Warzouz

For the cash : Since dV was reduced from 4500 to 3200, SSTO aren't much more expensive than a regular rockets (I was quite surprised when I build a regular launcher for my space station. I had to use very few engine and many boosters to get the price significantly down. As you progress in the campaign you get more and more cash as you start using heavier and heavier payload. BUT recoverable SSTO rockets need quite some tech (batteries, probe core, efficient engines, big control wheels...) you may not be able to use that from the start. I never had any issue with cash. As for landing, I never aim for KSC, I always target the east sea. In the end, my average recovery is 20 to 70km from KSC with a 97% value recovery. Landing a SSTO is not a precision manoeuvre. Check my table below. Except for the 15T Payload my average cost per T (after average recovery rate) is from 360 to 440 funds. And if you don't revoer the rocket the launcher maybe twice the price, not 10 times more.

Hard for SSTO spaceplanes. Ultra easy for SSTO rockets. I've build my 600T LKO launcher in 10min from my 300T launcher (even I never used this 600T in my career ; I don't have such heavy payload). First test to LKO : success. Just strap more engines and fuel, check for TWR to be in the sweet spot (same for all rockets) check for delta-V. Launch. The only limitation for SSTO rockets is you computer capacity to handle many parts.

True, but Duna is more rewarding for 2 reason You can easily land on you first trip You have a better scenery. I remember my first trip to Duna, it was a double Duna/Ike joint mission.

I used exactly this technique in beta 0.9 when I noticed I set the large docking port in the wrong orientation a saw it detached with the debris... I edited the file by coping the docking port from a station on launchpad. I found adding a part is easier than removing one (which I used KIS for that).

You can also send a small landing probe with antenna an transmit the seismic data at each location. The probe will be very small. I used one of those on Mun (less than 900kg for 7000m/s). But of course, if you want to max science return, you have to send a manned vehicle there;

I don't understand what this wasn't integrated into the game. It's a very nice asset, really in line with some asteroid contracts.

True, this is the way to do it. You rarely need separatrons if you do that. I already launched a 80T space stations and still not used any seperatons even I usually use radial decouplers. I would add to put the side engines below the central core engine. So when the booster will open like a flower, their bottom, even if the come closer the central core, won't hit it because the core would already have moved forward.

Thanks @Basto, SSTO rocket are now harder to use because engines don't resist as well as before. They tend to burn now. My launchers were very efficient ans easy to use in 1.0.4 and even 1.0.5. But since 1.1, the reentry profile maybe kind of awkward (or Kerbal). I'm not sad, before after using them in my last career, I felt thos SSTO are largely OP. They are very easy to build, very easy to fly and easy to land (to get 97%) when you know what to do. Building a regular staged rocket was more complex (you have to deal with flipping risks on each stage. As for asparagus, since dV went down from 4500 to 3200m/s, I find them useless. Sure it's more efficient, but not much and the building of the launch stage takes more time. In the end it's largely more expensive than SSTO. In my current career, I just do regular 2 stage rockets which I rebuild each time. I don't really care much as I focus on my LKO vehicle.

Well, that's not very true... 1- Airbrakes were very efficient in 1.0.4. In 1.0.5 and 1.1.x, they will simply burn very quickly (< 5 seconds), except if you tweak their stats in the part file... Airbrakes aren't designed for atmospheric reentry. 2- Heatshield is not useful for reentry even from Mun. Kerbal-X has no heatshield and can totally reentry safely from Mun or Minmus. I'm not sure about the basic command pod, though. In any case, you can set a heatshield and remove ALL ablator, or at least keep less than 10%. That saves a lot of mass. 3- 50km Pe will let you heat without slowing down. Best periaps is around 30km (25 -30 if you're slow ; 30-35 if you come very fast > 4000m/s). 4- For interplanetary reentry, it largely depends on your return vehicle. Keep the reentry vehicle simple (pod, partial heatshield and chutes). You should test them and rate them (in m/s at 30/35km). Only Moho is dangerous to return from and you should prepare for slowdown before reentry. Even though a full heat shield is never useful. Direct reentry is always an option except for complex ships like SSTO EDIT : stupid me, I didn't saw this was an outdated question, sorry.

You can try with Kerbal-X It's able to get there, land, return to orbit, but i's hard to get back to Kerbin. You'll need a bit more fuel. For a one way trip, you can reuse your mun lander with little tweaks : Add 2 drogues chutes and several regular chutes (depending on it mass). You may need to do a partially powered landing depending on your terminal velocity. To get there - Wait for Duna being before Kerbin with a phase angle of 43° (1/2 of a quarter) - Launch to 80km orbit - Set on the dark side of Kerbin, increase prograde to escape velocity. Try to have your escape velocity nearly parallel to Kerbon orbit. You can also tweak the location of the node so the apoapsis is maximum. Then tweak again you node to get a Duna encounter. - Burn that - Outside Kerbin SOI (preferably on AN or DN), you can do a small correction burn. Set Duna periaps to 70km. If you're luck to get an Ike encounter, try to pass in front of it, that'll slow you down freely. - Anyway, burn retrograde around periapsis to capture and circularize. As an alternative, you can try aerocapture or combine everything. -

It could also be a very simple config file... (Config folder / mod folder / screenshot folder / save folder) -> 4 lines of codes + opening and closing the master config file.

As for design, I suggest to use ISRU and some kind of space station from where you can explore Eeloo. You can check that design, there is a config for Eeloo even if it was for 1.0.4.

