Angelo Kerman

Yup! I will be modding KSP 2. I have some ideas on that. I’m assuming that I have to start over from scratch and that not even my latest 3D models will look like they fit in KSP 2’s art style. We will see in a few months. But I plan to create 2-3 mods at most, like SunkWorks (I’m looking at you, procedural boat parts) and flying saucers. Definitely in a wait and see mode. Meanwhile, I might have Buffalo 2 done by end of the month, which would give me time to also wrap up my mission reports and play with this stuff.

Sad for me too because it's an end of an era. I've been modding KSP since 2013 (!) and after Buffalo 2, I'm basically done. I might finish that aerospike from last week, but it depends on how much time I have available. Anyway, bonus update: B2 Pylon!

I was thinking angelfish, actually. Today I reworked the SunkWorks dive control computer so that you can control the dive from any computer on the boat and all the computers will stay in sync. I also beefed up the Electric Charge of the stock fuel cells via a SunkWorks patch (they match the outputs from Extraplanetary Launchpads, and the patch won't be applied if EL is installed), and I added a Size 2 pumpjet part to SunkWorks as well. That concludes all the SunkWorks updates, and you can download the latest update here. I have four parts left until Buffalo 2 is completed!

Hey all, Given that KSP 2 is around the corner, as I've said on other threads, I'll be retiring from KSP 1 modding after I complete Buffalo 2. Unfortunately that means that I won't be finishing the boat parts for SunkWorks. But as a consolation, SunkWorks 0.3.0 is now available: https://github.com/Angel-125/SunkWorks/releases/tag/v0.3.0 Changes - Synchronized the control state of all dive computers on the same vessel, allowing players to control the dive from any computer on the boat. - Increased resource consumption and Electric Charge output on the stock fuel cell and fuel cell array. This patch matches the one in Extraplanetary Launchpads, and won't be applied if EL is installed. New Parts - SW-40 "Ebb Tide" Aquatic Engine: This radially attached aquatic engine propels submarines underwater and offers pitch control. - SW-160 "Neap Tide" Aquatic Engine: This Size 1 aquatic engine propels submarines underwater. - SW-320 "Low Tide" Aquatic Engine: This Size 2 aquatic engine propels submarines underwater. Note: A single Fuel Cell Array is sufficient to power 4 SW-40s or 1 SW-160. You'll need two Fuel Cell Arrays to power a single SW-320. Will there be a SunkWorks for KSP 2? Yup, stay tuned!

The Guppy Submersible Command Pod is still on the books; it's the last part that I'll be making for Buffalo 2 before the mod is complete.

Today I finished up the SW-160 "Neap Tide" Aquatic Engine. It is a Size 1 (1.25m) engine that has the power of 4 of the Ebb Tide radial engines. One B2 Fuel Cell Module can power either 1 SW-160 or 4 SW-40s. You'll find them in SunkWorks as soon as I finish its plugin work and update that mod. Here's a look:

<walks away... bored> Oh, look, a new part that needs to be textured! That's the Neap Tide Aquatic Engine that I messed with a bit today. It needs more work. Anyway, I appreciate you two sharing your experiences and insight, especially while I get the submarine parts done.

The ice-cream machine? Huh. I figured it was the coffee machine, but I'm biased.

The documentary I watched said there are two crews for one submarine. Maybe it's one of them? I'm definitely curious @TheSaint@Ooglak Kerman

Thank you for reminding me, that's an oversight on my part. After checking Sandcastle, I realized that I hadn't published the mini-smelter yet. Here is the release that has the new part. Also, I was watching a documentary on submarines this morning, and while it's my day off from modding, I did revisit the B2 Bioreactor part after discovering that submarines pull breathable oxygen right out of the seawater to replenish their reserves. So, I updated the part by removing the snorkel tubes and changing the Compressor converter into the Oxygenator converter. So long as the vessel is splashed and on a planet with an oxygenated atmosphere, it will produce Oxidizer. And with Snacks' Fresh Air enabled, it'll produce Fresh Air as well. I also fixed the missing Electric Charge requirements on the converters. Anyway, you can find the updated Buffalo 2 pre-release here.

