Attached Link: http://faculty.ucc.edu/egh-damerow/imageg.gif

Searching the web I couldn't find a 3D elipse divided into twelve sctions.  What I'm wanting is something like the attached image, but not of the earth. No numbers, just the eliptacal shape and longitudinal lines. So...

does anyone have, or know how can I create a 3d elipse divided in twelve sections? The elipse would have the shape of a squished earth and instead of the 24 longitude lines, just have twelve. But here's the trick. The center needs to be hollow. (Think of a squished peach where you cut twelve section out of it and the hollow middle is the seed.)

Yes, I can squish a sphere rather easily, but getting the twelve dividing lines is not something I know how to do. Also, want to put a texture of stars on it. I tried it with the torus because it does have a hollow center but:

1. I don't know know how to get the twelve sections
2. or divide it into twelve sections (as if I wanted to seperate them), and
3. when I put a map on it, it stretched.

Thanks for any help.

There is a python script that could make what you are looking for.  I used it to make a cage prop of 8.  Doing four more shouldn't be a problem.  The Mr. Looper script found on his page.

http://www.the.cage.page.phantom3d.net/TDMT_Match/other_scripts/various.html

You will have to start out with a sphere, scaled to the shape you want.  Then use the script to make a verticle loop around the sphere prop.  You need only use the script once: copy the loop object to the library and load the thing, yRotate, and repeat to create your prop.

Best Wishes,
Rªnce

http://www.ranquist.net/goods/Michaelab3DEclipse.zip

Hope this works for you.  Let me know;)
Rªnce

edit: Should have noted: included are 7 rings making the twelve sections and one 'equator' ring.  The scaled sphere is also included.  None of the items are parented together.  Whatever elements you don't want or need can be saved back to the library and deleted from the scene.

try equirectangular sphere model, turn on smoothing, add rectangular grid texmap, 24 across by 12 vertical (or other values).  it appears that the linked img has the entire sphere unwrapped and flattened, but the hemisphere approximation would appear similar.   I dunno what they call that kind of projection.

I am at a loss.  I started with a primitive, BallUV.  The thing is rotated -90, and scaled 540; xScale 140, yScale 140, zScale 100.  Then I used Cage's Mr_Looper script to create the loops around the sphere.

The props were saved in a selected subset: seven vertical rings, one horizontal and the sphere.  The seven rings are rotated 30 degrees apart.  I would suppose the sphere could UV mapped to get the star projection the op is looking for.

R

How are you seeing the hollow bit?

Attached Link: http://truth-revelations.com/wp-content/themes/truth/nous/images/210_12.jpeg

Yes, prixat that is very close, but flatter and more eliptical in shape rather than circular. But you've created that hollow bit I need. And Rance01, that might work as well. I'd have to play with it.

Prixat, do you have a poser model I can work with you can post here? I just need it more eliptical and able to move around the individual slices.

Ulitmately, I'm trying to get a 3d model something like this:

http://www.galex.caltech.edu/media/images/glx2006-04r_img01_small.jpg

but one that I can divide up into twelve sections. The sun center would sit in the hollow middle. So yes, I'm trying to create a 3D version of a galaxy but fatter and one that I can divide into twelve sectors. Like prixat and Rance01 has done.

The question is a bit ambiguious. What do you mean by "divided into 12 sctions ". Do you mean 12 solid segments, or 12 facets, or 12 equal  material zones, or something else?

When looked at in cross-section, a spiral galaxy is nearer to a flat disc, say, 10 units high 100 units long?

Attached Link: zipped OBJ files

keep us posted, mike. AFAIK nobody has ever tried to do poser animation of black hole preventing star formation. even one still frame render would need weeks of work IMVHO.

p.s. flat-slice-export.obj and slice-export.obj work o.k. in poser.

thanks for the test, Miss Nancy.

Thanks the flat-slice-export3 is just about perfect. I'm working with it now. to fill out the 360 degrees of the eliptical shape. Do you know how I'd apply a sort of transparent star/universe texture to it so that you could see the sun (which would be in the center) through the mass of stars surrounding it?

Also, how would I get it so a texture applied would not distort and stretch the dots of stars to stripes?

I have two ideas for texturing a luminous starfield.  What version of Poser are you using?

As for minimizing distortion, you could either use a 3D procedural "spots" node, or, if you want to apply an image map, I could "unwrap" prixat's mesh and "flatten" it so as to UV map it with distortion minimized by "least squares".  Then I'll pm the unwrapped mesh to prixat for approval/release.

