Long-range communication device

The long-range communication device is a device originally created by the Alterans before they left their home galaxy millions of years ago. A variant of the original was developed by the Tau'ri sometime around 2009.

Overview
While the specifics of the device is unknown, what is known is that the device draws power from subspace to link the consciousness of up to twelve beings to the bodies of beings who have been in contact with initialized communication stones. The device also establishes a physiological link, so if a person dies while connected to another body, their original body dies as well; stressful situations have a similar transfer effect. The link is activated using communication stones, and will remain until the device is either destroyed or shut down through an unknown mechanism. Daniel Jackson stated that the device was able to translate from Ancient to English suggesting it can read the mind of the user to learn their language.

History
The first encounter the Tau'ri had with a device of this nature was discovered on Avalon in Merlin's vault. Daniel Jackson and Vala Mal Doran used it in hopes of meeting non-ascended Ancients living in another galaxy. Instead, they linked to Harrid and Sallis, heretics who had discovered a similar device outside Ver Eger. The device found in Avalon was destroyed when Cameron Mitchell and Teal'c threw it into the kawoosh of an activating Stargate. The device in Ver Eger was taken to Celestis to be destroyed, but Seevis' contacts in Celestis smuggled it out to Ver Isca before that could happen. Vala, while stranded in the Ori home galaxy, used it to link to Daniel and warn Earth of the impending Ori invasion; however the device was rendered useless when Tomin shot it with his staff weapon.

In 2008, the Atlantis Expedition had an encounter with one of these devices. Neeva Casol, in Jennifer Keller's body, stabbed Radek Zelenka with a pair of pliers and tried to seduce Rodney McKay into flying a puddle jumper away from the city, but he refused; she then held him at gunpoint, and was about to shoot him when Ronon Dex stunned her. Meanwhile Keller, in Neeva's body, was about to be executed for crimes that Neeva had committed. It was discovered that Neeva, while stealing artifacts from a village, activated the device and switched bodies with Jennifer because she was the last to touch the related communication stone in Janus' lab. To restore them both to their proper bodies, Ronon shot the device, rendering it off-line.

Unique specifications
This variant is much smaller than the original and the effect can be controlled so that once one is finished with the device, it can be deactivated without needing to disable or destroy it. It is similar to the original in that whatever happens to the body, happens to the mind currently occupying the body. The top of the device has a panel that has five intersecting rings. The panel lights up when active and the stone (which appears to be the same stone used in the original device) is placed in one of the five rings. The fact that the device still requires Ancient stones, and that it can only transmit consciousness and not other forms of data (such as sound or video), suggests that it is still not fully understood by the Tau'ri how the Ancient technology actually works and therefore they are unable to adapt the technology to other applications, only to reproduce it and add an "off" switch. If one of the connected persons is aboard the Ancient ship, Destiny, when the ship enters or exits FTL, communication between the devices is temporarily disrupted. Surprisingly, alcohol intoxication affects the person who's mind in in the intoxicated body, not its original owner.

History
The Tau'ri had developed the variant of the communication device by 2009. At least one device was stationed at Icarus in anticipation of traveling through the Stargate to the nine-chevron address. When the base came under attack by an unknown force, an evacuation was immediately underway. However, rather than dial Earth, Dr. Nicholas Rush dialed the ninth-chevron address, effectively stranding roughly 80 Icarus personnel aboard the Ancient ship, Destiny. As the last person to evacuate the base, Col. Everett Young spent valuable seconds in securing a device. As a result, he was critically injured as the base exploded and he was flung through the Stargate and across the Gate room aboard Destiny. In the ensuing chaos, Rush discovered the device and discretely made use of it.