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The 1u Challenge - Until 25 Feb only

dnbattley
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dnbattley

dnbattley

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Inspired by this discussion on Reddit, a new challenge has been devised for the consideration of the forum:

The 1u Challenge

Your mission has one stipulation: all components for your mission must be taken up to LKO within a svelte 1u (defined as one structural panel's height, when placed vertically) compartment within your rocket/space plane. The compartment can have any cross-sectional area provided that it can be safely protected within some form of faring or cargo bay for launch, and multiple components may be assembled in orbit if required, with multiple launches permitted, if necessary. The rocket/plane carrying the components has no such restriction, obviously, but must not participate in the mission beyond LKO.

  • In answering the question "is this component/x part allowed (particularly e.g. individual engines)" - common sense applies, but if pushing the envelope there are two tests you can apply: 1) can it be placed within a set of 3 structural parts, arranged in a U (using snapping to position the guides left and right of the base) without any part (cosmetic or functional) being visible on the other side of the structural parts in the VAB/SPH? and 2) if placed in this way, including with a decoupler/docking port, and together launched and detached on the launchpad, does it (reasonably) result in a Kraken event? If both tests are negative then the part is allowed. A component consisting of a "bare" variant of the Terrier (plus docking port) is therefore fine, but a NERV (even laid out horizontally) is not.
  • There are no requirements for manning missions, nor returning to Kerbin, through both would undoubtedly contribute towards the "impressiveness" of your mission.
  • Mission types are not restricted to rovers - landing craft or exploration ships are welcomed.
  • Normal rules disallowing overlapping significant components (e.g. fuel tanks/engines etc.) apply but given the nature of this challenge does include some leeway for other, less significant, parts - an honour code system shall apply, so if in doubt please ask.
  • Stock/DLC parts only please.
  • No restrictions on visual/flying aid/engineering assistance mods, except that KAS or other such "in situ" modifications to a craft are not permitted after launch. Please state any significant mods when submitting.

 

The most impressive mission submitted before Monday 25th February 2018 will be crowned "The Slimline King".

 

Enjoy!

 

NB. In my initial testing, a Dart engine with a docking port *does* qualify, just. On this basis an Eve return mission MAY be technically feasible... ;)

An example mission shall be added here in due course.

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KingDominoIII

KingDominoIII

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On 2/5/2019 at 7:53 AM, dnbattley said:

Only one dimension must be 1u. The others must, technically, fit within a faring, but that is a pretty wide area.

If only one dimension must be 1u, can you create noodlecraft or do you have to make pancakes?

EDIT: Also, can you dock using your primary rocket or do you have to do that all using the cargo?

Edited by KingDominoIII
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dnbattley

dnbattley

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2 hours ago, KingDominoIII said:

If only one dimension must be 1u, can you create noodlecraft or do you have to make pancakes?

Yep, noodlecraft are fine, just watch out for the model "girth" sticking out beyond a strict 1u diameter - that's what specifically makes the NERVA illegal.

Pancakes, and specifically the act of connecting them together, may offer additional design and piloting challenges, but also more flexibility - for those who are into that sort of thing.

Edit response: not entirely clear what you have in mind but the rocket is to get the payload to LKO and cannot actively participate thereafter. If you are using it as a holding clamp while docking other parts to it that is ok, but it should not propulsively be connecting parts for your noodle/pancake.

Edited by dnbattley
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dnbattley

dnbattley

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6 minutes ago, Mythical Donuts said:

hmm...

I want the title of Slimline King, yet I'm not sure if my mission is more impressive than KingDominoIII's.

@dnbattleywhich one do you think is more worthy of the Slimline King title? my mission or KingDomino's?

Tricky, and I don't want to dissuade other entries - we still have 10 days to go, after all.

Since both missions were to Eeloo(ish) the fundamental capabilities appear to be largely similar. In my view your mission has in its favour that it completed successfully - although we don't have the pictures, sadly, of the return. Without knowing specifically what Ninkle's characteristics are - specifically it's gravity, though I'm imagining it to be Ike-like - it is hard to judge the technical difficulty of the landing and rendezvous, though the fact that there were both is a plus.

