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[WIP][1.0.2] Black Sky suborbital rocketplane V0.30


AndyMt

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The Black Sky is a suborbital spaceplane, based on the original design of the world's first crowd-funded spaceplane.

(see www.wearespaceship.com).

Featuring a very shiny design, the Black Sky can take 1 pilot and 3 passengers on a sub orbital trajectory to about 100km above Kerbin.

Being extremely light weight no heatshield is provided, so don't get too fast on reentry...

This mod contains all parts needed for building the Black Sky (well - except the landing gear).

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DOWNLOAD LINK:

>> Dropbox <<

Parts list:

- Cockpit

- Passenger Cabin

- Fuel Tank

- Engine Housing

- Engine

- Wing Base

- Wing

- Winglets

- Flap

- Canards

Ships:

- Preassembled Black Sky using stock landing gear as the only stock part (BS-Blacksky).

Known Issues:

  • DDS​ textures: right now all textures are PNG or TGA, sorry for that. Will convert to DDS when everything is more mature.
  • Landing gear: currently no unique landing gear for this mod. Animations are way out of my modelling capabilites (yet).
  • The original Black Sky is supposed to reach 100+ km, so in Kerbal terms this model is overpowered (you get up to 110km easily). Maybe I reduce the amount of fuel so the maximum height will be around 75km, just outside the atmosphere.

This is my very first mod and my very first 3D modelling and texturing attempts. The learning curve was and still is very steep, so I'm happy for any suggestions and tipps how to improve.

Thanks a lot to all in the forum providing all those valuable hints about mod development and modelling.

Please let me know if I need to change this post in format or content.

And of course what you think about this mod :).

Dependencies:

- ModuleManager by sarbian: NOT included in ZIP file.

- Reflection Plugin by Starwaster: INCLUDED in ZIP file.

Installation:

The zip file contains a 'GameData' and a 'Ships' folder. Copy the contents of the zip file to your KSP installation directory. Be sure to overwrite existing files and replace them.

REVISION HISTORY

- 0.10: Initial WIP release

- 0.11: Fixed "hollow" Canard model. Reduced gimballing on engine.

- 0.12: added bumped texture to the fuel tank to represent the ribbings of the original design

- 0.20: changes for KSP 1.0.2. Split wing into flat wing and winglets, added parachutes for safety.

- 0.30: added a cargo bay part, and a cargo SPH craft including a sample payload.

References:

www.wearespaceship.com

Thanks to them that they let me use the design of the Black Sky.

Licenses:

  • Black Sky concept and design:
    © we are spaceship UG: www.wearespaceship.com
  • Models, textures and part config files:
    Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International
    (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

Edited by AndyMt
Edit: New download link for Version 0.30
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Very nice! What size is it? Does it work with FAR? How much dV does it have?
Thx :). Max. diameter is about 1.7m. length around 17m. It doesn't support FAR (yet) because I still have to find proper values of the lift coefficients for the stock aero. But if anyone has suggestions on how to add FAR, I'll to that next thing.

dV is around 3500. Maybe a bit too much as I already stated.

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New version:

- 0.11: Fixed "hollow" Canard model. Reduced gimballing on engine.

The Canards model is still kind of wrong on the base. Haven't figured that one out yet. Then I changed the engine gimballing because it was way too much.

Then I'm working on applying some bumped textures around the passenger cabin windows. But together with the reflection add on it doesn't look as I want it to. But I'll ask this question in another thread.

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New version:

- 0.12: added bumped texture to the fuel tank to represent the ribbings of the original design

This is my first try with bumped textures. It kind of works, let me know what you think.

I would like to apply that to other parts as well, like for hatches, windows etc.

I still have the problem that the black reflective specular textures look like I want them to in the SPH, but not on the runway and during flight. There everything is much darker and less specular/reflective.

Any ideas?

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I like the looks, but is it Deadly Reentry compatible?

Also, this looks like it'd fit perfect on the end of a rocket Dyna Soar style

So, having tested this out.

Yep, it's a suborbital plane.

But fitting it with a different engine (so that it has a base attach node) I was able to fit it up like the Dyna Soar, on top of a Mainsail powered first stage, and launch it into a 100km orbit.

The key to Dyna Soar styled launches is to fit LARGE fins to the bottom of the booster, as is evidenced by the surviving drawings

I tried to piggyback launch it on a booster, shuttle style, but that was a disaster even with throttle controlled avionics.

Edited by Nothalogh
After Action Report.
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Well, I use stock dragfix and it is alittle hard to control if you pitch to high it wants to flip and fly on it's back and couldn't make orbit with it but looks great.
Yes I know. Probably I have to change the drag values and lift coefficients for the canards.

- - - Updated - - -

I like the looks, but is it Deadly Reentry compatible?

Also, this looks like it'd fit perfect on the end of a rocket Dyna Soar style

So, having tested this out.

Yep, it's a suborbital plane.

