LEGO IN SPACE - ASTRONAUT BUILDS MODEL ISS IN ORBIT

SMN report:

After posting news on LEGO’s upcoming R2D2 last week, we were sent a link to LEGO in space, for real this time. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) recently assembled a one-off model as part of an education linkup between the space agency NASA and the Danish LEGO company.

HASEGAWA SPACE SHUTTLE AND HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE - SEEING THE EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE

Mat Irvine sees stars

Getting a new lease of life out of an existing kit is hardly unusual, and this is precisely what Hasegawa has done with its 1:200 scale Space Shuttle Orbiter kit, by adding what was the Shuttle’s largest single payload, the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). What is odd, given the number of Orbiter kits and the importance of this particular space observatory, is that no-one has done this before.

A multi-coloured kit, split usefully into related groups. The runner of grey components is newly produced for this kit.

SPACE - CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT

Mat Irvine reports on a magabook for space fans

Space is a colourful new release from Key Publishing, the outfit behind the recently-launched Airfix Model World magazine. Space is written by David Baker, a well-known space writer, as well as once being a NASA space scientist.

SPACECRAFT MODELS FROM DRAGON - X-37B, DELTA II, SPACE SHUTTLE, HST SHOULD KEEP ARMCHAIR ASTRONAUTS SMILING... AND THERE'S A BELL X-1 ROCKET-PLANE TOO

SMN report

The Chinese model company Dragon continues to add models to its ‘Space Collection’ range. The subjects vary in scale from 1:72 to 1:400 scale, plus 1:6 scale astronaut figures. Spacecraft are ready-built, mixing diecast-and-plastic parts, and there are several new ones that have just come in, including a variation on the 1:72 scale X-37B ‘mini Shuttle’ we discussed a while back.

X-37B glides in to a smooth landing

Dragon’s latest X-37B represents the automated vehicle in early glide-test mode, which is a neat (if specialist) addition to a tabletop space fleet. As we mentioned before, the real thing looks distinctly more careworn than this miniature version, but no matter, you can always give Dragon’s X-37B a dose of the weathering treatment with an airbrush.

FREE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE MODELS

The fourth servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is the top astronautics story of the week, so it’s nice to see that the scale model community hasn’t been forgotten.

The HST internet site has a choice of three models to build - a children’s version, a more detailed paper project, and a highly detailed expert model with interior detail. To build, you download the drawings as a pdf, then print out on your home printer.

The kids version may well be ‘easier’ (and will certainly be tougher) but it does require a trip to your hardware store to buy various bits of PVC pipe, then on to a craft shop for dowel, beads and other supplies. Me? I’ll probably stick to paper.

The picture shows the more detailed version. It’s to 1:48 scale, but you could make it smaller or larger by changing the output size on your printer.

Visit here to see the three choices of model, and here to go straight to the downloads page.


Picture courtesy Hubblesite.org
Model based on a design by Ton Noteboom