U.S.S. Enterprise, NCC-1701-J

[Commander Richard]

Almost 20 years ago, we got a glimpse of the Enterprise-J and since then, a lot of developers have created their own take on the design we saw.

One in particular stands out for me though. OTOY recently created its own design as part of The Roddenberry Archive.

You can see a clearer shot in their YouTube clip here.

They gave the ship a transparent hull and you can see what appears to be a landscape with trees, water, etc. I was blown away by such a creative design.

What do you think? Do you like it? Is it practical?

I wouldn't mind seeing this in a Trek production someday.

 

[Unicron]

I've never really liked it, as I think the concept behind the ship is cool but it just looks disproportionate and not aesthetically pleasing to me. YMMV.

 

[NCC-73515]

I find it majestic and cool.

 

[fireproof78]

I've never really liked it, as I think the concept behind the ship is cool but it just looks disproportionate and not aesthetically pleasing to me. YMMV.

What they said. The proportions are not pleasing. Looks like a weird alien fish you'd fine by a geothermal vent.

The concept of it and the tech ideas are fun. But, no thanks on the aesthetics.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Since seeing its graphic on the display in "Azati Prime," I've always regarded the J as the most interesting Jefferies Enterprise variant since TMP. It took the flying-saucer-with-rockets concept to a unique extreme, really emphasizing the saucer and implying that in the future their tech is really powerful, because the nacelles are by proportion much smaller than they were in all the earlier designs.

So I guess I'm the opposite of some, since I find the proportions to be one of its outstanding features.

I really like the transparent dome concept for the Roddenberry Archives. It cements the idea of a city-in-space that they experimented with in TNG. It even suggests that the J might be intergalactic in range, which makes it all the more awesome.

 

[Unicron]

I'm kind of the opposite, as I feel like the nacelles are a bit too narrow and the saucer way too wide. I think one important consideration for both aesthetics and engineering is keeping some aspects, like the nacelles, in a good proportion so they don't look too off or underpowered.

I have seen some cool concepts for ships including organic technology or trees and such, like the Ithorian herd vessels in Star Wars or the Xenowarden hybrid vessels in Starfinder. Some examples:

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

The Universe-class Needs a StarDrive section.

I'm kind of the opposite, as I feel like the nacelles are a bit too narrow and the saucer way too wide. I think one important consideration for both aesthetics and engineering is keeping some aspects, like the nacelles, in a good proportion so they don't look too off or underpowered.

I have seen some cool concepts for ships including organic technology or trees and such, like the Ithorian herd vessels in Star Wars or the Xenowarden hybrid vessels in Starfinder. Some examples:

Why do those ships look like they went to a fruit market or bonsai shop and slapped stuff on top of the hull?

Since seeing its graphic on the display in "Azati Prime," I've always regarded the J as the most interesting Jefferies Enterprise variant since TMP. It took the flying-saucer-with-rockets concept to a unique extreme, really emphasizing the saucer and implying that in the future their tech is really powerful, because the nacelles are by proportion much smaller than they were in all the earlier designs.

So I guess I'm the opposite of some, since I find the proportions to be one of its outstanding features.

I really like the transparent dome concept for the Roddenberry Archives. It cements the idea of a city-in-space that they experimented with in TNG. It even suggests that the J might be intergalactic in range, which makes it all the more awesome.

I'm not a fan of the city in the saucer section, that's ALOT of volume inefficiently used for just open air, when it could house ALOT more people using the normal deck setup.
There's a place for a city ship, but that's more of a StarBase like feature than one for a Explorer ship.

 

[C.E. Evans]

I freely admit that I initially hated the Enterprise-J--I thought it was a photoshopped NX-01 and the only Starship Enterprise that was uncool. That changed when I got the Eaglemoss model of the ship on a whim and got to see the ship from all sides and (more importantly) different angles. The magazine that came with the model also featured details that while her design was something of a rush job, a lot of thought did go into it and the original plan was to see the ship in all her glory in the ENT episode "Azati Prime," but budget and time restraints ultimately made that impossible, only allowing her to appear as a stationary monitor display. Thanks to having a physical model of the ship, though, I can see she simply belongs to a different aesthetic that deliberately wouldn't flow nicely from 24th-Century starships. She's just of a different era and would look strange and even unpractical compared to what we're used to.

