HOME | DD
Reactor-Axe-Man — Prospector WIP
#harvester #mining #prospector #space #spacecraft #starship
Published: 2017-05-29 05:35:28 +0000 UTC; Views: 2762; Favourites: 31; Downloads: 36
Redirect to original
Description
I haven't done any modeling work in ages, but managed to make some good progress with this old Work In Progress for the Prospector class light mining vessel. You can see the radiators for the main engines still glowing hot after a burn.Modeled with Trimble SketchUp. Rendered with Kerkythea.
Related content
Comments: 6
Mounting the engines on arms is an interesting design choice. What drove it?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I wanted the ship to have a lot of agility close to big rocks, and I also envisioned two or three of these things towing a big rock somewhere, and the ability to accurately point the engines for both thrust placement and safety (these jets are so hot that much of their plume glows in X-rays) was paramount.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Since x-rays are a concern, I'm guessing the ship uses fusion engines?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Yes, they are D-He3 fusion drives.
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
Hm... Interesting design. Just curious, why did you choose fixed and retangular radiators, instead of classic, retractable ones? And is the top module, doubles as escape capsule? Tha shape seems to be fit for re-entry.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
The Prospector is not a warship, so fixed radiators close to the engines is the most cost effective and efficient way to do things. The bow module serves a few functions. One is that it protects the habitat from micro-impacts during transit to and from the work site, two, many of the ship's vital systems are contained there, leaving everything else dedicated to mining elsewhere on the ship, and three, when the model is complete, this will be where access to and from the ship will be located.
The crew lives and does a lot of the work in the four spin modules of the habitat ring located just below the bow module. Each module is roughly the size of an RV as far as living space goes, so it's not very comfortable.
👍: 0 ⏩: 0