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LKO Triumvirate


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Are you fed up of building orbiting stations in low Kerbin orbit (LKO), finding the number of launches to build such stations a tad tedious?  And if one of it's roles is a refuelling point, does it reach the end of it's useful life once the refuelling tanks have run dry?  What about the crew on the station.  Are they left to their fate once the station is in orbit, forgotten for all time?

If any of this sounds familiar, then I may have a solution for you.

Here are three vehicles designed to work together to operate and maintain a station in LKO.  The first is a station that can be placed in LKO (at least 250km) in a single launch.  It is designed to permanently house 8 crew (limited by the Kerbal Kode of Konduct that states permanent crew numbers must not exceed seats available on escape pods attached to the station).  There is additional space however for a further 13 crew to allow for visitors. 

The station's primary role is as a refuelling stop, and will arrive in orbit with 4 full orange jumbo tanks and 4 large monoprop tanks ready for customers. As well as it's primary role the station also boasts a mobile processing lab, to give the crew a sense of purpose when not dealing with refuelling duties.

 

Single launch station

LKO1.jpg

 

In orbit

LKO2.jpg

The complete vehicle comprises a first stage with boosters, arranged asparagus style. This is enough to raise your apo to at least 250km.  The second stage is used to finalise the orbit and includes a probe core, so that the stage may be de-orbited once it's job is done.

Once in orbit, action group key 3 will toggle all comms dishes/antenna as well as the solar panels.

The escape pods are staged in sequence, so if you need to use one, make sure the crew are in the next pod in the staging sequence.

 

 

To complement the station, we have a refuelling vehicle that is capable of reaching the station with enough fuel and monoprop to completely replenish all fuel tanks on the station.

LKO3.jpg

 

LKO4.jpg

 

LKO5.jpg

 

 

Finally we have a SSTO craft to allow for crew rotation with a reusable vehicle.

LKO6.jpg

 

LKO7.jpg

 

The SSTO needs to be flown carefully so as not to waste fuel on the outbound flight and it also recommended that the long adaptor in the centre of the craft be refilled once docked at the station to give a margin of error for the return journey.

Action group keys for the SSTO are :

1 Toggle engine mode

3 Toggle airbrakes to help slow on landing approach

5 Toggle the docking port doors.

 

LKO Single Launch Station craft file  https://www.dropbox.com/s/qnjlgy5kzsi33j4/LKO SL Station.craft?dl=0

LKO Station Refuelling vehicle craft file https://www.dropbox.com/s/rlka4gu77y3zolt/LKO Station Refueller.craft?dl=0

LKO SSTO Crew craft file https://www.dropbox.com/s/t6qztlgw4u64zk8/LKO SSTO Crew.craft?dl=0

All craft are stock.

Edited by Scarecrow
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Thanks Majorjim, appreciated.  I have since discovered that the refuelling vehicle is in fact drawing fuel from one of the jumbo tanks, so by the time it arrives at the station it isn't in fact carrying a 'full' load, but still plenty to be useful.

I think I may look at a small redesign, remove the fuel tanks from the station itself, and just have a senior docking port at that end.  That way the station can be launched and than adapted for whatever purpose is required of it; dock a bunch of tanks to make it a refuelling point, or dock an ore processing unit and storage tanks to turn it into a processing lab etc.  I think that would add greater flexibilty to the original design.

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17 hours ago, Scarecrow said:

I think I may look at a small redesign, remove the fuel tanks from the station itself, and just have a senior docking port at that end.  That way the station can be launched and than adapted for whatever purpose is required of it;

Good idea. Some modularity in a design is a great thing. Do you play career mode or free style gameplay?

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I usually play Sandbox.  I've tried career a few times, but I rapidly get bored of not having access to various parts.  I do try to mostly play stock though.  The only modified part in my game is a lander can that looks way better than the stock 2-man can.  The only other mods I use are for info, such as Kerbal Engineer and Alarm clock.

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