SPACE IN MINIATURE

Project Backstep is a top secret US government programme administered by the NSA with the mission of reversing catastrophic events in history. Using an exotic extraterrestrial element recovered from the Roswell crash as fuel, the technicians of Project Backstep can send a man back in time seven days.

The time machine is a large blue polyhedron known as the Sphere. Since the Earth moves about the sun, and the sun itself moves, the pilot must constantly adjust the Sphere's spatial coordinates in order to remain on Earth and land near enough to the focus of the event to intervene. While it isn't a spaceship as such, this does mean that the Sphere spends a fair bit of time in near-Earth space as the pilot adjusts its coordinates.

The ability to concentrate and pilot the Sphere under these difficult conditions, combined with the resourcefulness and skill to prevent a wide variety of disasters from assassination to nuclear war, requires a special type of agent. Navy Lieutenant Frank B. Parker is that man - slightly crazy and seemingly without the ability to give up.

ABOUT THE MODEL

This is a paper model in 1/32 scale, designed using images from the Web and dozens of screen captures. It was drawn in CorelDRAW! and printed out on a 600 dpi laser printer on blue cardstock. There are three types of panels: 24 hexagonal, 7 pentagonal and one pentagonal "door" panel. The model was cut out using a steel straightedge and a #11 X-Acto knife, and glued together using white PVA glue. It is about 20cm (8") in diametre. The base seen in some of the photos was one sitting around the office from another project, and is blue Styrofoam insulation board painted and textured with model railroad materials.

"Seven Days" was UPN series. It ran for three seasons, ending June 2001. It was set in the present day, and starred Jonathan laPaglia as Frank Parker.

Image: Side view

Image: Front view