Ultimate Steve

Another update in the frustrating world of RO/RP-0: I launched Life Support Container 2 to Avalon Station. These containers, or LSC's for short, are my resupply vessels, each packing 30-40 tons of food, water, and oxygen so I only have to launch one every three years or so based on a 6 man crew. The first two containers are the only ones currently planned, with the second shipment six years away (I don't like long term planning because sooner or later I'll burn out and I don't want to guilt myself with visions of the future, which is why I haven't planned a moon base or a Mars mission (but those are both goals I hope to achieve)). I don't have an updated picture, but unless I deleted it in one of my three recent save corruptions (keep backups, kids), Eclipse Station (in LLO) now has three of seven modules assembled. I don't have a pic with three, so here's two of them: If you look closely, you can see Earth next to the sun. Module three was attached to the top and was a habitation module/cupola/node combination. In other news, Planetoid seven, originally destined for Mars had a glitch that sent it towards Venus instead, so I sent it there, but due to a serious glitch involving potential save corruption, the spacecraft was left to fly by Venus and remain untouched, not entering orbit. I also added the second science module to Avalon Station. However, somebody forgot to check the docking port clearance. Fortunately, I could throw enough money at an Adapter mission, and one was ready for launch a day later. I think this is the best picture of the station I have so far - although it is slightly out of date as I have done a crew transfer, but everything else is the same. It's finally almost finished! Also, new picture of Mu V which is launching a lunar SCANSAT satellite, which to reuse hardware is a standard GEO comsat with scanners instead of long range antennas. Shown above is Melody 4, a three man Soyuz-esque crew transfer vehicle. I tried something new here, instead of building them when I need them, I just built four of them and I'll use them when I need them. I also hired nine new astronauts, for a total of twenty. No pictures of this last one, but I realized two things: 1. I need a crew vehicle that can get to Eclipse Station without having to use a Gravity V (too big and not built yet) or a dedicated vehicle (would take too much time to design to a good standard of reliability). 2. I'm suffering from NASA budget syndrome. I'm not completely sure if this is true, but my budget may be about to crash. I don't have any super lucrative contracts right now IIRC, and with my notional future plans (20 launches of Gravity V at 100k each for 2mil total) as well as the necessary R&D upgrade (2mil) put me basically at how much money I have right now (3.8mil). I mean, I'll get a break when my outer planet probes arrive and when I set up Oyster AG outpost (for the one year in space contract), but my money is probably going to disappear fast. My only condolence is that in some respects I managed to do things faster than they happened in real life. So, with these two problems in mind, I tried to design something with existing hardware that could get three people to LLO and back. I came up with a stripped down Melody capsule with a hypergolic lunar insertion stage on top of a Gravity IB. Now, here's the interesting part - Gravity I was originally designed to take one person to LLO, which it barely did - but the improvements introduced over time in GIA and GIB were sufficient to nearly double its capacity to LEO - giving it enough to barely take three people to LLO. This new program has been given the go ahead for an unmanned test and has been given the codename "Yonder." In real life terms this endeavor would be somewhere between Zond and Orion, both in cost and capability.

Okay, it has been quite some time and my life has been crazy... I launched the first piece of this thing and I basically abandoned it afterwards. I remember something about there being more than just one station (like mun bases and such) but I never actually dove deep enough into the thread to see this. So, I'm back now, and I may add something yet - could someone sum up what has happened since I left?

Post 1234. Now let's get a 4-3-2-1 for the Atlas!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOO! I have an excuse to stay up all night and play KSP! Oh, yeah, there's also the launch! Best of wishes to ULA!

Because when we got that computer I didn't know a thing about downloading other browsers and Edge came with it. I got used to it, eventually. I mean, before that our computer was a brick that came with Explorer, so Edge is a step up. It's not as abysmally terrible as everyone makes it out to be, most of the time it is perfectly functional. My only two gripes are that I have to go over to Firefox in order to upload to YouTube and the fact that there is a "set aside tabs" button that I always hit accidentally.

And I hope I'll be able to meet you there!

Gimme 14 years.

About two years ago I was in eight grade and found out that the SLS would first fly in 2018, towards the end of my sophomore year. Now, it's looking like this beast will not fly before I'm out of high school. I mean, I expected delays, but when these delays take up a significant fraction of your life... Being a space geek is tough. Everything happens so slowly.