Today I retextured the Buffalo's WB-24 "Ebb Tide" Pumpjet and turned it into the SW-40 "Ebb Tide" Aquatic Engine. This will be part of SunkWorks, so next update will actually be SunkWorks. Anyway, here's a look:

I took a small break from Buffalo 2 today to work on an idea that I've had for awhile: a 3.75m diameter aerospike! This is a conical version of my Mk-33 mod's linear aerospike, and it reuses many of the meshes that I did. It's a side project, one I hope to be done with before the end of the year, so don't expect a lot of updates while I continue to work through Buffalo 2...

Yup.

Thanks! I'm in the home stretch of this project and am trying to get it finished before the end of the year. Ideally, I want it done before December. Unfortunately, yes, it's too late for that. But Buffalo 2 has been set up as a backdoor replacement of MOLE since the start- that's why the body parts have the Station variant. Most of the parts in MOLE are now part of the Making History expansion and are no longer needed. Today, I finished up the B2 Bioreactor Module. It converts Fish into Liquid Fuel, and converts IntakeAir into Oxidizer. For the latter, you'll need a source of IntakeAir, which you'll get on planets with oxygenated atmospheres. Anyway, here's a look: (Yup, the converter is inspired from Subnautica's Bioreactor.) The latest pre-release has the new part in it. Next up will be the aquatic propulsion parts. They might go into SunkWorks since I have some plugin fixes to make, and you'd need SunkWorks installed to use them.

It turns Fish into Liquid Fuel, and IntakeAir into Oxidizer

I've got a bunch to do this week, but I'm making progress on the B2 Bioreactor. Here's a look: It's getting there, I just need to unwrap and texture a few things. Hopefully it'll be done by the weekend.

