Chinese ST fan constructs building like the Enterprise

[mr friendly guy]

http://mashable.com/2015/05/19/enterpri ... star-trek/

We already know history will never forget the name Enterprise, but now architecture won't either.

SEE ALSO: Could We Build Star Trek's Starship Enterprise?

There's a building in China that looks almost exactly like the USS Enterprise from Star Trek. Drone footage (which we really wish was set to this music) shows how a relatively conventional-looking building from the ground dramatically transforms into a regal starship when viewed from the air.

Lest you think this is visual trickery done via Holodeck or CGI, the starship/building is clearly visible on Google Maps.

Our tipster explained to us that the building is the headquarters of NetDragon Websoft, a Chinese gaming and mobile Internet company. And it's no Chinese knock-off: Company Chairman Liu DeJian is reportedly an uberTrekkie, licensing from CBS the rights to build an Enterprise replica. Construction began in 2008 and was finished in 2014; the project cost $160 million total.

The building is the only officially licensed Star Trek building on the planet (you had your chance, Las Vegas). Besides its otherworldly shape, the building contains a replica display of a T-Rex dinosaur named Stan discovered in South Dakota in 1987, 30-foot metal slides that provide instant access to the ground floor from the third floor, and automatic sliding gates between each working area.

It's a fantastic homage to the Star Trek franchise, but which Enterprise is it? At first glance, the building looks closest to the Enterprise-E seen in the later Next Generation movies, but there are hints of the Enterprise-D and the starship design from the J.J. Abrams reboot movies.

Fans, let's settle this in the comments. Everyone else, just sit back and enjoy the ride.

Another message board I lurk at list this guy as selling his company for £1.2 billion. At least this guy had the money to make his Star Trek theme come true, unlike an article posted here a few years ago with Star Trek look alike rooms which bankrupted him.

[biostem]

In some ways this is pretty cool, but I have to wonder why not go for a closer reproduction. You get the general silhouette of the Enterprise, but it's basically flattened. I wonder if the interior is decorated along a Star Trek theme.

[Venator]

In some ways this is pretty cool, but I have to wonder why not go for a closer reproduction. You get the general silhouette of the Enterprise, but it's basically flattened. I wonder if the interior is decorated along a Star Trek theme.

I'm assuming he wanted it to still function like a normal office building (that, and budget); going into more detail would be costly, and if you tried to get the horizontal profile too (with a proper neck and pylons) it would make traffic flow a pain for people who actually worked there.

[Elheru Aran]

In some ways this is pretty cool, but I have to wonder why not go for a closer reproduction. You get the general silhouette of the Enterprise, but it's basically flattened. I wonder if the interior is decorated along a Star Trek theme.

I'm assuming he wanted it to still function like a normal office building (that, and budget); going into more detail would be costly, and if you tried to get the horizontal profile too (with a proper neck and pylons) it would make traffic flow a pain for people who actually worked there.

Hmmm.

I don't know, you could make it work. I'm visualizing a large open space like a mall or enclosed courtyard where the 'engineering' is, with two wings of offices along the sides (the 'nacelles' and a large flight of stairs or escalators up the 'neck' to a large round 'saucer'.