Operation: Nemo - Oceanic Exploration (Pt 1 Now Available)

[Smokey the Bear]

Hello anyone that's reading this!

 

A few days ago, I came up with an idea for a 'campaign' of sorts... How would I go about designing, building, then assembling a submerged ocean-floor base in KSP? Well, that's what this series of mission reports is all about. In this series, I will be detailing my observations and efforts to create an undersea base on Kerbin. I'll write mission reports probably once a week or every other, detailing my progress as the base expands and as accidents occur. 

 

Ill be organizing the mission updates via spoiler boxes, in theory below.

 

Mission Report #1: Necessity is the Mother of Invention (8/12/17)

Spoiler

The mission statement is simple: "Build an underwater base on the ocean-floor of Kerbin, stock it with supplies and scientists, have fun". The execution, on the other hand, is difficult. Kerbal Space Program is a physics simulator, with
and emphasis on "Space". However, with the addition of ore tanks, a whole new frontier has been opened for exploration and messing around: sub-surface exploration. Since I've given the whole Space thing a real run for the money, I figured
I'd try my hand at sub-surface operations.

Figure 1: Base Camp Nemo

My first observation when it comes to sub-surface: It's a LOT harder. Getting crafts from the VAB/SPH is a challenge in and of itself. Originally, I was creating all these wild contraptions to transport my subs from the launch pad
to the shore, but I eventually opted for a mod called "Vessel Mover", which made is significantly easier for me to actually get my subs moving. All I had to do was drag and drop!

So, to start, I floated two habitation modules and a small fuel depot about 20km away from the KSC, and sank them. At a depth of 1007 meters and a speed of 1.5 m/s, it was a long way down, long enough for me to grab some snacks from
my kitchen and finish them before the modules hit the bottom. I attached the modules together using KAS/KIS, which required Kerbal EVA. My second observation when it comes to sub-surface operations: Kerbal EVA is possible if they are
sufficiently heavy enough. In the base game, you cannot edit the mass of the Kerbal, meaning in stock they will always have positive buoyancy. However with KAS/KIS, you can add items to a Kerbal's inventory, thus increasing their mass.
I had a eureka moment after losing two Kerbals to positive buoyancy that all I had to do was fill their pockets with concrete, and I haven't lost an engineer since!

Figure 2: Inserting the Supply Drop

I soon realized, after piping the core sections of the base together, that I would need more supports and infrastructure to make the base more accessible, and more cool. So, I designed and dropped in a supply package. When it reached
the bottom, Bill did a extended time EVA to secure the package, which landed a solid 80 meters away from the main base. 

Figure 3: Supply Drop off by 80 meters

Since it was so far away and Bill could only carry so much, I started to move each component by hand. However, as the phrase "Necessity is the Mother of Invention" goes, I came up with an idea. Crude, but it worked: I had winches, 2x2m plates, and a whole lot of cargo. Why not use the plate as a sled, the winches as the power, and just power drag all the cargo across the ocean floor? With nothing to lose, I quickly set up the configuration and powered on the winch.

Figure 4: The makeshift loading sled

Just as I had hoped, the makeshift sled dragged supplies and construction material across the ocean floor from the supply drop to the main base. With the materials in hand, I could better secure the base to the ocean-floor, and give my aqua-nauts a nice patio on the main module.

 

 

Future Goals:
-Construct a Submarine Docking Pylon
-Construct Cargo depot to house spare materials

-If anyone could help me figure out how to post albums directly to the forums, that'd be awesome. Thanks in advance!

 

Edited August 12, 2017 by Smokey the Bear

[Kerbinchaser]

Did this come about from my challenge?  

 

or was this original? I like the idea, nevertheless.

[Smokey the Bear]

39 minutes ago, Lo Var Lachland said:

Did this come about from my challenge?  

 

or was this original? I like the idea, nevertheless.

Combo of both, actually. I'd been sitting on this idea since Tuesday abouts, but reading your challenge today really prompted me to get off my butt and give it a go. So thanks!

[Kerbinchaser]

On 8/11/2017 at 11:41 PM, Smokey the Bear said:

 thanks!

No worries! Glad I could motivate you.