Amazing...I've gone from hating the design to loving it, and despite the future Sphere Builder War being negated, I hope the design does come pass as the Enterprise-J nevertheless.

 

[Unicron]

The Universe-class Needs a StarDrive section.
Why do those ships look like they went to a fruit market or bonsai shop and slapped stuff on top of the hull?

It makes a degree of sense in the context of the game setting, as Starfinder is basically D & D in space and the Xenowardens are an organization dedicated to preserving natural beauty and elements as much as possible. Most of their fleet has a hybrid tech/organic design similar to those seen here, although some are also constructed from asteroids. Also rule of flavor/cool.

 

[fireproof78]

Also rule of flavor/cool.

Never underestimate the power of it.

 

[NCC-73515]

I freely admit that I initially hated the Enterprise-J--I thought it was a photoshopped NX-01 and the only Starship Enterprise that was uncool. That changed when I got the Eaglemoss model of the ship on a whim and got to see the ship from all sides and (more importantly) different angles. The magazine that came with the model also featured details that while her design was something of a rush job, a lot of thought did go into it and the original plan was to see the ship in all her glory in the ENT episode "Azati Prime," but budget and time restraints ultimately made that impossible, only allowing her to appear as a stationary monitor display. Thanks to having a physical model of the ship, though, I can see she simply belongs to a different aesthetic that deliberately wouldn't flow nicely from 24th-Century starships. She's just of a different era and would look strange and even unpractical compared to what we're used to.

Amazing...I've gone from hating the design to loving it, and despite the future Sphere Builder War being negated, I hope the design does come pass as the Enterprise-J nevertheless.

I also had to get the EM J immediately and love it, especially the nacelles

 

[F. King Daniel]

Doug Drexler posted on Facebook about how the RA -J was a mistake and not at all how he envisioned the ship. He hopes they'll "fix" it with the next update.

 

[Saul]

Doug Drexler posted on Facebook about how the RA -J was a mistake and not at all how he envisioned the ship. He hopes they'll "fix" it with the next update.

Wonder how that happened. I thought Doug was working with RA. I kinda like the look though.

 

[publiusr]

I think that might have been the Congo

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https://doug_drex_drexler.artstation.com/projects/aLx18

You see Archer looking forward at the lower sensor dome at the curved bow of what you assume is a secondary hull.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/102537907@N03/10355618945
https://memory-beta.fandom.com/wiki/Congo_class

 

[David cgc]

Wonder how that happened. I thought Doug was working with RA. I kinda like the look though.

He said the approvals slipped by him while he was preoccupied with personal matters (and, specifically, it was the altered proportions he had an issue with, and that the clear hull wasn't explicitly presented as a special mode the ship only went into sometimes, though not the clear hull in and of itself). He removed the post a few hours after he made it, probably decided he shouldn't actually be putting his business out into the street.

 

[Arpy]

I never liked how it was a futuristic version of the Akiraprise.

That said, I like how delicate the pylons and nacelles are. This is a ship from centuries into the future; of course it would look different from the esthetics and technologies of today. If anything, I think it could be more different. Why does it need Bussard Collectors at all? And the blue glowing warp nacelles could be gold or white glowing slipstream ones.

The city inside the transparent hull is an interesting change. It shows how big the ship is, how advanced the technology that could include such an extravagance, and it says something about the people who built such a ship and what they value. I'm not sure how I feel about it...but it's pretty cool.

 

[C.E. Evans]

IWhy does it need Bussard Collectors at all?

