Project "Starlab" space station

[K_Jameson]

I wanted to give a more modern appearance to the small pressurized cargo module. Inspired by the big composite tank realized by SpaceX, I've painted it in a similar way. Too dark or smooth?



The original for comparison


In a side note, the similarities between the Sagitta and the F-104 were highlighted also on the Italian Forum. I decided that an eventual "military" version of this vehicle will be christened Starfighter in honor of the venerable fighter, that here in Italy had a loooong service history.

 

[K_Jameson]

The two logistic spacecrafts of FOI side by side: the good old Verrazzano and the upcoming Sagitta. The two vehicles has similar overall weights but, as you can imagine, Verrazzano has a far larger payload capacity, although not the capability of unpressurized payloads.



---------- Post added at 10:01 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:50 PM ----------

I've taken a fancy to this :lol:
Another group photograph; this time the guest is the Hatsune spaceplane by Pipcard. I've discovered that Hatsune and Delphinus have nearly identical dimensions.

 

[K_Jameson]

A small improvement: new RCC textures for the wing leading edges and the wingtips

 

[Nicholander]

Lookin' great! :thumbup: Any idea on when it's gonna be released?

 

[K_Jameson]

Still I don't know.
This addon has come a long way, becoming something more complex than originally planned. OK that isn't a DLL addon and thus is not so much complicated, but virtually for the entire 2016 I haven't had the opportunity to work at it, and even now I've a limited amount of time available. Surely if I had stayed true to the original plan, with only the core station and nothing else, I could publish it one year and a half ago.

Currently, I can say that the project is about 90% done. Something remains to do, in particular:

- A fine tuning of the Canadarm to make it fully capable to do his expected job.
- Activation of the various parent/child grapple points for the management of the payloads
- Aerodinamic configuration of the Sagitta spaceplane
- Completion of the scenarios
- Documentation and instructions

A final component of the package should be another module (currently half completed), intended to be a small outpost in lunar orbit, to assist future surface exploration missions. That outpost should be an evolution of the Challenger Multipurpose expansion module (the second module of Starlab). The idea is to have a small BLEO station to be launched towards the Moon in a single piece instead of sending a big Starlab Core Module that requires three launches and LEO assembly (station + two propulsion modules).

 

[K_Jameson]

Side by side with Atlantis, showing the relative sizes of the cargo bays.

 

[MaverickSawyer]

Lookin' great! :thumbup: Any idea on when it's gonna be released?

You must be new here... The answer is always "Tuesday (TM)". :lol:

 

[K_Jameson]

The last element of my infrastructure: the Columbia DSO (Deep Space Outpost).
It is substantially a quick derivation of the Challenger MPEM (Multi Purpose Expansion Module) with more solar arrays, more internal fuel and only two docking ports instead of four.



The purpose of Columbia is mainly to provide a near-term lunar outpost in support to surface exploration missions. Being not equipped with radiation vault and other facilities, his role is merely to provide more habitable and storage room for the visiting crews. For long-term stays, a Starlab Core Module is highly preferable.

What is the advantage? The flexibility. Starlab Core requires orbital assembly and three Quasar 452 launches to be placed in low lunar orbit (the station, plus 2x propulsion modules, AKA StarTugs). Columbia can be put in the same orbit with a single Quasar 452 launch.

A more equipped version (Buran) can be expected in the future, but probably not in the first edition of the package.

 

[K_Jameson]

And here the cosmic train complete. Antares happily docked at the Columbia outpost.

 

[toto76math]

What is your situation on Starlab? I am really excited about your design,since in my opinion,it mixes good elements from the Skylab (dry workshops from rocket stages), Salyuts (mostly 6 and 7,because the station is designed to stay in operation for years and also has engines for orbital station keeping) and Mir (due to modular design ,but the modules could operate autonomously,except someones. This idea has even served me as a model for sci-fi novels i would like to write.

So when do you expect to release it?