Chapter 34 JUS-1, the oldest Jool Upper Stage in the fleet, departed Drax Fuel Depot and arrived at the Orbital Dynamics Shipyard three hours later. Yard workers then attached the first Minmus Habitat Module to the JUS and sent it on its way to Minmus. The habitat module was their last project for a while; they were headed home, and a new crew would continue building the modules for Minmus Base… A day later, Scott, Mabo, and Frolie boarded a prototype of Frolie’s “Buffalo 2” rover- so named because he didn’t like the boxy-looking design that he originally created, so he decided to change it. “I like this ride, Frolie,” Scott said from the driver’s seat. No doubt about it, driving the rover was fun! “Thanks, boss,” Frolie answered. “I’m satisfied with this new Buffalo design. We’re also going to test the tilt rotor soon.” “Uh, tilt rotor?” “Yeah… didn’t you see the memo,” Frolie asked. “Um, I’ve been kind of busy…” “Hrmph. Well, remember when were at Billstown, and I said that we could build a modular Buffalo?” “Yeah,” Scott answered. “I remember that several modules were derived from the old Mark One Laboratory Extensions that they flew during Mϋnflight, and we talked about making the Buffalo modular so that we could use the body components as a base as well.” “Right,” Frolie confirmed. “Well, my R&D team did their research and development very well, and as a result, the Buffalo is so modular, it can be more than just a base and a rover. With the right mods, we can turn it into a tilt rotor, a station, a superstructure for a ship, and even a submarine. I’m sure we can come up with other configurations as well.” “Wow,” Mabo exclaimed. “Wait, a submarine?” “Yup! Just add some internal bracing and the body components can withstand high pressures. We’re working with SunkWorks to build specialized components like aquatic propulsion, ballast tanks, and a dedicated submersible cockpit, but once that’s done, we’ll be able to build subs as well.” “Wow,” Scott repeated Mabo’s sentiment. “Really well done, Frolie.” The flight crew parked their new ride next to Resolute and boarded the Mk33 for their trip into space. Shortly afterwards, the company’s new crop of engineers boarded the craft as well. Resolute taxied onto Runway 090 Right, paused briefly for the blast deflector to raise and for takeoff clearance, and then shot down the runway as soon as Scott firewalled the jet engines and lit the Velociraptors. As the Mk33 sped down the runway, Scott could see the unused launchpad off to the left. “So much easier than before,” he remarked as Resolute rotated off the runway and angled upwards for the boost into space. Right on cue, the Panther jet engines cut out at 25,000 meters altitude and Resolute continued the climb into orbit. Five minutes later, Mk33-04 achieved a 114.3km by 115.6km orbit. “We’ve got a nine-hour wait for our transfer window,” Mabo said. “I wonder if, someday, we can whittle that down…” “Who knows,” Scott answered, “maybe our cache of 'element zero' can help.” “Have we figured out anything else about it,” Frolie asked. “Not yet,” Scott admitted. “The National Research Laboratory is completely stumped on where the electric charge goes after element zero is saturated. It seems that our technology just isn’t advanced enough to determine that. That reminds me, we have to fly an auditor from the General Accounting Office up to the Magic Boulder to assess exactly how much blutonium it contains- and I’m afraid, they’ll find out just how much of that exotic matter we have as well. Sara couldn’t get around it- the auditor is a requirement for handing over the blutonium. I also suspect that the NRL wants to get their hands on more element zero.” Nearly a day later, Resolute docked with Orbital Dynamics Shipyard. After exchanging pleasantries with the station crew- who were hungover from drinking “hydrazine” that the vonKermans smuggled aboard- the combined crew transferred the fresh supplies of snacks and fresh air over to the station. Then, after saying their tearful goodbyes, the vonKermans boarded Kallisto and departed for their trip home. Most of the crew were saddened and stressed out from the thought of rehabilitating on Kerbin after spending so much time in space, so Kontrol flew the space plane on automatic the whole way down. With Kallisto safely on the ground, Resolute, with its weary passengers, departed Orbital Dynamics Shipyard as well and returned to Welcome Back Island. * A week later, on Moctez 25, 2003, the Duna Schaffer rover entered high orbit around the Rusty Planet. Then, another three days later, the Duna Geo Observer entered low orbit. Of the Second Duna Fleet, only the Estonian 2 had yet to enter orbit, and it was 52 days behind… * As the Ministry of Space assessed the condition of their two vehicles, JUS-1/Minmus Hab 1 arrived at Gateway Station, where Tesen took control of the vessel and parked it next to the station. Then she flew the PMV over to JUS-1/Minmus Hab 1 and grabbed the habitat module, docking it to the underside of the ULM. Next, she returned the PLM to its perch on the station and then handed JUS-1 back to Drax Mission Control. Finally, DMC commanded the tug to rendezvous and dock with Drax Fuel Depot 2. It arrived a couple of hours later. Back at Gateway Station, ULM/Hab 1 departed the complex and landed at Minmus Base under the cover of darkness. Thanks to the relay satellites in orbit, the station crew at Gateway Station remotely extended Hab 1’s forward docking tube