A free, cross platform spherical subdivision utility with a Geodesic module that can be used to calculate geodesic domes created by Nicholas Shea in England.

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TesselSphere
by Nicholas Shea

The initial inspiration for TesselSphere came from radiolaria, pollen and virus forms.Obviously some of these organsims are harder to model than others. The reticulum of Actinomma Gigantea (image above: left) presents the biggest problem; the cortical and medulla shells are distorted; the bars and spicules (spines) have an 'glue' like property. The other two, although not trivial, look easy in comparison.

George Hart's artificial radiolaria inspired me to try. My goal was to generate vertices for specific species. Output could then be manipulated in modelling programs to build the required form.

If you've never heard of radiolaria (holoplanktonic protozoa), you can find out more here. These creatures are most beautifil when their silica skeleton is viewed through polarized light...