Wormhole physics is the science behind the knowledge of wormholes. Known people within this profession are Colonel Samantha Carter, Dr. Rodney McKay, Dr. Peter Grodin and Dr. Nicholas Rush. As part of wormhole physics, there is also a branch regarding solely the Stargates who work on the principle with wormholes. Samantha Carter is considered the leading expert on Stargate wormhole physics and once wrote a book on the topic. (SG1: "Upgrades")
Laws of wormhole physics[]
Note that many of these laws relate specifically to wormholes created by Ancient Stargates and may not apply to natural wormholes or those created through other technologies (assuming other technologies for creating wormholes exist).
- The power required to activate and maintain a wormhole in the Stargate is literally astronomical. (SG1: "Children of the Gods")
- Artificial wormholes cannot be sustained for more than 38 minutes under normal conditions. Massive amounts of power can bypass this rule. (SG1: "Serpent's Song", "Redemption, Part 1")
- In some conditions, a wormhole can remain open for longer than 38 minutes, such as if it is being powered by an infinite amount of energy, like countless ZPMs. (SGA: "First Strike")
- Substantial gravitational force can pass through a wormhole from either side and keep it open. (e.g., the effects of a black hole). (SG1: "A Matter of Time")
- Matter and energy can travel both ways through an open wormhole, but as a limitation of the Stargates, the matter deconstruction/reconstruction event horizons can only transmit matter in one direction (outgoing) per dialing.
- The speed at which one enters a wormhole is the same at which one exits a wormhole. However unstable energy sources can cause travelers to exit at far greater velocities than they enter. (SG1: "The Fifth Race", "Upgrades", SGU: "Air, Part 1")
- The energy to maintain a wormhole can come from either end but the energy to dial in must come from the dialing gate.
- Outgoing wormholes can be affected by exterior gravitational and electromagnetic forces, causing them to connect to Stargates other than their intended targets.
- Wormholes can be affected by Solar flares, causing them to pass back along themselves taking the traveler through time. (SG1: "1969")
- The diameter of a Stargate is not arbitrary in regards to energy needed for a wormhole. A Supergate requires more energy than a regular Stargate indicating that the larger the event horizon, the more energy required. (SG1: "The Pegasus Project")
- Radio signals cannot reach across a 9th chevron connection. (SGU: "Twin Destinies")
Out-of-Universe Wormholes[]
While wormholes are quite obviously possible in the Stargate franchise (and share several properties with 'real' wormholes), real-world science has only been able to theorize on their possible existence. Like the wormholes depicted in Stargate, 'real' wormholes are theorized to require vast amounts of energy to maintain; as a result, a wormhole would have to be subatomically small to exist for more than a fraction of a second in normal space.