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What Do You Use Space Stations For?


AWESOMEPIEMAN

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In my long-term career game (link is in my signature), I'm going to be constructing space stations around the Mun and Minmus before sending any kerbals to land on them. The stations will serve as a place to control missions from, and to dock landers in orbit. They will eventually also be fuel depots for reusable landing vehicles.

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  • 2 weeks later...

To start, let me say that to USE a space station for something, one must HAVE a space station.  Rendezvous/Docking, among other things, being a weak point for me in KSP really limits what I can do. If I did have a space station, I speculate that I would use said space station for refueling, looking out wondrously of that cupola module, or perhaps just for the sake of having one.  They look pretty too!  

i want a space station :(

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My kerbin space station was intially built to crank out science. Now it's mostly there as a service hub. It holds various extra parts and just enough fuel to top off an interplanetary craft. While it's currently in a ~56 degree orbit and is not exactly convenient to approach, it has a docked shuttle or two capable of making a repair run. 

Recently I wanted to retask an old satelite, so I sent a shuttle to refuel it and attach a new engine. 

Minmus also has a massive, yet crude, orbiting fuel depot, but no spare parts. Although, perhaps it should. Might be cause for an upgrade.

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On 2/3/2017 at 2:23 PM, eloquentJane said:

In my long-term career game (link is in my signature), I'm going to be constructing space stations around the Mun and Minmus before sending any kerbals to land on them. The stations will serve as a place to control missions from, and to dock landers in orbit. They will eventually also be fuel depots for reusable landing vehicles.

I'm doing the same, with Life Support (USI-LS) enabled, a capsule will only be comfortable for the crew for about 7 days. This is barely enough time for a quick landing on the Mun before they have to head home. Not really enough for a jump to Minmus. Putting a small station up gave my crews a place to stretch their legs before landing. Adding research capability helped to further justify them.

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Science labs.

Fuel depots.

Comm relays.

Control Centres.

I try to get to the clamp-o-tron pretty quickly because it allows me to specialise ships; launchers, orbital stations, transfer ships, and landers. It allows for a LOT of  reuse of the ships you launch if you do it right, which can make dealing with the money aspects of career work way better. Usually my stations start out as basically a node with docking ports, a probe core, RCS, and a bit of fuel. Then I can dock and undock things as needed.

Fuel ships get launched and then transferred into orbit of whichever body is their destination. I'll put a few out about 10km or so higher in orbit and dock 'em one at a time to refuel other docked ships (crew transfer, landers, etc). When I take crew back I use the crew transfer ship to dock to the stations in orbit of Kerbin, and once I get a crew reentry vehicle up I'll load 'em up and bring 'em back to the Space Centre. This is really key because Kerbals can't advance in level until they're debriefed in the KSC, so you'll be wanting to cycle them through missions and back again pretty often... well, as often as you can when you're getting into the interplanetary stuff :)

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On 2/22/2017 at 4:54 PM, stratvox said:

[...]once I get a crew reentry vehicle up I'll load 'em up and bring 'em back to the Space Centre. This is really key because Kerbals can't advance in level until they're debriefed in the KSC, so you'll be wanting to cycle them through missions and back again pretty often... well, as often as you can when you're getting into the interplanetary stuff :)

Actually, in 1.2 you can promote kerbs in the mobile processing lab.  Also, there's an option in the settings for full-on field promotions.

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In my last save I had a Kerbin station (used for refueling, crew transfers and staging of multi-part vessels), a Mun science station, and Minmus stations (fuel and science). Space stations are just cool and even better when you actually use them a lot.

 

Looking forward to build even bigger and better stations in this new game.

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My Munar station provides refuels in case I want my spaceplane to land on the surface, and a rest location before Kerbals transfer to the Munar surface shuttle.

