Mars-Bound Hokie

GLEVEY KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y62D403 - 4H00M For the past few months, we've been devoted to testing our new Anubis spaceplane. The last entry of this thread mentioned a problem with the abort system as well as a canard snapping off, so the SPH guys decided to add more struts to the wings. As a precautionary measure, we added some to the rear stabilizers. For the abort system, Bill suggested bigger parachutes as well as small rocket boosters for the crew capsule so that not only can we separate from a crashing body, but we can have a softer landing. A day after that design change was implemented, Jeb and Bill were airborne again. Only this time, their instructions were: Make at least a 90-degree turn in any direction (preferably toward land) Land anywhere with daylight Too risky to land in the dark Refuel Take off Turn around and go in a random heading Activate the abort system while in a downward trajectory Jeb and Bill soon landed in some random field over 100 km away from the space center, sending us this picture. It's a bit of a jump, but Bill was able to climb the rear ladder to repack the rear parachute. We may need to switch it. A few days of refueling later, and it was time to test the abort system. Much to everyone's surprise, the SRBs made no difference when trying to separate the capsule from the plane. Jeb and Bill had to wiggle themselves away from the front before the plane fell into the ocean. They had managed to do so in the nick of time before their parachutes would make no difference. The panels on the side are for power in case the capsule needs to wait for a long time. The third test we did for this plane was even more interesting, yet also boring at the same time. Lasel Kerman - the scientist who saved Bill and Val from Eeloo, a rookie engineer named Aldgee, and myself flew it to Minmus for the refueling test. We ran out of oxidizer before touchdown, but we had enough delta-V and thrust to land (and far more than enough monopropellant to straighten ourselves out). We landed in the lesser flats and got some good science points before beginning to refuel. That was when the boredom hit: It took us ~130 days to fill up all our tanks Though it was agonizing to wait for months for our tanks to fill up, we learned some interesting facts about our plane during and afterwards: When our Lf tanks were completely full AND our Ox supply was below 1% capacity (and monoprop at ~85%), our delta-V was above 6,000 m/s on NERVs alone Of course, that came at a cost of having a Minmus TWR of less than 1 on the NERVs We could fill up the oxidizer tanks enough for the Skipper engines to get us off the planet, but Gene ordered us to fill them completely so that we could see our delta-V count on the higher-thrust engines. We could do a straight shot to Jool (or even Eeloo) from there if we wanted to. Pay close attention to the Lf/Ox levels. After we used: Skippers and NERVs to get to 60 km Minmus orbit NERVs to achieve a 250 km-periapsis inclined orbit above Kerbin Skippers and NERVs to circularize at periapsis 2576 km/s on rapiers and skippers alone (TWR 1.31) I don't know what this means regarding the plan to get to Tylo from one of the smaller Jool moons, but I hope the plane can safely land on Tylo with that much delta-V and thrust. Us flying over Minmus' lesser flats after refueling (finally) Since we had plenty of Lf+Ox to spare, we decided to use ALL the engines to make a de-orbit burn to the KSC - probably with more than what's necessary. However, we overshot the runway and had to turn around after 30 km. We also had another problem; it was dark, and we were close to overshooting again after correcting our heading. That was when Wernher took the opportunity to test the new abort system, which was more than just SRB separators. It included the main body: Extending airbrakes Deploying the rear chute Shutting down all engines (no matter what) Indeed, the new program paid off well. We didn't land the way we hoped, but at least we got near the KSP runway - and the science and battery (and panels) are safe. What remains of the plane's body. We can't keep using the abort system when landing on other planets, let alone Laythe. My personal recommendation is to not land at night, add more structural support to the tanks, and watch our downward velocity. Besides, we don't really need that much monopropellant.

