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What did you do in KSP1 today?


Xeldrak

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Wow, this thread just goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on.

Or better, on and on1413

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Traced the issues I was having last night to ModularFlightIntegrator; took it out and the game fired right up. Still trying to get some of my mods to behave with one another - the big one is the dev version of FAR, which is kinda working as best I can tell (can't access it in the SPH for some reason, which could just be a matter of "you don't have it plugged in right, stupid"). Will try to fiddle with it some more as the day progresses today. I'm sure I'll be rolling around the space center before the day is out.

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After completing the Tylo expedition, it was time to return home. I transferred fuel back to the ascent stage and launched. What was left on Tylo is still a fully functional rover, and it might even work better with a lower center of mass.

tylo_expedition_65.jpeg

 

The mothership returned from a 1000 km highly inclined orbit to rendezvous with the ascent stage, and then the crew returned to the ship after 16 days on Tylo.

tylo_expedition_66.jpeg

 

I believe I left 46 flags to mark the route traveled by the rover. (The lonely flag is from an earlier mission.)

Spoiler

tylo_expedition_67.jpeg

 

Then it was time to return home. Luckily there was a good launch window almost immediately.

Spoiler

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A spaceplane retrieved the crew, as usual.

Spoiler

tylo_expedition_69.jpeg

 

And then everyone was back home.

tylo_expedition_70.jpeg

Edited by Jouni
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So I added some cargo cranes and docking ports to the landship, added a few more steering wheels, and lowered the whole frame so I wouldn't need a mobile ramp to drive cargo straight into the bay. Oh and I added a shipload of rockets.

HgxbeRO.png

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I made some addition to my station!

Last upper docking port of central hub was taken by boring Life Support Recycler module. One more standardized station science lander has arrived (stupid contracts => funds => big spaceships!).

But three not boring modules were added!

  1. Reactor Boom rescued from my 1.2.x attempt at space station (currently irradiating Kerbin plains, ops)
  2. Observatory Tower with telescope for Research Bodies on Infernal Robotics arm (expand station combined with take photo contracts)
  3. Docking port! Upper sprocket of my station design is meant for station modules, lower is meant for visiting spaceships. Four ports to which new science pods will dock and ventral port for special stuff :)

As first StationScience pod finally finished its experiments, Valentina hopped into pod (drone with place for two) and rescued new scientist on her way down (woo universal drop pods! me smart!)

Spoiler

 

JPf6yrL.png

3SNSnvT.png

 

After brief Kerbin-side vacation Valentina returned to space in style:

Spoiler

 

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Command&Control module of Zenith exploration corvette is now safely docked at space port, free of worries about electricity or life support. TAC LifeSupport and ConnectedLivingSpace made my older designs obsolete, but with magic Construction Docking Ports I should be able to build something nice to explore Sonnah moons in style. Now I need nice life support section, experimental DeepFreeze module and some propulsion. Oh, and shipload of cargo! And maybe you will see fiery Spartan module in action yet again :)

9 hours ago, Raptor42 said:

Today I was thinking about my huge rockets which can deliver only 1 small probe consisting of battery, relay, and some rcs to synchronous orbit. Can someone help me avoid building huge rockets?

Half-Jumbo + Poodle

Jumbo + Mainsail with some fins

Two pairs of Jumbo + Skipper in asparagus staging (for smaller cargo you can remove one or both pairs of boosters) - put separatrons on top of boosters for safety

It should easily lift 40 ton (with reasonable aerodynamics) to low orbit or 20 tons with Poodle as transfer stage almost to anywhere (with good transfer window, that is).

Save with Half-Jumbo as root part and you can attach to bottom of your payload either from subassembly or by Load->Merge.

I used such rocket to build space station you can see above, while not ideal it just works even with weirdly shaped cargo.

 

Edited by PT
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23 hours ago, Stewcumber said:

Today I started experimenting with making prop engines...