My Minmus station provides EVA refuels to the Kerbals jetpacking to and from the surface, and also provides a Kraken-free alternative construction site to the surface bases.  For a while it was also the main lifesupport depot, and Val had to make a few EVA pack beer runs while the scientists were biome hopping.

 

All my major bases also include some EL construction capacity so that crews can perform emergency KAS repairs in the field.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Aside from the usual ( starport / science / kerbal storage / refuel ) i use my stations as refineries to optimice ore usage:

NJaD34w.png

1st picture: The Minmus station "Eureka", almost finished ( it didn't have a lab yet ).  I use the "orange" ships as transports to carry equipment from LKO to the moons and ore from Minmus to LKO.

asYwFKv.png

2nd picture: A SSTO departing to Duna from the KSS.

 

The only problem i found so far with this design is the part count for the solar array / refinery, i didn't have the large solar panels in my career when i designed those two, added one of the large ones before building them, but i did not consider part count.  Plans for an updated refinery module are already on development, but i'm considering to build a new station as refinery only, so the miner ships and the rest of the traffic are split and don't interact much with each other ( part count, kraken attacks, etc )

 

cmVMrwb.png

 

 

Edited by Ozelui
bad english XD
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For a short period early in career it's an easy provider of science.

But very soon my stations convert into core logistic components.

I normally have very few crafts that take off from Kerbin and even fewer that ever are intended to return. Instead I use a Soyus/Progress style (UpdownTaxi/Refueller) to get kerbals and fuel to and sometimes from the station(s).

Using a 'SpaceBus' to shuttle kerbals and resources between the stations.

A tourist trip to Minmus normall takes (at least) 5 different stages, all done when the trip can be utilised to max.

  • UpDownTaxi from KSC to Kerbin Station, when there's 4 (normally) kerbals to launch.
  • SpaceBus from Kerbin Station to Minmus Station, when there's 4 kerbals heading that way.
  • Std 2-seat (robo) lander from Minmus Station to Minmus and back, when there's 2 ...
  • SpaceBus from Minmus Station to Kerbin (or Mün) Station when there's ...
  • UpDownTaxi back to KSC, when ...

I also like to build and prepare out of Kerbin missions in Kerbin orbit.

So when the Duna or Dres (for instance) window opens I can send a complete package of station(s), landers, tugs, landers, taxis and comsats in one big package.

 

Edited by Curveball Anders
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My stations are typically purpose-built for gathering solar energy, processing resources and science and refueling ships on their way out of the system.

Ore hauler drag in resources which get converted into fuel and other resources, allowing ships to top up on electricity and fuel easily.

Typically it'll have some extra modules like living quarters, part storage and so-on, for emergency repairs and last-minute fixes in case i've forgotten something before launch.

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As the hubs for my ever expanding solar empire, of course... 

I have one (or plan to) around each major planet, so it serves as a fueling station for locally based craft and also as a point from which craft coming from Kerbin can drop crew/supplies so that another vessel can then take them to the surface base on that planet. Basically, they're the center of interplanetary operations.

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I use my space station - named Kupole Station (after one of my disproven planet candidates) - for refueling, crew transfer, and science deposits/research. I'm planning on either re-modeling or moving it, possibly into Munar orbit. I'm already setting up a new station around Minmus. This time, it's smaller and can act as a lander as well!

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I have a science station, but my refueling is done from Minmus ground base. I am not a particular fan of docking 100t+ interplanetary tugs with low TWR no translational capabilities, and if I have to use a refuel vessel anyway, launching from Minmus is basically free (180 dV) and can be done with dedicated high maneuverability crafts. My ground base promo shot:

zvdLMUl.png

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Orbital Space Dock, I have just started a sandbox mode where I am experimenting with SSTOs and giant space facilities where expired boosters are brought, docked, and reattached to other space ships, all stock, (Which means ALOT of docking ports and Monopropellant, thank God for autostrut!"

Edited by Alpha 360
"Kouston, we have several problems, but that doesn't matter so we want to continue on with the mission."
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