Mars-Bound Hokie

Doofenshmirtz in a Mun crater. I built a replica of the Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated building from Phineas and Ferb, mounted it on a rocket, and then sent it to the Mun. It can hold up to 143 people (both inside and out, thanks to command seats) and it looks like Ferb's head a very Kerbal space outpost. Craft file: https://kerbalx.com/Mars-Bound_Hokie/Doofenshmirtz-Evil-Incorporated

I feel you, man. How exactly did you get that photo, anyway? Last I checked, the KSC was located within a grassy area right next to a beach; not some wasteland. (In Tune of "Evil Jingle") Doofenshmirtz in a Mun Crater BEHOLD... MY MUN BASE! You see, being forced into social isolation due to the Kerbonavirus has gotten me bored. So, I did what I always do and thought of a complicated solution to a simple problem. I then built a replica of my building and mounted it on a rocket - which... costs more than the base itself. Once the sun was up, I launched from the KSC and landed in one of the Mun's northwest craters. "Why the Mun?" you ask. Simple: I can't get the virus if I'm not even on Kerbin... and don't say that I could have just picked Minmus. I can also get a good view of Kerbin from here, not to mention that the... good base spots are crowded. Now, I can take control of the tri-crater area while nobody mooches off my Wi-Fi and/or risks infecting me. Pretty cool, huh?

I'm fine; I was going for a Heinz Doofenshmirtz voice at the beginning. Plus, given the current situation, it seemed appropriate. How was the rest of the video, by the way?

I submitted my first entry for the "Race Around the World" challenge.

Here's my first entry.

What are you referring to?

I've been preparing for the Race Around the World challenge. Besides my SSTO idea, I plan to make a space shuttle-style spacecraft that can orbit retrograde and get me to the KSC runway in less than 35 minutes. But first, I had to test the final stage to make sure it even works. After all, the rules state that I need to land at the runway (and not crash) for my entry to count. After getting it up to supersonic speed, I turned it around and landed without a scratch. However, I don't intend to take off with this thing.

That's okay. You're (relatively) new to the forums, so I wouldn't expect you to know about it - at least not until after it's expiration date (2/20/2020). In fact, I'm glad to see that somebody has taken the "Kerbin Speed Challenge" baton and not just copied me. My challenge had a 35-km altitude limit (do not leave the atmosphere), whereas yours doesn't have any. Although getting too high means wasting time. I required everyone to return with whatever parts they started with, but you allowed staging (can leave junk behind). For my challenge, that also meant no crashing or exploding due to overheating. No dropping off booster rockets, either. If you used them, bring them back. You don't have a time limit (but a time to shoot for - 35 min), but I only allowed anyone who got under 80 minutes. I had more regulations on what the craft should have (e.g. remote control core AND crew capacity of at least 1, have 1,000 units charge, crew must be able to get on and off the plane), but you just said it must have someone in it. (BASICALLY, I WAS STRICTER IN MY CHALLENGE) I've already gotten started on your challenge - and I won't just use Bill's Car again. Aside from my plans to use one of my SSTOs, I want to try a (somewhat) new approach. I'll post pictures this weekend, when I get a bigger monitor to take screenshots.

Thanks for mentioning my challenge, @ManEatingApe. For a while, I thought it had been forgotten already. And yes, @Laie has proven it possible to do a lap around Kerbin in less than 25 minutes (24:32 to be exact) without leaving the atmosphere. @ralanboyle, judging by the rules posted and your video, it seems like there's no altitude limit for this challenge. If that's the case, then I could just take an SSTO to orbit (most likely retrograde, since @ManEatingApe - and several other challenge participants of mine - mentioned that it means a shorter time) and land at 2-7 KSC easily. Besides that, I don't have to return with everything I started with - as long as I end up at the KSC runway. Aside from the question to use MechJeb (it's built-in to all probe cores now, thanks to a new mod update), can I also use: Vesselmover (to position a plane to go west - the OPPOSITE direction) BigBen Alarm clock

Take this: https://kerbalx.com/Mars-Bound_Hokie/Lazybird Send the spaceplane itself to Duna at the next transfer window. Doesn't need to be occupied, but be sure to deploy your antenna. The carrier should go back to the KSC. Take your stranded crew to a spot with a sufficient ore concentration. If you're already there, perfect. If not, you might want to bring a car with the plane. Refuel all tanks (including oxidizer) Blast off will all five engines when you're done refueling. GO-TIME!

