Star Ship Polaris

[Herkimer Jitty]

Vektor wrote:

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I have another idea I'm going to try, hopefully when I get the time later today, that actually goes back to certain details from some of my earlier design sketches. I think it will make more sense functionally and probably tie in better with both internal and external means of loading and unloading cargo.

Since she's not designed for hauling cargo as her main mission, perhaps that ought to be a bit of an afterthought. Like a crane that slides out of the cieling of one of the bays or something. No need to cut through parts of the ship that could be used for sciency and enginey stuff, right?

[Vektor]

Dennis wrote:

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Does the means by which the artificial gravity is generated necessarily extend beyond the fuselage? Other than the inertial component, that is, and I was under the impression that the most significant aspect of the gravity generation was something other than inertia. Perhaps the saucer could be internally segmented radially anyway.

I'm sure you could rationalize just about anything, but it makes the most sense to me that the cargo bays would be oriented the same as the decks in the main fuselage, if for no other reason than to keep everything level under real gravity when the ship happens to be on the ground.

As I said, I have an alternative in mind that I think will make a lot more functional sense. I'll try to get it posted soon. My plans for the 4th of July weekend kind of fell through so I guess I have the time.

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Sorry to hear about your plans.

Yeah, one can rationalize anything after the fact - there's Star Trek in a nutshell.

[middyseafort]

Herkimer Jitty wrote:

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Since she's not designed for hauling cargo as her main mission, perhaps that ought to be a bit of an afterthought. Like a crane that slides out of the cieling of one of the bays or something. No need to cut through parts of the ship that could be used for sciency and enginey stuff, right?

I actually like this idea. One of the things in science-fiction design is to have every little thing worked out, which isn't a bad thing.

And it's not that I don't like the cargo bays or the doors, but, using a submarine model, cargo could be shoved wherever there is space.

For example, on submarine, pantry items, such as canned goods and boxed cereal, are stowed in little nooks in the floor.

However, since this was once a science vessel, it might make sense that there are cargo bays and doors for special equipment that might have been needed for surveys, etc.

Oh, I really love the way the registry is on the ship. I like that the number is bigger than the name, just like on U.S. Navy ship.

[Vektor]

Almost there...




A note about the cargo bays: The intent here is that the bay doors are external rather than internal and work a little like the side door on a mini-van, sliding open length-wise away from the saucer's central axis. I reduced the size of the doors to make them less prominent in keeping with the fact that this is--or was--an exploration vessel that happens to have cargo space, not a dedicated cargo ship.

The actual cargo bays are probably about two decks high, with maybe one more deck above and another below, accessible by cargo lifts, for "overstock." Remember, the decks are perpendicular to the ship's longitudinal axis. The bays are designed to be loaded or off-loaded in orbit, though there are probably provisions for doing so on the ground on those rare occasions when the ship does land. Properly equipped port facilities would have cargo gantries or cranes to access them. Short of that, there could be an internal lift system running all the way back through the tail fins, or possibly a hoist system that can be rigged up inside the bay.

Also shown here is a lot more detailing on the main engines and attached "ring fins." Honestly, I'm just making a lot of this up as I go, but some of the implied functionality includes heat radiators and atmospheric control surfaces.

Assuming none of this changes, I anticipate one more round of detailing, then I go back to 3ds Max to complete the 3D model and deliver it to Dennis.

[CorporalCaptain]

The increase in detailing is stunning.

Is the dome on the nose going to glow, as it does some of the early artwork?

[Tallguy]

Please tell me that you're not going to tear this down and start from scratch?

It's gorgeous.

[JoeZhang]

That really is a beauty!

[Albertese]

Beautiful! One nit to pick regarding the cargo doors: mini-van doors slide back on tracks built into the outer wall of the vehicle, but this design has a "trench" of sorts where said tracks should be if I'm understanding your description correctly. Are said tracks part of the last round of detailing? Alternately, the doors could just be hinged and swing open like ... well, like doors. The way it's shown here it looks like they are really hinged and they swing open away from the central axis, rather than slide like a mini-van door. Just curious what you had in mind for this...

--Alex

[Santaman]

Very nice ship.

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Better and better; I can't wait to get it flying.

Tallguy wrote:

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Please tell me that you're not going to tear this down and start from scratch?

It's gorgeous.

It is...and please, we just finished principal photography on the movie; I'd have a nervous breakdown if Vektor started over now.

[Vektor]

CorporalCaptain wrote:

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Is the dome on the nose going to glow, as it does some of the early artwork?

The fore and aft domes will retain their glow, I just haven't included it in the paint-over yet.

Tallguy wrote:

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Please tell me that you're not going to tear this down and start from scratch?

I'm not going to tear this down and start from scratch.

Albertese wrote:

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One nit to pick regarding the cargo doors: mini-van doors slide back on tracks built into the outer wall of the vehicle, but this design has a "trench" of sorts where said tracks should be if I'm understanding your description correctly. Are said tracks part of the last round of detailing? Alternately, the doors could just be hinged and swing open like ... well, like doors. The way it's shown here it looks like they are really hinged and they swing open away from the central axis, rather than slide like a mini-van door. Just curious what you had in mind for this...

I was wondering if anyone would ask that question. Perhaps the mini-van door analogy was a poor one. Imagine something more like the glide rails used for cabinet drawers or the keyboard shelf on your computer desk. In the closed position, I imagine there are also latches that grab the door and pull it tight against the frame for an air-tight seal.

I did consider doing a hinged door and I even drew up a version of it, but it just didn't work for me for a variety of reasons.

Dennis wrote:

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It is...and please, we just finished principal photography on the movie; I'd have a nervous breakdown if Vektor started over now.

Don't worry, as I said to Tallguy, there will be no starting over on this one. These sketches are all paint-overs of the existing 3D model with lots of added detail but virtually no significant structural changes. In fact, the main reason I switched to doing paint-overs was to refine those details without having to rebuild whole sections of the 3D model over and over again as I have previously done with the Grandeur, for example, at the cost of ridiculous amounts of time and effort.

And yes, I know that's a lesson I should have learned a long time ago. Old dogs and all that.

[IcecreamLtDan]

I'll be in my bunk!!

[Vektor]

What do you think, too much orange stripeyness?

[Venardhi]

Especially considering the big use of orange in the paint-job, I think the original purple 'plasma' hues on the domes would be brilliant.