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Shuttle Challenge v5 - The STS thread [Stock and Mod Friendly] - MAJOR CHALLENGE ANNOUNCEMENT! - 30.3.2020


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@michal.don Working on a Cormorant/BDB Saturn V Shuttle right now...

Pictures soon

*Edit* Turns out Saturn shuttles are Super unstable...

I'm abandoning that Idea and building an alternate shuttle. Something like Luziopilot's Pegasus II 

https://kerbalx.com/luizopiloto/STS---Pegasus-II

Or like this concept image:

p342b.gif

*Edit* Decided to go with the Lockheed Clipper design

8AZCyUz.jpg

Edited by Starslinger999
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On 16/2/2018 at 1:29 PM, michal.don said:

And, by the way, since wednesday, I am oficially a certified civil engineer (master's degree)

First things first:  Congratulations on getting your degree @michal.don !!!  And enjoy your new place!

 

Duna STS-3:

https://imgur.com/a/qb7Lv

The video report is almost finished, but it has the slight problem of being 47 minutes long...   :confused: 

...

What was I thinking?? :D   

I will try to reduce it to a more manageable length before uploading it.  For now I'd say the album has all the information and despite being somewhat long (nearly a hundred images), it's not so time consuming.

Edit:

 

Craft file:  https://kerbalx.com/Ozelui/Aurora-shuttle-mk-3

Edited by Ozelui
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On 2/16/2018 at 9:16 PM, Starslinger999 said:

Tease for you:

I'm concerned cause those separation motors looks like it would just crash the two things into each other

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10 hours ago, sh1pman said:

Quick question, what's the difference between spin-stabilized satellite and not spin-stabilized one?

Not sure if your question was answered or not, but here's the answer:

Normally you would just slap on a torsion wheel to stabilize your sattelites, instead you will need to figure out a way to spin the sattelite around it's main axis to maintain trajectory while you fire the engines to bring it into position.

There are many ways to do this. I found for myself it was simplest to just put several small engines on my sattelites and angle them a little bit off the prograde to get spin while firing the engines, but I've also seen some beautiful sattelite deployments using a bunch of sepratrons to obtain spin.

For inspiration you can just browse the history of this topic for a bit, there's a whole bunch of examples in here. Hope this helps answer your question @sh1pman!

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Couldn't resist doing STS Duna 1: https://imgur.com/a/ZL7Qs

I wanted to do it BFR-style, but realized the BFR cannot land on wheels, so I had to figure out something that has a similar look, but isn't in fact similar at all. The one really big problem with this thing that it doesn't want to slow down when flying, it just keeps on going... And putting it at a Space-X like angle is just not possible in KSP, I would tear it to shreds! These fuel tanks just have no heat resistance and the wings apparently don't offer enough protection...

Managed to do it though, but I needed a little fly-by-wire for the atmospheric bits. No autopilot, but stability assist was definitely required.

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So guess who landed an asteroid. Technically, a lot of people in this challenge already did, but that's not my point. 

But how many of them can say they landed an E class without refueling from it?

Here's the album

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few things, yes, that's two shuttles strapped to one rocket. I mean, technically it's one launch. I mean, the rules do only state one launch, not one shuttle... right?

To answer your question about the inefficient launch profiles, I would simply like to quote Aperture Science, "we do what we must, because we can".

And as a parting note, the crew wanted to stand on top of 2.75 kilotons of flaming asteroid and shuttle, rocking out as it plummeted towards Kerbin... we would have let them too, but... we need them later. Their names do not belong on the Black Wall yet.

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So after having tried a whole bunch of times to land several designs of shuttle on Duna I can't seem to find a way to build a shuttle that doesn't crash at  rediculous speed on Duna even if it flies well there at around 130 m/s...

Anyone got any tips on how to tackle this obstacle? (going to try an old shuttle design that barely wanted to land on Kerbin due to excessive lift.)

 

Edit: finally managed, answer is moar boosters, in this particular case positioned right under the center of mass pointing downwards to slow it waaaaaaay down in the vertical speed department. (needed like 20 odd attempts to figure that out...)

Edited by hoioh
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Here's a sneak preview on tomorrow nights full mission report: https://imgur.com/a/rt6zV

STS Duna 2 is finished, but required support due to forgetting to set an action group for the retro rockets and burning way more fuel than required on the way back up.
Also working on a STS Duna 4 plan (I know that's not on the rulebook (yet)) building a massive Duna base of which I've positioned the first piece on this mission.
Expect a massive report and base on that one! or 3 (hopefully) ('cause this thing's large enough to accomodate multiple large items every trip)

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Here is my try at the  STS-1a.