and piloted ULM/Hab 1 over to an available docking tube on the Interim Command Module. The base still lacked sufficient stores of snacks and fresh air, but its converters were hard at work producing air from the water pulled from the ground. KSP’s scientists and engineers determined that by the time that Hab 2 arrived, the base would have what it needed… At Drax Fuel Depot 2, the aerospace company completed refueling JUS-1 for its experimental return flight. Seven hours later, it left Minmus’ SOI, but it still had another eight and a half days to reach low Kerbin orbit. * At Duna, the Ministry of Space cleared their spacecraft for operations on and around the Rusty Planet. They sent their first Duna Geo Lander on its way and aimed for the Lowlands in a spot dubbed Kraken’s Lament. Owning to the inaccuracy of the probe design, the Geo Lander completely missed its target. Fortunately, all it needed to do was land in the Lowlands, and after finding a suitable spot, it deployed its chutes to slow down, and used its engine for the final few meters. The next morning, DGL-1 took its sensor readings for local gravity and beamed the results through the relay network back to MoS Mission Control. The second lander aimed for Sector LLX-4 in one of Duna’s notable craters. Unfortunately, the probe inaccuracy struck again; DGL-2 overshot the landing zone, tried to compensate by burning nearly all its remaining propellant, and in a desperation move, deployed its solar arrays to increase drag. Sadly, its attempts all failed, and the probe landed hard in the Highlands just past the crater. The rough landing snapped off its primary antenna and crushed one of its solar panels while its other panel rolled underneath the lander. Clever use of the landing legs enabled MoSMC to roll the lander until its one good panel could point towards the sky. The next morning, it took readings in the highlands and transmitted its data. The third landing attempt aimed for Kerbin’s Prize, one of the craters along Duna’s equator. This MosMC was successful; DGL-3 landed in the crater and took its gravity and seismic readings. DGL-4 aimed for LLX-4 and performed its deorbit burn. At a pre-programmed time, the lander ignited its motor a second time to slow down in the upper atmosphere, and then followed the example of its predecessor and deployed its solar panels to increase drag. The plan worked; there was no doubt that DGL-4 would land in the notable crater. Then, moments before deploying its chutes, the lander retracted its solar arrays to prevent breakage during landing. Finally, DGL-4 landed upright 5.6 km away from the LLX-4 landing zone, then sent the results of its experiments on their way. For DGL-5, the Duna Geo Observer adjusted its inclination and orbital altitude to reach the target area. The spacecraft had more than enough delta-v available to do so. After taking some gravity readings in high orbit over the mountains, DGL-5 detached from the payload carrier and deorbited a day later. It attempted to land in the mountains next to Lem’s Knoll, but it hit the mountain and slid down its face, coming to rest a mere 3.7km away from the target. Finally, DGL-6 detached from the payload carrier and aimed for Sector SNJ3, a zone near the south pole. Given how inaccurate the probes were, MoSMC had little hope of landing in the target zone. Nonetheless, they did their best to aim the spare probe at its target. Sadly, it overshot, burned through its propellant in a feeble attempt to slow down, and ripped off its solar arrays in a failed desperation move. Surprisingly, with no propellant to slow down with, the probe managed to land upright… With its primary mission complete, the Duna Geo Observer briefly deorbited long enough to discard its payload carrier. The Geo Observer no more, MoS Tug 2 matched planes with Duna Basecamp and rendezvoused a few hours later. From there, MoS Tug 2 shed its now empty drop tanks and they docked with the growing fuel depot before docking itself to MoS Tug 1. MT-1 also shed its tanks and donated them to the depot. * Duna Schaffer patiently waited in orbit since its arrival, and now it was finally its turn to act. As the site known as Sector LLX-4, located in a notable crater, entered daylight, the Schaffer rover activated its fuel cells, separated from its payload carrier, and lined up for its deorbit burn. A half-hour later, the deorbit motor ignited and sent the rover on its way down. Learning from past landing attempts, the rover lacked a heat shield- it didn’t need one- and instead it had airbrakes to help slow it down when the time came. The plasma fires engulfed the rover on its way down and gave MoS Mission Control anxiety, but the rover soon reestablished its uplink. Not long after, it deployed its chutes and discarded its descent stage. As the stage met its end on the crater floor, the rover comfortably slowed down enough for its landing rockets to provide a gentle touchdown- or rather, a touchdown and somersault, followed by a quick recovery. Though it landed 10 km away from the target site, Schaffer could drive to the location. After MosMC verified that the rover was undamaged, the rover conducted a test of its Surface Ablation Laser Light Imager. Then it tried it its PresMat Barometer. Finally, it tried out its Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons experiment. That sensor found evidence of subsurface water in the crater! The rover then set out towards its original landing site. Along