jinnantonix

Gemini 3 was the first crewed mission in NASA's Project Gemini and was the first time two American astronauts flew together into space. On March 23, 1965, astronauts Gus Grissom and John Young flew three low Earth orbits in their spacecraft, which they nicknamed Molly Brown. It was the first U.S. mission in which the crew fired thrusters to change the size and shape of their orbit, a key test of spacecraft maneuverability vital for planned flights to the Moon. It was also the final crewed flight controlled from Cape Kennedy Air Force Station in Florida, before mission control functions were moved to a new control center at the newly opened Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston, Texas. Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1965 March 23 American First piloted spacecraft orbital exchange Gemini III References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemini_3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titan_II_GLV https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerojet_LR87 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LR91 http://www.astronautix.com/g/gemini.html http://www.astronautix.com/g/gemini3.html http://www.mikejennebooks.com/tech_drawings.htm Design Notes: LR87 LV-TX87 Bobcat LR91 RE-I5 Skipper

I happen to think the whole program is fascinating, and that SLS and Orion are just a rather expensive sideshow for political expediency. The real game is in the mostly autonomous CPLS landings and setup of mining infrastructure. Humans are nearly redundant, and becoming more so as AI, robotics and remote monitoring becomes the norm rather than the exception.

@tater so you are saying that NASA has no plans to look for water on the moon, no plans to manufacture fuel, no plans to try to stage deep space missions with fuelling in lunar orbit? You say, all they want to do is demonstrate Orion. Seems to me they will achieve that goal without a lunar landing, without Starship, etc. What's all that about?

I always thought that the idea of Artemis was to investigate fuel manufacture on the Moon, and staging missions from moon orbit, to see if this would improve the economics of deep space missions - including, but not exclusively, for, crewed or uncrewed Mars missions. This isn't about landing lots of folk on the Moon, that isn't the goal, although proving the capability is part of the overall requirement for establish fuel production on the lunar surface. Artemis 3 is just a step in a very long process. Have I misunderstood?

Voskhod II

Voskhod II was a Soviet crewed space mission in March 1965. The Vostok-based Voskhod 3KD spacecraft with two crew members on board, Pavel Belyayev and Alexei Leonov, was equipped with an inflatable airlock. It established another milestone in space exploration when Alexei Leonov became the first person to leave the spacecraft in a specialized spacesuit to conduct a 12-minute spacewalk. Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1965 March 18 Soviet First EVA Voskhod II References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_2 https://i.imgur.com/NMdixuC.jpg

Syncom 2 and 3 Syncom 2 - geosynchronous orbit, 33 degree tilt. Syncom 3 - geostationary orbit, equatorial orbit

Syncom 2 and 3. Syncom (for "synchronous communication satellite") started as a 1961 NASA program for active geosynchronous communication satellites, all of which were developed and manufactured by the Space and Communications division of Hughes Aircraft Company (now the Boeing Satellite Development Center). Syncom 2, launched in 1963, was the world's first geosynchronous communications satellite. Syncom 3, launched in 1964, was the world's first geostationary satellite. In the 1980s, the series was continued as Syncom IV with some much larger satellites, also manufactured by Hughes. They were leased to the United States military under the Leasat program. Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1963 July 26 American First geosynchronous satellite Syncom II 1964 August 19 American First geostationary satellite Syncom III References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syncom https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/syncom-1.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_B http://www.astronautix.com/t/thordeltab.html http://www.astronautix.com/m/mb-3-1.html http://www.astronautix.com/a/aj10-118.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altair_(rocket_stage) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apogee_kick_motor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geosynchronous_orbit https://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Synchronous_orbit https://gisgeography.com/geosynchronous-geostationary-orbits/ Design Notes: Launch vehicle is a Thor-Delta-B which is near identical to the Thor-Able launch vehicle used for Explorer 6. Stage 1: MB-3-1 Skipper + 2 x Twitch (verniers) Stage 2: AJ10-118D Terrier + 2 x Sepratron (ullage motors) Stage 3: X-248 Mite (scaled down) The apogee motor is a solid rocket motor. This needed to be carefully calculated to take the Syncom satellite from Pe=2863km and Ap= 100km to circular orbit. Syncom 2 - geosynchronous orbit, 33 degree tilt. Syncom 3 - geostationary orbit, equatorial orbit

