I think that the "fighter plane convention" might stick for military and other combat craft. Soldiers have a sense of tradition, one reason why machine guns and repeating rifles had trouble catching on when they were first developed. Also the fighter which looks like a modern aircraft would have a low target profile, be able to possibly re-enter atmosphere, and the wings would provide a good place to put energy capacitors, retro and other maneuvering thrusters, and perhaps the wings surface would hold a system to absorb solar heat and change it to electricity, without the use of solar panels.Darkbee wrote:[sarc]I think we need to take this outside. *rolls up sleeves*
Ladies first! *pushes out of airlock and seals it*[/sarc]
Now you make it sound like a thinly veiled compliment. Bravo!
I see where you're coming from now. My comment still stands: Belters look crap but entirely practical in design. Exactly the type of thing I had in mind because they step away from jet fighter plane-esque spaceship building convention™.
An example of such a craft already attempted (sort of:)
Boeing X-20 Dyna-Soar
That being said, I would not mind seeing more boxy spacecraft, but a lot of them seem to me to have even more impractical designs. See the example below, I admit it's some what neat looking, but why all the protrusions.