This happened just now: KSP RO: Oh, sorry. I'm going to completely mess up your Venus insertion burn due to the flight computer. Me: You're a jerk. I'm going to load an old save. KSP: Haha, your last save was after the maneuver! Me: Okay, I'll load an older one. KSP: Sorry, this one is before you hired all the astronauts, which took forever because of another glitch! Me: Okay, I'll go back to the present and try to fix things. KSP: Okay, got it. I'll freeze the game. Me: I'll alt-tab out then. KSP: You ain't going nowhere. Me: You aren't going to freeze my computer again, are you? My headphones: IT'S THE FINAL CO-BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ" Me: KSP, look what you've done! Just let me onto the desktop, please! KSP: No. Me: Pretty please? KSP: No. Me: Okay, the error message has finally come up. End process. KSP: Fine, I'll get off the screen but your computer will still run slow for the next ten minutes. Microsoft Edge: I want to get in on the fun, too! I'll stop responding! Me: NO! I need you to load now before YouTube autoplays too far! Edge: Sorry. *Does not respond* Me: Maybe it's the email program. I'll close it. Outlook: Sorry, bro. Not happening. KSP: Together, we will slow down Steve's computer! Muahahahaha! Oh, BTW I think I corrupted your save. Me: Fine, I'll re-hire those astronauts when I get time. Edge: BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ Me: Okay, time to pull out my secret weapon! *Ctrl+Alt+Del* Task Manager: Cut it out, I'm sleeping! My Computer: You know, KSP, Edge, and Outlook, you guys are stressing me out. Outlook: It wasn't me, I swear! My Computer: I'm just going to go black screen right now. Me: Wait! Task Manager: Sorry, bro. KSP bribed me to not appear. Goodbye, Steve. Me: Grumbles and holds down the power button for a few seconds. ===Five minutes later=== Me: Good morning! Edge: I don't want to open, the computer just turned on! Me: But I have to write this up on the forum! Edge: *Grumble Grumble*

Good gravy, it's already been a year? Anyway, good luck with the mission to everyone working on it (particularly @IonStorm). Hopefully the spacecraft will have another encounter with Earth in a few more years, bearing space-rocks.

I could get behind this. I've got a sixteen person Eve lander now if anyone needs a rescue. @Just Jim I'm going to go check out that challenge thread now.

My school is either the tallest or second tallest building in my town. At first glance it has three really tall stories, but if you really dig into it you can find that it has a basement and an addition that goes below the basement. I don't know the exact height, but even with generous measurements it would probably take three or four of them to match the height of the Falcon. Also somebody wore an inflatable T-rex costume to school today.

Hrmph. So I go to practice for the musical where there are the four main characters plus me, and I don't say much the entire time. I'm bummed I'm missing the Soyuz launch, but I finally get home and find out that there's not even video that I know of. My sister was using the KSP computer all day earlier, and I had planned to KSP all night until the Atlas V went off, but I just lost my excuse to stay up late.

This is a bit off topic, but I would like to ask a question. Where are you living that this is legal? Because I'd really build stuff like this if it was somewhat legal... In particular I've been considering a monopropellant rocket for quite some time.

I am an American. KSP has converted me to metric. THERE IS NO GOING BACK!!!!!!!!!!!! @tater when you answer a question with a few pictures and no words.

Darn. Launch is at 7 for me and I'm doing something from 6:30 to 9... There hasn't been any launches for a while and the first one I can't watch... Oh, well. I guess I'll stay up until 1 AM for the Atlas V...

Well, I did chronicle my lifter lineup in that spoiler, but to sum up Mu: Mu 0 - first satellite. Mu - first people in orbit. Mu II - we don't talk about this abysmal failure. Also iirc first use of an LES. Mu III - A, B, C, and maybe D versions. Rocket of Theseus! Mu IV - eventually replaced Mu III. Had serious aerodynamic stability issues. Mu V - new version of Mu IV which does not have those problems. EDIT: I just realized how satisfying "V" sounds after a rocket sounds now that I have a "V" rocket. Saturn V, Atlas V, Ariane 5 (V), SO SATISFYING!!! My super heavy rocket was going to be Gravity IV, but I think I might rename Gravity IB XL to Gravity IV so I can have Gravity V take the world to Mars and beyond...

Never gets old. Ever. Do you know who originally made that, by any chance?

Nah, I was joking! I'll probably actually end up with Europa... Also I just sort of realized that one of my lifters, Mu III, is a rocket of Theseus. I replaced the upper stage, then the boosters, then the core engines...

Thank you! All these worlds are yours, except Europa. Attempt no landing there.