the way, it took sensor readings from a Dunastone that it encountered. Several minutes later, the rover reached the designated landing spot but found that it had uneven terrain. As a result, the rover backed up a few hundred meters to flatter terrain. Once MoSMC was satisfied with the location, they designated it Knights Landing and marked the spot on their maps. They finally had a location where they could establish a base! * Now that the rover found a suitable location for a Duna base, the former Duna Schafer carrier, now designated as MoS Tug 3, readied its secondary mission. Eager to test the redesigned Duna Copters, MoSMC hoped to have better success than their predecessors. Duna Copter 3 undocked from the tug and aimed for an area designated as FRN-3G. A few minutes later, the probe’s RCS motors performed the deorbit burn and sent the spacecraft on its way. The Copter slowed down using its speed brakes and used its RCS thrusters to continually course correct to reach the target zone. It was working; as the probe fell through 6,000 meters altitude, the navigation computer noted that the target zone was 6.3 km away. But the true test was about to begin… After applying the airbrakes and discarding the descent stage, DC-3 deployed its parachutes to slow down. Next it spun up its rotors. Unfortunately, the Copter slammed into the floor of the crater at 23 m/sec, crushed its landing gear, and lost most of the lower body- including the science instruments. But it landed. Its modular design prevented an abject failure of the mission, but there wasn't much left. With nothing left to lose, MoSMC commanded the Copter to roll upright and jettison its parachute rig. Then it spun up its rotors and leapt into the Dunan air. The only instrument left was the BTDT sensor, so the probe activated it to investigate an anomaly detected by the SCANSat spacecraft in orbit. After flying around for a while, Duna Copter 3 eventually found it; an unusual rock formation resembling an arch. The probe set down next to the arch, never to lift off again; the damage to its systems was too great… Not long after, Duna Copter 4 departed MoS Tug 3 and headed for the surface. Unfortunately, it fared worse than DC-3. It too slammed into the ground, but unlike its sibling, DC-4 was destroyed. * Back at Minmus Base, the ULM undocked from the base after being fully refueled and headed for orbit. Three hours later, it docked with Gateway Station. After it docked, PPE-1 departed the station in preparation for the next phase of operations. Then, few hours afterwards, ULM/Ostrich landed at Minmus Base with the underslung OSSC. After Tesen dropped the OSSC, docked to the Landing Puck to refuel the lander, and the station crew entered the base, Rosey Kerman unloaded the OSSC's RTG units while Elke mcKerman deployed the science experiments. The team was excited to perform new science on Minmus! Of course, it would be another few weeks until their laboratory module arrived… * On Axaya 7, 2003, JUS-1 reached low Kerbin orbit and tucked away its solar arrays, docking ports, and relay antennas in preparation for its experiment. Just after battening down the hatches, JUS-1 plunged into Kerbin’s upper atmosphere. The flames of reentry engulfed the spacecraft, but it slowed down and exited the atmosphere a couple of minutes later- intact, thanks to the transpirational cooling of its engines and lower thrust structure. Since JUS-1 dipped no lower than 51 km, it had another seven days to try again. A week later, JUS-1 repeated the process. As before, the spacecraft vented some of its cryogenic propellants to cool down, and again it worked. Then, two days later, it once again repeated its feat. This time, it performed a supersonic retro-propulsion maneuver to lower its orbit. Again, JUS-1 emerged from the flames without damage. Over the course of the next several hours, JUS-1 returned to Drax Fuel Depot with about a third of its propellant remaining. Though the experiment was a success, it cost a significant amount of propellant to travel from Minmus to Kerbin. To make it cost-effective, Drax needed to build much larger tankers, and/or somehow convince Kongress to let private industry operate nuclear rockets like they allowed the private sector to operate nuclear power plants after the end of the Last War. If his source in the Kerman Air Force was correct, then there might be a way to get his wish… * Fully refueled, JUS-1 departed Drax Fuel Depot and shuttled over to Orbital Dynamics Shipyard, where it acquired the Electrolysis Puck and Minmus Hab 2. Shortly thereafter, JUS-1 departed the station and headed for Minmus. Calming caught an external image of the departing spacecraft and marveled at the technology. The new Minmus modules were large, but the Jool Upper Stage dwarfed them! Not long after, Drax Aerospace launched ULM-2 into orbit, something that KSP hadn’t originally planned on. Why? A week ago, when Mission Control directed Minmus Base to send ULM/Ostrich back to Gateway Station, Tesen had the nerve to ask, “If we have an emergency and we have to leave the base, how do we return to Gateway Station if the Ostrich is already docked there?” “Mulch” was the answer that Mission Control had at the time, followed by a hasty effort to stack the spare Universal Landing Module onto a Jool Wide Load, and launch it into orbit as soon as possible. So, ULM-2 careened through space a few hours behind JUS-1 and its stack of cargo… Eight days later, the new craft entered