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The K Prize - 100% reusable spaceplane to orbit and back


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This is my first entry.

She is completely stock 1.0.5, in my career game, and meant to shuttle tourists into low orbit. Later I'll refit her with a docking port so she can transfer passengers and fuel, but I don't have docking ports yet in this career game. For now she can make me free money shuttling tourists.

Oh, and I can't believe I stuck the landing on her maiden test flight. Honestly wasn't sure how it would go, but she handled fine coming in, and had a little liquid fuel to spare.

I don't know how to post an album, but I think I have all the screenshots you'll need.

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KS1TJWC.jpg

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uo8dIYx.jpg

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Congratulations to...

Mikki Kosmokerbal Commendation, Utilitarial Commendation, Advanced Pilot Precision Award with K-Prize. (KJR is OK see rules.)

Lothsahn Utilitarial Commendation, Advanced Pilot Precision Award with the Galaxy VII Heavy.

- Advanced Pilot Precision Award 1st Class with the Galaxy VII. (thanks for clarifying)

... in 1.0 and also in 1.0.5 ...

Sean Mirrsen Advanced Pilot Precision Award with Space Harrier 3.0.

RCGothic Advanced Pilot Precision Award with Perfect.

Lothsahn Utilitarial Commendation, Advanced Pilot Precision Award with Loth SSTO 200 II (maximalist record holder 245t).

... for completing the K-Prize mission successfully. Thanks for your mission reports and welcome to the K-Prize party guest list aka the roll of honour.

Just Jim thanks for your mission report, looks like a good mission and K-Prize capable craft but I just need to check it reached orbit with PE > 70km in the specific mission you reported before adding it to the guest list. Sorry but wouldn't be right of me to assume and I cannot otherwise tell, since the space screeny has no data to show orbital velocity and your post did not say so. :)

Edited by boolybooly
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Just Jim thanks for your mission report, looks like a good mission and K-Prize capable craft but I just need to check it reached orbit with PE > 70km in the specific mission you reported before adding it to the guest list. Sorry but wouldn't be right of me to assume and I cannot otherwise tell, since the space screeny has no data to show orbital velocity and your post did not say so. :)

Oh, yeah... duh!!! My bad hehe

Here ya go

u5xWras.jpg

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Well then, with no further ado, congratulations on completing the K-Prize mission and earning your place on the K-Prize party guest list aka roll of honour for version 1.0.5, you are indeed a K-Prize winner :D

Just Jim Advanced Pilot Precision Award with She.

I improvised the name, not sure if I missed it but couldnt see one, feel free to supply a correction if you would like to and I will update it.

Edited by boolybooly
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My Entry: The Quark
Description:
The lightest SSTO in History. No crew, no real wings, no batteries, one solar panel, and a single shock cone, it can reach orbit and back, but remember to disable the drone core's electricity when you don't need it, to save power. We also saved weight by emptying some oxidizer. Point at 37 - 40 degrees, and when the air runs out, switch to closed cycle until your apoapsis is over 70 km, and then circularize your orbit. WARNING: The Shock Cone has a high probability of exploding due to overheating.(And the Rapier)(AND the solar Panel)

6.5 tons, using a drone core, 1 solar panel, fuel tank, 2 winglets, and a rapier.
Strangely, you can stop the drone core from using it's electric charge, so it doesn't consume electricity, but you can switch it back on. That's like telling a probe to shut off, and sending a signal for it to turn on when it's completely off.
With that, I saved the weight of 1 solar panel :D
I could probably make it lighter by using even lighter 'wings' and using 1 landing gear, but that would make it too hard.
I had to add a radiator, because I had already spent 3 hours, and around 12 flights, and the solar panel blew up on every single one of those reentries.
I sunk my SSTO to the bottom of the ocean and blew it up, but that was AFTER I landed safely.

[video=youtube;ID73NCrqr1w]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID73NCrqr1w[/video]

This is also my second successful SSTO, too Edited by xiej
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[quote name='boolybooly']Well then, with no further ado, congratulations on completing the K-Prize mission and earning your place on the K-Prize party guest list aka roll of honour for version 1.0.5, you are indeed a K-Prize winner :D[URL="http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/11214-The-K-Prize-100-reusable-spaceplane-to-orbit-and-back?p=2296221&viewfull=1#post2296221"]

Just Jim[/URL] Advanced Pilot Precision Award with She.

I improvised the name, not sure if I missed it but couldnt see one, feel free to supply a correction if you would like to and I will update it.[/QUOTE]


She.... yeah..
I actually had a different name in mind, but don't change it! I really like it!
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Well, here's the Panther Nuke.
[imgur]OW3rB[/imgur]

After spending several days making [URL="http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/139990-The-SpaceJet"]this thing[/URL] able to land on the mun, I went and built another couple SSTO's... Then went to see how small a craft had to be to get to the mun.
Firstly, I just want to note that this craft, while it does use some part clipping (Don't know if that is the correct term) it does so [B]fairly[/B] For example: The nuke is a long, ungainly and altogether unaerodynamic rocket motor. So I emptied a fuel tank out to simulate an empty fuselage and sunk it into it. This doesn't violate any rules of physics or anything. No clipping of motor + fuel or anything, just makes it more aerodynamic: the sort of solution someone would use in real life.