Poser 8.

The options you mention, seachnasaigh I'm not familiar with. Novice at texturing and only have Poser 8 as a 3D program, so whatever you think best. Thank you!

Problems: how do I get the sun to blaze? I put a point light in the center of the ball.

And need to lay a texture over the whole thing of stars and galaxies.

And perhaps I need an opening at top and bottom, not sure yet, for the sun center to show more clearly.

I can make a blazing sun and give it a corona;  There is also a way of making the sun visible in the center without cutting holes.

What is the purpose of the walls between slices?  Is it to give the appearance of volume?

Did you want the twelve lines of segmentation to be visible when the model is rendered?

I looked at that picture you referenced.  If you want to try to render something looking like that, I would have in mind a completely different geometry mesh.  I'll build a prototype and we'll see what we can do.

What I am trying to convey is that (now bear with me here I'm working on a novel)  cosmos is divided into twelve sectors, beyond which is empty space.

Ultimately, I need the sectors to be barely visible while encompassing a universe of galaxies and star systems.

In the center of this cosmos is a central sun around which all this revolves, and like a galaxy, the mass of it extends in an eliptical, horizontal orbit around the central sun. The sun, in its brilliance, needs to blaze through the stars and the slices as it is more brilliant and bright than all that surrounds it.

So, the segmentation shows the division of the material cosmos, and within it are the mass of star systems and galaxies. And at the core of it all is the central sun.

The walls between the slices designate the division of sectors, but they don't need to be so opaque, but do need to be seen.

Appreciate the help seachnasaigh.

Are we ignoring physics? This is a fantasy?

A central sun, surrounded by stars? But suns are stars. This implies that your central star(sun) is a gigantic star, but any such star would collapse into a black whole and be invisible.

I'm confused.

Oh, that's quite a different thing than the image you linked (star formation suppressed by massive black hole).  I was heading off in the wrong direction, then.  Hmmmmm....  maybe use a pair of linked edge blend nodes to make the sectors visible but see-through.  Some low-poly ellipses for the galaxies, sprinkled about inside, and use a soft selection rotation to swirl them.  Hmmm...

What ideas does everybody have?

(Apparently fantasy/fiction, BB.  He says it's a novel)

"A central sun, surrounded by stars? But suns are stars. This implies that your central star(sun) is a gigantic star, but any such star would collapse into a black whole and be invisible."

yup. it's called a Galaxy......

yes, bagginsbill, a fantasy, but I'm portraying the universe in the same model as a galaxy. But instead of solar systems, planets and star sytems surrounding the central core of a galaxy, this model has galaxies surrounding a central sun. But remember, this cosmos is seen at a distance, so galaxies would for the most part be smaller or larger points of light with a number of small disc shaped lights.

seachnasaigh, not sure you were heading off in the wrong direction. The black hole model might work but instead of a black hole in the center, replace it with a sun.

Problem is that I'm not sure what you are referring to by: "use a pair of linked edge blend nodes to make the sectors visible but see-through" and "soft selection rotation to swirl them."

Um, so something like the linked image but with a brilliant sun in place of the black hole, and with the visible yet see-through sectors?

Oh, don't worry about edge blend nodes and soft selection;  I'm just thinking out loud about how to do the Poser 8 materials and how to model the geometry, but my intent would be to do all of that for you.

Yes, visible but see through sectors and their divisions or boundaries. And within it, or inside it, divided by the semi transparent sectors,  millions of galaxies and star systems.

Quote - "A central sun, surrounded by stars? But suns are stars. This implies that your central star(sun) is a gigantic star, but any such star would collapse into a black whole and be invisible."

yup. it's called a Galaxy......

I hear you, but he's saying it contains millions of galaxies. So it's not a galaxy it is the entire universe, or at least a chunk of space capable of holding millions of galaxies.

At this scale, then, are the galaxies supposed to be visible disks? Because I'm thinking that when you look at the whole cosmos, not a single galaxy would appear to be anything more than a dot.

Are you looking for it to look like this? This is not millions of galaxies. It is hundreds, perhaps thousands, no more.

WTF happened to image display in this forum? I cannot make that image show at the correct aspect ratio no matter what I set it to.

Bah - are all programmers becoming dumber with each year? Am I destined to become a bitter old programmer who remembers the days when programmers understand simple arithmetic?