X-15 Flight 90

X-15 The North American X-15 is a hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft. It was operated by the United States Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as part of the X-plane series of experimental aircraft. The X-15 set speed and altitude records in the 1960s, reaching the edge of outer space and returning with valuable data used in aircraft and spacecraft design. The X-15's highest speed, 4,520 miles per hour (7,274 km/h; 2,021 m/s), was achieved on 3 October 1967, when William J. Knight flew at Mach 6.7 at an altitude of 102,100 feet (31,120 m), or 19.34 miles. This set the official world record for the highest speed ever recorded by a crewed, powered aircraft, which remains unbroken. Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1963 July 19 American First reusable piloted spacecraft and first spaceplane X-15 Flight 90 References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_X-15 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-15_Flight_90 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reaction_Motors_XLR11 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reaction_Motors_XLR99 https://history.nasa.gov/x15conf/design.html Design Notes: The first X-15 used 2 x XLR11 engines, but since this is hard to model in KSP, I used the successor XLR99 engine XLR 99 = Vector (no gimbal). The retractable landing gear comprised a nose-wheel carriage with no steering and two rear skids. The skids did not extend beyond the ventral fin, which required the pilot to jettison the lower fin just before landing. The lower fin was recovered by parachute. In KSP skids cannot be accurately modelled (causes explosion and disassembly), so retractable wheels are used instead.

Mars 1

Venera 1 is done and documented above, and here: https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/206824-jinnantonixs-historical-space-race/&do=findComment&comment=4096945

Mars 1 also known as 1962 Beta Nu 1, Mars 2MV-4 and Sputnik 23, was an automatic interplanetary station launched in the direction of Mars on November 1, 1962,[1][2] the first of the Soviet Mars probe program, with the intent of flying by the planet at a distance of about 11,000 km (6,800 mi). It was designed to image the surface and send back data on cosmic radiation, micrometeoroid impacts and Mars' magnetic field, radiation environment, atmospheric structure, and possible organic compounds. Launched on a Molniya 8K78, same as the Venera 1 probe Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1963 June 19 Soviet First Mars fly-by Mars I On March 21, 1963, when the spacecraft was at a distance of 106,760,000 km (66,340,000 mi) from Earth on its way to Mars, communications ceased, probably due to failure of the spacecraft's antenna orientation system. Mars 1's closest approach to Mars probably occurred on June 19, 1963 at a distance of approximately 193,000 km (120,000 mi). References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_1 http://www.astronautix.com/m/molniya8k78.html

Vostok 2, 3, 4 and 6

Vostok 2, 3/4 and 6 Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1961 August 6 Soviet First crewed mission lasting a full day Vostok II 1962 August 12 Soviet First dual-crewed spaceflight; first spacecraft-to-spacecraft radio contact; first simultaneous flight of crewed spacecraft Vostok III / Vostok IV 1963 June 16 Soviet First woman in space; first civilian in space Vostok VI These missions all used the same craft as Vostok 1. So I won't do a video, just post screenshots of the orbit to show the missions were done. Vostok 2 Vostok 3/4 Vostok 6

Freedom 7 Mercury-Redstone 3, or Freedom 7, was the first United States human spaceflight, on May 5, 1961, piloted by astronaut Alan Shepard. It was the first crewed flight of Project Mercury. The project had the ultimate objective of putting an astronaut into orbit around the Earth and return him safely. Shepard's mission was a 15-minute suborbital flight with the primary objective of demonstrating his ability to withstand the high g-forces of launch and atmospheric re-entry. Shepard named his space capsule Freedom 7, setting a precedent for the remaining six Mercury astronauts naming their spacecraft. The number 7 was included in all the crewed Mercury spacecraft names to honor NASA's first group of seven astronauts. His spacecraft reached an altitude of 101.2 nautical miles (116.5 statute miles, 187.5 km) and travelled a downrange distance of 263.1 nautical miles (302.8 statute miles, 487.3 km). It was the fourth Mercury flight launched with the Mercury-Redstone Launch Vehicle, from Cape Canaveral, Florida, close to the Atlantic Ocean. Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1961 May 5 American First pilot-controlled spaceflight Freedom VII References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-Redstone_3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-Redstone_Launch_Vehicle http://heroicrelics.org/info/redstone/redstone-engines.html Design Notes: Rocketdyne A-7 (Redstone) LV-T30 "Reliant" (no gimbal, control was aerodynamic only, using tail fin rudders)

Freedom 7

Mercury-Redstone 2 was the test flight of the Mercury-Redstone Launch Vehicle just prior to the first crewed American space mission in Project Mercury. Carrying a chimpanzee named Ham on a suborbital flight, Mercury spacecraft Number 5 was launched at 16:55 UTC on January 31, 1961 from LC-5 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The capsule and Ham, the first great ape in space, landed safely in the Atlantic Ocean 16 minutes and 39 seconds after launch. References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-Redstone_2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-Redstone_Launch_Vehicle http://heroicrelics.org/info/redstone/redstone-engines.html Design Notes: Rocketdyne A-7 (Redstone) LV-T30 "Reliant" (no gimbal, control was aerodynamic only, using tail fin rudders)

In my Venera 1, I show the fly-by of Venus, although that doesn't happen until May 19 1961. From my research, Venera 1 lost all telemetry 7 days into flight, and so was a derelict when it reached Venus. Also, I think it was supposed to do a DSM prior to the fly past which it didn't do, so not sure how close it passed Venus.