Similarly, the two side tanks are just slightly offset into the middle one in order to create a smoother, more aerodynamic shape. 40 units of fuel was emptied out of each tank to compensate for this; you can think of it as just welding the tanks together. Again, the sort of solution someone would use in real life.

There is [I]one [/I]dirty trick I used for this craft; sticking the spike intakes on the RAPIERS (Borrowed that one from Rune's White Dart, very nice trick. Using it on all of my craft, mostly for aesthetics though : p ).

So, here it is. A spacecraft with 2-2.5km/s of DV when in orbit, depending on how well you can fly. I've flown this thing out to escape velocity, burnt retrograde, then gone and orbited the mun, with 100 units of fuel to spare. I've also flown it two orbit twice, in a row, without refuelling.
I like it :)

Sorry I don't have any photos of it taking off/ on the runway... Forgot to take photos :D
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Most of the SSTO's I've built either used mods, were made in older versions, or both, but it occurs to me that this one (in 1.0.5 sandbox, stock except KJR) should qualify. With no payload bay or docking systems it's not actually very useful, but in spite of the "design flaw" it took off with a crew of 4, flew to a ~90km orbit, made a safe reentry without losing any parts (just to be clear: the right chine didn't burn off, it was never there in the first place), and landed back at the KSC runway after one orbit. Unfortunately, since this was sandbox mode it never got a name besides SSTO 105 Mark I.

More screenshots of that flight, including flight data:



DqAWbAJ.jpg?1

Takeoff (Bob has a concern).




g2t811E.jpg?1

Vectors ignited.



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Circularizing.



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In orbit.



0usMoiY.jpg?1

Reentry.



722GHTL.jpg?1

Final approach.



w9cCb4H.jpg?1

Landed.

Edited by Hotaru
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Thanks for your mission reports. Congratulations to...

xiej with The Quark (minimalist record holder 6.5t).
Hotaru Advanced Pilot Precision Award with SSTO 105 Mark I.

... for successfully completing the K-Prize with honours and welcome to the K-Prize party guest list aka the roll of honour.


CitizenAerospace, thank you for your mission report. If you would like it to be linked on the K-Prize listing please tell us or show how your craft completed the K-Prize mission in accordance with the rules in the first post of the thread. I can see the Panther Nuke is nicely proportioned and balanced and designed to lift off horizontally so am not quibbling about that but the screenshots and your description seem to stop at the Mün, did your intrepid Kerbals get back to Kerbin and land safely?

Edited by boolybooly
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Entry: X-87B Scientific Fire Rat. With FAR so not a real entry (but that gate looked so pretty I had to smash it).

[imgur]l90aI/[/imgur]

I could probably push the AP higher, but I wanted one that I knew I could return back from.

Also, how does one embed imgur albums exactly? Edited by iospace
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Although i already did this challenge, i re-did it in 1.0.5 to get a feeling for the changed jet engine handling. Turbojets and RAPIERS seem to be even more useless at low speeds :)
[imgur]OMGMf[/imgur]
SSTO 105 delivered a solar array to a station, dropped 4 crew there, and landed back at KSC on the runway

@iospace: To embed an imgur album, put your album id (last part of the url) in [imgur] BB-code Edited by rudi1291
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[quote name='rudi1291']@iospace: To embed an imgur album, put your album id (last part of the url) in [imgur] BB-code[/QUOTE]

Merci!

Edit: Question, do parts from the Asteroid Day mod count as stock because they're Squad made? Edited by iospace
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My first entry here, with my second SSTO spaceplane ever, all versions included: Temperance

Completely stock.
It is powered by 2 Rapiers and 2 Whiplashes, 36t at takeoff (20t with empty tanks); it can carry 10 Kerbals to LKO, including 2 pilots.
Also contains a probe core, batteries and solar panels which allow it to be flown unmanned.
No airbrakes: it doesn't need them for reentring as it does not overheat during reentry as long as you keep some angle of attack.

[imgur]SyghQ[/imgur]

Landed in the desert, I could probably have aimed for KSC with good accuracy if I didn't mess up my deorbiting burn.
Total mission time was 4h40m, with 8 or 9 orbits.
Smooth flight overall, max G-forces endured were 3.1g during ascent, 2.5g during the reentry manoeuvres to avoid the ocean, and 4.1g because of the bumpy landing.
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[quote name='Gaarst']My first entry here, with my second SSTO spaceplane ever, all versions included: Temperance

Completely stock.
It is powered by 2 Rapiers and 2 Whiplashes, 36t at takeoff (20t with empty tanks); it can carry 10 Kerbals to LKO, including 2 pilots.
Also contains a probe core, batteries and solar panels which allow it to be flown unmanned.
No airbrakes: it doesn't need them for reentring as it does not overheat during reentry as long as you keep some angle of attack.

