  |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||
|
In order to view this site you must
upgrade your Flash Player |
 |
Docking Bay 51 Galileo This Spaceship was designed by Robert Heinlein and drawn by Thomas Voter and originally presented in the book, Rocket Ship Galileo in 1947.
.
 .
Rocket ship Galileo. Who would ever think that a science-fiction adventure story written for teenage boys could raise such a ruckus. But it did. The book was written just one year after the end of World War II, when memories of the scientific achievements in rocketry by the third Reich made it still the most plausible technological enemy of the United States. Its plot centered around a nuclear rocket scientist getting help from group of teenage boys in an amateur rocket club to refurbish a used Intercontinental freighter rocket ship to go to the moon.
.
The fact that the Galileo began as a sub orbital ship solved many of their modification problems. Although the Galileo may have been originally designed as a freighter, its shape was nothing short of aerodynamically sleek and beautiful. All they had to do was convert it to use Uncle Don’s atomic rocket engine. This one modification would give it enough performance to achieve a trip to the moon and back.
.
However, there would be unexpected problems. Someone was trying to sabotage the project. Although it sounds improbable today, the villains turned out to be post WWII German military who had their own plans for the Moon. While there were several technical problems with the concept, the adventure story was well thought out and entertaining.
But then Robert Heinlein got the opportunity to help create a Hollywood movie. What would have been just a thrilling teenage adventure took a turn for the famous when the story of Galileo’s moon trip served as a basis for the future blockbuster movie Destination Moon.
.
It also became the first of many successful juvenile science fiction stories that Robert A. Heinlein would write. By that fact, it started a whole new trend in Science Fiction literature. So in the final analysis, this one juvenile SF story was actually pretty important in the development of the spaceship.
Links to Additional information available in the Trade Zone.
A Precision Design Drawing of this Spaceship -----------------------------------------
Click on Image to LEARN MORE or BUY NOW.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Complete background information is available in the Spaceship Handbook
Click on Image to LEARN MORE or BUY NOW.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This Spaceship is also featured in “Ad Astra per Aspera”
Click on Image to LEARN MORE or BUY NOW.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