Well, was it good? Did you like it? Feel free to like, comment, and/or subscribe. In the interest of not getting this thread derailed, if you want to comment on my video in the thread, just leave your opinion of it before submitting your entry (detailed scenario leading to the death of previous poster's victim, and then your next victim). Alternatively, you could always leave a like/comment on the video itself. Enraged at Cheapskate Kerman's gross negligence, John Kerman drew a handgun from his jacket and shot at Cheapskate - but missed. The bailiff immediately drew his service weapon and aimed at John, who took another shot at Cheapskate. Though Cheapskate was only grazed in the arm, the bailiff shot John in the chest. The trial judge immediately ordered the courtroom emptied and paramedics to the scene. They were able to save Cheapskate, but there was no hope for John. Chelsea Kerman will fall to her death from 30 kilometers high.

JEBEDIAH KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y62D254 - 5H00M Our original goal for a Jool-5 SSTO was to have a deployable lander (and/or an ion tug) inside a large Mk. III mining-capable spaceplane. However, after numerous failed design simulations, most of us were starting to give up hope - including Bill. I would have pulled him off that bench and locked him in the drawing room (along with enough supplies to last him months) until he came up with something, but Gene told me not to since our deadline for "serious" Anubis II plans was years away. However, right as we were about to give up, we found hope. Bill and I were looking online for some ideas when I came across a plane some guy named @evader made (Bill was staring at a beach picture of Val). The craft was called the "Tylo Slayer," and it was claimed to be able to transport three kerbals and a mini-rover to Tylo after refueling on Minmus. I wanted to buy it and use it as our Anubis II, but Bill and Mortimer objected on the grounds that: Planetary law mandates that we design our own spacecraft LOOPHOLE: we can use other people's designs as inspiration We are also allowed to use craft designed by our contractors, provided that we directly contribute to the design and testing process There are also concerns that "outdated" designs are not up to KAA code. It was not equipped with the standard-issue parts for interplanetary SSTOs, like: Probe core Antenna Science Control surfaces Surprisingly, there were none on the wings OR canards When we test-flew it to Minmus, getting the drill to work was a nightmare. Bill: "Whose bright idea was it to put a small drill in the same cargo area as a rover?" I can't even tell if it's attached to the plane or the rover." Me: "What's wrong with the drill?" Bill: "Besides the control surfaces - which he TOTALLY FORGOT - causing the plane to bounce upon landing, the interior of the cargo bay exploded when I tried to use the drill." Bill: "There's plenty of room for improvement." Using the Tylo Slayer as inspiration, we managed to build our own prototype. Only this time, we're not carrying a rover in our cargo bay - which is DEFINITELY NOT in the rear. @evader's original design in the SPH (image from KerbalX) Latest version built in 1.6.0 Doesn't have any control surfaces. Our current design, built from scratch Design differences between us and the source material include, but not limited to Docking-capable Once Bill installed monopropellant near the front to move the CoM, Wernher seized his chance to make it docking-capable. Larger tailfins and rear stabilizers. Larger wingspan And we DIDN'T FORGET THE CONTROL SURFACES Who knows, we might even land this on Duna Science and a large drill in the FRONT cargo bay. Antenna Probe core Over SIX TIMES the power capacity And solar panels EIGHT rapiers instead of four And still have enough delta-V for a Minmus stop. Abort system, disconnecting the capsule from the rest of the plane in case of emergencies More on that later Rear parachute Airbrakes Wider landing gear arrangement Bill hoped that he wouldn't need to use the skipper engines for the atmospheric ascent, but he still needed them despite doubling his rapier count. Since Mission Control had no doubts that the ISRU systems would work - not that they don't plan to test that later - they planned to perform atmospheric ascent and re-entry tests first. The ascent was fine, but it was re-entry that was another story. And no, it wasn't a loss of control. On the contrary, it seemed to glide just as well - even with missing parts. Picture of a test run from OUR first prototype. A lot of parts exploded, like a couple of airbrakes and most of the RCS thrusters. The worst part was when we lost the docking port and the probe core. Though nobody was inside at the time, we couldn't perform a controlled landing. It managed to overshoot the KSC and glide to the ocean. For our second test (sorry, no pictures here), we forgot to program the "Switch mode" control to ALL the rapiers. Regardless, we still managed to turn it 90 degrees to the north just fine after re-entry. It was during landing on the grass that was the issue - one of our canards was MISSING. When I couldn't pitch up in time, I jumped out of the cockpit. We didn't know how exactly that happened, so we did the same thing again a third time. That was when we saw the canard snap off during re-entry. I don't know why the other one didn't though, but that was unacceptable. Wernher anticipated a failure, so he seized the opportunity to test the abort system. Unfortunately, when I hit the button, the capsule was still riding on the rest of the plane. If I didn't move it soon, I would die. I then bounced around inside the capsule, causing it to get away from the front of the crashing plane. I was seconds from impact when I managed to break free, so I deployed the chutes immediately. Unfortunately, they weren't enough. I lost the heat shield and the battery as a result. Overall, not a bad design. My official complaints are that they need to: Fix the abort system Pushing the capsule AWAY from the plane Better chutes Make sure canards don't snap off during re-entry If we can get this plane to work on Kerbin, we'll test it on Minmus next - and, later, use it as our Anubis II. If we do this right, the Jool-5 trophy is ours. While the SPH engineers are working on fixing the errors, we at least got an ore scanner in position of Tylo. Despite the fact that our current prototype has a large drill rather than a small one, the guys at R&D wanted to get orbital readings of the surface before we send any landing crews. Plus, Mission Control anticipated us needing to use a small drill for future craft. Tylo with ore concentrations laid out.

