Espatie

I time my launches. For my usual LKO rescuer rocket, I launch at the point when the target craft switches to comms direct to KSC (the green line) - which is about halfway across the ocean west of KAfrica. The closest one I've even done I never even went orbital. Just launch, intercept of 300m, bail the rescuee out, dive across the intervening space, get into the capsule just as the altimeter ticks to 69,999. Landed in the ocean just west of KIndia. The real trick is knowing how to time and angle your KSC launch to get the right inclination of orbit for a Mun rescue.

I use the Navball Docking Alignment Indicator CE-2 by @linuxgurugamer - it's much more intuitive than the separate window docking mod in my view, and less clutter on screen. @Snark's Missing History Mod, which fleshes out the 1.875m line of parts with battery, stowage and reaction wheel parts as well as the wonderful Pallici Pod is a number one on the install mod for me. Click Through Blocker, RCS Build Aid Continued, Kerbal Alarm Clock and East Vessel Switch are all absolutely indispensable IME. I also like to have either Aviation Lights or Surface Mounted Lights to give some extra illumination options. KIS and KAS are great, although AIUI there might be compatability issues with the current version. I also adore Structural Tubing Restructured (another of LGG's rescued orphan mods), but it often does not play well with KIS/KAS activity or with the in-VAB symmetry tool. I don't use MechJeb personally.

Minecraft got the term from Dwarf Fortress.

Today was quite a boring day of running Tourists around the Mun and back for funds. I did manage to use the missions to land in Kerbin's north and south polar areas and collect surface samples, though, and I've collected almost enough funds for the next KSC upgrade. Tomorrow that will get done and then I'll go and land on the Mun.

Today in "living incredibly dangerously": Rescue contract in LKO. I Launched by standard LKO rescue craft when the target was just over the sea to the west of the peninsula KSC is on, and this time I managed to achieve a direct intercept from launch... with the minor issue that the rescue ship was still suborbital at the intercept point with a closing velocity of 40m/s. Cue a *very* hurried bailout by the rescuee, a jetpack dive across space and into the capsule... just in time to see the altimeter tick over from 70,000 to 69,999. I mean sure, I *could* have done it the boring way of making the rescue ship go into orbit, but where's the fun in that?

How fast were you going when you threaded that needle, @Snark? With relevance to the question: Science Labs are, in my experience, the absolute worst modules for knocking your spacecraft about on exit. It's so bad that I habitually block the exists when building stations. I don't know why this is.

Today in "Simple build errors to make your life harder", I accidentally put a Mk 25 Parachute instead of a Mk 16XL on a rescue craft. Result: One rescue craft needing rescuing. I sent the second rescuer up to collect the initial rescuee, and landed that with no issue, but then I chose to de-orbit the capsule with only a Mk 25 and have the pilot simply jump out (couldn't do this with the rescuee of course: No parachute on 0 star engineers).

A slight build error on my first Mun orbiter of my new save made for some interesting adventures. I forgot to put a heat shield on, and slightly underestimated the required delta-V for a polar orbiter to return to Kerbin. The combination of these meant that I had to use a series of aerobraking manoeuvres. I got the Pe to 60km, Ap at 12million, and gradually (9 passes through the atmosphere) bled speed off before coming in for a parachute landing in the ocean ENE of the Dessert Launchpad. Nearly 300 Science and EVA reports completed for all Mun Biomes though.

Reinstalled.

Stockalike Station Parts Expansion. Which is a depreciated mod.

I also avoid using Tweakscale

I'd find more utility personally in a 1.875m Storage part; I have tried rescaling the model of the bigger versions to create on but without much success.

Too many legs!

Right, having done a bit more testing I think that the issue I'm having is actually to do with the weird things symmetry mode does with STR parts. When you attach an STR part to something with symmetry on, it can often attach the symmetrical part in strange ways. Some are visually obvious, but for others what is happening is that the part is surface attached it looks visually fine in the VAB, but when you get out in the field the part only has nodes on the end which is buried inside the part it's attached to.

I've been experimenting with parts to figure out why @linuxgurugamer's Structural Tubing Restructured mod doesn't play well with @IgorZKAS mod. So far as I can tell, KAS really doesn't like trying to attach a part to an STR part that has two nodes pointing in the same direction.

Am I missing something, or is the Material Extractor better than the Ore Processor at everything in every way?

And/or attach the biggest reaction wheels you can find to it.

And a ladder. Never go EVA without a ladder or two.

There's a factor called Transmission Efficiency; this caps the Science obtainable by transmitting. For Crew Reports and EVA reports, transmission efficiency is 100%; so it is possible to get maximum Science from those without having to return. For other experiments you must return the data to Kerbin to get the full amount, but you can transmit for a partial amount now and recover for the rest later.

Mun: 0-0-43N, 53-17-35E

I've just realised that one of my Space Stations is crewed by Geofemy Kerman, Geofrie Kerman and Geofry Kerman. This is not confusing in the slightest.

I was wondering, is there an easy overview anywhere of the pros/cons, dependencies and varying hardness/complexity of the various Life Support Mods? I'm looking to go heavy on Life Support for my next career play through, but I don't have a good idea of which would suit me.

Gonna frustrate @DStaal's bingo card and say Surface Experiment Pack

As I said, if all engines are at full blast it has a TWR in Munar gravity of 2.34. by the time it lands this is usually more like 3 due to fuel use.

It's a matter of mission profile. Because the Landers mass balance changes significantly if Cargo or Kerbals aren't being carried, on such a lightweight frame the ability to dial back some of the engines in order to keep the thrust balance even is very useful indeed.