 

Spoiler

9E466A20DD73BD5CBD0BB0EEF57A156F6564DF1D

 

The launch is a bit weird sometimes but still works fine.

Spoiler

87D9843E64F8B7460D75E664E5DE62312D18D948

 

detaching the boosters and going for orbit.

Spoiler

CED9A967A7BB5B383CD6AD2AAEEA9782CA6CB51D

247434CF8DE9291E72D34BB8880EA1161C2734BF

 

orbit achieved.

Spoiler

C0E86836D0654A204C5B4D193A1C6D0888A3FF02

 

re entering.

Spoiler

9EAF0C088F520623B5B83D556757841B65C9DD67

FE3FFD9278A81043CF530DEC87BCBA2AF70C76F9

F70CA5240CEA752E63D34C4077936BEF28FAAFC2

 

and the landing.

Spoiler

DEFCAC00B1B8C90A6D1C014A948317C98AE93BDF

 

mods:

-dockingportallignment indicator

-trajectories

-flight engineer

-kerbal alarm clock

Edited by alekkat
added mods
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Here's the promised full album of my Duna visit nr 2 with the new and improved massive 5 meter BFR-esque shuttle: https://imgur.com/a/A70jG

This was hard! And required several attempts at several moments in time, but managed to complete the mission unscathed in the end.

 

Now to figure out how to do that Duna-Eve-Kerbin transfer, that'll be a s...show... :wink:

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Here is my try at the  STS-1b.

 

Spoiler

638D508005CF39BAA5B4D667AC88F726DB3F1014

1CEFD1319AFEBC728D85CEAA55630A44935219DC

 

separation of the first boosters and second boosters.

Spoiler

F257F8363CB4069D76396E3465288C978386FB07

832D7219E22410CA10EEAC107BCC0AA2BA97C371

 

orbit and deploying the pod.

Spoiler

9E390881A0584D1E21BF666ADA45054C044CCD01

AA1D92E8341A9797CBD4A0408844396B45917B7C

 

positioning the pod.

Spoiler

C23735B66762FF8B62056AC46C7BD1E71FBF147E

 

re-entering.

Spoiler

98035DDADD4A1B586A55C2CBF88159AFB39635E0

 

landing. (had a little accident)

Spoiler

90A57CF44ECCB101D1858BC7110962467D89569A

mods:

-dockingportallignment indicator

-trajectories

-flight engineer

-kerbal alarm clock

Edited by alekkat
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First of all, thank you guys for your kind words - it's been a pretty busy time, and I'm really glad it's over.

Now, let's get to work:

On 17. 2. 2018 at 3:16 AM, Starslinger999 said:

Tease for you:

Well, that's something you don't see in this challenge every day - I'm curious how it will turn out and looking forward to seeing your entry!

 

On 18. 2. 2018 at 12:51 AM, Ozelui said:

Duna STS-3:

I don't know - am I doing the missions too easy? :D  Dr. Von Braun would be impressed, and so am I! Great job doing the mission, and the "bonus" things - landing on Duna with the shuttle, landing on Ike, landing on Minmus and all the other stuff.... :wink:

4fOA2ag.png?1

By the way - which mod does the fly-by camera thing? I must have that..... :)

 

On 18. 2. 2018 at 10:21 PM, EpicSpaceTroll139 said:

I guess sometime soon I should work on that station assembly mission.

 

Good luck with the station! This series of missions was the one where I finally learnt proper entry procedures for my shuttle, so I don't land all over the place :)

On 20. 2. 2018 at 1:09 AM, hoioh said:

I wanted to do it BFR-style, but realized the BFR cannot land on wheels, so I had to figure out something that has a similar look, but isn't in fact similar at all.

And we have an another imaginative one here :) A pretty concept, and seems to work poroperly, too! Nice mission but I can't help but be curious if it will be able to land on Duna, too!

Congrats, here's your badge:

FxEMii9.jpg?1

On 21. 2. 2018 at 10:38 AM, wrench-in-the-works said:

So guess who landed an asteroid.

Hooray! :) I'll let you "creative" rule bending slip ths time, hust for the sheer madness of the concept :D Nice job reentering the potato, and landing it, too. I was a bit surprised that you ditched it before landing, but you are right, the rules don't say anything about landing the asteroid on the shuttle, heh :) So, here's your badge, and good luck on going interplanetary!

vKx7Wn2.jpg?1

On 24. 2. 2018 at 1:08 PM, alekkat said:

Here is my try at the  STS-1a.

Welcome to the challenge, alekkat!

