Medium(ish) size launcher using cargobays

[Minarkhaios]

Here to share my new medium size launcher.

The goal was to quickly create a low kerbal orbit (100-150ish km) refuelling station.

For that I needed a new launcher able to put some heavy stuff in orbit.

I'm lazy, so it also need to be done fast (or a least in the least amount of launch)

So I created that

Not the biggest launcher ever created but it delivers. And it is surprisingly quite efficient.

I don't have picture of the three firsts flights (silly me) but here is a picture of the fourth one.

As you can see, this one was about solar panel and science lab.

In four trips, the station was complete.

(For those who now how to count, yes, there is two modules missing ... I did miscalculate the rendez-vous trajectory for a couple of rockomax module. They ended burning in the upper atmosphere before reaching rendez-vous point. I'll never learn ...)

There is :

- two (of four) fuel tanks.

- two science modules (science lab).

- two power stations.

- two hubs.

- tow tucker to move the parts around.

In action the station is quite wobbly. In fact, it is rated M or PEGI-18 (or whatever is 'mature' content in your area) when attempting to turn it.

The last stage of the launcher is also able to come back to kerbin and land with a suicide burn (at least, someone more skilled than me can do it).

Or to deploy the same station around mun or minmus (but not come back after)

To populate this station, I also created a bus version.

I have to admit that this one is over-over-over-sized. 12 passengers modules is 11 too much (12* 16 seats is maybe exaggerated)

link to the four crafts

Edited March 21, 2015 by Minarkhaios

[Mad Rocket Scientist]

Nice, can it land on those landing legs?

[Minarkhaios]

I don't know yet, previous version of this crafts doesn't have them. And this version is still in orbit having trouble with the docking procedure (too heavy, not enough rcs trust).

I hope so, but I doubt it can survive without a proper and slow landing on a flat on horizontal surface. Maybe i'll update later with the result of this particular landing (or failure of).

[KerBlammo]

How do you get the parts out of the cargo bays and attach them to the station?

[Minarkhaios]

How do you get the parts out of the cargo bays and attach them to the station?

To get them out, I slowly (not that I can do it quickly, it's too heavy) rotate the main ship and decouple the docking port that link the cargo to the cargo bay. The cargo will then slowly drift apart.

The rockomax module and the tucker module have full RCS control and can get out on their own.

And the tucker (the yellow and green module) is used to move parts around an place them at the correct place (slowly).

[Minarkhaios]

Nice, can it land on those landing legs?

And the answer is : yes, but the reactor didn't make it.

This is the second attempt. During the first one, the parachutes did break this marvellous ship into smaller parts. And the parts evolved into pretty ball of exploding gas and burned kerbals.

[riordajo]

Download link?

[Minarkhaios]

Download link?

added in the first post.

Beware, the creator does not take responsibility for dead kerbal and exploded rocket.

(And anyone can re-use this as they want. I only ask that any alternate version be published here. Just to satisfy my curiosity of what you've done with it)