I unleashed several Obliterator prototypes on the KSC and started destroying all I could see. Some BDArmory users may criticize me for a lack of armor, but I make up for that with its wide array of weaponry. Besides that, its primary probe core and power source (an RTG) are protected in a box of armor. Here are some pictures from the tests: I plan to modify my craft so that it won't sink as much in the middle - or even get better missiles - and then present in on KerbalX.

After getting "Weaponry" stuck in my head, I went ahead and built this (incomplete) monstrosity For some reason, I destroyed multiple buildings with the cannon while I couldn't even bring down the SPH with 16 missiles (and most of them hit). I need to build a way for this tank to move around and have sustainable power while turning the entire KSC to rubble. Yes, I was able to hit the water tower in one shot from the runway start point (further back, if you count the recoil). If I'm really ambitious, I may go for flying this bad boy to other planets.

Deedee Kerman's nuclear power plant was racking up safety violations by the day. On top of that, she had fired anyone - especially union workers - who demanded she do something about it. When she saw that she was getting sued for millions of dollars in fines, worker's compensation fees, and costs needed to rectify the plant's safety violations, she knew that she would lose despite her high-tier lawyers. Deedee then took a briefcase full of money and locked herself in the main reactor, dying from radiation poisoning within minutes. Heinz Kerman will die while doing the Woomerang Driving Test Waltz.

LISA KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y62D156 - 1H30M After years of exploring the water moon of Laythe, the three of us are finally home. TOUCHDOWN Taken 1 hour, 21 minutes ago. We have earned: 3392.8 193,664 Again, how did the recovery value get higher than the regular craft price (116,278)? All three of us becoming Level-Five kerbalnauts To be honest, I didn't think we were going to make it since our liquid fuel tanks were at less than 1/10 capacity. I'm very glad that not only we came back alive, but we kept the data intact; otherwise, we would be a bigger laughingstock than the Neptune II. Givan, Namin, and I are also the first kerbalnauts to come back from Laythe in a Mun Hopper; Lodock and Enmal don't count, since they returned in a pod while the Neptune III (an older variant of the Mun Hopper) was empty. Though this measure was a response to the Neptune II explosion, it turned out to be unnecessary. Good thing too bad that arrogant prick's the Neptune VI mission was aborted, but I honestly think that we wouldn't have gained much from a solo mission to Laythe in an SSTO. Sure, Johnfrid was alone when he first set foot on the surface, but three crewed missions (counting this one) after that have further expanded our knowledge of that moon - despite the data loss. I mean, the Neptune V flew over pretty much every biome and took scientific readings mid-flight (and even over the ocean). Heck, we often had to slow down just to get mid-flight EVA reports. Besides that, if we ever need to land more bases on Laythe, we made a very long list of spots to put them. I don't know why the map doesn't have the labels on ALL the stars, but at least we have the coordinates. 8* 13' 21" S 52* 20' 31" W Reflex Hammer Island 46* 28' 50" S 23* 1' 25" W Boring Island 41* 24' 39" S 37* 29' 13" W Penguin Soon-to-be Island 46* 20' 14" S 61* 28' 23" W Penguin Island 15* 20' 30" N 65* 22' 24" W Crater Island 45* 21' 36" N 121* 19' 53" W Northern Volcano 31* 02' 44" S 103* 59' 27" W Puffin Island 26* 30' 30" S 153* 39' 36" W Mergard's Courage 23* 30' 08" S 171* 08' 38" E Area D92F 24* 39' 55" S 156* 28' 18" E Site 0-3S 26* 54' 12" S 95* 25' 50" E Sector RT-F 32* 20' 12" S 91* 29' 46" E Zone 81HR0 16* 18' 55" N 169* 14' 18" E Gregzor's Peril 36* 17' 38" N 154* 36' 37" E Uvula Bay 22* 47' 29" N 104* 48' 41" E Upside-down L 39* 5' 17" N 76* 14' 28" E Doughnut 56* 48' 37" S 30* 33' 41" E South Cuba 66* 9' 32" S 79* 40' 7" E Anti-Florida 70* 37' 34" N 25* 41' 47" W Seward's Island Here are some pictures that we took that didn't end up in any previous journal entries. The three of us had agreed to save them until after we got back home, and we're now publishing them as promised. When I got the news that the KSP made a spaceplane carrier that could get to LKO, I was amazed. I wish the Neptune VII boys good luck and a swift return. The "swift return" part is pretty much guaranteed, since it's not going to stop at Ike first. As for the new tourist voyage - which will begin in a couple of years, after some of them return from a Gilly landing - it will cover all the planets in the Kerbol system, including the five moons of Jool. The Poseidon SSTO which will be used won't be able to land on Tylo or Vall, but the good thing is that the tourists only paid for a fly-by of Vall and an orbit of Tylo. If you have any questions regarding our Tylo-related efforts, please direct them to the Tylo Trek thread. If we were to have a Neptune VIII mission, it would be another tourist run with an exploration crew along for the ride. I'm starting to sense the Laythe hype dying down in the program, and my online friends (since I was stuck with Givan and Namin for a decade) agreed that we shouldn't send anything else to Laythe unless there's a financial or new scientific incentive involved. I kind of see their point; we sent a lot of spacecraft and planes to that moon, and we have already proven ourselves able to send planes, bases, and cars to the islands. Plus, we have put two space stations (one of them incomplete) already in orbit.

