sgt_flyer

Temperature data is now available https://webb.nasa.gov/content/webbLaunch/whereIsWebb.html?units=metric (they indicates they would update the values on the website daily) i guess JWST is still more or less within's earth's shadow atm, given the reported hot side temperatures

Seems nasa confirmed that the precision of the launch should allow for much more than 10 years of operation for james webb https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2021/12/29/nasa-says-webbs-excess-fuel-likely-to-extend-its-lifetime-expectations/ In the blog, they give figures of 20m/s of delta-v change for the mcc-1a burn, and 2.8m/s for the mcc-1b burn. they also started to extend the telescope tower, they indicate that it could take up to 6 hours, as it is controlled from the ground. https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2021/12/29/webb-team-begins-process-of-extending-deployable-tower-assembly/

Well, there was some research about this propellant combination for small satellites, but i guess they still prefer mmh/nto in terms of ISP / density, which don't have to be chilled. could still be useful due to the low toxicity, but needing chilled propellants compared to mmh/nto adds complexity https://tfaws.nasa.gov/TFAWS06/Proceedings/Aerothermal-Propulsion/Papers/TFAWS06-1026_Paper_Herdy.pdf

Sunshield deployment has started with the forward pallet, https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2021/12/28/forward-pallet-structure-lowered-beginning-multiple-day-sunshield-deployment/ so within the next few days, here comes some of the most complex deployement steps ever done in space, outside of space station assemblies i guess edit : aft sunshield pallet deployed : https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2021/12/28/aft-sunshield-pallet-deployed/ From reading the blog, seems the actual motion is around 20 minutes - but they have a lot of intermediate steps to check before / after the motion (heaters, latches, attitude checks, etc) turning each step into a multi-hour process

Webb did it's second MCC burn (MCC-1B), of 9 minutes 27 seconds. (567s) https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2021/12/27/webbs-second-mid-course-correction-burn/ next steps should be the sunshield's pallets opening

Arianespace's CEO shared their preliminary orbital parameters analysis i guess they are allowed to say bullseye

Well, nauka is still catching up - but it's still on time for tomorrow 's rendezvous given the relative orbital periods (simply search "iss (" here : http://www.stuffin.space ) Should give you ISS (ZARYA) and ISS (NAUKA)

No, the grapple fixture is there this specific airlock module is currently attached on the side of rassvet (Which was launched by space shuttle) this poor thing waited Nauka for nearly 11 years ! once the european arm (launched with nauka) is operationnal, one of the operations will be to move it from rassvet to nauka you can see it on rassvet pictures https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rassvet_(ISS_module)

Couldn't they scale it up to limit g forces by using a maglev vacuum tube (hyperloop style, in a circle), with several 'exit ramps' climbing on mountainside at various headings (so you can target a few different orbits) Though, friction will still be insane when the stage leaves the tube (use a MHD to limit air friction maybe one it leaves the tube ?) For large circular facilities with a magnetic tube, LHC is 26km diameter for example much more reasonable than a 50m catapult on lateral G forces... Of course, the initial investment is much higher :p

Use both a parabolic primary mirror and a parabolic secondary mirror, or a lense as a secondary. you'll be able to concentrate sunlight in a very small area (depends on the distance at which you want to focus your secondary) No need to make the light fully coherent the beam between the secondary and the focal point will be smaller than your secondary Now, if the primary mirror is polished enough (recommanded to limit thermal transfers...) , your space mirror would double as a very powerful space telescope

nifty updates on the rcs (the new small rcs will be nice on my constellations of small commsat - allow to very precisely tune the satellites orbits Would be nice to have some variants for the place anywheres too. maybe a sideways variant to place nearly 'flush' with hulls - imagine a vernor's shape, but with a nozzle and exhaust channel parallel to the shape, like on the space shuttle's nose and nose's sides. (At least, a place anywhere's 7 variant with the same style of mount as the small one, instead of the big ball :p) replicating the shuttle's RCS arrays is quite part intensive

Hello - wet workshop skylab was only a proposal, so it could have been launched with a S-IB lower stage. However, skylab was launched on S-V lower stages fully equiped as a dry workshop. (Skylab was still built from a modified S-IVb - but it was fully equipped on ground) The main problem with wet workshops is reamenaging the fuel tanks after launch. most of the useful equipment would be difficult to assemble once in orbit (the large parts have to be broken up to fit through the docking ports, etc) you’ll need several subsequent launches to ferry in the needed equipment (not recommended to put sensitive electronics inside cryogenic fuels / oxydizers, so you’ll have to launch them after) - in the end, it’s not really cost effective because of the added compexity and the subsequent manned launches required to finish the assembly in orbit.

