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BILL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y16D120 - 4H15M

Perhaps I should start this log with some context. After Orange Squadron and their wingmen returned from Dres, I had the guts to propose to Val.

  • Okay, I lied, Val proposed to me before we landed on Kerbin. I was surprised at first, as it was tradition for the male to propose to the female. However, Jeb warned me that I shouldn't be surprised that Val's doing it. 

 

After we married, we hopped on board the Pluto 1 and were in-transit to Eeloo for over three years. The two of us stepped out of the lander craft as soon as we touched the ground and did our EVA and surface sample runs. When we hopped back in the lander to warm ourselves up - we have two big boxes of plutonium for that (as solar panels are useless here), we realized that we had a major problem

WE DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH FUEL TO RETURN - OR EVEN AEROBRAKE

We immediately notified Mission Control of our situation and they agreed to send a rescue craft capable of refueling itself. Below are the coordinates of our craft.

bRiWJIE.jpg

 

It will take a few years and a refueling stop at Jool, but the current plan is to get the lander in orbit and have the rescue craft grab the lander and extract the science we collected while Val and I board. We then dispose of the lander since it's useless at that point, then we're on our way back to Kerbin. 

 

To anyone who reads this log, I hope you all have other ideas to save Val and I. I know we want to stay warm here, but I don't want it to get "too warm" between us while we're on a remote planet with no way to get back home. In the meantime, the Chyna rover on the other side of the planet should transmit some sweet science for us.

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BILL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y24D71 - 4H10M

It's been almost eight years since Val and I landed on Eeloo, only learning then that we could not return on our own. The reason I've been far behind in my log entries is... well... let's just say Val and I did things that I would rather not be disclosed on KSP's archives. Don't worry, no pregnancies occurred; she had her eggs removed and frozen before her Dres assignment. I did the male equivalent to that - I won't describe specifics - right after I enlisted in Basic, for I knew what extended periods of exposure to radiation would do to you. Though Mission Control ordered all interplanetary spacecraft and new EVA suits to account for that to minimize (if not completely halt) the effects of such radiation, the risk of health problems rising still existed.

 

I hear Jeb's having fun back on Kerbin, and Bob's now the captain of the S.S. Titan - currently in-transit to Kerbin from Dres. After he lands, Mission Control will be sending a Super Trainer-class ship with eleven more tourists to the following places (in order)

  1. Mun
  2. Minmus
  3. Ike
  4. Dres
  5. Bop
  6. Pol
  7. Vall
  8. Pol
    1. Either Dres to refuel or straight to Kerbin

After that ship lands, some of the remaining tourists will either go to Gilly, Eeloo, or back to their homes. This is going to be one long-ass tourist flight. I'm so glad I'm not going to be in it, as I will be within Eeloo's SOI at the time the ship launches. Besides that, Val and I have been itching to see the blue skies and green grass on Kerbin after so long. Val wants to move to Duna, but I'd rather spend some time home before we consider that.

 

So, anyway, Mission Control's third attempt to rescue us arrived on the surface and is currently refueling itself.

  • (ATTEMPT 1) --> ran out of fuel at the Bop refueling stop. Had to wait for another lander to refuel it before it could refuel itself on the surface.
  • (ATTEMPT 2) --> unmanned, but had to leave in Eeloo orbit.
  • (ATTEMPT 3) --> SUCCESS, SUCCESS. 

 

We're leaving most of the science we collected on our old lander, but that's not a real biggie since the third lander is already science-capable; it's even got materials and goo to go with the usuals. A young Level-Three scientist named Lasel Kerman was real excited to see us enter her lander. Val seemed jealous that there will be another woman in the pod with us, but I assured her she was only there to handle the science and monitor the life support systems. Below is a picture of the lander craft while it's getting refueled.

pNPPC8t.jpg

 

We have until Y24D313 to get completely refilled for the trip back to Kerbin. Wish us luck, everyone.