For a college "Exploration of Space Environment" project, (my partner and) I need to discuss the potential tradeoffs of picking a particular landing site on Mars. More specifically: What will we gain AND have to sacrifice from landing at this specific site. For example, when it comes to landing along Mars' equator vs on one of its polar ice caps (yes, I have to specify which one), I'll have to consider: Carrying my own water (and, therefore, more weight) vs converting the ice underneath I'll still have to carry a backup supply, but an ice cap landing and utilization can lessen the amount I need to save specifically for the outpost Keeping the return vehicle at an equatorial (or even inclined) orbit vs having to set a polar orbit. As we all know, we save fuel if we launch our ascent vehicles in the same orbital plane as our target. Regional temperature Will determine how the base will be heated. (For the stock game, I don't know anything about life support mods) KSP fails to address supporting kerbals in environments with low temperatures like those on Mars. Sunlight (and radiation) exposure More radiation protection = more weight = less delta-V More sunlight = more solar power Seismic activity A region with lower seismic activity is preferable Dust storm frequency My partner and I know that it won't tip over whatever ascent vehicle we bring, but dust storms can still cause serious problems such as: Getting inside computers Blocking solar panels I know I'm simply asking for help on a college term paper (whose due date is probably extended due to the coronavirus), but this is also a great opportunity for us to discuss where we would start a Martian base. Feel free to offer your input on where we should put a base, and why. After all, the entire mission plan (base design, approach and departure strategy, surface ops) depends on it. But be aware that, whatever landing spot we decide upon, we'll be sacrificing the advantages offered by other locations. We'll also have to design our base to compensate for lost advantages. Which would ultimately determine how the entire mission would be conducted. That's what engineering is about, exploring the gives-and-takes of our mission decisions. We basically explore this concept every day in KSP, too. adding fuel tanks will mean more delta-V, but also more weight to haul to LKO using a lander engine with higher thrust may mean giving up delta-V Any and all help is greatly appreciated. Thank you. P.S. Source links would be nice. I don't think my partner (let alone my professor) would want me to cite a forum post in the reference page.

and Why would she? She's slightly immunocompromised, and she's currently in her off-campus apartment in Blacksburg (one of the places I cannot be anywhere near for the next week). However, I just called her and she said that it doesn't necessarily mean that she's at risk of dying. She's more likely to catch it than others, but her immune system can fight it off no worse than anyone else. So long as she watches herself and obey the doctor's orders, which I'm pretty sure she will. She's also not going to panic over something outside of her control. This also applies to everyone on this forum. That doesn't mean we can't talk about it, though. Even if you're in one of the crisis response teams (then kudos to you), panicking never solved anything. like me. I don't know your personal health situation, but I'm talking about people who damage themselves by: Being addicted to alcohol/drugs. Then again, that could kill you regardless. Not watching what they put in their bodies Not getting enough sleep/moving around. Not cleaning open wounds. Violating quarantine orders Specifically, entering an infected zone. Unless you're designated medical/rescue personnel, you have to be pretty stupid to do that. EXITING an infected zone is another can of worms. YOU GET THE GIST

