The Art and Graphics of Nick Stevens. Available for hire.I specialise in unbuilt space projects, and the spacecraft of the Soviet Union.
Spacecraft concepts that were never fully developed
Ok, this is bound to be highly subjective! But for what it’s worth, here are the ten most beautiful rockets, in my opinion.
The shape is simple but the paint job wins the prize. New Zealand based, which is why we have what is effectively a rocket wearing an All Blacks rugby shirt.
I note they also claim to have the most beautiful launch site in the world, and having visited New Zealand, I am willing to accept that.
I sometimes get into discussions about if a spacecraft design is realistic. These are frequently interesting, but it’s not straightforward. For example, there are serious designs from the early days of spaceflight which we now know could not work. Manned craft without heavy radiation shielding are a common example of this.
On the other hand, you have some fictional craft carefully designed to be as realistic as possible – the vehicles in “2001 a Space Odyssey” are a great example.
So how to handle it when some fictional craft are more credible than serious designs? here’s my attempt at a system, from the most realistic to the least. Comments and additions are very welcome.
Clearly you can’t get more realistic than this!
Example: Saturn V rocket
Continue reading “An objective system for how realistic / credible a spacecraft is…”
I recently came across the Frank Tinsley illustration of what he called a “Lunar Unicycle”, which might be better described as a monowheel.
Despite the lack of many illustrations, the design seems clear, and I decided to do a 3d version of it in Lightwave. Though I did later find a couple more pictures… Continue reading “The Frank Tinsley “Lunar Unicycle””
Thought I’d gather together a few of my more recent images, none of which really justifies it’s own blog post…
This is not the Hyperion by Phil Bono, (which you can read about here), but an earlier design from Krafft Ehricke, dating all the way back to the 1950’s. It’s for a manned mission to Mars, (no landing), and a fleet of 3 or 4 ships would be sent for mutual support. I got the information on this project from the always excellent “Atomic Rockets” site, including this plan, which is the basis for my mesh:
Continue reading “Krafft Ehricke’s Hyperion, a manned nuclear Mars mission”
I recently realised that I hadn’t blogged this design, which I did a few years ago. I realised this after seeing an image I had provided of it for a board game had been bodged onto a new background, and looked awful. So I figured I should get my version online ASAP!
This is a serious NASA design for a nuclear craft capable of reaching Mars.
Some finished renders of the Hyperion, Phil Bono’s SSTO design.
This view has some perspective, and I have added a figure for scale. Continue reading “Bono’s Hyperion, finished renders”
Next up, another classic design from the fertile mind of Phil Bono, the Hyperion.
This is a large single stage to orbit (SSTO) design, which can launch via a rocket sled, (should there be a convenient nearby 1 mile high mountain, anyway).
Some finished renders of the flying wing design. See previous posts for the work in progress, and sample reference images.
The sky was the most difficult part here. I was compositing onto panoramic photos, and had to make my own sky. I really liked the dark greyish green, but it’s not very realistic.
Continue reading “NASA PRANDTL Flying Wing – finished renders”
This concept is a flying wing, or bodyless plane, currently being tested for a possible flight to prove the concept. It is intended to work well in the thin atmosphere of the planet Mars, and would be tested at very high altitude on Earth, where the pressure is similar.
You can find out more about the project here:
https://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/features/mars_airplane.html
Here’s the current state of my quickie project, I’m still very unsure on what to do on the bottom of the craft.