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VAL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y25D342 - 5H15M

Only 347 days left until we reach Kerbin's SOI, and the rescue lander has 2,255 m/s of delta-V in it. Too bad we had to leave the science we collected in the original lander, but that meant we could collect more with the rescue lander; besides, the original didn't have goo or materials with it. Once we reach Kerbin's SOI, we'll either establish a parking orbit before descending on the surface or skipping straight to re-entry. We have an inflatable heat shield for maximum protection and drag force.

mzk8S5m.jpg

Not much has gone on in the pod since our rescue. Then again, Bill and I couldn't even canoodle for over five minutes without that third wheel Lasel interrupting. Speaking of, one time she and I fought after she accused me of "contaminating the goo samples;" all I did was find one of Bill's dirty socks floating near one of the used samples. I know she just wanted to preserve the science so that they would be returned to Kerbin without issues, but we were tearing each other apart within 30 seconds. If Bill hadn't broken us the fight, I probably would have thrown her in the airlock without a suit on. He and I then had a much more civil argument about how Mission Control should have just sent an empty pod; he disagreed and stated that a scientist needed to clean the goo and materials modules.

  • In hindsight, if I hadn't been so paranoid about Lasel was trying to steal Bill, I probably wouldn't have overreacted as much
    • Bob predicts that, if Lasel was a man, I probably wouldn't have blown up in her face since I would have no previous paranoia about her trying to ruin mine and Bill's marriage.

 

Back home, the guys in the VAB developed a new ion-powered "lawn chair" for Ike use. It gets into orbit and its destination via conventional rockets, but the final stage has a command seat for missions where one needs to collect temperature/pressure/gravity readings below a certain altitude in some moons. They've already launched prototypes to Minmus and Moho "just for the heck of it" - the one in Minmus is on standby because it has two stages to go before the chair. Another mass tourist lander, the S.S. Remembrance, has taken off and is now standing by for its burn to Duna. After that, it's heading for Dres and some of Jool's moons before hopping planets one-by-one to get back home. Though it is possible to go straight to Kerbin from Dres, re-entry is too risky if that's the case. 

 

Bob's now on extended leave after his command of the S.S. Titan. Though Jeb's leave was technically over some time ago, he was suspended for doing doughnuts in the VAB (again). As soon as the next Kerbin-to-Eve window opens, Bob's heading to Gilly to transport some tourists, recover a missing piece, and rescue someone. This is also his chance to reach Level Five after so long. Aside from that, KSP has decided to expand Duna operations to include:

  • A Mk. Vb interplanetary travel pod (loaded with 2 pilots, 2 engineers, 3 scientists)
  • A mobile Duna base (we remembered to pack A LOT of parachutes)
  • A self-mining Duna vehicle (can get off Duna, dock with other ships, and even go to Ike)
    • Just make sure an engineer is present to repack chutes.
  • Another base on Ike.
    • It will get the S.S. Remembrance and a lawn chair prototype soon enough - and another crew
  • A Chyna-class surface rover
    • (Below is a picture of one on Laythe)

 

rx9ubm3.jpg

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

BILL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y26D263 - 5H30M

Can you believe it? 13 years and 210 days since Val and I blasted off of the surface of Kerbin. I think we broke a record on the longest time spent outside of Kerbin's sphere of influence. Now, thanks to everyone's efforts on and off the planet, Val and I (and Lasel, too) are almost home.

pkJIc2g.jpg

  • Map of where we are in relation to Kerbin in the sphere of influence. We've barely breached the outer perimeter of the Hamsterwheel - a network of relays designed to cover the entire SOI for Mun and Minmus missions.
  • Almost a day until we reach the atmosphere.

 

j2mhLDB.jpg

  • You can barely see Kerbin in this photograph. It's been a long time since Val and I saw warm water that was not heated by RTGs.

 

Since we fine-tuned our periapsis to be 32 kilometers, we plan to aerobrake as soon as we hit the atmosphere. Hopefully, nothing gets damaged from the re-entry heat - but that's what inflatable heat shields are for. Wish us luck, everyone.

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BILL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y26D265 - 0H45M

RT5mI8G.jpg

  • (FROM LEFT TO RIGHT) Bill, Lasel, Val
  • Taken at Y26D265 - almost an hour before the vessel and scientific data was recovered.

