Science Forums 2

[TheBigDog]

This is a tangent from the Spaceship Design thead started by JQ. If this voyage goes well I hope to take a similar voyages aboard the more ambitions designs you will find on that thread. This is not for the feint hearted. It is for the fun hearted.

We have assembled our ship and it is in orbit around earth. We are in our current time with our current technology. Our ship is The Prophesy, a nuclear powered vessel with enough fuel to cruise with engines at full for 100 years. It is waiting in orbit for final outfitting for its maiden voyage. That voyage is a detailed exploration of our solarsystem and as far out as the oort cloud.

What I am looking for are volunteers to join me in outfitting the ship and exploring the solarsystem. As members of the crew you will be empowered to design experiments and equipment for carrying out those experiments. Some of those are designed to explore space, some of those are research for our next generation ships that will begin exploration beyond our solar system. We need geologists, astronomers, biologists, botonists, anthropologists, medical staff, resource recovery staff, maintenance crew, navigators, computer specialists, physists, chemists, generalists, humorists, brewmasters, students, interns, retired hobbyists and at least one hot chick.

Remember that we will be living on the ship together for an extended period of time. Depending upon how well we plan and how long we can stand each other! So some of what we will be planning is not just the science, but the society of living on the ship. We will need recreational activities along with our busy science schedules.

So, who wants so sign up, and what role will you be filling on our voyage of mind and space? We launch on June 1st. Until then we will take on crew members and decide upon the missions we would like to undertake and fill the ship with the equipment we will need.

Welcome aboard!

(T-30 days)

Bill - Space Voyage #1 Project Leader

*********************************************

Here are a front and side view of the ship. The diameter is around 200 meters. The sections are 50 meters long and 10 meters thick. They can have one, two or three decks internally. The six cargo bays are 75 meters long and 20 meters in diameter. They can hold whatever we want to put into them, but they have no atmosphere.

Ring shows a four layer living area totaling 48 sections. These rotate where they are held at the ends to keep the direction of "down" relative the g force being experienced. While the ship is accelerating the spin rate is adjusted to keep the living quarters at 1G. While coasting the ship is a maximum spin to maintain 1G. This area is meant to house the people plus the self sustaining resources to keep them fed and hydrated indefinitely.

The center cylinder is the nuclear fuel plus the liquid fuel used for trim controls and fueling the probes and shuttles. It is meant to last for 100 years of full throttle, plus multiple missions for the smaller craft, so it is big. I am not sure if the proportions are correct. The yellow section is the nuclear rocket that propels the ship.

The green area is the payload section. Seven large storage areas that can hold shuttles, probes, satellites, etc. The docking bay is at the nose of the center payload section.