NIce little shuttle you have there, and good job on your first mission! Getting your shuttle to fly properly is no easy task, and it seems you got that right :wink: so, here is your badge, and I'm looking to see more!

YgXYW8T.jpg?1

 

 

I'm sorry guys, that is all I have time for today, but I'll review the rest of the missions very soon, that's a promise :wink:

Michal.don

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On 16.2.2018 at 1:29 PM, michal.don said:

And, by the way, since wednesday, I am oficially a certified civil engineer (master's degree), so I suggest all of you guys to avoid any newly constructed bridges and tunnels in cetral Europe from now on - you never know which ones might be of my design..... :D

Congrats to your degree. I'm for sure not scared to ride on new bridges... maybe you can fix the self-deconstructing old ones.

Enjoy your leisure until you start your job. I hope you've got some.

To all the other participants here: I'm glad to see so many different designs and approaches. I always find some bits which really impress me. Imho this wide field in terms of gameplay makes this challenge the best of all kerbal time. Keep it up!

Speaking of time... my barely existing time to play KSP is planned out to finish the Laythe mission and I'm hopeful to show you a special one to Eve before the update hits. In the meanwhile I've finished the Duna video Ep. 2. Enjoy!

 

Edited by funk
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Thanks for the fresh badge @michal.don ! Must be nice to come back to such a full house :wink:

 

So I've recently found out that STS Duna 3 is REALLY hard if you've never done a proper fly-by planning... But with some tools and a bit of fiddling I've made it!

https://imgur.com/a/iBWnY

Just a preview, still need to properly position the sattelites and land the shuttle, but that's all pretty standard fare by now.

Edited by hoioh
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6 hours ago, michal.don said:

By the way - which mod does the fly-by camera thing? I must have that..... :)

Thanks michal.don! 

The mod is Camera tools, but the link in the OP is for KSP v1.0.5.  This one is updated for v1.3.1: https://github.com/jrodrigv/CameraTools/release.  The Duna STS-3 was my first time using the mod, and I probably abused the fly-by perspective because it looks just amazing. :o

 

I'm already preparing the Mun missions, but I've been wondering if a system like this falls into the shuttle category...

Spoiler

P8LDY1T.png

The cargo is going to be located between the nose area and the main body, connecting to them through the senior docking ports, and with the fairing covering all of it for protection and aerodinamics.  In the shown configuration the ship is a SSTO, but it won't be once the payload is in place (I'm estimating roughly 150-200 tons).

In LMO the fairing will be opened and the cargo released, then the nose and body are going to dock again, a claw under the shuttle (or docking port, it's still WIP) will grab part of the cargo and land it on the surface.

The test flights have been successful so far, reaching parking orbit, undocking and docking both parts and landing back in the KSC, but I'm not sure if it is a shuttle, a transformer or a F-104 on steroids. :confused:

 

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Here is my try at the  STS-2a.

 

Spoiler

20C38008ABE30656A4C264AF2B6007166B0EE1F2

 

liftoff.

Spoiler

96F31665ABF0CB143DED5188B1E3F54D5CE03860

 

separation of the first and second stage.

Spoiler

3A552B2CD14179A4C849EE48374612EC954B8589

10B1BF37DC2A2096333FF1D4BEB367A642807877

 

separation of the third stage and making an orbit of around 4 hours so I can deploy the 3 comsats 2 hours apart.

Spoiler

73F09AB42F91B14297CA7E37AF2AF390388DC594

8F740185DE6BEEFA767F252E183A78EA091201EB

 

deploying the comsats.

Spoiler

0814A926C983357685017C8DB326D612DA7E1D8C

E0B21EFE9B14230EC8079AE19A21208E159F2F04

D6C7F84C18F54307B1FD9B86D2C6879AD449B59C

D6C7F84C18F54307B1FD9B86D2C6879AD449B59C

598D805BE96232F1F7A6D68576E7E00B9E2770C0

 

all 3 comsats are deployed and on a geostationary orbit around kerbin.

Spoiler

F1F57F4C21E75218C2A41E47CF92FA3CCEB03984

1CF2B1F039D9BE24CD0F1165976CFC76F1472AD3

 

de-orbiting.

Spoiler

72F5774953D1B8301A90AD10FC0C7075A7EF5D22

666C0A4183421CEFB81042C833D4F2D239096088

9D1D81A67217AB1A942181BC448AC26502C60621

1ADF274B2C0ABC3AE46B6750BE3F76A86FE67A52

 

and I forgot to screenshot the landing...

I hope this is good enough since I forgot to screenshot the landing.

