Hotel26

Leg 15 [prev] [next] [progress] [click & arrows] Departed: -20.713/67.441 @ 3.256.4.8 Airborne: 68m Heading: 205 Distance: 471.9 km Altitude: 4.0 km Arrival: -59.210/31.415 Dick is happy today to finally fly what he calls "the Great Circle route". (Instead of going directly toward the ultimate destination, the "great circle" route is a more leisurely meandering toward any point of more proximate interest.) In this case, he has packed his fly fishing tackle and will be heading to a gorge at the foot of a prominent mountain on a lonely, southern island. Hooray. Dick is today, also, to set a new distance record: 471.9 km. Go, Dick!

Ehm, that's the early Mendeleev keyboard...? It's expanded to hundreds of keys now...

Including tweaking the Spring and Dampener settings, yes?? I set Spring:1 and Damping:1.5 by default on all craft as a starting point and then tune as required from there. There can be aerodynamic causes for 'bucking' but the above addresses the common causes. Tho this does sound like one of the aerodynamic causes... Another ritual of mine is to set Snap in the Hangar and then Absolute Rotate the landing gear to ensure it is true in all 3 axes. After that, I'd take a look at which point makes contact first. (E.g. if you're landing on the nose gear first, problemo.) Slow, full flare landings are always safer.

Good idea. I think a single Ant+Oscar would do it. And dump the extensible solar panels. 2,860 kg with 220 m/s dV. (You can be sure you'd find me in the line at the space port to purchase a CAT 1 ticket, however!!)

Here's my formal submission of the Pod IV mission. Pod IV weighed in at 3,076 kg after separation from its Escort Transit Injection Booster. See slides 3 and 4 in the following for Escort TIB burn back result and Pod IV initial mass after separation... The following sequence shows highlights of the "fox hunt" at Moho. Note slides 3 and 7, showing intercept distance and closing speed, arrest and capture with remaining dV of 4 km/s: I am submitting this mission under Category 2. I have to say that chasing down the Pod IV in Moho SOI has been the most thrilling exploit I have ever enjoyed in KSP. Reason enough!

Penny drops...

Well, I believe I have qualified an entry, technically. It's initial mass, leaving Kerbin SOI solo, is 3,194 kg. I present Pod IV: Furthermore, the final version (shown above) will have only a single PB-X50 xenon tank, reducing its total mass to 3,101 kg for a dV of 968 m/s. I am not going to post this provisional, CAT 2 entry on the leader board at this time and you will see why, based on the following (click + arrows for slide show): Slide 4 shows that I elected to accept a very bad starting point (KAC indicating a transfer window but not aligned with Moho's DN). As a result Slide 5 shows a 19km flyby of Moho at a speed of 7km/s!! 5.9 km/s dV would be required for capture. I do believe that it should be possible to arrive at Moho from Kerbin apoapsis with considerably lower speed differential[1] (particularly if one tunes for a higher, slower Moho SOI periapsis). The upshot is that I will make a formal entry with Pod IV when I am confident also that I could plausibly demonstrate the CAT 2 ("asteroid") capture by a waiting vehicle. In addition, I may elect to take advantage of the 'free' boost from the TIB and use a highly-inclined burn to reduce much of the 7-degree plane change from the get-go. Here's the part list: Hitchhiker, 1K battery, PB-X50 xenon tank, Okto 1 probe core, Dawn ion engine, 6x solar panels[2], 2 pair of 2.5m docks with separators. The final items make the module gangable but were jettisoned to go "solo" for this test. [1] minimum bound 2,335.8 m/s [2] I gave myself the luxury of 6 of these 1x6 solar panels to potentially fully power the Dawn, but the combination of 1K battery and two of these is enough to give full power for a 300 m/s dV maneuver, which is more than I used in total. I was particularly proud of the canted configuration of these which align the bank off the prograde radial and I think make it possible to rotate the craft into one of two positions that ensure close to maximum power from all panels. These panels are only 17.5 kg each, but I figure I can shave 70 kg if required. Finally, note from slide 5 that only 46 units of xenon gas were consumed in making the rather miniscule course corrections (of the order of 43.4 m/s). Since I do regard this exercise as a 'design collaboration', if any one wants to proceed with a similar design and make a further improved entry for CAT 2, I would be thrilled to see it!

Wonderful job and most illuminative! I'll certainly create a class also for transfers performed without gravity assists to encourage other entries. (My current prototype is a whopping 10.997t!)

We didn't even have jet packs in my day. Splash down (if you could, but always welcome after the f.i.e.r.y re-entry) and swim for it. Lucky to get the occasional sachet of shark repellent, we were...

No no. This is the new procedure for sending trainees to the KSS... They need to pilot themselves close enough on first launch to immediate rendez-vous and then jet-pack across. Or wash out... Standards have progressed so much since those "early pioneer days" of the Space Agency!

Incidentally, I should point out that my strategy for the TIB is to use a super-over-powered Escort. Five (5) Rhinos and a TON of fuel: no need to finesse the return, particularly for such a light payload. It has plenty of capacity for a simple "burn back". [Note: old 4x Rhino model depicted] If you find this approach palatable(?), there will be no reason to expand the Stipulations in a complex manner. What do you think?

Yes, as long as you do NOT use the booster to impart any further impetus to the payload after reaching SOI escape. The sticky detail is, of course, course corrections... (I've edited this response for brevity and in light of my next post.) Amended to include the word 'stable'.

Leg 14 [prev] [next] [progress] [click & arrows] Departed: 0.063/104.400 @ 3.255.3.55 Airborne: 62m Heading: 238 Distance: 426.9 km Altitude: 4.5 km Arrival: -20.713/67.441 Dick records his longest leg yet, landing on the beach at Heavenly Valley next to an Aquarius, which will provide fuel.