4/3 = 600/450

Stupid thing won't pay any attention to the values I entered.

right bagginsbill, but if you look at the attached image it is actually a photo of millions of galaxies: http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/image/astro/hst_deep_field.jpg

However, you are correct. It's just that some galaxies would be bigger dots or maybe little discs depending on their size and proximity to the point of view.

It's a photo of millions, from a point of view of being among them - we're in that.

When viewed from outside the farthest flung galaxies, all would be dust.

I like your image, bagginsbill, but how do you know that those small dots are not galaxies with the swirls being much larger. But I like that image. Especially the concept of rings around the central sun. That could work, minus the larger galaxies and the visible planets.

Galactic clusters might actually look like galaxies anyway - probably everything at a certain scale swirls around others of its kind, and appears to be galaxy like when viewed from the right place.

Anyway - the massive black hole at the middle actually would shoot out jets of matter and energy at its rotational poles, as that image shows.

I have no idea how to get that image to be 3-D - other than placing several thousand little one-sided squares all over the place with transmapped dustings of glowy stuff. It's volumetric and nothing painted on the ellipsoid structure exterior is going to look like that.

It's not like I need it to animate but it would be nice to be able to rotate it and get shots of different angles. However, if it must be, then maybe just photoshoping the star clusters in will have to work.

actually.... lets see..

there's the game Universe Sandbox... or hmm aah of course.. Celestia! http://www.shatters.net/celestia/ ok it's not poser.. but more suited to this idea.

So funny, I've been playing with Celestia lately, rather than Poser.  Neat little program that.  Nearly as addictive as Poser.  Well, maybe not ...

R

one might add that there are black holes at each galactic core, but it's a fallacy to depict a 3d volumetric universe from "the outside" (as there is no outside of the universe) and the volume is between 10- and 26-dimensional, depending on how much attention we pay to guys at CERN et al.

maybe bill's idea of sevl. thousand 1-poly mapped squares, then parent 'em to the camera, if fly-round anim. desired.  perhaps in line with our friends at cgsociety, poser ain't the best software for this.

It's also a fallacy we can create a galaxy, but that's what Poser and all 3D programs are about: making fantasy a reality. And that's what makes it fun. Besides, how do you know there is nothing outside the universe? Isn't God the only infinity? If so, then the universe of matter has to end somewhere.

Fun to cotemplate, anyhow.

Attached Link: a few dots of light

you can mess about with the OBJ. It contains a couple of thousand tetrahedrons with a couple of material zones.

Had to be careful not to turn the gravity too high or you get a black hole, thats how I lost my last monitor. :laugh:

p.s. in re: there is no "outside the universe" - it means the universe is the only thing (monism) and comprises everything.  find some point where ya think yer outside the universe and yer actually inside it.

Wow! I like it prixat. I think I can work with that - and put your transparent peach slices around it? And a central sun in the middle? Yes, looks promissing.

Miss Nancy... ahhh... what are all those green and purple things? Is it an alien invasion of cosmos?  I'll look it over.

Thank you!

while I do love poser I dont think its the best app for something of this scale, have you had a look at blender ? it will do the star fields with its particle system in seconds

Miss Nancy, I used 'Luminance' and 'Glow' in the materials. I didn't expect either to survive the translation to OBJ/MTL!

The colours were originally blueish and redish but they were only in the luminance channel. Which may be the thing that confused the importer.

In DAZ Studio I had to re-instate the colours but otherwise it was OK. Running it through DS could be a quick way to produce a corrected OBJ file.

prixat, is there a way to get some sparkle and flare to some of these points in space?

It's the perfect shape but I'd like to show some sparkle here and there. How would I do that?

If you create a sparkly object your happy with then you could sprinkle it around your universe. An object with high specularity? and a light just for specular highlights?

You'd have to ask a Poser user about that, I don't know enough about Poser materials.

he can do that in version of poser he's got, but he needs to give example of sparkly thing.  other problem: it's only gonna sparkle in animation.  dots.obj imports o.k. into poser.  I added "luminosity" back into it using one of the lite-emitting channels, and changed the colours.  typical computer screen can only display limited range of luminosity:   posersurfaces will appear as (r, g, b = 1, 1, 1) max on the screen, but falloff of IDL is lessened by increasing numeric value of lite-emitting channels and/or using hdr colours, where (r, g, b = 32, 32, 32) max.  as mentioned by stefan, all of them will burn out to white unless HSVTM is enabled, in which case only some of them will burn out.