 

Finally, it was all over. Lasel got promoted to Level 4, though we recommended that she get bumped up to 5. Val and I were granted extended leave after we were sent back to the KSC, and Jeb was there to greet us. Bob, however, was on a triple-mission to Gilly at the time.

  • Tourism
  • Rescue
  • Module Recovery
    • He also went to the U.S.S. Norfolk and got promoted to Level 5

 

I had to admit I thought we were done for during re-entry. We were coming in well over 4 km/s, and for a while I thought our inflatable heat shield was going to give in. However, thanks to Val's steel-trapped stomach, she kept the craft spinning on its axis to prevent it from blowing up and endangering the capsule. As you can see from the picture, we landed safely in the grasslands - and we brought a piece of Eeloo with us.

 

Val and I will spend our leave in Baikerbanur, where we'll be a regular married couple for once. As soon as Bob gets back from Eve, he and Jeb will spend some time with us - just like we used to in KSP's early days. Jeb has been itching to be a team with us again after 13 years, so it's about damn time. We radioed Bob when we arrived, and he told us congratulations. Val asked when we had to resume active duty, but Gene said not to worry about it for another few years. Subtracting us four, there were 48 more active kerbalnauts (about half already deployed) in the space program - and most of them are already over Level Three.

 

We thank everyone who put in their efforts to save Val and I. I also received word that, while we were in-transit, at least two space stations were sent into Eeloo orbit (one single-stage, one under construction). Mission Control also sent a small fuel truck on its way to Eeloo and a self-mining ascent vehicle to dock with the stations so that more solid operations can happen. We hope that, one day, we can refuel the original lander and send it back home with the scientific data still inside it; on the other hand, many are arguing that we should leave it as a historical site.

  • If operations go as planned, nobody will need a rescue mission to return home anymore.

 

Most of all, we thank everyone who wished us luck. Val knew you wouldn't give up on us, and I'm glad she was right. Now the big question remains:

WHAT NOW?

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BILL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y28D110 - 0H45M

While Bob was out at Gilly rescuing some girl from orbit, Jeb, Val, and I spent our leave in Baikerbanur. What Mission Control neglected to tell us was that people were donating like crazy to the space program just to get Val and I back. Indeed, they put that extra money to good use to get us back - and designed some more craft for other missions in the process. Since we're expected to take some tourists to Eeloo after both the S.S. Remembrance and Trainwreck return from their planet-hopping trips to Jool and back (yes, they have to go one planet at a time), we at least know what craft to put them in - the same type used to get Val and I back.

 

KSP still has some of that donation money left; though the higher-ups decided to use it to rent Val and I an apartment until we find our own residence, Jeb insisted that we "crash" in his house. Apparently, renting it out while being out on space missions was very profitable for him. Val wanted privacy for her and I, but I reminded her that we spent the last several years stuck in a can together before getting rescued. However, right when Val and I were about to say 'yes,' to Jeb's offer, my dad called me. He had wanted to spend more time with me - and his daughter-in-law - now that we're back home. So, Val and I politely declined Jeb's offer and decided to live in my dad's house for a while. As much as I wanted to do this on my own, I understand Dad's point; if that were my son that was stranded for over a decade, I'd want to stay close to them too.

 

Yesterday, Bob had returned with the missing girl - and a tourist bound for Gilly, as well as a missing fuel tank - and had officially joined the Level Five club. However, right before he could be medically cleared for action, KSC received an assignment to check some temperature fluctuations in the northwestern hemisphere. Rather than wait for the okay from the higher-ups - or at least sending someone else to do it - the four of us agreed to sneak Bob out of his quarters and bring him with us. Mission Control had originally planned to send a one-man supersonic jet, but I had already designed one that could carry six kerbals and go unmanned. It may not have the range to circumnavigate the planet, but at least it can land on the grass and wait for the recovery crews to pick it up. They had agreed to let us use the new B-5 Badger jet, but little did they know that Bob "stowed away." 

