Auto Captured Asteroid?

[Tank Buddy]

I was time warping to wait for an Eve Launch window and this happened (No interaction by me):

That's the easiest Asteroid capture I've ever done. But it turns out in the tracking station it shows an escape trajectory nearly forming an orbit.

Also, I've had 2 hell krakens in the last minute :c

Edited April 6, 2014 by Tank Buddy

[electronicfox]

I've had 2 auto-captures (certainly makes sciencing much easier). Seems they sometimes get caught in the SOI of the Mun or Minmus in such a way that they get lose their escape trajectory.

[benc85]

Is that clipping Kerbins atmosphere?

[Tank Buddy]

Is that clipping Kerbins atmosphere?

No, it had a 500 Km Ap. I just rendezvoused with it, but if I time warp my ship explodes. I switched to another ship and the same happened, so I'm gonna give KSP a break.

[Skyrunner27]

That is just the way that non active crafts appear when on escape trajectory. While it is possible to capture an asteroid using reverse gravity assists. It is highly unlikely.

[Mach_XXII]

I have 3 a E , A And a B class that all got self captured. Then I move the E class asteroid into an 85000 orbit

[problemecium]

I agree with the above poster - just because an orbit appears closed in the map doesn't mean it'll stay that way, and the Tracking Station will let you know if this is the case (which I think it is). Not that auto-captures are impossible; I actually have one too and even the Tracking Station predicts it'll have a stable orbit.

[Tex]

I had perhaps two or three "auto-captures" myself. I remember that the first one got about three orbits in before the Mun caught it and threw it out again... XD

[cantab]

As I understand it it's not possible for an auto-captured asteroid to be stable long term. If it was captured thanks to the Mun or Minmus, it must cross near their orbit and will sooner or later make a pass again. If it's aerobraked, it will keep aerobraking down every orbit until it hits Kerbin.

Of course, you can stabilise the orbit with an appropriate nudge yourself.

[Dooz]

I had this Occur with Tylo when on a Jool Mission

If its a Apoapsis it will be captured

[stevism]

just recently had this happen to me with an E that i'd been tracking...

i've only captured Cs and below so far, so when i saw this E captured I launched a 3 kerbal scout mission ASAP.

was nice to get some research done as to just HOW big these E-class behemoths are...and now I can build a capturing probe accordingly

[Landge]

My first successful attempt at asteroid capture, C class, in sandbox mode.

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When I got back in Kerbin's SOI another rock was already in orbit (look at the 10th image) with no help from me. It has since made several orbits around Kerbin. It's orbit is in an inclined polar orbit with a Pe around +500 km. Ap is out past Minmus well below the elliptical plane. I have no idea if Mun or Minmus had altered it's course.

It seems to be a regular occurrence. It has happened to me in career mode too. Similar polar orbit but this time it's Ap is high above the elliptic. As soon as I can unlock 'the claw' I'm going to retrieve it too.

Sadly no earth shattering kaboom. Is that too much to ask? ;'(

Edited April 6, 2014 by Landge

[nascar241993]

There's a C-class asteroid currently in orbit around Kerbin on my career mode game.

[NeoMorph]

I wonder if we will get a snooker encounter at some time... ie Asteroid to Asteroid collision.

[Werwolf]

I wonder if we will get a snooker encounter at some time... ie Asteroid to Asteroid collision.

Wouldn`t do anything. Asteroids simply fly through each other.

[cantab]

Surely if you're with one, they won't.

[Spica]

Once i was autocaptured by the mun, but that was a LONG time ago, like 0.18.

[Clockwork13]

I almost had an auto captured asteroid that passed through the atmosphere but never crashed. Too bad I was using timewarp so it never captured itself in Kerbin's SOI

[Liowen]

I captured one and when I went into map mode I notice 2 more the were in orbit around Kerbin. I believe one has a 78km periapsis, I wasn't even tracking them either. But what I am curious about is their "signal strength" when you click on the information tab in map mode, is that how long it will last unless you intervene or something else?

[magnemoe]

I had this Occur with Tylo when on a Jool Mission

If its a Apoapsis it will be captured

I too have had Tylo intercepts who has almost been captures, you get an orbit but an small exit and enter node on top.

In KSP system you can not get an capture this way, I think you could get an capture if it intercept Mun SOI, and it raise Pe and lover Ap so it stay in orbit, this orbit however will intercept Mun SOI and would not be stable