"NASA BOMBS THE MOON!" Yogi's LCROSS-Centaur

**umtutsut** · #1 09-05-2010, 10:39 AM

You may remember last October’s NASA mission that first released the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) onto a moonbound trajectory, then deliberately crashed the Centaur stage into the crater Cabeus on October 9 while the LCROSS “shepherding satellite” imaged the impact to search for traces of water at the Moon’s south pole. The media rather sensationalized the mission, all too frequently tagging it with headlines such as “NASA BOMBS THE MOON!”

Here’s my interpretation of Yogi’s LCROSS-Centaur model. I added many scratchbuilt parts made from plastic rod and strip, tape, and stuff from the spares box to the basic model. First an overall view. The model is mounted to the base with a brass rod.

A couple pix of the LCROSS satellite. Most of it is covered with “gold” foil from a mail-order place I can’t remember now. The white panels are vinyl tape. Note the conical structure at the top. Most illustrations show the LCROSS without this part that mated to the LRO, but my study of pre-launch pix suggests it was firmly bolted to the satellite.

A pic of the “business end” of the Centaur. I used a 1/144 J-2 engine from a Saturn V kit. It may be somewhat undersized, but captures the look of the real deal, which is what I was shooting for.

Finally, a pic of the base. I found the picture of Cabeus in the bullseye kinda amusing and just had to have it for my display.

Comments welcome!

Les (Friendly Airplane Asylum & ex-NASA flack)

**Swampfox** · #2 09-05-2010, 10:45 AM

Very good looking, clean build........ Well done!!

Swampfox

**Ron40** · #3 09-05-2010, 10:48 AM

A very well thought out model and exceptional
workmanship....Ron

**dhanners** · #4 09-05-2010, 11:17 AM

Great build! Thanks for sharing the photos.

**Paper Kosmonaut** · #5 09-05-2010, 04:17 PM

Wow. Just ... Wow. Nice glossy finish, realistic crinkly top and bottom end of the Centaur, I smiled when I recognised the engine. Nice details. One hundred points!

**SAustin16** · #6 09-05-2010, 06:28 PM

Overall, I wouldn't be able to tell it from the real spacecraft. The details really make this model, especially your use of the foil. Great job.

**Retired_for_now** · #7 09-06-2010, 04:34 AM

Now that is a spectacular job, Les! I absolutely love the detailing (and corrections) you've added to the basic "sow's ear."

Yogi

**umtutsut** · #8 09-07-2010, 05:43 AM

Mucho thanx for the kind comments!

I'll almost certainly never be a card modeling purist, using only paper or related materials. My goal is to create a good-looking model with whatever materials are needed. Too many years of kitbashing resin and plastic, I think. :D

Bravo Zulu squared to all the amazingly talented designers and builders who post their work here in the forum and in the downloads!

WIP: Sputnik 1 at about 1/7 scale. Stay tooned....

Les (Friendly Airplane Asylum & ex-NASA flack)