PROJECT HAIL MARY

[Kekkie]

The sun is dying.

In desperation, the nations of the world band together to find a solution.

Their last hope, a desperate final push into the unknown...

PROJECT HAIL MARY

 

Hello! Kekkie here. Now that the dramatic introduction and hook are out of the way, I can more adequately explain the premise of this thread.

I will be attempting to recreate the events in Andy Weir's book, Project Hail Mary, using this ship:

https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/202613-project-hail-mary-by-andy-weir-2021-my-attempt-at-interstellar-ship-design-and-flight-now-a-mission-report/

(with a few minor visual modifications), in RSS/RO/KSPIE/Real Exoplanets. 

Yes, you read that correctly. This will attempt to be an interstellar voyage to Tau Ceti in KSP.

(By the way, if this is unfamiliar to you, please read Mr. Weir's book first; it is really excellent!)

That's all for now. I will be working on this sporadically, but do plan to finish this large project eventually. First up: Ryland Kerman's entry into the Tau Ceti system, coming soon(tm).

(I do not own any of this media or intellectual property, and all rights are Mr. Weir's.)

Best,

Kekkie

[Kasyan]

Hello, I read in the previous thread that you had some trouble with the centrifuge mechanism, it required too many pistons, etc. I accidentally found a mod that adds tethers to KSP! They are actually extremely long pistons, but I think that would be perfect for the centrifuge. The mod’s name is Coriolis Space Systems, here’s a link. I hope this is useful for you.

[Kekkie]

Thank you so much @Kasyan! I will definitely try this mod out before beginning the mission report.

[Kasyan]

Just now, Kekkie said:

Thank you so much @Kasyan! I will definitely try this mod out before beginning the mission report.

No problem, glad I could be helpful!

[Kimera Industries]

At some point, you could start replicating the things we see in his flashbacks. The biggest thing I could think of would be the helicopter landing on the aircraft carrier/when he rides in the military jet.

[Kekkie]

@chimera industriesThat's the plan! Start with recreating the events in chronological order, I think. I know I had planned for the first thing to be Grace waking up entering Tau Ceti but to do that I'd have to put the ship there anyway and I might as well report on the progress leading up to that launch so you don't have to wait. Also, I am not writing a book, unlike Mr. Weir, so I think a linear narrative should be fine. 

SPOILER ALERT

Spoiler

Please don't open this if you don't want the other details of my plan spoiled.

Spoiler

And yes, I am also planning on including Rocky (Kerman, since KSP doesn't have other aliens) and the Blip-A.

 

 

[Kasyan]

Spoiler

Blip-A! It’s supposed to be much larger than Hail Mary, how will you pull this off? Tweakscale?

[Kekkie]

@Kasyan Yes, Tweakscale will definitely be necessary for this.

[Kekkie]

Hello! I apologize for the long absence.

Using @Kasyan's recommended centrifuge mod and @Hyperspace Industries's excellent Hail Mary mod, I have redesigned the Hail Mary to look much more compact and more aesthetically pleasing. @Hyperspace Industries in particular - your mod is much better in quality than the cobbled together patches I had been using before, so kudos to you!

Before: 

https://ibb.co/y0pWhvG

After: 

https://ibb.co/0jVz1g8

[Hyperspace Industries]

On 4/17/2022 at 7:21 PM, Kekkie said:

@Hyperspace Industries in particular - your mod is much better in quality than the cobbled together patches I had been using before, so kudos to you!

Thanks!  

But in all honesty that mod is mostly cobbled together too, probably just cobbled together a little better. 

Edit:

Double trouble on hubble! I forgot to give credit to @Janus92, sorry about that! Janus made the original code cfg files, that I merely slightly modified (and struggled to do even that) to create other parts.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Hyperspace Industries
Sorry Janus!

[Kasyan]

On 4/17/2022 at 8:21 PM, Kekkie said:

snippety snip

That looks much better than before, great job! Is that restock I'm seeing? BTW, is the crew capsule tweakscaled?
 

Spoiler

Now it's time to work on the Blip-A, right?

[Kekkie]

@Kasyan Yep, that is restock, but no, the capsule is not tweak scaled - Realism Overhaul automatically rescales the 3 Kerbal pod to 4m size.

Wow, has it really been almost two months since I started with only sporadic updates? Time flies!

Anyway, I have another update on vehicle construction.

Say hello to Pete!  (in-book joke) 

https://ibb.co/j6h42TS

This is my version of a Beetle. It can accelerate at almost 500 gees, and looks (I think) pretty close to the book's description of a trapezoid on top of a flattened medicine ball on top of a triangle. Or, in other words, like a beetle if you squint at it. 

That's all for now. Any feedback on the design would be greatly appreciated! 

Kekkie

[Kimera Industries]

Wow, looking great! Do you know of any mods that would be similar to the effects of astrophage?

[Kasyan]

On 4/30/2022 at 6:15 PM, Kekkie said:

 

Say hello to Pete!  (in-book joke) 

Looks pretty nice! One thing -- could you use imgur instead of ibb? It allows you to post pics directly to the forum and doesn't make them awkwardly small. (You don't need registration)

[Janus92]

On 4/17/2022 at 9:21 PM, Hyperspace Industries said:

Thanks!  

But in all honesty that mod is mostly cobbled together too, probably just cobbled together a little better. 

Edit:

Double trouble on hubble! I forgot to give credit to @Janus92, sorry about that! Janus made the original code cfg files, that I merely slightly modified (and struggled to do even that) to create other parts.

Haha, no worries! You don't even need to credit me, as I also simply took a stock cfg and modified one or two values slightly to my liking