I'm currently at home (Virginia, USA) for Spring Break, and I just got this news half an hour ago. https://vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2020/03/president-covid-notice-march11.html My spring break has been extended by a week, and after I return we'll be moving to online classes My little brother at UMW said that he'll be taking his classes online starting March 16th. Yesterday, my mother got a text from one of her friends saying that universities throughout Pennsylvania are moving to online classes. Since this measure is apparently taking effect in Virginia as well, I'm guessing that most other colleges across the USA are following suit. My brother said that too, only he got specific and said it was like a less deadly version of The Andromeda Strain. Sure, the coronavirus has killed before, but it's not as deadly as most media outlets would want you to believe. As long as you wash your hands regularly, and watch where you stick them, you should be fine. That's pretty much common sense, anyway. Like with any virus, it's more likely to kill someone with a weakened immune system such as: older people (especially professors in a university) where they'll come into contact from students coming from who-knows-where immunocompromised people. hopefully, my girlfriend doesn't fall into the "major risk" category. anyone who blatantly neglects their own health. First sign of (actual) trouble, have a doctor check you immediately.

Kenny Kerman had just returned to Kerbin in a Poseidon spaceplane after ditching his tourists on the Mun. He soon realized that he was approaching the KSC too fast and at too high a pitch angle, so he panicked and pressed the "Abort" button. The crew cabin soon separated from the rest of the plane - whose engines were still running - and started coming down on the runway. Unfortunately, by the time he remembered that the emergency parachutes were a separate stage, it was too late to deploy them. The crew cabin crashed on the concrete runway at 97 meters per second, destroying it on impact. After the fire crews were done putting out the fire and fishing through the debris, they found Kenny's body crushed like a grape in the pilot's seat. The rest of the plane was found in pieces in the ocean. A week after the incident, Internal Investigations concluded that Kenny COULD have saved the spaceplane - and, by extension, his own life - if he: Remained calm Kept the engines at 1/3 throttle maximum Kept pitching up until the plane reached a positive angle Turned around 20 km from the space center to land at 2-7 KSC Bradley Kerman - undersized spacecraft

I put a ring station in orbit of Dres. I know this station was originally intended for Minmus, but I intentionally designed the carrier rockets the way that they are in case I - or some more ambitious users - want to take this farther. All I have to do is fill it up with a lot of fuel and ore, and then it's ready for refueling craft.

SAMDARD KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y61D306 - 4H20M I'm only at Level Two with a Mun and Minmus landing under my belt (for a tourist run, no less), and I've already been selected as the on-board engineer for the Neptune VII mission. I questioned why a new mission to Laythe was started, and then Mission Control replied with the following reasons. The Neptune VI mission had been aborted. Our contractors are demanding we use the Lazybird for a prominent space mission. Like when Integrated Integrals wanted the Hamacker to be used as the Neptune VI mission. Mission Control decided to take advantage of the fact that the launch window to Jool is about three weeks away, and that the spaceplane has 4,975 m/s of delta-V when deployed from the carrier. With two other Level-Four kerbalnauts, I'm about to go straight to Jool from Kerbin. NAME LEVEL SPECIALTY Donbin Kerman 4 Scientist Gusbles Kerman 4 Pilot Samdard Kerman 2 Engineer Gusbles Kerman, our pilot, on EVA right after the spaceplane is deployed from the carrier. We're ~175 km above Kerbin now. A minute after detachment, Jeb took the controls back and remotely piloted the carrier back to the KSC without a scratch. Gusbles actually thought that he was going to take the right wing off, due to the craft's incredibly long wingspan. In 20 days, we'll make our exit burn to Jool. When we arrive, we'll refuel on Pol and then head for Laythe for our mission. I'm sure this would beat heading to Duna and waiting for our burn to Jool from there, and we're about to get some more science points on Goo alone. On a side note, we considered launching a Lazybird to rescue a stranded kerbalnaut on Dres - but that idea was rejected once we realized that we already had a rescue crew on the way. We might launch an empty spaceplane to rescue an engineer stranded on Eeloo (no, it's not Bill - it's a rookie), but there's some concern regarding it having enough delta-V to land. Fortunately, the spaceplane has a docking port and a mass ore transport can fly up to it to refuel it - just like with the spaceplane that finished the Raven-Remembrance Saga. Wish us luck.

