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Having trouble getting this into space


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I have a space station around the Mun which is consistently running out of fuel, so I would like to put an XL fuel tank module on there. I'm having trouble orbiting this craft so any info or help would be of great value to me.

File: https://www.dropbox.com/s/qcsnml4o0kiae3p/Lunar%20fuel%20module%20XL.craft?dl=1

Sorry, I can't upload pictures right

Thanks,

walia6

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The craft Center of Lift is WAY too far in front of the Center of Mass.  What's with all the tail fins?

The fairing on top is completely flat and un-aerodynamic.  Also, you are only protecting a docking port.  Put a Nose Cone Mk7 on that, you can still undock it once you get up out of the atmosphere.

Speaking of undocking, the decoupler attached to the docking port is also superfluous.  Docking ports can detach from anything, they can't re-dock to anything but docking ports.

The top radial decouplers on the orange tanks do nothing.  The game just doesn't work that way, the tanks are not attached to them.

Edited by Alshain
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So even with my changes, it was still quite the challenge to fly.  180 ton payload is a bit excessive, you will have an easier time if you compartmentalize it and dock it in space.  Another option would be to send the tanks up empty and fill them afterward on successive launches.

Even after several tries, emptying the tanks, and replacing the lifter with one of my own, it was just way to wobbly.  Your payload is too heavy and too tall for this to work.  Break it up into smaller pieces and dock it in space.

Edited by Alshain
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Thanks for the quick reply!

I appreciate you pointing out aspects of the game which I was not aware of, the decoupler on the port for examplw. When I get a chance I think I will halve the payload and fill the tank 25% and refuel in space... Thanks!

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1 hour ago, walia6 said:

Thanks for the quick reply!

I appreciate you pointing out aspects of the game which I was not aware of, the decoupler on the port for examplw. When I get a chance I think I will halve the payload and fill the tank 25% and refuel in space... Thanks!

No problem.  You can actually have docking ports stage now too, just right click and enable staging for them.  So even for your self-deorbiting stage, it will still work properly.

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On 4/30/2016 at 4:32 AM, walia6 said:

What does the lock symbol on a fuel tank mean?

 

Without the lock symbol (green triangle), the ship will automatically draw fuel from the tank.  When locked, the ship will ignore that tank and not draw fuel from it.

There are some situations where you need to override the default fuel rules. For instance, by default the ship will draw from the furthest tank first, the nearest tank last.  When you have a tall thin rocket launching from KSC, that usually means the center of mass moves a LOT during flight as you burn off the large mass of fuel.  When the center of mass (CoM) falls behind the center of drag (CoD), the rocket will naturally flip around.  But if you lock the furthest tank, that helps a lot to keep the CoM far ahead of the CoD.  Then unlock the forward tank once the rest of the rocket has run dry, as you're probably clear of the atmosphere by that point and CoM doesn't matter as much.

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