor used replicator blocks left by Replicator Carter to access the cipher she created to make her and her blocks immune to the Anti-Replicator weapon. This ship was later boarded by the Replicators, and Thor evacuated the crew and fled Earth orbit as fast as he could. (8.16 "Reckoning Part 1")
It is unlikely there are any more ships of this class in existence, since the Asgard chose to end their race (10.20 "Unending").
Episodes
- 7.03 "Fragile Balance"
- 8.01 "New Order Part 1"
- 8.02 "New Order Part 2"
- 8.11 "Gemini"
- 8.16 "Reckoning Part 1"
- 9.13 "Ripple Effect"
Related Characters
Related Articles
- Ancients
- Ancient Knowledge and Technology
- Asgard
- Beliskner-Class Ship
- Cloning
- Daniel Jackson (Ship)
- Hala
- Ha'tak
- Kvasir
- O'Neill-Class Ship
- Replicators
- Replicator Disruptor Technology
Article written for Solutions by Jordan Kreiger
--Michelle 11:33, 6 May 2006 (PDT)