Well, we would need the following basic capability for the factory part - the factory part can build another factory part - you can dock multiple factory parts to build bigger things The probe would then need the basics for to setup a self growing factory : 1) the factpry part itself ^^ 2) resource scanning systems (Scanning satellites, small lander / rovers with scand, etc) 3) either drills, mining rovers, or enough basic resources to build those with the factory part 4) enough electricity to make the above. 5) communications (if autonomous probe) ———————— once the probe arrives, start resource scanning, land at a good spot start exploitation by creating new drilling / electric generators (or solar arrays) / storage needed to build new factory parts. once the factory has grown enough, it would be able to start producing new probes to start the process on another planet (while the first factory A variation could occur if the factory part is orbital only then you’ll need a mining lander to separate from your probe, and the probe would grow an orbital shipyard around it from the landers resources

if you have a spaceship which has an engine capable of giving thrust constantly between point A and point B, you accelerate during the first half of the flight, then you flip around and decelerate during the second half. The Brachistochrone trajectory is the one that will give you the shortest flight time between A and B given your acceleration and deceleration (and that will result in arriving at a correct speed at your target, and not simply fly by it :p) those kind of rocket engines don't exist in real life (yet ?) the spaceships in the series The Expanse are typically capable of this kind of trajectories For a more down to earth application, you can check the animation on Wikipedia's page - the brachristochrone trajectory is longer than the straight line, but is quicker https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachistochrone_curve

Interesting video - it could likely help for a lot for normal launches of monster rockets, but would likely need a way to switch to higher quality physics (up to full simulation) as you approach edge cases for the loaded learned set. as seen in the video, edge cases (fast moving objects) are not registered by the trained AI currently - and ksp can quickly have high speed collisions (staging too early side boosters, etc) Now, the AI would be needed to be thoroughly trained with rigid bodies, and more importantly to be able to work on random rocket builds

Well, interstellar comms are going to be a problem though - you’d need new kinds of antennas / laser based transmissions to be able to have the necessary signal strength (based on ksp’s current signal system) at interstellar distances. maybe controlling probes in other solar systems will only be feasible if you set up a control station manned with kerbals in that system. (Kinda like in Remote tech 2 where you need a manned local space station to eliminate most of the signal delays)

I meant to provide possible ingame justifications on why the current no delay comms gameplay exists. - as you said yourself - comm delays would likely not make a good gameplay experience. (At least, not for most people) as for KSP1, the remote tech 2 mod can provide comms delay. (Though, it also comes with a flight computer in order to preprogram the manoeuvers and execute them at a specific timing)

Well, for pure gameplay purposes, the comms delay would be difficult to play out. It could be justified in severals ways though - 1- you could tell that your manual manoeuvers of the probe is simply a preprogrammed action sent some time before the manoeuver begins 2- the kerbals are more advanced than us in rocket AIs, so the probe is capable to manoeuver on it’s own in order to reach it’s mission goals (though, being a kerbal AI, it can mistime it’s manoeuver or perform the wrong one ;)) nevertheless, as they plan mod support for ksp 2, there would more than likely be a mod for that (as there actually is some mods for that in current KSP ^^)

I wonder if, alongside the new srb's, squad will add a bigger and more powerful version of the separatron too ? (Maybe more streamlined without those struts the current separatron's have)

Yeah - if they use n-body , they would need to recalculate all of orbits in the kerbol system (which is unstable in nbody) (Unless they mix on rail and n-body ?)

Havok demoed a unity plugin at GDC this year for their physics engine There's 5000 entities dropped into a planet gravity well at around 18 mn mark - ksp would be reduced to a crawl with that - i hope the devs will at least test that plugin

Well - to one in on the hyperfission / fusion thing : i think one of the most effective fission reactor concepts would be dusty plasma reactors. (A fission fragment reactor derivative) - one of the key things it enables is direct conversion to electricity (way more efficient than carnot cycle, or even brayton cycle) Plus, dusty plasma reactors can also be used as vacuum based rocket engines (very high theoritical ISP) Now, regarding the fusion reactor research, there's two research projects in europe that i think are quite complementary - Iter and Wendelstein 7X Iter to help learn notably about how to manage a reactor on the long term (notably manage hyperenergetic neutron damage over a reactor's service life) wendelstein 7X, as a stellarator design, is trying to get much more stable magnetic fields for plasma confinment. (So you'd likely need less power to contain the plasma vs a classic tokamak) So both these projects would likely play a big part in future production fusion reactors. Now we need to break even the net power production on the whole logistics chain for deuterium-tritium fusion - not only powering the magnetic fields, but also powering the coolant pumps and the generation of new tritium. Next step in fusion would likely be to tame aneutronic fusion (like P-B11) which can support direct conversion to electricity

Breaking ground has the kal-1000 controller part, which is a sequencer that can manage multiple parts at once on a timeline (looping and ping-pong possible of the sequence) - all of that with bezier curves (so the controlled parts can vary their speeds during animation). Since last patch, the sequencer can also trigger actions (decoupling, engine ignition, etc)

Only way to keep ISS old parts would be to replace most of the components inside that are nearing end of life (not likely feasible while attached to other modules) - replace all seals (which would need to depressurise the whole module) and make strong repairs of all the micrometeroid impacts the modules would have accumulated. current EVA suits would not be suitable for this kind of work. You'd basically need to either build an orbital drydock (or return it to earth) so astronauts can work on the outside within an atmosphere for those repairs... if you can launch an orbital drydock big enough for that, you won't need ISS anyway only recent modules would be any worth keeping (like a few russian modules, and the future russian MLM) - but russians plan to keep those anyway

I will not be able to help you on those i'm currently playing with 1.7.3 with the two DLCs, and i don't really use mods outside cosmetics / utility mods without parts I'm sure other builders will be better suited to help you