SSE Endurance in
Mars Orbit

SSE Endurance in
Neptune Orbit

SSE Endurance with
Fighter Escort

SSE Endurance
Top View

CONCEPT

Perhaps built in the early 22nd century by an alliance of nation-states and multi-national corporations, this large exploration craft would capable of traveling to all planets of our solar system. It would be powered by nuclear fusion reactors supplemented by retractable solar panels for use in the inner solar system. For missions to the outer planets, the Endurance class vessel could refuel at depots located in the asteroid belt and orbiting the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. Typical travel times in the inner solar system would be measured in weeks, those to Jupiter and Saturn in months, and those to the outermost planets in years. The Endurance class would carry three kinds of smallcraft: 1) Sagan class landers for surveying of moons and asteroids as well as general cargo transport, 2) Herschel class landers for longer-term exploration work on planetary bodies such as Mars and Mercury and 3) Churchill class fighters for armed escort if needed. The Endurance is the only spaceship design of mine that actually could be built given reasonable projections of current space-faring technology.

DIGITAL RESOURCES

Modeling - TrueSpace 6.6
Spare Parts - Renderosity artists Steve Wilson and Richard Jeferies, 3D CGI models of 2001: A Space Odyssey spacecraft and Space: 1999 Hawk Mk-IX Fighter, and a Warhammer character
Rendering - TrueSpace 6.6
Textures - P. Bourke, Steve Wilson, Marlin's Amazing SF Textures CD Collection, and a few other Internet sources
Backgrounds and Running Lights - Universe Image Creator
Miscellaneous - CorelDRAW, Corel Photo-Paint and Adobe Photoshop

PRIMARY DESIGN INFLUENCES

1. Spaceship Discovery from the science-fiction film 2001: A Space Odyssey

2. Spaceship Leonov from the science-fiction film 2010: The Year We Make Contact

3. Freighter Valley Forge and its robot drones from the science-fiction film Silent Running

4. Various Earthforce capital ships from the science-fiction TV series Babylon 5

5. Numerous speculative spacecraft designs from the 1950's.