(Right about now, I am wishing I had chosen e.g. Eve as the target for this exercise!)

But it will be, tomorrow, in Hawaii.

Concept: a lightweight capsule for 4 is a) hurled toward Moho from Kerbin by a recyclable injection booster and b) is caught in Moho SOI by a waiting receiver. This, in order to minimize the equipment/mass sent en route. Stipulations: The payload is required to be a Hitchhiker containing 4 kerbals. The origin is Kerbin and the destination is Moho. A recyclable interplanetary transit injection booster (TIB) may give an unlimited boost to the payload within the Kerbin SOI. The booster must detach before Kerbin escape and demonstrate its own recapture within the Kerbin SOI (from which it is assumed it would subsequently be retrieved by a separate mission). The Hitchhiker must effect its own transit corrections to acquire a Moho encounter (Cat II) and capture (CAT I). It is assumed that equipment (e.g. a host tug) stationed/ready at the destination will retrieve the Hitchhiker and bring it down from high orbit to dock with a Moho space station in LMO. The participant need only demonstrate 1-5 above, but including the Moho capture (by waiting tug) for a Cat II demonstration. You may start, fully-fueled, in any stable Kerbin orbit. Judging is based on lowest mass of the transit vehicle immediately after TIB separation. Kudos will be lavishly awarded for designs that are gangable (and this may become a separate class). Categories: guaranteed Moho capture, then awaiting retrieval for disembarkation/refueling (heavier, easier) mere Moho encounter, then awaiting capture and retrieval (lighter, harder) Criterion: "it's the mass and nothing but the mass", of the Hitchhiker vehicle. Couldn't be simpler. Participants should supply evidentiary screenshots i) immediately after TIB separation and ii) upon completion of the Moho capture (Cat 1 & 2). Welcome to the 22nd century. Mass CAT 1 CAT 2 Gravity Assist 2250 Teilnehmer 3076 Hotel26 4550 camajcu

Leg 13 [prev] [next][progress] [click & arrows] Departed: -17.151/125.015 @ 3.255.1.58 Airborne: 40m Heading: 308 Distance: 276.3 km Altitude: 3.5 km Arrival: 0.063/104.400 "Only those who continue to the end, ehm... will make it to the end." Famous last words since it has been nearly three months since Dick's last, Apocalyptic Ride of the Valkyries. Back in the saddle, though, and a couple of celebrations to be made! the trusty Chippewa has reached Netherania: the opposite point on the planet from the KSC departure point. Hooray! Dick clocked a record speed of 130.6 m/s (straight & level) and also discovered how to engage Atmospheric Autopilot in this particular helicopter. Hooray! We are back in business, boys and girls!

Yes, it does, above and beyond the call of duty, and a very impressive job, @xendelaar. Congratulations, you have joined the Honor Roll at position 2 and you have earned the badge, which you can find in the Original Post. If you wish, you are welcome to post it in your signature and encouraged to embed it with a link to this challenge (OP). Well done! P.S. and my apologies for taking so long to acknowledge your entry; I missed it some how.

^ this. a.k.a "kallons".

I've been watching this thread, quite fascinated. My chief impression is to wonder why people think there isn't enough challenge in KSP? It seems gravity assists and high-energy transfers are fertile ground for moah challenge. This has gotten me thinking about whether a slingshot via Mun on exit to get a 7-degree (Kerbol) plane change for Moho might not be a very effective tool and quite easy as gravity assists go??

Do you put access ladders on your craft as required[1], or do you omit them due to scalaphobia[2]? Here's the poll you've been waiting for. [1] you know, "by passengers" [2] "fear of ladders"

I have so many things I want to do in KSP yet[1]. But my life expectancy limits the number of launches I have remaining... I need to get the biggest kick out of every launch. I know there are Challenge Masters who have built monster fuel tankers, but I think your Kataklysm and my Titan 3 are the right size to amortize the cost. Even so, our S4 tankers cross the line beyond which there is no point anymore trying to deliver the fuel to e.g. a space station. I fly this Titan into the lowest orbit with an eye on the inclination all the way and then just leave it there, like a beached whale. Nuclear tugs fetch/distribute the fuel from there with slow, 20-orbit rendez-vous... (I can do other things while that happens.) [1] I'm not even thinking about KSP2.

Yep, if you want to know what it is like to work at NASA on a team sending a flight to Jupiter and how it feels to see it go into orbit 5 years later... and hope you made good notes originally about why you are going there and what to do next... My Splice world, comparatively, is like moving to SpaceX. Things move a bit faster! (Just a footnote, in further explanation. The part that's not tedious is that the non-warp rule causes lots of concurrent missions to come into play. I typically have something like 350-370 flights in operation. Managing this is, well, tedious, but it's also an interesting challenge. Plus the hard-reality of extended missions. Admittedly, Splice is somewhat a 'retreat'. I decided, based on certain forum discussions lately (notably about Moho), that I really wanted to fast-track my interplanetary transition experience/skill. Here we are, in a new world, with hybridization and adaptation. )

tl;dr I've been operating my mainline Orbit world since January 2018 at "snail speed" (no warping >30m), but a month ago, opened my new Splice world, to speed things up. I'm ready for my first harvest. I have 5 flights around Moho, 1 around Eve, 6 around Duna and 1 around Ike. (I will spare you the complete photo shoot.) Of all those, I am most elated about HZ6 Zenith making it to Moho: Hmm, OK. Now I face the small issue. All this equipment is in my Splice world. But I need it in my Orbit world. Oh dear; now what? Any suggestions...?

Appreciate getting onto the leaderboard -- and thanks for running the challenge -- I think Spricigo has a lower part count than I do? I had expected him to place third, so far.