This was heavily based on a tutorial by VinhSon Nguyen and you can watch it here: vimeo.com/50490046.
I picked up a copy of the new version of the Element 3d plug-in from VideoCopilot.net a couple of days ago. Super fast and fun to play with. This goofy little test was created entirely inside of After Effects. The earth model is from Video Copilot as well. The ship is made up of basic primitives and what-not inside the plug-in.
Space Show from Panders.tv on Vimeo.