Eloquent Spacecraft Systems 1.2 Branch

[septemberWaves]

Eloquent Spacecraft Systems

This is a place for me to showcase all of my space exploration vehicles, along with download links for anyone who is interested in trying them out.

See KerbalX for specific details (such as mass, cost, and mod list) - note however that all of my designs are also made with Color Coded Cannisters, Colorful Fuel Lines, and Interstellar Fuel Switch, none of which are recognized by KerbalX. Any other required mods that KerbalX does not recognize will be noted in the vessel description in this thread. Also note that stages are not always accurate in the downloads, and should always be checked before launch.

Latest update: Cinnabar series upper stages

Vertical Launch Vehicles

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Cinnabar Series

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The Cinnabar launch vehicles are a series of low-tech launch vehicles designed for the early game. Designation numbers on the first 3 variants are as follows: (core type)(SRB number)(upper stage number). Names are download links. For variants with SRBS, it is recommended to adjust SRB thrusts to achieve the desired acceleration.

Type 1 core

Cinnabar 100:

Cinnabar 120:

Cinnabar 140:

 

Type 2 core

Cinnabar 200:

Cinnabar 220:

Cinnabar 240:

 

Type 3 core

Cinnabar 300:

Cinnabar 320:

Type 4 core

Cinnabar 4A:

Cinnabar 4B:

 

Upper Stages

C1:

C2:

C3:

C4:

C5:

C6:

C7:

Raven series

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All Raven vehicles (except for the Raven V) have a numeric designation, for example Raven IV 543. The first number is the number of first-stage engines. The second number is the number of additional SRBs. The third and final number indicates the upper stage (or lack thereof in the case of the third number being a 0).

Raven II

Average lifter design. Variants: Raven II (3,4,5,7)(0,2,4,5)(0,1,2,3).

Below: Raven II 300 carrying a Mercury CT-1B.

Raven IV

Heavy lifter design. Variants: Raven IV (4,5,7)(0,2,4,5,7,8)(0,3,4,5).

Raven V

Unique design consisting of a Raven IV core with two Raven II cores as strap-on boosters. All three Raven cores are of the 5-engine variant. Designed for carrying an R5 upper stage configured for use as an interplanetary transfer module, or a standard-configuration R5 upper stage for taking very massive payloads to the Mun or Minmus.

R1 upper stage

Small upper stage for light payloads.

R2 upper stage

Mid-range upper stage. Double the performance of the R1.

R3 upper stage

3.75m diameter 3-engine upper stage. Mainly for transporting payloads to the Mun or Minmus.

R4 upper stage

4-engine variant of the R3. Carries slightly more fuel.

R5 upper stage

Heavy 3.75m upper stage. Designed for very massive payloads. There is also a variant configured for use as an interplanetary propulsion module.

 

Crew Transports

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Janus series

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The Janus spacecraft are a series of low-tech crew transports.

Mercury series

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The Mercury spacecraft are a series of mid-game crew transports.

 

Landing Vehicles

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Interplanetary Transports

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Ranna series

 

Saraneth series

 

Astarael series

 

Edited November 15, 2016 by eloquentJane

[septemberWaves]

Update: added Cinnabar series launch vehicles. Upper stages coming soon. Raven series also coming soon.

Edited November 12, 2016 by eloquentJane

[septemberWaves]

Update: added Cinnabar series upper stages. Raven series coming soon.

[septemberWaves]

I'm putting the Raven series launch vehicles on hold until I actually use them in my career playthrough. The same goes for other vehicles; I will henceforth be uploading vehicles when they have been used in my career playthrough. Expect Janus transports, Medusa Orbital Laboratory modules, and several cubesats soon. I will, however, be uploading the Space Shuttle Valery soon even if I have not yet launched it in my career playthrough, because of several download requests.

[septemberWaves]

Space Shuttle Valery

This is an early-game crew transport. It is a cheap and efficient way of transporting 3 kerbals to Kerbin orbit, provided it can be flown efficiently and landed properly. I recommend use of MechJeb's ascent autopilot to fly it to orbit (specific flight information can be found below), although it is not technically a requirement (the shuttle is, however, notoriously difficult to control manually during the ascent).

KerbalX download

Flight Details

Ascent:

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Here are the details for the ascent autopilot. The ascent path used is the default and does not require editing.

Engine ignition.

Liftoff. The vehicle pitches over quite sharply immediately after liftoff, but it is quickly corrected by the ascent autopilot.

The acceleration limiter is crucial for maintaining pitch stability. Without it, the Moa engine quickly becomes too powerful, and the rocket spins out of control. Additionally, with a maximum potential acceleration of over 6g, there would be a risk of rendering the crew unconscious if the engine is allowed to operate at full thrust.

Here the fuel tank setup can be seen. The top tank and bottom tank drain simultaneously, and then the two tanks in the middle drain. This keeps the center of mass as balanced as possible.

Here I pause the game and raise the intended orbit altitude to 100km. This is to test the stability of the vehicle when the fuel tanks are almost empty.

The vehicle approaches the intended apoapsis.

After the apoapsis passed about 90km, I briefly lost control. Control was regained by temporarily disengaging the ascent autopilot and separating the launch vehicle, though I lost a few kilometers from the apoapsis, which had to be recovered by the shuttle's OMS.

Launch vehicle separation and shuttle engine ignition. The launch vehicle should be separated manually as soon as the intended apoapsis is reached, after which the ascent autopilot will ignite the shuttle engines.

After the separation of the launch vehicle, the spacecraft can roll back to 0 degrees. This is not a requirement, however.

The autopilot plots and executes the circularization burn. The shuttle has about 1000m/s of delta-v remaining once in a stable parking orbit.

Notes:

• Parking orbit should not be higher than 90km
• Launch vehicle should be separated as soon as parking orbit apoapsis is reached

Descent:

Descent is much simpler than ascent. The shuttle can handle a fairly steep re-entry if necessary (I have not yet tested it to its limit, but from an 80km parking orbit it can re-enter with a periapsis of about -20km without risk). Simply hold an angle on ascent either manually or with MechJeb (anywhere between 20° and 40° is usually safe; the angle you choose will be based on how much you need to slow down to reach the space center). Once you are past the re-entry heat, turn off MechJeb's Smart A.S.S. (if used) and turn on stock SAS (NOTE: the shuttle does require a pilot on board, as it does not have built-in SAS features) and glide to a landing. The shuttle handles quite well with any amount of fuel remaining, though control becomes somewhat more difficult with less than 1/4 of the total fuel remaining.

Features

• Space for 3 kerbals
• Independent docking capabilities
• 855 units of stored electric charge (all engines have alternators)

Other Information

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The shuttle has 3 RCS ports, positioned as shown above. Fine control (activated with caps lock) is needed for docking maneuvers. The docking port is inset into the cargo bay (as shown below) so that must be taken into account if designing a docking adapter for this vehicle.

 

Edited December 3, 2016 by eloquentJane