  • Off-the-record, Val convinced two rookies with a record for troublemaking to distract the guards while Jeb snuck Bill out through the window.
  • I warned Jeb about the risks of getting him out of post-landing quarantine prematurely, but he assured me that Bob was fine.
    • "We've been to Gilly loads of times and never had an incident. Besides, if either that chick or the tourist were sick, Bob would be dead already."

 

Man, the Badger was fast. Not only that, it can fly really high and take some serious heat. Engine 2 may have flamed out a couple of times, but no major issues to report. After the four of us collected the last data necessary, Jeb made a perfect landing on the grass - FOR ONCE. Of course, it could have been due to the fact that I had aerobrakes to slow us down. Anyway, after we landed, the four of disembarked to take a team picture.

xqQubpp.jpg

(FROM LEFT TO RIGHT) Val, Bill, Jeb, and Bob.

 

Rather than risk running out of fuel on the way back, we signaled Mission Control and requested the recovery crews. We played outside with each other while waiting for them, then they noticed Bob was out of quarantine. Boy, I'm gonna get so much crap from Mission Control for being an accessory to Bob's escape.

 

This is officially my final entry in the "Eelootians" thread. After 15 Kerbin years of waiting, the gang is back together at last. If Mission Control and/or curious readers want to read my reports, they know where to find me. 

 

Bill Kerman, signing off.

Edited by Mars-Bound Hokie
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  • 1 month later...

VAL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y29D398 - 0H00M

Listen - or at least read, in case I never make an audio recording about this.

 

This is Jebediah "Jeb" Kerman. You may ask "Why is Jeb using Val's name in this log entry?" For the record, this was not my first choice - or my second.

  1. I wanted to log my own entries in this journal, but the higher-ups said that only two people had clearance to edit it:
    1. Val
      1. Bill had primary clearance once, but he gave it up after he signed off. He felt no need to change anything on here.
    2. Lasel
  2. Lasel is currently in orbit of Duna in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D. I tried to get her to cough up her KSP password to access this log, but she refused.
    1. She was my second choice.

 

Unfortunately, I had to steal the password from Val so I can write in this report file. Here's how I got it:

  1. Bought two tickets to the old island airfield.
  2. Convinced Val to let me babysit Tom - that's her and Bill's son - while they go on their free date.
    1. She was reluctant at first, but Tom seems to take a liking to me.
  3. Guessed her password from Tom's name and birthday
    1. I remembered her complaining about having to change her password shortly after Tom was born, so I took a guess
      1. I'm not going to tell if it worked or else I'd be in serious trouble for leaking my friend's private information 
  4. Since I was in Val's and Bill's house, the IT guys didn't suspect anything.

 

Anyway, now on to why I'm here. Two days ago, Mission Control had confirmation that their fuel truck prototype had landed on Eeloo. By itself, it's a medium-sized deal now that the only craft that will use it is the one-man mini-lander; everything else is self-mining these days. However, once I noticed that it landed 5 kilometers from where Bill and Val first landed 13 years ago, my freaky-sense started tingling. The craft had enough delta-V to land anywhere on the planet - probably somewhere with a better ore concentration - so I saw no reason that Mission Control would dump that small truck there.

Until I saw this:

q47nFUc.jpg

 

I knew it was no coincidence that Mission Control landed the truck so close to the lander. They're planning to refuel it and send it back home - but I don't know why. That thing is basically a piece of junk now compared to the new three-man self-mining landers we have; I actually voted that we leave it as a historical marker for future kerbalnauts.

 

I'm definitely getting to the bottom of this. The reason I'm using this thread is because it's already so popular that word is bound to spread. Plus, this story is relevant to the main topic of the journal since the truck is refueling the original Pluto 1 landing craft.

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LASEL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y30D69 - 1H00M

This is Dr. Lasel Kerman, speaking from the U.S.S. Enterprise-D in orbit above Duna. Not many people speak of this, but I was on board the rescue craft that saved Bill and Val from Eeloo's surface. Though the vessel was remote-controlled - and Val was a qualified pilot while I wasn't - I brought back a lot of sweet science from that snowball. In fact, I brought back more science than the original craft could carry.