I took it further today, and made a more stable engine (with the wheels on the outside of the axle):

NSjWxMp.gif

https://www.dropbox.com/s/3468vpz42bp0s0g/KSP 2017-07-18 20-11-42-18.mp4?dl=0

It worked for a good few minutes at low power before exploding! I then thought I'd try driving a wheel and made this brilliant contraption:

YpLjSWf.jpg

The idea being the engine connects straight to an axle, which the wheel is connected to. It would be a one wheel drive car. This, naturally, didn't work or move and blew up pretty quickly, because the engine / axle at the wheel end would sag as it took the weight of itself so would not rotate smoothly around itself with a bearing of 0, if you know what I mean (it's z axis?). Any ideas?

I thought I'd go back a step and made literally a rolling axle, which was a lot of fun to be fair! (Video is 51mb)

wD4yziP.jpg

WpDJlf6.gif

https://www.dropbox.com/s/r5rm7b0g14pqjlh/KSP 2017-07-18 21-42-30-08.avi?dl=0

It is pretty nippy, I've seen 21m/s before it starts flipping out of control because the engines are not exactly inline. I'm sure this is easily fixable if I go back and use the symmetry properly.

 

 

 

Edited by Stewcumber
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20 minutes ago, cubinator said:

Until I hear otherwise, I'm going to assume I'm the first person to put a Delta Rune on Bop:

ElbZDCk.jpg

in Alternis Kerbol.

My little eye spies vertically challenged lander :D

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Invented this remarkably amazing craft:

NIJisxf.jpg

With 3000+ delta V in Mun-space. It serves multiple roles. It can act as an unmanned tug for space stations.. and make multiple trips around Mun and to orbit of mun. I haven't even tried Minmus yet, but it's the ultimate in lunar exploration vehicles with a capacity to carry a kerbal on board. I'm currently working on building a mining rig based on its design.

Available: https://kerbalx.com/Maelstrom_Vortex/1A-Mun-Hopper-Plus-XTRM

Suggested improvements you may want to consider include binding the 4 external engines to their own on/off action group toggle. With an extraordinarily low rocket part cost I was able to assemble and fuel it in orbit of Mun at an orbital dock yard using Extra-planetary Launchpads. It is currently my primary lunar operations vehicle for my engineers. Low cost and able to do sooooo much.

Edited by Maelstrom Vortex
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Launched the X-21A Vishnu for its fourth flight this week, but this time with a new launcher. Its first one being powered by three Vector, the price was going to 131000 while the main reason for its creation was to get a five seats touristic craft than the precedent one :

9nUn2Wt.png

 

 

It's now going way better as the Vector were replaced by a Mainsail for main propulsion, four Thud dedicated to maneuvering and dual Kickbacks for initial boosting, reducing the whole cost to 78000, approx 40% less :

aFRckJD.png 

Now was time to test it. Taking two low-cost tourists, a Spark engine test at Minmus and an orbital rescue missions to still making profit... if it's not going crazy.

 

 

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The whole launch appeared to be super stable, a surprise for such a configuration.

 

 

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Initial orbit was selected at 300 km. However the main core reached it without effort and still had about 800 m/s available after it. Anyway I took the decision to separate it, like this it would gives much more interesting data about the X-21A for circularization and the following transfer.

 

 

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Ciao fat one. 27000 going to the sea.

 

 

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Due to a stupid mistake from me the orbit inclination was at 0, ensuring a waste of propellant to align with Minmus...

 

 

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... then, with a lot of luck, it appeared that Minmus was well aligned for a smoother transfer burn. With approx 1,9 km/s still available Vishnu seems now more performing than its previous variant. At least one contract already was accomplished and ensured a good funds covering for the whole mission.

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Finished phase one of my station construction - phase two will involve resources and ship building facilities.

Other than that, more probe ballet around the moons of Kerbin and bringing satellites into new places for scanning and observation.

Still saving money for a new R&D building - development of new tech is basically halted for now ...
Building a space station without getting corresponding contracts makes for an expensive "hobby"; but also to many overly expensive because needlessly strong launch vehicles are possibly to blame - the engineering department will have to come up with some more efficient designs for some of the smaller missions.

 

On 18.7.2017 at 1:14 AM, capi3101 said:

Going to have to decide if I want to bring stuff over from 1.1.3 or not...most of it didn't have antennas......

