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The SGC gives planets in the Milky Way designations that start with P (there are around 200 of them).

But one starts with a K: KS7-535 which occurred in Season 8, episode 3.

Yes, this planet is very cold, but does that explain why it is named uniquely? It seems they are named before they are even visited, so that doesn't make sense.

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    Don't forget BP6-3Q1. Which the wikia has a serious amount of data on, for a planet that was only seen very briefly on screen. – Firebat Mar 28 '15 at 6:28
  • @S.Fruggiero - As best as I can tell, BP6 stands for "Bug Planet", presumably something that the writers found amusing out of universe – Valorum Mar 28 '15 at 10:15
  • @S.Fruggiero: Hmm, didn't catch that one. So now we have two exceptional designations. – ThePopMachine Mar 28 '15 at 22:09
  • Moreover - and unrelated but thinking about this made me realize: for Anubis to be trapped there would imply there's no DHD. So why is there no drone in the scene? The only way O'Neil can know it's "chilly" is if they didn't send a team because they wouldn't be able to return because there's no DHD, or they would have gone there, in which case there's a DHD and Anubis can escape. – Codosaur Nov 10 '18 at 13:59
  • @Codosaur Anubis was frozen solid, or his host was. Without his host he's completely non corporeal so there's really no way for him to do anything with the DHD while without a host. Even when he was using that shield to hold an interactive humanoid form he had presumably made it using an unwilling host. It's really not clear how he ever got out of there. – John LA Oct 8 at 8:23
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Although there were a number of aberrant planetary designations over the years, most of the gates visited in SG-1 seem to fall into three categories;

  • P names (for Planets)
  • M names (for Moons).
  • X names (for uneXplored)

Assuming KS7-535 follows the same pattern, it's possible that it was a Kuiper-belt object (e.g. like Pluto). This would also explain the extremely cold temperature given its extreme distance from its local star.

As @BESW has pointed out in his comment, this naming scheme was frequently ignored/forgotten about by the writers, then utterly subverted in Stargate Atlantis when the writers gave all of the destinations in the Pegasus Galaxy "M" designations regardless of whether they were moons or planets.

Unfortunately, this appears to be one of those cases where Bellisario's Maxim applies. Close examination reveals a lack of consistency on the part of those making the show.

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  • Got a source for this? It's demonstrably defied in the canon (and logically doesn't make sense because they have a designation for destinations they haven't gated to and have no intel on), and the pattern actually seems to be that P = Milky Way and M = Pegasus galaxy. (Which still doesn't help with the K/B thing.) – BESW Mar 28 '15 at 21:47
  • @BESW - The only planet in SG1 with an M designation was known to be a moon. There appears to have been a decision to give the SGA planets an M designation. – Valorum Mar 28 '15 at 21:57
  • @BESW: Yes, however, there are also three planets in Pegasus which start with P. ?! – ThePopMachine Mar 28 '15 at 22:06
  • @Richard: Which one? I can't find it. – ThePopMachine Mar 28 '15 at 22:07
  • Regardless of the designation system's intent or consistency, I can't really see it being based on information about the destination which is unavailable until after they've dialled it--which is why I'm asking for a source rather than an observed pattern, since your answer hinges on the SGC knowing where in its star system KS7-535 orbited. Or didn't they give these letter/number designations to gate addresses before dialling? – BESW Mar 28 '15 at 22:08

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