Stellar Digital Illustrations

Posted on December 8, 2018 by Ray Cassel

These are two digital illustrations representing two different phases of the life cycle of a star. The first is a star nearing the end. It has fused it’s lighter elements into heavier elements creating an expanding shell of gas. This shell is know as a planetary nebula. The second is a newly formed star with polar jets interacting with nearby clouds of gas. The object in the lower left of the image is know as a Herbig-Haro object. Both of these illustrations were created on the Apple iPad using the Apple Pencil and the Procreate drawing app. Prints of the Planetary Nebula can be found here. You can license the Herbig-Haro image through shutterstock.

Below is a timelapse video of the planetary nebula.

Planetary Nebulae from Raymond Cassel on Vimeo.

Asteroid Mining – Hero Image

Posted on November 24, 2018 by Ray Cassel

Revisiting my asteroid mining concept with a more dynamic image. My previous images can be viewed here. This image, as well as the others in this series can be licensed through Shutterstock.

Asteroid Mining – Digital Illustrations

Posted on October 4, 2018 by Ray Cassel

The topic of space resources and asteroid mining seems to come up more often these days. Just recently the Colorado School of Mines just announced a new space resources program in their curriculum. I wanted to explore what mining an asteroid might look like. How would a machine harvest and separate valuable materials in space? My illustrations imagine a set of excavators that funnel the materials in, and an inflatable debris shield that also helps gather the smaller particles. Constructed in many modular sections, this spacecraft would have a rotating habitat ring providing artificial gravity for the crew. There are many details and ideas that I would like to explore further. For now these images are the result of my curiosity. These images can be licensed through Shutterstock.

Revisiting Solar Sails-Digital Illustrations

Posted on September 15, 2018 by Ray Cassel

Some time back I did a composition titled “Deploying the Solar Sails”. I thought I would revisit this project and create some new illustrations. I am trying something new with some of my space technology images. You can now license these images through Shutterstock. Visit my page on Shutterstock at here. There are illustrations covering current and past space missions, depictions of space planes, and objects beyond our solar system. Check back for any new uploads.

OSIRIS REx and the Asteroid Bennu – Digital Illustrations

Posted on July 29, 2018 by Ray Cassel

NASA’s OSIRIS REx spacecraft is undertaking a complex mission. Launched in September of 2016, it will reach the asteroid Bennu in the fall of 2018. After a detailed examination of the type C or carbonaceous asteroid it will slowly contact the surface using a sample retrieval arm. The sample will then be placed into a special reentry vessel for return to Earth.

OSIRIS REx and Bennu

The model of OSIRIS REx was built in Lightwave, The asteroid Bennu was built using Sculptris. Prints and items with these artworks can be purchased here.

Viking 1 – Digital Illustration

Posted on July 20, 2018 by Ray Cassel

A very dusty Viking 1

On July 20th, 1976, Viking 1 landed on Mars. The Viking lander sent back remarkable images from the surface of an alien world. I distinctly remember having a book as a kid with C3PO and R2D2 with the Viking lander. And as a kid I would draw spacecraft and robots based on Viking. It’s amazing to think that Viking 1 has been sitting there for 42 years. This image is of the mock-up at the Space Discovery Center. I added one of Viking’s images as the background and painted over the image using Procreate for iPad.

EXOWORLDS – A Visual Exploration

Posted on March 28, 2018 by Ray Cassel

EXOWORLDS a Visual Exploration from Raymond Cassel on Vimeo.

Inspiration for this series comes from NASA imagery of Jupiter and its moons. In particular an image from Voyager 1 of Europa passing near Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, casting a shadow on the surface. The moon dwarfed by Jupiter’s clouds, shows the immense scale of the planet. Additionally the amazing images being sent my the Juno probe currently orbiting Jupiter have provided a new source of inspiration.

These images were created with practical photography of ink and paints suspended in water. The photos were stitched together to create the atmospheres of these exoplanets. 3-D software was used to create and animate the moons. Music and sound design provided by Mark Mosher. You can hear his wondeful work at modulateThis.com.

The recent discovery of abundant planets indicates to us that out in the universe there may well be an analog to even the most outlandish ideas we artists dream up.