Kerbalstar

Here's the K.S.S. Milky Way with all the landers attached. I know that the Intrepid clips into Seven Seas and Voyager (Even though Voyager's position will change, I just got too lazy to attach it via the docking port.) What do you guys, especially those of you who have done Jool-5's, think? ( @Ultimate Steve) Kerbalstar out!

Oh, interesting how? Sounds like fun!

Why thank you! And, yes it is. The Swivel I was using just didn't have the TWR.

Sounds good! Sorry the save got deleted, though!

Laythe lander update: This test was a success! The new version has no heat-shielding, so re-entry gets a bit fiery, but it survives just fine, the parachutes lower it softly to the surface (The surface was mostly water in these tests, but I'm aiming for land. The landing will be soft enough, trust me.). It can take off from water, and reach orbit again with a bit of fuel to spare! Vehicle Name Update: I've decided upon the names for all the vehicles: Laythe Lander Rising Tide Laythe Rover Seven Seas Tylo Lander Intrepid Vall/Pol/Bop Lander Voyager Vall Rover Blue Moon Bop Rover Radioactive Pol Rover Free Fallin' Tylo Rover Under Pressure Vall CommSats Valliance 1 and 2 Bop CommSats Defiant 1 & 2 Pol CommSats Kappa Mode 1 & 2 Laythe CommSats 50/50 Chance 1 & 2 Tylo CommSats Never Tell Me The Odds 1 & 2 Space Tug(2.5m) Robinson Space Tug(1.25m) Cena Crew Transfer Vehicle Soyuz-ish Now, for the name of the mothership. I considered a few names for this one. First was Voyager. There have been a lot of great Voyagers throughout history, from Voyager 1 & 2 to Star Trek's Voyager, to @Ultimate Steve's Voyager. I didn't pick that name, because of the fact that it was used so often. So, that name went to the Light Moon Lander. Next, I considered Intrepid, because of the Apollo 12 LM, @Kuzzter's, and @Ultimate Steve's Intrepid's. But, for the same reason as Voyager, I decided not to use it. When I was younger, I used to dream of commanding a Star Trek starship. I always thought that I would call it the U.S.S. Milky Way. So: Mothership K.S.S. Milky Way. What do you guys think? Kerbalstar out!

Thanks!

Really liking this @RocketMan-Explorer! Like the writing, the gameplay, and those nifty suits!

Yeah, that's one of the changes I'm going to make.

I have a couple questions. First, is it possible to add a poll to an existing post (that is not a poll), and if so how? Second, how many @pings do you guys get a day? I know I see @Snarkpinged at least once a day, if not more, and I ping him myself if someone wants information about the game and he hasn't already popped in. I see the rest of you guys pinged too, sometimes.

Laythe lander update: Taking @Ultimate Steve's advice, I've switched my design philosophy for the lander. It is now multistage, non-reuseable, and the rover will land separately. This latest test was a partial failure. The lander landed in the water, but successfully took off. However, it fell short of orbit. I was able to get one of the Kerbals(Jeb) out of the lander, and into a safe orbit, but Bill was doomed. I'm going to make a few changes so that hopefully version 3 will work better! Kerbalstar out!

Okay. Thanks! Sounds cool! Gotcha.

Really cool @Geonovast! What mods did you use? Can I get craft files? Can you run your space program off this? Can you play through a whole save only using that rocket, and only one copy of it to launch everything?

New challenge! Planetary Surface Explorartion Vehicle (PSEV) Design Challenge! The challenge this week is simple, yet tough, as with all of our challenges. This week, your challenge is to design a rover. Some specifications: It must be Kermanned, and capable of carrying at least 2 Kerbals. It must be able to land on a body from a low orbit. It must be able to rove at least 1.3km from its original landing site, measured by planting a flag, and then looking at the distance away from that flag. If you go more than 50km, you will get a special badge! Good luck!

Thanks! You know, I hadn't considered a multi-stage lander, that's a good idea! You're right, I'm ditching the lander before I head home, so I don't need it to work more than once! I can't build planes, so that's why it's a "rocket". Well, you saw how the test went, so. Thanks! Calculating stuff yourself is always fun! I'm trying to go for a minimum fuel landing, but that might help me for getting back to orbit, which is where I generally run out of fuel.

Vall/Pol/Bop Lander Update: The test was a success! I am only testing this on Vall, because Pol and Bop have lower gravity, and therefore, it should be easier to land on those bodies. I successfully landed and re-orbited the lander, and undocked the rover. I still haven't got Laythe figured out, but having 4/5ths of the moons done vs 1/5th feels pretty good! Also, for those of you who have landed on Laythe before: Is my Laythe lander design good, and I just need to fly it right, or will it not have enough DeltaV to land and re-orbit? Kerbalstar out!

Thanks! Yeah, that's sort of what I'm doing for my testing. Launch, Alt-F5, Alt-F12, De-orbit, Alt-F5, etc. Also, this latest version "landed" on land, but the chutes didn't cut. And all the legs blew up.

Laythe Lander Update: I am not a very good pilot. I wish that I wasn't trying to do this pure stock because if I wasn't, I could install, say the Trajectories mod, which would really help me out with Laythe. Oh well. Also, the water FX really slows down this machine. Anyway, a picture is worth a thousand words, so here you go: Kerbalstar out! P.S. If anybody has any design or piloting suggestions, let me know!

It's a Jool-5 challenge, so I have to use a mothership. Why? Thanks! Update: This is the current status of all vehicles. Kerbalstar out!

Laythe Rover test results: I modified the rover for Laythe, and it is now also aquatic.

Tylo Lander test results: This most recent test was a success! The lander landed upright, the rover successfully separated from the lander and landed next to it. Bob Kerman tested the ladder system, boarded the rover, and drove it back to the lander. Only one problem was found, that the lander almost ran out of EC while Bob was on EVA. I plan to add solar panels to remedy this. Any suggestions: Kerbalstar out!

Tylo Lander test results: The design has been updated to version 3, and the Standard Multi-Purpose Rover to version 2. This most recent test has ended in a slight failure, due to the inability of the pilot to land the lander up-right. The self-righting ability of the rover, however, has been proven many times. The result of the last test. Kerbalstar out!

You need to burn towards the target at intercept, then burn until your relative velocity equals zero and repeat until you are as close as you desire. To rescue a Kerbal, you need to switch to the craft with the bracket {} keys, once within 2.2km, and EVA the Kerbal to your rescue craft. Ideally they should not be more than a few tens of meters apart. To capture a wreck you need to klaw it. My guess is that it is simply a Kerbal rescue mission, and you do not need to klaw the wreck. --Kerbalstar

For rendezvous you first need to make sure that your orbit is higher or lower than the target significantly, then use maneuver nodes to get an encounter. Pinging @Snark, because I'm tired and he can explain in great detail.

Tylo lander test results: Two full tests were run, with 2 partial tests starting from a later point in the simulation. The conclusion was that the vehicle's descent stage is up to the job, but our pilots need more training in order to successfully land the vehicle. A name will be decided upon at a later date. The result of the latest test. The latest design. I have also decided that I will land a rover on every body, in addition to the lander. The rover will remain on the surface, while the lander re-orbits and re-docks with the mothership. Kerbalstar out!

Thanks!