Minmus orbit. ULM-2 arrived at Gateway Station first; its Jool Upper Stage, now designated JUS-6, shuttled over to Drax Fuel Depot 2 after dropping off its payload. JUS-1/Hab 2 arrived next and parked the stack on the underside of ULM-2. Having fulfilled its mission, the obsolete upper stage briefly docked to Drax Fuel Depot 2, donated nearly all its remaining propellant, undocked, and deorbited… Back at Gateway Station, ULM-2, with Hab 2 and the Electrolysis Puck in tow, departed the station and headed for Minmus Base. Just after making an automated landing nearby, Tesen took manual control of the vehicle and slowly walked it over to the base via its RCS thrusters. After hitching up Hab 2, Tesen undocked ULM-2/Electrolysis Puck and moved it over to its designated parking spot. Then, Rosey hopped out and hooked up the transfer hose. “Hab 2 powered up and unsealed”, Gwenmy said, “it’s ready to be lived in.” “Great,” Tesen said excitedly. “I was getting tired of sleeping in the briefing room.” “When do we get our lab,” Glesby asked. “Playing with those new science instruments are great, but I am missing the lab work.” “It should be in the shipment after next,” Rosey answered. “We’ll be getting the lab along with our command module. KSP is doubling up the modules they ship now that we’ve got the infrastructure to refuel the depot.” “Speaking of,” Gwenmy interrupted, “that Drax tanker is finally fueled up.” * Since Minmus Base wouldn’t be getting its command module until after the lab was delivered, Tesen hopped into ULM-1/Ostrich and used its console to order the tanker to lower its shields remotely start up the Drax fuel tanker. The large vehicle ran through its pre-flight checklist. Then, it fired up its RCS thrusters and moved away from the base before igniting its main engines for the climb to orbit. “Off it goes,” Tesen said as it climbed away from the base. “Hopefully we’ll refuel Magellan soon too. I don’t like that we’re stuck here- unless we use one of the ULMs to get home.” Three hours later, the tanker arrived at Drax Fuel Depot 2 and offloaded its propellants. Then, after Drax Aerospace repositioned its Jool Upper Stages and sent them on their way back to Kerbin, the tanker departed and headed back to the surface. It landed an hour later, and Rosey hooked up the transfer hose once more. Finally, the fully refueled ULM-2 lifted off the surface and shuttled back to Gateway Station where it waited patiently for the next shipment. * Eight days after it left, JUS-6 arrived in Kerbin orbit with its “payload” of three other Jool Upper Stages, two of which were full of propellants. As JUS-1 did before it, JUS-6 ignited its engines as the assembly shot through the atmosphere and slowed down. While the hardware survived the trip through the atmosphere, Drax Control had to burn about a two-thirds of the remaining propellant to slow down sufficiently attain orbit and rendezvous with Drax Fuel Depot. As each JUS docked to the Depot, Drax Kerman again thought about the profit margin of shipping propellants from Minmus to Kerbin orbit- only a third of the propellant is profit? Unacceptable! * A half-hour after the last JUS docked with the Drax Fuel Depot, JUS-2 entered Minmus’ SOI and circularized its orbit. It took another three and a half hours for it to rendezvous with Gateway Station and offload its cargo. The last of the dual-propellant Jool Upper Stages, JUS-2 shuttled over to Drax Fuel Depot 2, where it offloaded nearly all its remaining propellant, detached the payload carrier, and then moved away from the station. Not long after, JUS-2 performed its final engine burn, sending it on a collision course with the ground. * With JUS-2 disposed of, back at Gateway Station, ULM-2 departed the station with its cargo and headed for the ground. A half-hour later, the lander delivered the Water Splitter Module as well as the Electrolysis Puck to Minmus Base. Tesen docked took over control of ULM-2 and docked the WSM to the Support Module before detaching the second Electrolysis Puck from the stack and moving ULM-2/EP-2 nearby. At least, that was the plan. She realized too late that she undocked ULM-2 from the entire stack! Fortunately, she had a backup plan. She carefully maneuvered ULM-1/Ostrich over to the stack and had the spacecraft take the place of ULM-2. Then, ULM-2 took ULM-1/Ostrich’s place on the Landing Puck. Next, Rosey stepped outside and disconnected the Landing Puck’s umbilical hose after ULM-2 received a full propellant load. Then, Tesen remotely moved ULM-2 out of the way and dropped Electrolysis Puck 2 in its place. Next, Rosey connected the umbilical hose to EP-2, and, while she was at it, disconnected the Drax Tanker’s hose as well. Finally, Minmus Base had all the electrolysis devices needed to rapidly turn the gray water from the aquifer into usable propellium and oxidizer. That meant that ULM-2 could return to Gateway Station. Tesen directed the lander to take off and head for the station with the Landing Puck in tow. At the appropriate suborbital altitude, ULM-2 discarded the now obsolete Landing Puck and left it to its fate. And after circularizing its orbit, ULM-2 docked with Gateway Station two hours later. * Audrey Kerman wasn’t looking forward to her flight. She passed the physical and the training, but she just wasn’t excited about hurtling her body into the void of space. She’d rather stay on the ground, thank you very much, and leave the space stuff to the professionals. She wasn’t