czokletmuss

Here you are: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/31251-The-Icarus-Project

Well, I would love to finally finish it and release it but real life sometimes gets in the way constantly. Please be a little more patient guys and remember - there are still weeks of new releases ahead of us I'm afraid I have no other choice than to sue you

Sure thing!

I didn't have much time lately but in case you're wondering, the next chapter is coming soon (no ETA though):

I'm not an anime fan at all. I just think "Ghost in the Shell" and "Planetes" are good - and these are the only anime I've ever watched btw. I started this thread because using anime to promote space agency sounds so... random

More info about the recent discovery: Source: http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA17470

After futuristic, high-tech and serious Grand Tour, doing this pure stock (except for Kerbal Engineer Redux and Protractor) 0.22 upbeat mission felt different. And cool: I would really love to hear your opinion on upgrading the Grand Tour to 0.22 version, guys. I'm still wondering whether I should do this. This probably won't affect the rate at which new chapters show up. But there are other issues: This brings a bigger issue of updating the Grand Tour to 0.22. The whole story was planned in March (not that much left from this early ideas) and initiated in April. Currently it's still running on 0.20.2 version. Now I guess I could transfer it somehow to 0.22 (asssuming there won't be problems with some parts and some of them are from 0.18) but this would erase all the traces of "Protues" journey - flags, debris, vehicles and probes and of course planets configuration which is obviously different in a starting date (Year 1 Day 1). There are some ways to make it work (timewarp and set every thing on a correct orbit in a correct time using HyperEdit) but it would take a lot of time I would prefer to spend on other things like writing for instance. I've a lot of crushes recently when I'm playing the Grand Tour however, so I'm considering doing it anyways. I'm not sure though what do you guys think about this - it would be, in a way, cheating since it won't be a Grand Tour if I start with a new persistent file with "Proteus" above Vall and continue from there. What do you think about it? What do you think?

Source: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-304&utm_source=iContact&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NASAJPL&utm_content=release+2013-304#1 I wonder if we'll see another probe on Titan in my lifespan. I also hope that it will appear in KSP, maybe as a mun of the second gas giant. Such mun (let's call it Cyclop) would be very interesting target with dense atmosphere and low gravity. I guess we can't expect Titan probe soon - which I completely don't understand, there are a bodies of liquid on surface, for Kod's sake - so at least we may have the possibility of doing some mission in the game.

TINY, TINY UPDATE The next chapter is coming along nicely and will be released when it's ready. I won't give you any ETA except for the usual "Soon" and "When I Feel Like Writing" but I can tell you one thing - The Grand Tour has reached more or less 2/3 of its originally planned length. The plans changed significantly several times but yup, more or less 2/3 are done. So there's still a lot of updates ahead of us. That is, if I don't change my mind and say "screw this, I'm playing Deus Ex" or something like this along the way In three months it will be a year since I published the first episode of the "Jool of Kerbol system" but to be honest, writing this is still a lot of fun. And I improved my English significantly And what about The Space Race? I want to continue it as well, though with the recent 0.22 update it'll take a while before all the mods are updated or before I'll update some parts manually and test them. Anyways, it'll probably be continued - unless I decide that I don't feel like writing, that is :> Oh, and there is also a third secret idea for moar writing which I have. But I won't tell you know what it is, of course. Take care! P.S. If you can't wait for more goodies from czokletmuss, I suggest you watch this in the meantime:

It looks great

Crap, I wrote a long, long answer to this thread but I accidentaly deleted it >_< So just a short summary: 1. Write for yourself 2. Low expectations is a key to not be dissapointed 3. Treat it like fun, not like a job/challenge/quest to have a lot of views/comments/whatever I may expand on it later but now I'm just frustrated that I've lost 15 minutes of preparing the post...

Space exploration is expensive - you don't want to waste anything. Publishable? Not really - I'm still not good enough in English I'm afraid, too many grammar issues. I'm glad you like it - and don't worry, the situation may always change for better. Or worse. And what about Jeb? Well, he's a tough one, so even after all what's happened it's not his breaking point, Yet. Ah, this is another "good" thing about space - you can't just quit the only habitable enviroment past Kerbin's orbit Thank you! Every story needs a hero to be tested - look even at Disney movies, "Lion King" for instance. It's his ability to overcome his weaknesses and challenge whatever the obstacles there are which gives us the happy ending. Of course, there are also other approaches to this subject. It was more a shoutout to the 0.22 than statement about all the containters. OR WAS IT?! That's cool too! Which reminds me I should rent some cabin in Mazury so that I can watch ISON without all the light pollution. This brings a bigger issue of updating the Grand Tour to 0.22. The whole story was planned in March (not that much left from this early ideas) and initiated in April. Currently it's still running on 0.20.2 version. Now I guess I could transfer it somehow to 0.22 (asssuming there won't be problems with some parts and some of them are from 0.18) but this would erase all the traces of "Protues" journey - flags, debris, vehicles and probes and of course planets configuration which is obviously different in a starting date (Year 1 Day 1). There are some ways to make it work (timewarp and set every thing on a correct orbit in a correct time using HyperEdit) but it would take a lot of time I would prefer to spend on other things like writing for instance. I've a lot of crushes recently when I'm playing the Grand Tour however, so I'm considering doing it anyways. I'm not sure though what do you guys think about this - it would be, in a way, cheating since it won't be a Grand Tour if I start with a new persistent file with "Proteus" above Vall and continue from there. What do you think about it? You know what's scary? Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" series.

