Star Ship Polaris
- Thread starter aridas sofia
- Start date
Thanks. 
Okay, here's a really rough plan view of what I had in mind. This is NOT to scale and may require significant adjustments to make it fit inside the hull outline. I did both the concept illustration and this plan purely by eye, so I guess we'll see if this actually works or not.
Also note there's quite a bit of stuff shown on the plan that isn't in the illustration yet, like the step down to the main engine control stations on either side, the additional consoles, etc. A lot of this is just stream of creative consciousness.
Also note there's quite a bit of stuff shown on the plan that isn't in the illustration yet, like the step down to the main engine control stations on either side, the additional consoles, etc. A lot of this is just stream of creative consciousness.
Haha! I had sudden visions of Doc Brown when I read the "not to scale" comment and saw that awesome blueprint sketch.
Looks great!
Re "Unnamed crewman", as per my previous messages he is Petrie, as in Rob and Laura.
One thing we can probably do is add some interacting lighting effects to tie together the matte and live action. We could some flashing alarm lights in the background when necessary and cast appropriately colored rim-lighting around the edges of the actors.
Re "Unnamed crewman", as per my previous messages he is Petrie, as in Rob and Laura.
One thing we can probably do is add some interacting lighting effects to tie together the matte and live action. We could some flashing alarm lights in the background when necessary and cast appropriately colored rim-lighting around the edges of the actors.
Dang, he is fast. Almost as fast as I am slow and meticulous.
Vector, how do you do it?
And do we have to call the "booster engines" booster engines? "Auxiliary thrusters" would seem like a more likely term to be used.
Okay, I've decided you must be talking about my old UES Vanguard:
That one does hold a special place in my heart and I will get back to it eventually.
That is it! Thanks. I look forward to its revision
Looks great!
Re "Unnamed crewman", as per my previous messages he is Petrie, as in Rob and Laura.
Ah, okay, I must have missed that. Noted for future reference.
This really was just a quick and dirty floorplan sketch. It helps that I have a degree in drafting and computer-aided design, so this type of drawing is something I have quite a lot of experience with, only this was quicker and easier because it was literally just a sketch.
As for the "booster engines," I've never been totally happy with that name either, but "auxiliary engines" doesn't quite work either. Their main purpose is for takeoffs and landings and orbital maneuvering. I'm open to suggestions on better names.
LMTs (Launch & Maneuvering Thrusters)
LMDs (Launch & Maneuvering Drives)
Or think about what each does and what it's named and maybe something appropriate will occur e.g.:
Drive Grid = FTL
AAE (Antimatter Annihilation Engine) = sublight)
_______ = Launch & Manuevering Drive
LMDs (Launch & Maneuvering Drives)
Or think about what each does and what it's named and maybe something appropriate will occur e.g.:
Drive Grid = FTL
AAE (Antimatter Annihilation Engine) = sublight)
_______ = Launch & Manuevering Drive
I'm really impressed with everything I've seen so far coming from "Polaris". Jason's work continually blows me away and it's lots of fun following the behind the scenes progress in real time. Nice work all the way around!
We already have "maneuvering thrusters" at various locations all over the ship so we probably don't want to use that.
I envision those engines as a type of hybrid rocket/scramjet. They can function in pure rocket mode, but they can also take advantage of a combustible atmosphere at supersonic speeds for additional thrust. Technically they should not have a rotary compressor fan on the front and I would actually advise Dennis to keep the center spike but eliminate the fan.
While all these technical details are largely irrelevant in a script sense--indeed, everyone involved has worked hard to avoid any undue obsession with technobabble--I do like to work out my own explanations for things behind the scenes, just to maintain some logical consistency if nothing else.
Propulsion-wise, I see Polaris having three different systems. In order of least to most powerful, you have the maneuvering thrusters, then the booster engines, then the main engines.
The maneuvering thrusters are rather oversized on this ship class, which is fortunate since Polaris is distinctly lacking in armor and other defensive capabilities and it's best defense is its ability to get out of the way.
The booster engines are used for takeoffs and landings, orbital maneuvering, and transitioning between orbital and interplanetary space.
The main engines are a high-tech aerospike variation. They are conventional reaction engines that work in tandem with the ship's artificial gravity/inertial compensation systems to MASSIVELY amplify thrust and exhaust velocity. These things are capable of driving the ship to a significant percentage of light speed very quickly using fractional amounts of fuel. They also produce a fairly lethal stream of relativistic particles hundreds of miles long, which is why they don't tend to be used in atmosphere or near orbit. Visually, I imagine each of the five engines in each cluster directing their exhaust toward the central spike, from which a pillar of blue fire shoots out like the lights on top of the Luxor hotel in Vegas, only about 10 times brighter.
At least, that's the way I see it. Dennis and the gang can take that for what it's worth as far as the effects sequences go.
I envision those engines as a type of hybrid rocket/scramjet. They can function in pure rocket mode, but they can also take advantage of a combustible atmosphere at supersonic speeds for additional thrust. Technically they should not have a rotary compressor fan on the front and I would actually advise Dennis to keep the center spike but eliminate the fan.
While all these technical details are largely irrelevant in a script sense--indeed, everyone involved has worked hard to avoid any undue obsession with technobabble--I do like to work out my own explanations for things behind the scenes, just to maintain some logical consistency if nothing else.
Propulsion-wise, I see Polaris having three different systems. In order of least to most powerful, you have the maneuvering thrusters, then the booster engines, then the main engines.
The maneuvering thrusters are rather oversized on this ship class, which is fortunate since Polaris is distinctly lacking in armor and other defensive capabilities and it's best defense is its ability to get out of the way.
The booster engines are used for takeoffs and landings, orbital maneuvering, and transitioning between orbital and interplanetary space.
The main engines are a high-tech aerospike variation. They are conventional reaction engines that work in tandem with the ship's artificial gravity/inertial compensation systems to MASSIVELY amplify thrust and exhaust velocity. These things are capable of driving the ship to a significant percentage of light speed very quickly using fractional amounts of fuel. They also produce a fairly lethal stream of relativistic particles hundreds of miles long, which is why they don't tend to be used in atmosphere or near orbit. Visually, I imagine each of the five engines in each cluster directing their exhaust toward the central spike, from which a pillar of blue fire shoots out like the lights on top of the Luxor hotel in Vegas, only about 10 times brighter.
At least, that's the way I see it. Dennis and the gang can take that for what it's worth as far as the effects sequences go.
Similar threads