I did it back in 0.9. It was a Swivel engine 15T ship pushed at low altitude by 2 Whiplash. The lander had to climb up to 500km, where the space station was waiting... Since 1.0 has change aerodynamics this kind of lander may probably have flipped. But the vertical air breather was working perfectly. The power is not as responsive as rocket engines, but that's OK for ascending. I don't remember why I didn't used the rapier, maybe the total dV was lower ; I don't know. I think the rapier may have a low thrust on low speed/altitude. That may be an issue. Testing your ship on Kerbin is useful... As an additional advice. If I would redo a Laythe mission, I would do a space plane. It's not easy to target those island with a regular lander due to atmospheric drag which alter projected landing site. Being able to fly toward an island is definitely a good idea. In any case, having a ship able to splash and take off is definitely a good idea on Laythe...

I only convert science into funds when my tech tree is unlocked. I also used the convert cash to reputation when I played 1.0.5. My SSTO launchers where very cheat to use so I had nearly 50 millions funds. In general I don't feel the need of strategies. At the beginning you struggle with funds and science and the price to convert is usually out of reach (or of a marginal impact). In late game, every thing doesn't matter any more.

When I tried some experimentation in 1.0.4 of a Eve landing and take off vehicle, I found big variation in delta V (even my usual landing region is around 1500m). I was more focused on the landing design (not blowing into Eve atmosphere), I didn't focused too much on the ascending part of the lander. My prototype used less than 7000m/s (VAC), but when I tried to size it down, I failed to reach orbit with 7000m/s. But as I had some flipping issue of the second stage (the whole rocket was finally unstable) It appeared that ascent profile is very important for Eve. You can get hugh dV variation by changing your ascending path. I didn't test it enough to find a proper ascent profile though. What ascent profile do you use for Eve ?

There is a MM script, somewhere on this forum, that allow all the MJ features to any pod and probe core without having the dedicated MJ part on your ship. It also unlock everything from the start.

Anyway, this must be your bible

I did a mission like that back in beta 0.9. I chose a 500km orbit around Laythe (mostly because the view was beautiful). I had 6 landers (mostly of the same design. I assembled the station directly around Laythe from 13 different flights (6 or them were Orange tanks). I explore each moon 2 times (and had the capacity of doing it 4 times) In 1.0, I used a different strategy and send a smaller space station, capable of moving from moon to moon, but I didn't complete the Jool 5.

Don't forget that Pod-RCS internal reserve is sufficient to dock regular ships. You can easily dock a 60T ship with the MK1-2 onboard RCS reserves. and a 15T ship with a MK1 lander can RCS. Just be gentle on the RCS thrusters and don't be hasty (use timewarp intead). Never add RCS tanks, they are useless, except on space station to refuel other ships (and you rarely need the biggest one...). Keep RCS pack to a minimum (I usually use 2 packs + 2 anywhere for a 10T ship). If you want to dock without RCS, you'll need the target ship to be able to roll. then orient its docking ring toward your own ship. Switch back and go forward.

When I started playing KSP, when I looked at such formulas, I was terrified... because I didn't understand them Now, when I look at such formulas, I'm still terrified... because I understand them...

@awfulcraftdesigns, BTW, Kerbal-X (stock design) has enough dV to go to Duna and return to orbit. It's an easy ship to fly.

True, but that's how you progress in the game. I remember after discovering the game and play through Mun and Minmus, I sent a parallel flight mission to Duna/Ike (which was basically a copy of my Mun mission slightly modified). Then I jumped to Jool with a 13 flight space (6 of them were Jumbo fuel tanks) station assembly around Laythe to explore the whole Jool system. I remember preparing the mission for ONE full week, searching after dV maps, designing my 6 different landers, 2 tugs and the return vehicle. After 1 weeks of preparation, I played 2 weeks until I cam back to Kerbin with more that 40000 science points. That was a very fun mission to do. I would say to the OP¨, that Sandbox/Hyperedit experimentation if very useful. Ok, basically, take your last Mun lander, add chutes (2 drogues and 2 to 4 chutes depending on the vehicle mass. I would still suggest to send 2 landers, one for Duna (with chutes) and another for Ike (without chutes). Add a 1800 to 2000m/s interplanetary stage and a 3400 launch stage (in 2 parts 2000 and). 1400m/s) The Ike Lander should have 600 to 1000m/s The Duna lander should have 100 to 300m/s for safe landing As always, lighter is best

If you want to explore Duna in detail, I suggest you to send some refuelling capacity, or at least an upgradable space station you can upgrade later. From Duna, it's very cheap to explore Ike and refuel there. This can you give you some design example I would suggest you to assemble your station at target not at LKO, it's easier to do that way (especially for TWR management and wobble avoidance). Send you station there and send a mission with landers and return vehicle. If you refuel there, don't hesitate to burn all your fuel to get there. If you don't refuel there, you can send a third mission with a fuel tank.

So do I, but only 4 to a basic landing can. I call it the "Mun Polar Curse" It always appear on my Munar space station I set in a polar orbit (usually my first mission to strip science from Mun, my subsequent stations are equatorial because I don't need to land everywhere any more.

You could go for a XP mission. Quite fun to learn about Gravity assist for quite a cheap dV. You could even plan a landing on Pol and/or Bop. If you really want to explore Jool subsystem, I recommend a space station mission with fuel tanks (or refuel capacity) + landers and return vehicle. You could target Vall, Pol and Bop which are easy even with reusable landers. For Laythe, SSTO is the best way to do it (you can fly to an island instead of hopping to land on one...). As for Tylo, it's not hard when you have a proper lander. Fully reusable SSTO is possible (I did it in 0.9) but design is very delicate. Don't forget, you have a window nearly every Kerbal year. Don't panic if you miss one. Jool windows come more often than Duna or Eve. Also, you could send a batch of 6 polar probes. Quite useful to get cheap science if you have the Gravioli. You can even land probes (that's very easy, even on Tylo) EDIT : and as for a space station template, you can use my Salamander exploration space station