But fitting it with a different engine (so that it has a base attach node) I was able to fit it up like the Dyna Soar, on top of a Mainsail powered first stage, and launch it into a 100km orbit.

The key to Dyna Soar styled launches is to fit LARGE fins to the bottom of the booster, as is evidenced by the surviving drawings

I tried to piggyback launch it on a booster, shuttle style, but that was a disaster even with throttle controlled avionics.

It's not configured for Deadly Reentry - yet. It doesn't have a heatshield anyway...

But of course I also tried to launch it into a orbit - but using additional drop-fuel-tanks beneath the wings. I'm also considering to modell a cargo bay instead of the passenger cabin. So even if it is sub-orbital, it would be possible with an additional upper stage to launch small payloads into orbit.

Thanks for trying it out :)!

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A cargo bay would be great and have you seen Adjustable Landing Gear http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/99660-0-25-Adjustable-Landing-Gear-v1-0-1-Nov-9 it does need some plugins but the License: CC-BY-SA 3.0 you might give him a message if you want to use them :)
Thanks for the hint. I'll have a look at this. Because the original does have a different landing gear setup than what I've used in my mod. "Adjustable Landing Gear" might allow me to replicate that :).
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"Adjustable Landing Gear" might allow me to replicate that :).

After using Adjustable Landing Gear you'll never want to use anything else, I wish he'd make a large size with bogey wheels like big airliners.

Also, I must ask, is this all your work? Texture, model, etc?

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After using Adjustable Landing Gear you'll never want to use anything else, I wish he'd make a large size with bogey wheels like big airliners.

Also, I must ask, is this all your work? Texture, model, etc?

Yes, I modelled the parts my self and also created most of the textures. I got some original image files from we-are-spaceship like logos etc. which I incorporated. Especially doing the Blender models was a pain and also unity is hard to master.
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Yes, I modelled the parts my self and also created most of the textures. I got some original image files from we-are-spaceship like logos etc. which I incorporated. Especially doing the Blender models was a pain and also unity is hard to master.

Impressive.

Though I'd recommend that you merge the engine mount and three separate engines into one engine module.

Really, my only complaint is the planform of the vehicle, I have a visceral dislike for Delta+Canard designs

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Impressive.

Though I'd recommend that you merge the engine mount and three separate engines into one engine module.

I tried that, but then gimballing didn't work and also the exhaust animations only showed for one of the engines.

Really, my only complaint is the planform of the vehicle, I have a visceral dislike for Delta+Canard designs

Well as always - these things are a matter of taste :).
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I tried that, but then gimballing didn't work and also the exhaust animations only showed for one of the engines.

The stock Rapier and B9's SABREs have separate exhaust outputs gimballed together, look into how they do that

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For me, I like the way they are now what's wrong with them ?

EDIT- There isn't anything wrong with them being separate engines if you want a whole one weld it, It's your choice or take it out and put what ever engine on it you want.

Edited by Mecripp2
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LOL thats so a kerbal can change them out hehe ( Thats a Joke but guess he could ) :)

True, but I'm just thinking for usefulness in KSP.

See, a suborbital plane is hard to achieve much with, this is probably why most suborbital designs never leave the drawing board.

Even Virgin Galactic's creations are dead ends, except for the Hybrid Solid Motor.

In reality, the only use of spaceplanes, especially small ones, is to deliver fleshbags to low orbit, for rendezvous with inter-orbital transit vehicles.

The future for cargo to low orbit is in Big Honkin Boosters

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If AndyMt don't mind, I might post some cfg for engines :wink:

EDIT- BlackSky2.pngBlackSky.png

More power and thats doing it the hard way :)

EDIT- Well not of the one's in the Picture's but of a welded part with added bottom node for those who want it.

Edited by Mecripp2
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True, but I'm just thinking for usefulness in KSP.

See, a suborbital plane is hard to achieve much with, this is probably why most suborbital designs never leave the drawing board.

Even Virgin Galactic's creations are dead ends, except for the Hybrid Solid Motor.

In reality, the only use of spaceplanes, especially small ones, is to deliver fleshbags to low orbit, for rendezvous with inter-orbital transit vehicles.

The future for cargo to low orbit is in Big Honkin Boosters

Well, you are probably right. It's not that useful in KSP, because it is a suborbital spaceplane.

And that's actually the idea of the original project: bring space tourists to the edge of space with a few minutes of micro gravity included. In KSP you might use it to earn some reputation for your Kerbals?

But it was fun to model the whole thing and make it actually fly (well virtually at least).

I'm now looking into the landing gear again. Probably I'll create my own ones, just because of the challenge...

- - - Updated - - -

If AndyMt don't mind, I might post some cfg for engines :wink:

EDIT-

More power and thats doing it the hard way :)

EDIT- Well not of the one's in the Picture's but of a welded part with added bottom node for those who want it.

Whow wow! That's a really big, big engine for a small spaceplane :). But go ahead :).
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