NO, THIS IS PATRICK! And I am not a KSP. All memes aside, I think it makes more sense to fly to Dres Canyon first. It's closer to the equator than the Mohole, so landing and taking off (and leaving the SOI) will use up less fuel than a polar landing. You can also drive through it the canyon, and it has an entrance/exit rather than just one way in OR out. With the Mohole, you'll also be taking up fuel going up and down.

To answer @Mikenike's question, I have 64 kerbals total and now on Y61 in my current career save. So far, only three dead (not counting quicksaves). In a fanwork I started a year ago (but stopped due to other projects in KSP and IRL), @roboslacker asked me how long a kerbal's life span is. I answered with this. In other words, (for my fanwork) kerbals tend to live as long as humans - assuming they're not killed or die prematurely from illness.

Impressive, but is that all you can do? I built an SSTO that can carry another spaceplane to a 175-km orbit above Kerbin. I wanted a carrier because why waste your own fuel getting to LKO when someone else can do that for you. And no, I'm not talking about a shuttle rocket. Now that's what I call a spaceplane carrier. The carrier only needs to get to LKO and back to the runway, while the spaceplane itself has 4,975 m/s of delta-V. For more details, see my craft file for the Lazybird.

BILL KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y61D214 - 5H00M It is unconventional, but not unheard of, for kerbalnauts currently outside of Kerbin's SOI to participate in engineering projects. Val and I are currently in a Dirtblood, returning home from a scientific survey on Duna. The weird thing is that our on-board scientist is Lasel Kerman, the same woman who came to rescue us from Eeloo years ago. Anyway, while we were heading back home, I've been selected to help the SPH engineers design a "spaceplane carrier." More specifically, it's supposed to carry a spaceplane to LKO, detach it, and return to the KSC while the spaceplane does its mission. Critics of this project - myself being one of them - called it inefficient and impractical. I mean, what's the point of a spaceplane if it can't even get itself to LKO? However, I then switched to the "pro" side when Mission Control gave me the benefits which increased the plane's delta-V after being deployed. Removed the monopropellant tanks and the underside docking port of a private spaceplane, saving weight. Draining the oxidizer. Picture of the new spaceplane 175 km above Kerbin. Has 4,975 m/s of delta-V after detaching from the carrier. That means it can make a direct interplanetary burn without having to stop at Minmus (and/or Ike) in the middle. I've heard of air-launched rockets - and I even read about the new rocket carrier - but an SSTO carrying another spaceplane to orbit has never been done before. If done successfully, we would save a lot of mission time on refueling stops alone. Heck, we could probably do a straight shot to Jool because of this. Months of research, testing, and crashing later, we managed to get a successful prototype. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls. We present to you LAZYBIRD Test run album Since Anrey's mission was aborted, and since the Neptune V collected a lot of science during its runs, rumors have been going around that we may stop the Neptune program. When asked about it, Mission Control neither confirmed nor denied that it would end the Laythe exploration missions. Wernher didn't give much of an answer either when I asked him, but he told me this: Outside of this project, I hear that the Neptune V crew marked down a lot of possible base locations. We definitely won't cover all of them, but we know where to put bases in case we need to. I guess whoever was in charge of labels hates doing paperwork. I am SO glad the Raven-Remembrance Saga is finally over. It started when Val and I were on Eeloo, and now everyone on that trip is satisfied with their vacation. We blew a good portion of our budget on failed carrier prototypes (and a new ring station designed for refueling), but we're now under another contract for nine more tourists (eight, not counting the one whose itinerary we already fulfilled). No matter; for the tourists that want to go to the Mun, Minmus, Duna, and further away from the sun, we can use a Poseidon SSTO. Like the Eeloo missions from decades back, the Neptune missions have expanded our boundaries in science and technology. We used to just take tourists in landers (for some planets, we still do) and splash them on Kerbin's oceans, but now we're taking planes. We also designed ring space stations (though, honestly, it was just to replace the space station we didn't bother to continue assembling), launched mass ore transports, and built new homes on Laythe. All that's left is to put kerbalkind on Tylo and Eve, and we would have conquered our solar system.