 

Speaking of which, when I saw the entry from Y29D398, I knew that Mission Control would try to resume the old mission from decades ago. I asked Jeb to send me pictures from Mission Control so I can post them on this thread - since Val had changed her password to ensure nobody else could get on here. A few hours ago, Jeb sent me these pictures.

DGmvGkw.jpg

  • The failed lander making its initial ascent into Eeloo orbit. 
    • Originally, though it had enough delta-V to make it, it would not be able to either fly to Kerbin or even return to the surface.

 

CMktzPD.jpg

  • The Failed Lander (more formally known as the Pluto 1) in orbit above Jool
    • Why is its ladder out? There's nobody within Eeloo's SOI (yet).

 

Thanks to the refueling truck, it now has 2,735 m/s of delta-V left. Though Mission Control could land it anywhere on Eeloo and send the truck there to refuel it, Jeb heard that they planned to send it straight back to Kerbin to return the capsule. I don't know why they would do that, though; we now have way better crafts ready (nuclear-powered, higher crew capacity, better heat shield), and they don't even need fuel trucks. Additionally, I don't even know if the detached capsule's heat shield (or parachutes, for that matter) could even take the heat from Kerbin re-entry.

 

Any ideas? I calculate the craft will have about 1,435 m/s of delta-V when it makes its ejection burn to Kerbin, which will not be enough to make a safe capture burn when it reaches the planet's sphere of influence. Ideas range from a low-periapsis aerobrake to straight-up slowing it down before it reaches the atmosphere.

 

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VAL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y30D154 - 5H30M

It's Val Kerman - for real, this time. I made sure to change my password to something Jeb wouldn't suspect after the incident where he stole it to log on. Though I'm somewhat impressed he managed to fool KSP's IT department - at least until the part where he admitted it in a public journal - I'm still mad he didn't at least talk to me about it. Had I known that Mission Control was sending Pluto 1 back home, I would have been glad to have posted it myself.

 

Anyway, we just got word that the craft in question has left Eeloo's sphere of influence and is now en route to Kerbin with 1,433 m/s of delta-V left. We expect it to encounter Kerbin's gravitational pull in approximately 4 years and 343 days. While that old piece of junk* is coming back home, several crafts are already en route to Eeloo to expand operations. These crafts include:

  • Parts 6 and 7 of Hades Station
  • A powerful surface relay craft
    • Has 5 x 100G relays
    • 16,020 worth of electric charge
  • A Mk. Vb Interplanetary Travel Pod
    • Crew capacity: 7
    • Docking-capable
    • Immense delta-V capacity
      • Thanks to those huge-ass fuel tanks and nuclear engines.
    • Has inflatable heat shield.
    • Have it dock with a station and stand by for orders
    • Powered by:
      • 4: 1x6 Solar Panels
      • 2:  RTGs
  • An (UNOCCUPIED) mobile base
    • Crew capacity: 7
    • Has science lab
      • And all scientific equipment in a cargo bay
    • Has Gigantor panels and RTGs
    • 4G Relay capability
      • With 100G direct
  • A three-man self-mining tourist lander
    • Same design as our rescue craft
    • Needs to make a refueling stop at Jool first
      • Someone has "Orbit Jool" on their contract.

 

Here's a list I found of what Mission Control plans to send to Eeloo in the future (launch dates unspecified)

  • Parts 7.5** and 8 of Hades Station
  • Ore transport craft
    • So Hades Station can convert its own ore.
  • Something with people in it.
    • We need to start Eeloo ops sometime, and we already have two landers ready to go.
      • One self-mining
      • One needing a fuel truck
  • An Ultimate Relay Antenna
    • To set at 45-degree inclination.

 

To whoever's reading this, are we missing anything important? Also, how do you propose we land Pluto 1 on Kerbin safely? I remember that, even with the inflatable heat shield, I thought we were going to burn to a crisp upon re-entry. How do you expect a simple ablative heat shield to survive?