Oh, goody! More RO/RP-0 lagatron 9000! Note: This isn't just today. It's the last few days (I think, it's hard to keep track of stuff). I finally found a second mission for Gravity II (TBH I never had a use for it, and now I have the newfangled Mu V, which is cheaper and more advanced than G2, while covering it's payload range) and that is the launch of Avalon Station's Cupola module! ...Except someone forgot to check the fit. No matter, I moved it to where the RCS tug used to be (which I only used once. I moved it over to the visiting ship hub). It's almost the same location I had planned it to be in. No way I'm launching a spacer, though. I've spent enough time on this laggy station already! Space Station Avalon now, viewed from the bottom. It's almost done, here's the current schedule: (M14) Science module 2 - launch on Gravity IB. From this view it goes on the top of the picture. {Under construction. Scheduled for second launch from now} (M15) Node 3 - only a 4 way node. Goes on the right of the picture on that weird looking module. Launches on Mu V. {Under construction, next launch. SM2 will take longer to build but is module 14} (LSC-2) Life support container 2. No official module designation as it is a semi-permanent (as in it will last years) life support container. You can see one in the center sticking out from the solar panel array, the second one will go opposite it on the bottom. {Under construction} (M16) Command tower (GIB). Would have gone opposite the Cupola had I not had to move it, but it will still be almost opposite the Cupola. {Undesigned yet} (M17) Proposed Satelite Launch Platform - small cylindrical module used somehow for launching cubesats or doing other sciencey things. {Undesigned} (ME3-ME-10) Melody Crew Vehicles. 3 man Soyuz-esque crew transfer vehicles. If each crew of 6 stays for a year (it's possible, 6 months would be ideal, but I don't want to make crew transfer a chore) I need to launch one every six months. The batch of 10 vehicles I'm going to build should last me 5 years, by which time, ideally I'd have a moon base. {Designed, pending construction} I also launched the second module of Eclipse Station, a Low Lunar Orbit station using leftover hardware from the moon landing missions, namely the seven Gravity III's that were left unused. Unfortunately, some idiot* forgot the fairing. *me. Fortunately, it made orbit alright. This was probably one of the most unrealistic things I've gotten away with in RO. Eclipse Station. Currently around 50 tons (ish). 2 of 7 modules completed. The third one is under construction. Also, made an almost copy of my Saturn probe and sent it to Jupiter, the only difference (I think) being the extension of the RCS booms so they can be used as landing legs. Because it's only going to Jupiter, it will have enough Delta-V to land on one of the moons. I haven't chosen which one yet, which one would you choose (I'm actually asking because I don't know)? And last but not least, I built Mu V, a more capable, cheaper, more aerodynamically stable rocket than Mu IV, which handled like a piece of spaghetti and couldn't turn for the first 15 kilometers or else it would explode. That mission was used to loft Geosat III, the third Geostationary comsat. It also tested out a prototype RTG powered rocket, which can attain specific impulses of 650s (!). More to follow! Also, for anyone curious as to my lifter lineup: So, which moon should I land my Jupiter probe on?

The moon landing was faked... ON MARS!

@StupidAndy Ethan Edwards, obviously. @GDJ No, that is illegal in Canada. Warmslaw is fine, though. EDIT: Sorry, I forgot the question. I wish to know the time in Canada.

Depends. I believe that many people on the forums would definitely get behind trying to send someone to space. However, there is the issue of obtaining all of the necessary permits and stuff, and money, and bleh... if it actually happened that would be awesomely amazing, but the chances of it happening are astronomically low... the KSP forum couldn't really even settle on a cubesat design based on the thread. There's also the issue of where to base the effort, how to coordinate everything... and lots more. Now, most people would say "Oh, stop it! It's not rocket science!" Heh. Heh. Heh. If you want to, go for it. A 1% chance is better than a 0% chance. I'd be behind you (although I'm fifteen so I don't know how much help I'd be). If we could get a few dozen dedicated people working seriously on this then I see no reason (barring government intervention) why it couldn't be done. However, the problem is getting people past the "This goal is awfully high and this won't ever happen so I'm going to slowly back away" stage. With these kind of ideas, first impressions really count, so I'd spend a while making the post if I were you. BTW both of my designs are also one man. Tiny suborbital capsule that could fit on CloudOne (maybe first stage only. Possibly reusable-ish). One man orbital rocket. I never finished the engine designs, though, and the capsule is overly complicated and could fit two or three if they were willing to squeeze in.

By not dying. Can I legally own a Canadian top quark?