I would suggest that KingDomino's mission has a much higher initial technical score, based on the large number of parts each individually designed and then required to be connected in orbit (which should not be underestimated, as a challenge), including the SSTO carrier for the final piece, but obviously falls short on the landing (and therefore a lack of return).

I have to confess I haven't actually put too much thought into how to judge the final entries yet, but I hope this helps.

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Mythical Donuts

Mythical Donuts

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Moho it is then!

now though, I need a dedicated lander and a butt ton of other stuff, meaning a complete redesign of the oversized craft I already assembled in orbit. Uuuuuughhhhhhhh

so would it count if I went to this Neidon planet along with full explanations and photos saying the stats of all modded planets involved? or do I have to do something in the stock system

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dnbattley

dnbattley

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2 hours ago, Mythical Donuts said:

@sevenperforceno, it's one pancake/noodle per launch.

@sevenperforce I don't want to be to much more prescriptive than I already have been, and would accept a single launch with multiple containers if you wish. Remember the objective is "impressive", and aesthetics are part of it. Multiple launches may add technical difficulty, however.

8 hours ago, KingDominoIII said:

Maybe I'll try and flatpack an SSTO to send to Laythe... might need an extended deadline for that tho lol we'll see.

I've been developing this as my entry for two weeks already. It's not overly difficult, but it is fiddly to do well...

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vyznev

vyznev

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On 2/15/2019 at 6:36 PM, KingDominoIII said:

Maybe I'll try and flatpack an SSTO to send to Laythe... might need an extended deadline for that tho lol we'll see.

Well, in the mean time, I chose an easier target and sent Val to Tylo and back:

Spoiler

Circularizing in LKO, with the booster stage still attached:

eCbTXho.png

Some orbital assembly is required:

UmR5ZaU.png

Leaving Kerbin:

fdPq1p0.png

Arrival at Tylo:

RhzCoRb.png

One ion tug is left in Tylo orbit for the return trip:

J1qHaDF.png

The landing was exciting:

M9kr9pY.png

...very exciting:

CfOEPY6.png

...but luckily nothing important broke (that time, at least):

5oouCy3.png

...so Val could safely take off again:

iBq3MLQ.png

...and rendezvous with the ion tug:

94uOz4h.png

...and return to Kerbin:

7VWw5Ak.png

...where she ditched the ion tug:

PvhM4gF.png

...and made a perfectly safe re-entry:

QDar9z9.png

...and landed in the mountains:

Mw2tibn.png

...with her parachute:

okvEbZB.png

 

More (many more) images in the imgur album: https://imgur.com/a/1MHxKm4

Craft file here, if anyone else wants to give it a try: https://pastebin.com/t2CYzHUW

BTW, I forgot to mention that I flew this mission in 100% stock KSP 1.6.0 with no mods (really, not even KER) on my standard Sandbox settings, i.e. the same as "normal" difficulty but with plasma blackout and all pressure and g-force limits turned on, and resource transfer obeying crossfeed rules. In practice, the only part of the mission where those tweaks could have made any difference was in the Kerbin re-entry, where Val got close to passing out from too much acceleration. Fortunately, she's fine.

Edited by vyznev
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dnbattley

dnbattley

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As promised, the deadline has now passed, and with four excellent entries I'm pleased to declare @vyznev the winner, and thus the "the Slimline King" for this very impressive (and extremely well documented!) mission to Tylo. The combination of Ion and Sparks, together with an impressively ridiculous Tylo lander, plus (albeit with some F9-related-help...) the highly technically challenging achievement of manually landing without even KES informational guidance, made it a worthy winner.

I hope everyone enjoyed the mission, and learned something helpful from the technical challenge of it. Kudos to @Mythical Donuts for two excellent submissions, as well as @KingDominoIII fantastic effort.

Unfortunately due to illness (via the human petri dishes that are my children) I never actually posted my own submission, which I was developing into a video, but a sketchbook highlight is here.

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