Model Of The Week: Orion/Cousteau NEO Mission

[dhanners]

Here's my latest: the Orion/Cousteau Near-Earth Object Mission spacecraft. It is loosely based on an actual proposal by Lockheed-Martin to dock two Orion spacecraft nose-to-nose and send it to rendezvous with a near-Earth object, i.e., an asteroid.

I decided to take a different approach, making the mission an international one. So I used a proposed crewed version of ESA's Automated Transfer Vehicle (here named Cousteau after the famed ocean explorer) and joined it with an Orion.

Both models were designed by Ton Noteboom and offered on his site, but both are heavily modified, Cousteau more than Orion. To begin with, Ton's models are 1/96th scale, so I enlarged them to 1/48th. During construction, I added various detail and bits and pieces throughout.

I replicated the ATV's quilted insulation blankets with toilet paper. Cottonelle bathroom tissue contains a ridged detail that looks a lot like the insulation blankets, so I stiffened a few sheets by spraying them with a 50-50 mixture of white glue and water. After the glue dried, I was able to cut it and affix it to the model.

Also, I will point out that the solar arrays are out of synch -- they point different directions -- and that's something I will fix. I just wanted to get the photos taken.

 

[dhanners]

more photos....

 

[Dyna-Soar]

O.O Awesome work!

 

[ovation]

Yeah but .. where's the Lander ? :mrgreen:
You can't visit an Asteroid without getting dirty hands :thumb:

JJ-UK

 

[ekuth]

THAT is some quality work, there.

I *love* the insulation blanket look and give you kudos for extended media use!

You know... I think this qualifies for:

Model Of The Week!

Front page, oh yeah.... :thumb:

 

[dhanners]

Thanks for the kind words, and I'm honored with the "Model of the Week" thing. There have been some pretty fine examples of card modeling up there lately, and I'm humbled to be in such exalted company.

As for the lack of a lander.... You wouldn't need one. Most NEOs are small enough that they have minuscule (if any) gravity. You park the spacecraft nearby and "walk" over. Or spacewalk over, more precisely. LockMart's proposal didn't include a lander for that very reason. Their artwork showed the docked Orions hovering near an asteroid as astronauts on tethers explored the object. If you had some sort of MMU-type device, you'd be fine, but you probably wouldn't even need anything that big.

 

[ovation]

I should'v put more thought into the reply :mrgreen:
You've made a really good looking model there,

JJ-UK..

 

[redwolf28386]

Great idea with the tissue!

 

[peter taft]

Abso-bloody-lutely brilliant workmanship, and soooooo well deserved M.O.T.W :thumb: and have a few of these to put on your shelf :goldcup::goldcup::goldcup:

EXCELLENT WORK !​

 

[dhanners]

I decided that if you're going to fly a mission to a Near-Earth Object, then you need an NEO to fly to. Following a link Yogi helpfully provided, I built the asteroid Eros. (Although, in all accuracy, the NEO most often mentioned in such a mission is NEO 2001GP2, but I couldn't find a model of that....)

I printed out the model and concluded it was just going to be too darn small for my fumble-bumble fingers to build. I head down to my local FedEx/Kinkos and had the model enlarged 140 percent so I could fit it on an 11x17 sheet.

These models are fun but they're not easy. This model, in fact, was my second shot at Eros. I cut out the model and then introduced curves into it by placing it upside down on a computer mouse pad and rubbing it with a wooden ball.

For assembly, I took my hole punch and made a bunch of small circles. I glued the circles every 1-2 cm or so along the edges of the model; they would be tabs for gluing the edges together. Once that was done, it was time to start joining the edges.

I'd glue a couple of centimeters at a time and let it dry, then glue a strip of copy paper over the seam on the inside. Once that was dry, I'd burnish down the edges of the seam. This was slow work, but for the most part, it went together ok.

Before cutting out the model, I had sprayed the sheet with a matte finish, but I still think the model has too much sheen to it, even after spraying it again after all the glue had dried. I may look for something else to spray it with.

Now I'll figure out some way to put it on the base with Orion/Cousteau. The models and Eros are not in the same scale, but it's a cool little model.

 

[Paper Kosmonaut]

Thats really a wonderful build! I especially like your way of making the thermal blankets for Cousteau.
Is your Cousteau a scratchbuilt model?
I think I'll give that thermal blanket technique a try for an upcoming shuttle project later in the year. Still I first have an R7 and N-1 to finish, though...

 

[dhanners]

Thanks for the kind words. The Cousteau is a modification of Ton Noteboom's fine ESA Automated Transfer Vehicle. He also makes the parts for the crewed version. The models are on his website: http://www.pe2tr.nl/.

 

[ton noteboom]

Came across this thread while lurking in the model railroad section , NICE JOB!!!
Looks familiar!!! LOL

Ton

 

[asclepius]

Amazing Details

The unfolded solar panels, the blanket insulation, etc. You've put in a lot of work on this model. It looks real!

I have admired your work for some time. I love the X-20 Dyna Soar with Transtage that you build a while back. (I grew up in that time and the Dyna Soar always fascinated me)

Thank you!, Kevin

 

[Zathros]

Dave, didn't see this one, excellent!

 

[Space Boy]

It's very realistic, excellent work!:thumb:

 

[spacewalker]

Very nice work! The only problem that i see is the docking mechanism, they are on both capsules an activ mechanism. you need one with a passiv system. I think a docking tunnel, like the ASTP tunnel, with a external airlock for spacewalk would a nice idea.

Great model!
regards spacewalker.

 

[uiop]

Great!