Bussard collectors are always an emergency fallback in the event the ship is running dangerously low on fuel. They can collect hydrogen (or even better yet, deuterium) from the interstellar medium to keep the impulse engines running. Within a really dense nebula with high concentrations of hydrogen or deuterium, the collectors can gather enough matter fuel to convert a very small fraction of it into antimatter for low warp flight to the nearest starbase or a rendezvous with a tanker.

Better to have the collectors and not usually need them than to need them just once and not have them...

 

[Arpy]

Bussard collectors are always an emergency fallback in the event the ship is running dangerously low on fuel. They can collect hydrogen (or even better yet, deuterium) from the interstellar medium to keep the impulse engines running. Within a really dense nebula with high concentrations of hydrogen or deuterium, the collectors can gather enough matter fuel to convert a very small fraction of it into antimatter for low warp flight to the nearest starbase or a rendezvous with a tanker.

Better to have the collectors and not usually need them than to need them just once and not have them...

For me the J is largely beyond such considerations. How many modern navy vessels still employ backup sails?

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Bussard collectors are always an emergency fallback in the event the ship is running dangerously low on fuel. They can collect hydrogen (or even better yet, deuterium) from the interstellar medium to keep the impulse engines running. Within a really dense nebula with high concentrations of hydrogen or deuterium, the collectors can gather enough matter fuel to convert a very small fraction of it into antimatter for low warp flight to the nearest starbase or a rendezvous with a tanker.

Better to have the collectors and not usually need them than to need them just once and not have them...

As long as you're traveling out in space, you'll always be collecting whatever hydrogen/deuterium or other gases you desire to collect.

The fact is that all StarShips are running on a limited fuel supply and need to replenish once you get back to base.

Collecting gas with the Bussard Collectors only helps alleviate a portion of the energy consumption that a entire journey would take.

Short of getting lucky and finding a dense pocket or going into the atmosphere of a local planet to collect massive amounts of gas and processing it later.

But either way, it's a viable option for extending a ships Hydrogen/Deuterium supplies that is always running 24/7/365 as the ship is traveling.

 

[C.E. Evans]

For me the J is largely beyond such considerations. How many modern navy vessels still employ backup sails?

How many modern navy vessels travel in deep space?

As long as you're traveling out in space, you'll always be collecting whatever hydrogen/deuterium or other gases you desire to collect.

But most starships don't in Trek. They usually employ navigational deflectors to push such things out of their way, especially at velocities approaching lightspeed. They have to actively collect those gases.

The fact is that all StarShips are running on a limited fuel supply and need to replenish once you get back to base.

The fact is that some starships may lose fuel quicker than expected--either during combat or some other crisis, The Bussard collectors are for emergency situations when your fuel supply is either depleted suddenly or when its questionable you have enough fuel to get back to base. Sometimes it could just be a case of getting enough to top off the gas tank just to play it safe.

Collecting gas with the Bussard Collectors only helps alleviate a portion of the energy consumption that a entire journey would take.

Depends on how far the journey is, If your car is almost at E, but you can siphon off a little bit of gas from someone, it might be enough for you to reach the nearest gas station. It's no different for a starship in distress. Even a small bit of fuel might be enough to reach the nearest starbase. It might mean the difference between saving your ship or having to abandon it.

Short of getting lucky and finding a dense pocket or going into the atmosphere of a local planet to collect massive amounts of gas and processing it later.

Hydrogen is one of the most commonly found gases in the Universe. At impulse power, the collectors can gather a decent amount of hydrogen just cruising through what would appear to be otherwise empty space. At warp speed, considerably greater amounts can be gathered. Finding a nebula or some other celestial body with a high concentration of hydrogen would just be the most ideal situation, one to be taken if the opportunity presents itself. In most disaster cases, that won't be an option.

But either way, it's a viable option for extending a ships Hydrogen/Deuterium supplies that is always running 24/7/365 as the ship is traveling.

Which is why the Enterprise-J still has collectors. Maybe one day future starships won't need them anymore and can generate their own fuel internally (whatever that fuel might be), but they may not be there yet in the 26th-Century...