Oops. I did Venera 1, just forgot to post it. See edit above. I missed Mercury-Redstone 2 as I was under the impression it was optional. I get to do the Mercury-Redstone simulation with Freedom 7, right?

Venera 1

Vostok 1 was the first spaceflight of the Vostok programme and the first human orbital spaceflight in history. The Vostok 3KA space capsule was launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome on April 12, 1961, with Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin aboard, making him the first human to reach orbital velocity around the Earth and to complete a full orbit around the Earth. The orbital spaceflight consisted of a single orbit around Earth which skimmed the upper atmosphere at 169 kilometers (91 nautical miles) at its lowest point. The flight took 108 minutes from launch to landing. Gagarin parachuted to the ground separately from his capsule after ejecting at 7 km (23,000 ft) altitude. References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_(rocket_family)

Venera 1

Venera 1 The Venera (which means "Venus" in Russian) program was the name given to a series of space probes developed by the Soviet Union between 1961 and 1984 to gather information about the planet Venus. Venera 1 was the first launch from orbit of upper stage into a heliocentric orbit; first mid-course corrections; first spin-stabilization. Both Venera 1 and 2 suffered telemetry failure a few days into the mission. Date Country Achievement Mission/Vehicle 1961 February 12 Soviet First launch from orbit of upper stage into a heliocentric orbit; first mid-course corrections; first spin-stabilization Venera I 1961 May 19 Soviet First planetary fly-by (Venus) Venera I References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venera#Venera_1_and_2 http://www.astronautix.com/m/molniya8k78.html http://www.russianspaceweb.com/soyuz_lv.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RD-107 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RD-0110 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S1.5400 Stage Data - Molniya 8K78 Stage 0. 4 x Molniya 8K78-0. Gross Mass: 43,400 kg (95,600 lb). Empty Mass: 3,800 kg (8,300 lb). Thrust (vac): 995.300 kN (223,752 lbf). Isp: 314 sec. Burn time: 119 sec. Isp(sl): 257 sec. Diameter: 2.68 m (8.79 ft). Span: 2.68 m (8.79 ft). Length: 19.00 m (62.00 ft). Propellants: Lox/Kerosene. No Engines: 1. Engine: RD-107-8D74K. Status: Out of Production. Stage 1. 1 x Molniya 8K78-1. Gross Mass: 100,500 kg (221,500 lb). Empty Mass: 6,800 kg (14,900 lb). Thrust (vac): 941.000 kN (211,545 lbf). Isp: 315 sec. Burn time: 301 sec. Isp(sl): 248 sec. Diameter: 2.99 m (9.80 ft). Span: 2.60 m (8.50 ft). Length: 28.00 m (91.00 ft). Propellants: Lox/Kerosene. No Engines: 1. Engine: RD-108-8D75K. Status: Out of Production. Stage 2. 1 x Molniya 8K78-2. Gross Mass: 24,300 kg (53,500 lb). Empty Mass: 2,000 kg (4,400 lb). Thrust (vac): 294.000 kN (66,093 lbf). Isp: 330 sec. Burn time: 200 sec. Diameter: 2.56 m (8.39 ft). Span: 2.56 m (8.39 ft). Length: 2.84 m (9.31 ft). Propellants: Lox/Kerosene. No Engines: 1. Engine: RD-0108. Status: Out of Production. Stage 3. 1 x Molniya 8K78-3. Gross Mass: 5,100 kg (11,200 lb). Empty Mass: 1,080 kg (2,380 lb). Thrust (vac): 65.410 kN (14,705 lbf). Isp: 340 sec. Burn time: 192 sec. Diameter: 2.56 m (8.39 ft). Span: 2.56 m (8.39 ft). Length: 2.84 m (9.31 ft). Propellants: Lox/Kerosene. No Engines: 1. Engine: S1.5400. Status: Out of Production. Design Notes: RD-107 / 108 -8D7xx Kodiak with Cub verniers RD-108 Poodle (quad bell) with Cub verniers S1.5400 Terrier

Korabl-Sputnik 2