a tourist, either. This was a business trip. Her employer needed her skills up in orbit, so up she went. There were just four of them; herself, Scott, and Mabo- the two pilots-, and Frolie, the flight engineer. They were the ones whose expertise she’d need to answer her questions. They sat inside the cockpit of Orbital Dynamics’ Dauntless, the “tanker” configured space plane that carried extra fuel- propellant- whatever- that they’d need to refuel their spaceship. Audrey ignored the chatter from the cockpit crew as they went through the paces of launch, ascent, and orbit, and instead focused on her checklist: make sure they answer all her questions truthfully. Double-check their paperwork. Inspect the machinery for signs of- shall we say- misrepresenting the expected values. When the main engines stopped firing and the Dauntless attained orbit, Audrey finally understood why so many kerbals before her flew into space: the view was tremendous! She couldn’t help but stare out the cockpit windows. “We have about 2 hours until our transfer window opens,” Scott said from the left seat if the cockpit. Plenty of time for Audrey stare out the window mor- “So, how long have you been at the Government Accounting Office,” Frolie asked, interrupting her reverie. She frowned ever so slightly. “Uh, about fifteen years,” she answered. “Have you had any other jobs like this one?” “Uh, no, not quite,” Audrey admitted. “Well, that’s not true. I did an audit of Aquarius’ mining systems once,” she continued. “The ore they were producing under contract didn’t match some of the reports that we got. It turned out that they were skimming off the top.” “Aquarius,” Frolie asked. “Is that a company?” Audrey nodded. “Aquarius Mining Company. They had an underwater mining rig, called the Aquarius- big surprise there- off the east coast, where they mined the ore for the government. I had to take a submarine 452 meters down to the seabed to reach the rig. The thought of getting crushed by several metric tons of pressure like a tin can wasn’t very appealing, but I got used to it. Plus, I kept my mind off the thought by focusing on the job. That rig had a lot of documents to read through, not to mention the machinery!” Two and a half hours later, Dauntless arrived at Homestead Waystation, and Scott and Mabo guided the big space plane into the forward docking port. Shortly afterwards, Frolie flipped some switches on his console that sent propellant from the payload tank modules over to Finch. “I didn’t realize that you had two spacecraft,” Audrey noted aloud. “Well, Seagull is only for orbital transfers,” Frolie responded, pointing to the smaller ship, “and small ones at that. It can go between our hotel, waystation, and shipyard. They’re in low orbits. To go to the Magic Boulder, we need the Finch- the one with the large heat shield. In fact, I should make a note to move the Seagull back to our hotel...” With the fuel transfer, Finch had enough to reach the Magic Boulder and back, so the crew put Dauntless on automatic and boarded their orbital transport. “Preflight check complete,” Scott said from the command pod, “casting off from the Waystation. Our next destination is the Magic Boulder.” Nine minutes later, Finch made a small plane change maneuver, then lined up for their transfer burn an hour later. “Finch is the one that you flew to the Mϋn with,” Audrey said, “right?” “That’s right,” Frolie responded. “Me, Scott, and some tourists became the first commercial crew to reach the Mϋn and walk on the surface. We flew in ‘ole Finch here. The design is based on the Magellan Mϋnar Shuttle Module, but it’s more modular. When we added in the habitat section and our Orbital Cargo Transfer Vehicle- uh, the space tug with the big heat shield- we were able reach the Mϋn without going stir crazy. And Minmus too- we’re headed there soon. Interestingly enough, KSP had us refit Magellan based on the Finch- except for its atomic rocket, of course.” Finch arrived at the Magic Boulder and docked to its pier without incident. Audrey and Frolie stepped outside of the Finch, and Audrey strapped herself into the nearby Kerbal Maneuvering Unit- it had more propellant than the small jet packs that had been in use since the early days of the space program. The two jetted over to the Astro Tug, ruined from its efforts to lower and circularize VDP-762’s orbit. Over the next several hours, Frolie answered Audrey’s meticulous questions about the mining process, the storage bladders that he invented, how the spacecraft sorted and counted the various resources, the reported amounts, and so on. Orbital Dynamics’ Chief Technology Officer answered her questions to her satisfaction, and she could see the relief on the engineer’s face. Not long after, the pair returned to the Finch, which went back to the Waystation. A quick layover later, the astronauts boarded Dauntless for their trip home.

Buffalo 2 is the successor to Buffalo.

Ah. Yeah, that's by design. The Fuel Cell Module is already set to generate 100EC/sec. You'll need that to power the upcoming aquatic engine.

18 kerbals on Independence's 18th flight! Yo ho ho and...

Not a bug, the new Fuel Cell Module is supposed to generate 100 EC/sec. If anything the PSU should be buffed.

Buffasub Mk2 test: Jeb carefully maneuvers the sub next to the docking port of SeaBase: SeaBase crew has been transferred: I've got some bugs to fix in SunkWorks, but this is a nice test of Buffalo 2 in sea mode.

Space Battleships?