Try the Ship Splicer to make your 1.1.3 inflight vessels into craft files, update them as needed and magic them back into orbit.

Or: Just loading the old craft files in the VAB should work, and the ingame cheat menu can get them back into place again. (Hack gravity for space stations to survive long enough to press the set-orbit button. :wink: )

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Discovered the issues I had yesterday weren't with ModularFlightIntegrator - I had simply downloaded an older dev version of FAR. Once that was corrected, the game fired right up with all my mods ready to go. Mainly just kinda flew around in the sandbox for a little bit. Did start a new career save on my home box; did some early launch pad/runway science and a couple of sub-orbital science-gathering flights. Decided to try out KERBalloons as well; launched a primitive rawinsonde using a Stayputnik for the core along with a barometer and thermometer. Was going to try for an upper atmospheric reading but was dismayed when the ascent stopped around 10 kilometers. Hoping to do my first orbital hop later today.

Edited by capi3101
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Continuing from yesterday, I made more stuff and then I placed it in space!

Zenith corvette bow is now welded together with cryogenic chambers in center and life support in aft. to reduce number of redundant probe cores I switched to bundling modules with micro tug drone.

Ship core is now complete, now I need to dress it up for voyage.

Featuring, from bow to aft:

  1. Port for Spartan aerobraking autonomous module.
  2. Living space for twelve.
  3. Four standard and six junior docking port on girder for random pieces of small cargo.
  4. Living space for another dozen.
  5. Two horizontal and two vertical crew hatches for long term modules.
  6. Cryo chamber for six Kerbs.
  7. Life support supplies for few hundred days.
  8. Four offset slots for switchable engine gondolas. (I think standardized engine sections will fit this career meta nicely)
  9. Extension weldable docking port on aft, in case I will want to make it longer :)

apAuuhk.png

Spoiler

Cryo chamber has arrived... but it had no SAS! Luckily each of my droppods can double up as tug :)

Z874RKk.png

After freezer was tugged close enough Valentina simply jumped ships to dock it properly without random off-center lump of mass.

4Pw95Iv.png

Aaand welded together!

06thUxZ.png

Redocking to connect living spaces (docking ports on that girder are structural only)

sWb4KpQ.png

Sneak peek:

Spoiler

XncIv5Y.png

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Had 4 lost kerbonauts in LKO (pesky competing space agencies tend to leave their crew behind) and had just researched the 4 crew 'Hitch-hiker' module so I decided to design a generic quad crew rescue and return vehicle, aptly named "Quad Crew Rescue and Return".

I eyeballed fuel requirements for up to 4 LKO rescues, ablator and parachutes intending to run some 'simulations' (as in try it and revert the flight on failure).

To my amazement it worked like a charm, except having more than 2x the fuel needed.

All 4 kerbonauts (2x scientists (yay!), 1 pilot and 1 engineer) plucked from their stricken capsules and the QCRR parked in a perfect 75x75 0 deg orbit for optimal return to KSC (a single burn to lower periapsis to 30k at 158.5 deg E normally works).

Again everything works as planned, 25% margin on the ablator and splashdown within walking (or rather swimming) distance from KSC.

Except that splashdown speed was 7 m/s, even with the remaining heatshield dropped, and the tolerance of the hitch hiker is 6 m/s ...

The launch and the rescues had worked to good that I had forgotten to 'simulate' the landing of the untested craft ...

So either declare the entire last session as a 'simulation' or use the last quicksave and leave the craft in it's 75x75 orbit and build a refined version to rescue the rescued kerbals.

This time I remembered to test it, and managed to send 4 gawkers to Kerbin orbit and back without issues.

Now just a single rescue, but with 4x EVAs.

Already in my favourite return orbit I flipped retro and did my standard retro burn.

Only to have the new return craft smashed to pieces by the old empty one ...

Luckily I could declare that retroburn a simulation, reverted to pre-burn, nudged inclination and tried again.

This time it actually worked and all 4 kerbals was returned to KSC, contracts fulfilled and everyone's happy.

 

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