 

mods:

-dockingportallignment indicator

-trajectories

-flight engineer

-kerbal alarm clock

Edited by alekkat
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So, that concludes Dune STS 3: https://imgur.com/a/5Jkn6

Nice to learn how to set multiple transfers to a single burn. Not much of a learning curve, but more like a learning wall as they say, but it sure did pose a challenge!

I like having 2 landers at the Duna base, due to a failed attempt with a bad quicksave that required an abort and return to Kerbin I had to leave 1 there earlier and attached the second one on the final flight. each can carry 8 Kerbals to the surface and back to the station. I'm planning to build a base on Duna's surface where they could dock on top of the central column and refuel so they can also function as escape vessels for Kerbals on the surface later on. First there's 2 more things to achieve: catch a space potato and visit Jool.

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So, to keep my promise, here I am to sort out the rest of your entries:

 

On 18. 2. 2018 at 6:00 PM, sh1pman said:

My STS-2A and B mission! Codename "Extreme reusability". No part mods used.

Oh, I almost missed this one! And an impressive one that is, a 100% reusable system! Despite the limited crew facilities (I really, really wouldn't like to sit 50 days in that "cockpit" :) ), I really like your design, and I am curious how far you'll be able to take it. So, here are your badges and congratulations!

Jm6F4Br.jpg?1v4a3YWl.jpg?1

 

On 27. 2. 2018 at 9:00 PM, funk said:

Congrats to your degree. I'm for sure not scared to ride on new bridges...

No worries, if I'm not sure, I'll add "moar struts" just to be on the safe side :wink:

About your mission - I'm going to repeat myslef a bit, but I really like your creative design on both the Shuttle/LV, and your lander. I think the lander is the smallest crewed thing I've seen SSTO on Duna. Would you mind sharing the stats of that thing (mass, engines, delta-V margins)?

One issue though - if I'm not mistaken, you did not complete (or at least share here) the Duna STS-2 mission (landing on Duna with your shuttle), so I can't award you the STS-3 badge, yet. If you did land there and I just forgot about it and did not notice the report in the thread, you have my sincerest apologies and I'll deliver the badge ASAP :) 

 

On 24. 2. 2018 at 11:10 PM, hoioh said:

Here's the promised full album of my Duna visit nr 2 with the new and improved massive 5 meter BFR-esque shuttle:

BFR with a little oversized wings, I guess :) Nice mission, the outpost is starting to look like a proper place to live. Using the support launch is not an issue at all, this is why the rules allow it - Duna's delta-V requirements are hard to estimate for each spacecraft. I have to ask though - is the detachable nose cone a single part, or did you make the hinge yourself?

Anyway, here is your badge, great job!

WjKcQl3.jpg?1

 

On 25. 2. 2018 at 10:08 AM, alekkat said:

Here is my try at the  STS-1b.

Your shuttle got a big larger since the first mission, heh :) And it sure did the job of lifting the fuel pod. The landing was a bit dodgy though - the shuttle looks pretty much in one piece, so I'll award you the badge, but try to land the correct side up the next time :wink:

giYU8fw.jpg?1

On 28. 2. 2018 at 1:04 AM, hoioh said:

Must be nice to come back to such a full house :wink:

It sure is - nice to see there are so many shuttle enthusiasts other than me :) 

 

On 28. 2. 2018 at 1:19 AM, Ozelui said:

I'm already preparing the Mun missions, but I've been wondering if a system like this falls into the shuttle category...

You guys never cease to amaze me with your designs :) This thing would certainly qualify as the orbiter itself - so, just design an LV, and I think you are good to go :wink:

 

19 hours ago, alekkat said:

Here is my try at the  STS-2a.

These are coming in quite fast, I wonder whether you'll be on the Mun by the end of the week :wink:

Good piloting, nice equal placement of the sats (and I guess the RCS is for the spin-stabilisation purposes?).

But... Given the landing issues from STS-1b, I can not award you the badge without the "landed" screenshot. You don't have to go through the whole mission again, just fly the shuttle to orbit, and show me you can land the thing, and I'll gladly award you the new badge.

Good luck!

 

10 hours ago, hoioh said:

Nice to learn how to set multiple transfers to a single burn.

yeah, that Von Braun guy was a pretty clever fellow :) Nice mission, bunch of sats deployed at Eve SOI, and the kerbals have a ride to Duna surface, I call that a successful day! A few questions about the lander - what's thhe big black round part at the bottom? I don't know that one, and I can't figure out what does it do :) And, where is all the fuel? In the grey tank-looking things on the bottom? Just curious :)

Anyway, your well earned badges, and good luck with the next destinations!

Jqo0jjf.png?1

 

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