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Description
Note: This work not for sale.
Space Tug design by Dr. R. C. Parkinson for his 1975 space fleet.
On October 26, 2014 I posted a diagram image of the Lighter and Tanker spacecraft from The Resources of the Solar System by Dr. R. C. Parkinson, see: Lighter and Tanker.
After posting this work a former colleague of Dr. Parkinson, who came across my announcement of the piece on G+, provided Winchell Chung and myself with contact information for Dr. Parkinson.
Dr. Parkinson was delighted at our interest in his designs and kindly provided scans of the original concept sketches and notes for his entire 1975 space fleet. I acquired permission to use Dr. Parkinson’s original art for this and upcoming images of 3D models I’ve constructed based on his designs. This is the first time these sketches have been seen at this level of detail, and I will be pleased to bring you models of Dr. Parkinson’s entire 1975 space fleet in the upcoming months.
In the image above Dr. Parkinson’s original concept art is in the upper left quadrant. Center Top and Middle are two views of my 3D model based on Dr. Parkinson’s concept art. Along the Right side of the image I’ve included a set of detail shots of the manned capsule in profile, forward, and aft view.
Added Detail:
On the Tug’s propulsion bus I’ve added some additional struts to support the reaction-control jets and liquid oxygen tanks.
In his notes Dr. Parkinson indicates the manned capsule has its own secondary propulsion, so I’ve added a single gimbaled low-thrust engine and other details to permit it to operate independently. Added details are: a high-gain antenna for communications and a radar dish; forward-facing view ports for visual orientation during docking maneuvers; four forward-facing and four aft-facing cameras to aid in docking procedures.
Update 11/17/2014: In correspondence I sent Dr. Parkinson a link to this image and Dr. Parkinson shared the following background information on the design in his reply.
“As a matter of interest, the "Space Tug" & Lunar Lander were based on some earlier design work done in Europe when it looked as if a cryogenic Space Tug might be the European contribution to the Space Shuttle program (those were the days!).”
Note: I will be posting the Lunar Lander version of this design in the upcoming days.
Credit and acknowledgement: I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to Dr. Parkinson for his generosity in providing his original concept art and design notes.
In addition I would like to extend a special note of thanks to Dr. James Garry for arranging introduction and providing contact information for Dr. Parkinson to Winchell Chung and myself.
Space Tug design by Dr. R. C. Parkinson for his 1975 space fleet.
On October 26, 2014 I posted a diagram image of the Lighter and Tanker spacecraft from The Resources of the Solar System by Dr. R. C. Parkinson, see: Lighter and Tanker.
After posting this work a former colleague of Dr. Parkinson, who came across my announcement of the piece on G+, provided Winchell Chung and myself with contact information for Dr. Parkinson.
Dr. Parkinson was delighted at our interest in his designs and kindly provided scans of the original concept sketches and notes for his entire 1975 space fleet. I acquired permission to use Dr. Parkinson’s original art for this and upcoming images of 3D models I’ve constructed based on his designs. This is the first time these sketches have been seen at this level of detail, and I will be pleased to bring you models of Dr. Parkinson’s entire 1975 space fleet in the upcoming months.
In the image above Dr. Parkinson’s original concept art is in the upper left quadrant. Center Top and Middle are two views of my 3D model based on Dr. Parkinson’s concept art. Along the Right side of the image I’ve included a set of detail shots of the manned capsule in profile, forward, and aft view.
Added Detail:
On the Tug’s propulsion bus I’ve added some additional struts to support the reaction-control jets and liquid oxygen tanks.
In his notes Dr. Parkinson indicates the manned capsule has its own secondary propulsion, so I’ve added a single gimbaled low-thrust engine and other details to permit it to operate independently. Added details are: a high-gain antenna for communications and a radar dish; forward-facing view ports for visual orientation during docking maneuvers; four forward-facing and four aft-facing cameras to aid in docking procedures.
Update 11/17/2014: In correspondence I sent Dr. Parkinson a link to this image and Dr. Parkinson shared the following background information on the design in his reply.
“As a matter of interest, the "Space Tug" & Lunar Lander were based on some earlier design work done in Europe when it looked as if a cryogenic Space Tug might be the European contribution to the Space Shuttle program (those were the days!).”
Note: I will be posting the Lunar Lander version of this design in the upcoming days.
Credit and acknowledgement: I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to Dr. Parkinson for his generosity in providing his original concept art and design notes.
In addition I would like to extend a special note of thanks to Dr. James Garry for arranging introduction and providing contact information for Dr. Parkinson to Winchell Chung and myself.
Image size
3600x3404px 4.09 MB
© 2014 - 2023 William-Black
Comments14
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Is this the renowned Dr P of BIS who did much structural / tankage design work for their Daedalus Final Report ??
( I was at London meeting where that was released, and his *may* be one of the authors' autographs I collected inside my copy. All now packed away... )