Confirmed case in Blacksburg, VA. I hope s/he didn't pass it along to anyone else.

Gene: "Why were you checking your watch a lot before the launch? We were already counting down." Bill: "I guess it's because... because I'm Kirba."

Man, you could use some struts - and CHECK YO STAGIN!

This. While Yaj Kerman was waiting for his rescue ship to arrive, he fell asleep in his lander can. Unbeknownst to him, it was the end of the Bop Kraken's decades-long hibernation cycle. When it woke up, it sensed some food on the other side of the planet. Yaj Kerman couldn't fire up the engines - since the lander didn't have any - so he was easy prey for the hungry beast. Naomi Kerman will die during Eve re-entry

Dinky was hiking up the Mun's northeastern craters when he let a big one rip. The pressure from all the gas, and the shock from the resulting sound wave, caused his spacesuit to explode from the inside. While all of his oxygen was leaking out, the cold vacuum of space killed him in a matter of seconds. His partner, Raye Kerman, had no idea that Dinky had died until his base had lost contact with his bio monitor. Raye couldn't hear the first explosion since, well, sound doesn't carry through space. Raye Kerman will die from spaghettification.

THIS IS A PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE PRIME MINISTER OF KERBIN In the past three months, we have experienced a spike in fatalities caused by pilots who were texting while flying. Today, the Kerbal Space Program has made this video to outline the dangers of such reckless behavior. By showing this to you, we hope to raise awareness of the consequences and, eventually, save more lives as a result. Don't text and fly.

I made this video, which shows what happens when you text and fly. Please feel free to like/comment/subscribe.

I submitted an entry to the Asymmetrical Aircraft Challenge. Watch the video below to see it in action. https://kerbalx.com/Mars-Bound_Hokie/Asymmetrical-Aircraft

Hey, @Klapaucius. Here's my entry for the challenge. What do you think? I also brought my parts list with me (which you can find on KerbalX):

Nice work, @mystifeid. You got close to beating @Laie's time (24:32), in fact. One question: why did you put Wheesley engines on your plane? Why not use a supersonic engine, like a whiplash or a rapier? I suggest doing this a second time, but switching the wheesleys for something more powerful. If you need to slow down that quickly, try airbrakes and/or drag chutes. Heck, you may even have a shot at beating @Laie.

That's weird, because it's now embedded in the command module controls. Unless you used the separate MJ remote part, the mod wouldn't show up on KerbalX. Regardless, MJ should be okay as it's just a craft control mod. It doesn't come with any parts that would give unfair advantages, like aerodynamic structures or hyperdrives or stuff like that.