Project Orion Spacecraft

thingiverse

Model of the pioneering Orion nuclear pulse propulsion spacecraft from the early 1960s, where nuclear bombs are detonated in close proximity to propel the vessel to incredibly high speeds by capturing the blast wave with a pusher plate. The spacecraft would have measured an impressive 10 meters (33 feet) in diameter and approximately 49 meters (160 feet) tall. It would be capable of carrying a crew of eight on a six-month round-trip journey to Mars, a feat that current Mars mission concepts typically achieve in nine months one way. A larger version could potentially transport a crew of twenty to Saturn and back within just a few years, an accomplishment that the Cassini probe achieved after seven long years. I printed my model small to match the scale of some other rockets I've printed, but it will print best at a much larger size.