I know a few people, let me pass this on to them... Dan -- Sent from my Incredible. Pardon any mispelings or errors. ----- Reply message ----- From: "Canopus56" <canopus56@yahoo.com> Date: Tue, May 24, 2011 11:22 pm Subject: [Utah-astronomy] 3-D Milky Way Animation Help Request - Maya software To: "Utah Astronomy List Serv" <utah-astronomy@mailman.xmission.com> Is there anyone on the list who might have a referral to someone who knows 3D graphics using Maya? I have prepared a series posters for use at star parties, and I have one last poster that I would like to generate, but that required 3D rendering using the Maya software program. The substance of the poster is a tube ring that contains the optical or near infrared NASA-GFSC multiwave length Milky Way Galaxy image: http://mwmw.gsfc.nasa.gov/mmw_product.html All of the multi-wavelength images are available as a 2.5MB file: http://mwmw.gsfc.nasa.gov/mwpics/mwmw_8x10.jpg The plane of the Earth's orbit is then shown as as circle at 62 degrees with the Milky Way tube, with four Earths position at the spring, summer, autumn and winter positions. A similar graphic is shown on a 2001 National Geographic poster: http://fisherka.csolutionshosting.net/in/2000NGPosterExample.JPG I have also prepared a concept graphic: http://fisherka.csolutionshosting.net/in/20110518GalaxyPoster1.jpg In 2006, I prepared a similar 3D animation using VRML, but the resolution of the image is too low for poster printing: http://fisherka.csolutionshosting.net/in/20110522SampleKFMW.jpg Unfortunately, as a beginner with the Maya software package, I cannot get software to render the required tube. My primitive Maya file is: http://fisherka.csolutionshosting.net/in/00000000MayaGalaxyDiagram.mb If anyone has a referral for a 3D computer artist, I would greatly appreciate it. I have not been able to come up with anything using the phone book or a Salt Lake City internet search. The purpose of the poster is to explain the relative views of the Milky Way Galaxy seen during different seasons, e.g. spring - Orion and the antigalactic center, spring-summer - the Virgo Supercluster out the top of the Milky Way Galaxy, summer - the Milky Way galactic center spine, autumn-winter - out the south or ``upside down'' side of the Milky Way galaxy. Thanks, Kurt _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Visit the Photo Gallery: http://www.slas.us/gallery2/main.php