[URL]http://imgur.com/a/SyghQ[/URL]

Landed in the desert, I could probably have aimed for KSC with good accuracy if I didn't mess up my deorbiting burn.
Total mission time was 4h40m, with 8 or 9 orbits.
Smooth flight overall, max G-forces endured were 3.1g during ascent, 2.5g during the reentry manoeuvres to avoid the ocean, and 4.1g because of the bumpy landing.[/QUOTE]
I can vouch for the effectiveness of the temperance, it flies quite well. Now if it had one of the mini jets for just a little more crusing post reentry it would be even better. Recovers from stalls quite nicely.
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Many thanks to all for your mission reports. Special congratulations to ...

rudi1291 Utilitarial Commendation, Advanced Pilot Precision Award 1st Class with SSTO 105.
Gaarst with Temperance.
g00bd0g Utilitarial Commendation (36.5t), Advanced Pilot Precision Award 1st Class with Space Goose x8.

... for completing the K-Prize successfully and welcome to the K-Prize party guest list, may the bouncers treat you with dignity.

Thanks also iospace for your mission reports which you seem to understand qualify as gatecrashers ;) So I have linked them as such with a teensy quip on the front page. If you complete the K-Prize mission successfully in this version then you gain the option to have the gatecrasher listing removed, if you so desire though it can stay there if you prefer.

All are now entitled to display their respective K-Prize icons by WafflesToo. See the link under the main badge in the OP.

Edited by boolybooly
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Working on a video for my extra large fuel tanker spaceplane, fondly dubbed the Huacaya 225. I am using it to haul liquid fuel and oxidizer to my refueling stations in orbit. (station seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCSrdbaCROs) It may make more sense to just use my mine on minmus, but I have special love for SSTOs. Take off, landing, and flight is deceptively easy, and it proved much more durable than I anticipated. I am getting some strange stability issues I still need to troubleshoot, such as unwanted rolling, but it is easily correctable.



Launch Weight: 511.5 tons
Fuel Supplied to Station: @225 tons 

Docked in orbit, landed on runway.

Edited by EvermoreAlpaca
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[quote name='boolybooly']Many thanks to all for your mission reports. Special congratulations to ...

[URL="http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/11214-The-K-Prize-100-reusable-spaceplane-to-orbit-and-back?p=2309535&viewfull=1#post2309535"]rudi1291[/URL] Utilitarial Commendation, Advanced Pilot Precision Award 1st Class with SSTO 105.
[URL="http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/11214-The-K-Prize-100-reusable-spaceplane-to-orbit-and-back?p=2313170&viewfull=1#post2313170"]Gaarst[/URL] with Temperance.
[URL="http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/11214-The-K-Prize-100-reusable-spaceplane-to-orbit-and-back?p=2314216&viewfull=1#post2314216"]g00bd0g[/URL] Utilitarial Commendation (32t), Advanced Pilot Precision Award 1st Class with Space Goose x8.

... for completing the K-Prize successfully and welcome to the K-Prize party guest list, may the bouncers treat you with dignity.

Thanks also iospace for your mission reports which you seem to understand qualify as gatecrashers ;) So I have linked them as such with a teensy quip on the front page. If you complete the K-Prize mission successfully in this version then you gain the option to have the gatecrasher listing removed, if you so desire though it can stay there if you prefer.

All are now entitled to display their respective K-Prize icons by WafflesToo. See the link under the main badge in the [URL="http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/11214-The-K-Prize-100-reusable-spaceplane-to-orbit-and-back?p=167440&viewfull=1#post167440"]OP[/URL].[/QUOTE]

Many thanks, minor nitpick, it was 36.5t :)
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Can I gatecrash?

Presenting the SKRV - VTVL, SSTO, air-breathing fly back booster.


2rhy1ac.jpg

Takes off vertically like a rocket, but under combined rocket and jet engine power


2vt5la9.jpgClimbing to orbit under pure rocket power

30vg4g6.jpgReleasing 25 ton deadweight payload to 75km x 75km orbit

izp1u0.jpgReentry over KSC with airbrakes deployed. This picture was taking just after peak heat load. Depending on your reentry angle airbrakes may not need to be pulsed as heat load is manageable.

2j4awhw.jpgAt just above 14km altitude the jet engines kick in. Opps look like we're gong to overshoot KSC...

291gbp1.jpgNot to worry, the SKRV isn't called a fly back booster for nothing!

2i9tlop.jpgFinal descent phase with parachute assist

dqneo3.jpgSafe landing back at KSC, besides the runway.

Why gatecrash? Because Chrysler came up with this concept (their one is called of course SERV) for NASA's space shuttle bid. When NASA put out request for proposal for STS all the aerospace companies already know they had in mind some kind of spaceplane. Chrysler being makers of the Saturn V first stage only has experience in making rocket boosters so they came up with the lone proposal that was different:

Space_Shuttle_concepts.jpg
ChryslerSERV_1.jpg

Notice the size of SKRV compared to Saturn IB and the size of those other absolute colossal shuttle proposals. Just like in KSP spaceplane turned out to be really hard and had NASA picked SERV instead of the Space Shuttle that was eventually built the SERV may still be flying today.

Edited by Temstar
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