 

 

* To whoever manufactured it, you heard me loud and clear. Yes, that thing is a piece of junk - since we needed a rescue mission to get off. Plus, without the inflatable heat shield, there's no guarantee the capsule will even survive Kerbin re-entry. 

** Part 7.5 is just a bunch of batteries that would go between the center piece and Part 8. It was called 7.5 because it was a last-minute design change made by Mission Control when they picked how they were going to design Hades Station.

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  • 4 weeks later...

JEB KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y31D177 - 1H00M

COMEBACK I CREW ROSTER
 NAME   LEVEL (AS OF Y31D177)  ASSIGNMENT
JEBEDIAH KERMAN 5

- MISSION COMMANDER

- PILOT

BOB KERMAN 5

- LIEUTENANT

- CHIEF SCIENCE OFFICER

ERILER KERMAN 2 - CHIEF (AND ONLY) ENGINEER
ARBUS KERMAN 2 - PILOT
SIEBALD KERMAN 4 - SCIENTIST
MATT KERMAN 4 - SCIENTIST
JEDEMONE KERMAN 0 - SCIENCE CADET

 

Well, it happened. Kerbalkind is finally making a comeback to Eeloo.

  • Mission Control has decided to start crewed operations on that snowball since "everything should be all set by the time we arrive." I hope they actually mean it, since I don't want to end up like Bill and Val when they first went there.

 

Anyway, this is Captain Jebediah Kerman here. I am now in command of the Comeback I en route to Eeloo to begin science and surface operations. Unlike that trash can lid they called a "lander," this craft is not designed to land; even though my engineer says that it has the trust-to-weight ratio (or whatever the heck it's spelled). We had a pretty awkward ejection burn getting out of Kerbin's sphere of influence, leaving us with:

  • 2455 m/s of delta-V
    • It may not be enough for both the capture burn and the trip back, but Mission Control thought of that.
      • Hades Station, while still under construction, already has A LOT of fuel there.
        • And an ore tank and converter.
      • There's another pod of the same design as Comeback I already docked.
  • About 6 years before we reach Eeloo.

 

The general plan is to rendezvous with a completed Hades Station once we reach Eeloo, then we level ourselves up as soon as we start analyzing scientific data from Eeloo's orbit. I'll then dispatch Jedemone and Matt - and either go myself or send Arbus - to the new mobile base to start surface ops. Though there are no permanent outposts landed on or on their way to Eeloo (yet), the mobile base can hold all seven of us if need be; it also has the potential to get more science opportunities since it's mobile.

 

We're going to be on that snowball for a while, but at least we'll be able to leave on our own terms this time instead of wait for someone to come rescue us. Bill and Val, if you're reading this, I'll bet you my car that you're jealous I have everything in place already while you had to go there by yourselves with almost no preparation (compared to what I have). My crew and I are now in charge of this journal, and I bet it will turn up A LOT of readers.

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BOB KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y32D34 - 2H30M

Chief Science Officer Bob Kerman here. We have just been notified by Mission Control that our mobile base has finally touched down on Eeloo's surface.

w2sCt7T.jpg

 

I am aware that it is pretty low-capacity for a mobile outpost, but at least it can get to Eeloo and remain stable while in motion.* All that's left to do is to get inside that thing, and we're on a road trip of some sorts. If anyone has any ideas on what we should do when we arrive, I'm open.

  • Who knows, we may even come across the Chyna rover and take a picture.

 

* so long as Captain Jeb isn't driving it, I'm good.

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ARBUS KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y33D157 - 3H00M

Everything seems to be going well aboard the Comeback I. Apart from some sore arms and fatigue resulting from an arm-wrestling tournament we had (which Jeb won), no injuries or illnesses to report.*

* For further details, talk to Ms. Siebald Kerman, the medical officer.

 

I have received word that Hades Station will be completed in less than half a year, which will be perfect considering that we will be docking there when we arrive. Even better, Mission Control has taken a contract to expand Hades Station; it would cost us no extra money considering that the final pieces were already en route to Eeloo when we took the deal. In other news, the failed lander has fine-tuned its approach to Kerbin and will arrive in the planet's sphere of influence in a little under 2 years. 

