"Rising" is the pilot episode for season one of the military science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis, a Canadian-American spin off series of Stargate SG-1. The episode was written by executive producers Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, and directed by Martin Wood. The episode was the strongest episode of the whole series on Nielsen household ratings. The episode got strong reviews from major media publishers worldwide. "Rising" is about the establishment of the Atlantis expedition, it follows Major John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan) and Colonel Marshall Sumner (Robert Patrick) and their mission to the Pegasus Galaxy in part one. The second part is about the awakening of the Wraith and freeing prisoners of war from them. The pilot has various guest stars from Stargate SG-1 as for example Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) and Siler (Dan Shea) among others. Plot Part 1 The technologically advanced Ancient race from Stargate SG-1 series voyaged to the Pegasus Galaxy from Earth via a colossal starship to spread new life. The city of Atlantis served as a maneuvering station as well as a base of operations. Their mission was unsuccessful and they met a terrible new enemy called the Wraith, the Ancients lost the war with the Wraith and after a long siege Atlantis was submerged under the ocean. Discovering evidence of the Ancients journey to another galaxy, a large team of scientists and military personnel, led by diplomat Elizabeth Weir (Torri Higginson) examine residual technology in an Antarctic outpost with hopes to travel to Atlantis, thereby discovering any knowledge left behind and unraveling the mystery of the abrupt disappearance of its citizens. With the assistance of Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) and Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) they are able to travel to Atlantis through the Stargate. Using an Ancient power resource known as the Zero Point Module (ZPM) to supply the energy essential for the unusually extended wormhole, an assembly of volunteer representatives from many different countries joins the Atlantis expedition under the command of Colonel Marshall Sumner (Robert Patrick) of the United States Marine Corps. Shortly after crossing, Dr. Rodney McKay (David Hewlett) determines that because of the immediate depletion of power due to their arrival, the shield protecting the city from the ocean water, will imminently collapse. Without enough energy to return to Earth, a squadron including Colonel Sumner, Major John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan), and Lieutenant Aiden Ford (Rainbow Sun Francks)