11

As far as I know the sets from the interiors in Star Trek: TNG are made of wood, and it gives them this very soft look. I am wondering what they are supposed to be made of though? In this shot for example:

[Shot of ST:TNG Bridge with all the main characters at their stations working]

What would all the walls, ceiling and consoles be made of? I wondered if there was any information in the show. The same goes for the grey parts in the back, it looks like some sort of fabric.

I ask for the purpose of 3D modelling. Typically I'd go with fiberglass, plastic and metal for sci-fi interiors, but it's always an internal struggle making a scene from Star Trek since these materials don't look like that.

Improve this question
7
  • 3
    Well the set wall panels were covered in fabric of some sort, IIRC, and Worf's console was meant to be a nice wooden detail. Quite possibly what you see is exactly what it's supposed to be: Plastics, wood details, fabric and leather.
    – SpaceWolf1701
    Mar 4, 2020 at 2:01
  • 1
    The D is a nice dressed-up luxury sedan :)
    – MissouriSpartan
    Mar 4, 2020 at 3:13
  • 3
    @MissouriSpartan It's an exploration vessel, expected (or at least hoped) to be in First Contact scenarios - essentially, a travelling embassy. You want it to look nice, especially the bits that the foreigners will see
    – Chronocidal
    Mar 4, 2020 at 15:27
  • 1
    In universe, titanium has been mentioned as a star ship building material, particularly for warp travel (e.g. Lily in First Contact). I've always assumed the "metallic" looking portions of the ship were meant to be titanium or a titanium alloy.
    – Tronman
    Mar 4, 2020 at 20:18
  • 1
    I thought it was tritanium and duranium (i.e. fictional metal)?
    – Kasey Chang
    May 4, 2020 at 6:11

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
4

In the TNG3x14: "A Matter of Perspective", the ship's interior panels are stated by Geordi to be made of "solid duranium". The ship's bulkheads (structural walls) are composed of Tritanium (TNG2x02 "Where Silence Has Lease). As for interior amenities like paneling the ship has wood (Worf's station), transparent aluminum (skylight/skydome and windows) Also probably made of the same metals for use then laminated with wood, plastic or soft touch/tone materials for aesthetic. Just as real naval ships are built with all steel construction.

Whatever interior fillings they use for the ship we know they have metal doors. We know they have carpet and rugs. Given the 24th century aversion to "Utilizing animals for food/products" leather is presumably synthetic. Tables are made of glass, metal, Lucite, and polycarbonate. A lot of the furniture was made of synthetic fabric and plastics and aluminum. The companies Artifort and HAG made chairs/seating that was utilized by the Paramount studios for the seating in the series. A lot of the set was plastic, resin, or plywood painted to resemble metal. Polyester (a real plastic) was a material used by Starfleet in the 23rd century - bedsheets and blankets were made of this material. "Steelplast" was a thin material used in the construction of walls.

Study NASA's use of material science for spacecraft, to prevent fire they bought or developed various materials to protect astronauts from the hazards of potential spark, fire and toxicity. They made fabrics with materials like Chromel-R (woven steel) and beta cloth (fiber glass woven like a blanket and coated in Teflon) to produce materials aboard space craft that wouldn't burn.

Collage showing the different materials in ST: Duranium walls with Georgdi looking at a damaged section, polypropelene rugs/carpets with someone sat at a desk over one, a polyester sheer with 3 blue shirts surrounding it and a glass topped table

Improve this answer
3
  • NASA's spacecraft interiors have little to do with the Enterprise.
    – Organic Marble
    May 12, 2020 at 1:22
  • 4
    They have a lot to do. Flammability, offgassing, hypoallergenics and non toxicity is relevant to space hardware. You're living in a confined environment that has to recycle and process it's own atmosphere and water and come in contact with the various construction materials used. Be it fictitious or real, non-toxic building materials, fabrics that don't irritate. Paints that don't produce vapors. And materials that don't spontaneously burst into flames are as relevant to a real ship as much as a fictitious one.
    – LazyReader
    May 12, 2020 at 4:44
  • Sorry I'm late - thank you this is perfect. Really appreciate the detail and effort!
    – user126693
    Jun 28, 2020 at 3:45

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.