 

As for future Eeloo operations, we expect to get an ore transport within a couple of years of our arrival. As soon as it gets to Eeloo, we'll find a landing spot for it and have it mine some ore for conversion on Hades Station. I have also heard rumors that we're getting a couple of tourists arriving here after refueling on one of Jool's moons. Personally, I find it both confusing and agonizing to make a stop at another planet before flying to Eeloo - but KSC wanted to save money on transport craft. Either way, we're starting to get serious with that little snowball.

  • Who knows, maybe Bill and Val will come back after we're done there.
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ERILER KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y33D344 - 0H15M

Hades Station is now complete - and so is the associated expansion contract.

Q6Hu2LA.jpg

Besides its immense power capacity (mostly thanks to the large solar panels and insanely big battery), it already has a lot of fuel, oxidizer, and monopropellant in reserve in case some nearby docking-capable ships need the extra boost. Though the self-mining landers are capable of delivering the ore themselves, they can only bring 150 units at a time - whereas the ore transports can deliver 600. None of us on the Comeback can wait to get on it and begin surface ops.

 

To anyone reading this, what do you all think of Hades Station?

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FROM THE OFFICE OF WERNHER VON KERMAN

 

Yesterday, the lander can for the Pluto 1 - the craft that first brought Bill and Val to Eeloo - has splashed down on Kerbin. Since it only had an ablative heat shield, Mission Control had decided to take the aerobrake approach. The unmanned spacecraft adjusted its periapsis to 41 km above the planet's surface then jettisoned its main stage before it hit the atmosphere (since the lander can would only have 4120 units of charge with its extra battery). We were careful not to spin the can too fast, or else it would lose control.

emJrQdC.png

 

ieQU6wz.png

 

Fortunately, by the time the lander's vertical velocity (relative to the surface) started to turn positive - it had already passed its periapsis by then - the can's eccentricity had dropped below 1. To those of you who don't understand orbital mechanics, that means that the can will go around the planet for another run instead of float off into space. 

12MVkQ4.png

 

Good thing that the orbital period was about an hour and a half by the time the can had left the atmosphere to start its second run; otherwise, the lander can may have run out of power when it mattered. After the can hit the atmosphere a second time, we began another aerobraking sequence and managed to get it to a suborbital trajectory. It was then a straight shot to the ocean after the second aerobrake.

sEBtio6.png

 

Both runs took out over 3/4 of the heat shield, but we managed to recover the craft without trouble. It is now on display near the Tracking Station as a symbol of the space program's core value:

:rep:  NO KERBAL LEFT BEHIND  :rep:

When we realized Bill and Val were stranded, we didn't just leave them. The first thing I did was get our engineers to the drawing boards in an effort to save them. Sure, we may have done some other jobs along the way, but we needed the money to pay for the rescue craft prototypes; we also had a couple of failures we needed to fix. Through it all, we stuck with our motto.

  • We may have some kerbals on long-term/permanent detail out there, but at least they have a means to get back home if need be. Bill and Val, on the other hand, were stranded on Eeloo until a rescue craft arrived.

k0afPq4.jpg

 

Since we've already established that two-way travel to Eeloo is possible, we've started to get serious in our colonization ops. Jebediah and his crew are expected to arrive in about three years, and an ore transport after four. I also commissioned a self-mining high-occupancy lander that could carry up to 19 people up and down Eeloo's surface. It also has its own laboratory with full science capability, a 100G direct antenna, and 8220 units of charge.

  • Basically, the new lander is an all-purpose craft that can fly and do science anywhere - either on the ground or in orbit.
  • This could also save us trips for bringing crew up and down.
    • Especially tourists.

 

This entry officially ends the Pluto 1 saga, but mission logs will still come in as the colonization efforts progress. I wish all those involved good luck and soon, that snowball of a planet will truly be ours.

 

Wernher Von Kerman

Year 35, Day 75

0H35M

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