I never liked anime too but after "Ghost in the shell" and "Planetes" I changed my mind

But it's true:

Awesome! Were you inspired by the old Soviet plans about nuclear train on Mars (true story) by any chance?

Oort cloud? BLASPHEMY! There are no clouds in space! Seriously though - according to what we know about solar formation it should exist. But we may be wrong, of course.

Damn, and I was trying so hard!

Actually, I did tell you what's going on: Anyways: EDIT: Thanks! It wasn't that serious after all as it turns out. And to think Bruce Wayne saved him! And every chapter is getting longer and longer Not really Thank you very mu- wait, what? TheBadAstronomer? Like, the Bad Astronomer? OM NOM NOM! Thanks And in the end BERTY will sing a song: Nah, this would be too dark of an ending. ... On the other hand... :scribble:

CHAPTER 39 VALL ORBIT INSERTION *** BERTY v.2.0.8b: Engines cutoff. Trajectory correction burn completed. Vall encounter confirmed. Estimated arrival time 18 hours 14 minutes and 35 seconds. GENANAND: Good. The sooner we leave the vicinity of Jool, the better. MALLOCK: Exactly. I don't want to spend more time sitting here in the radiation shelter. I do appreciate the irony though, how it took the deadly radiation belt of Jool to force all of us to gather here and chat. JOHNDON: N-not all of us. Commander is still in the co-command module. MALLOCK: But the rest of us is here, right? And we didn't really have any occasion for such gathering in the last months. I can't even remember the last time we've talked, Ned. NED: There's nothing to talk about. MALLOCK: Nothing? We've just arrived here and one of us is already dead! CAMBO: Mechanical failure, completely understandable after such a long time in space and two aerobrakings. It's nobody's fault. MALLOCK: No doctor, you are completely wrong about that. NEILGAS: Are you suggesting something? MALLOCK: Actually I do. We shouldn't even be here, we chose to go back to home – and who's fault is this? JOHNDON: B-be quiet, you'll wake up Bill. GENANAND: Whining won't change anything. We're here and we have to deal with it. MALLOCK: And that's my point – we dealt with that months ago. Problem is, he decided to ignore it. CAMBO: If I remember correctly, you were one of the few people who voted for continuing the mission. MALLOCK: I did not vote for what's going on. CAMBO: Actually, you did. NEILGAS: Here we go again… MALLOCK: I wanted to continue the mission, to gather more science and to realize whatever plan KSC has for us. When was the last time any of you have talked with Kerbin, huh? JOHNDON: B-BERTY said there were problems with co-communications and- MALLOCK: Oh great, “BERTY said†- you're listening to whatever the robot says? GENANAND: Calm down Mal. And he's not a robot. MALLOCK: He's not a commander either and what a pity he isn't – maybe we would have somebody sane in command of this mission. NED: Jeb is not crazy. MALLOCK: Says who? You, of all people? Not only you have obviously your own problems… GENANAND: Mal, come on- MALLOCK: …but you're willing to defend your old pal after months of him neglecting his duties? We would've been dead already if it wasn't for Neilgas and his repairs of the life support system – or have you forgotten that the secondary LSS was damaged during the aerobraking? The same aerobraking that killed Harsen? NED: What's your point? MALLOCK: My point? My point is we're stuck here executing what is supposed to be KSC mission plan lead by a complete munatic, who's so detached that he prefers to risk exposure to radiation that to come here and spend some time with us. My point is that all the equipment and the ship itself is slowly breaking down and if the engines fail even once, we'll be stuck here for good. My point is not only we don't have contact with Kerbin, we don't even have contact with Jeb, who uses the fraking AI to communicate with us! And not only that – I'm sure he's spying on us even as we speak. BERTY v.2.0.8b: I can assure you, professor Mallock, that commander Jeb didn't order me to, as you puy it, spy on the crew. MALLOCK: You see? Even as we speak! GENANAND: Calm down already! NEILGAS: Good Kod, Mallock, you are a scientist and you sound like you were wearing a tinfoil hat. MALLOCK: What? GENANAND: He's right. Jeb has gone crazy and uses BERTY to manipulate us? Listen to yourself, Mal, you're being paranoid. MALLOCK: You say I am crazy and in the same time you're willing to follow Jebediah after all what happened?! NED: Yes. NEILGAS: It's not like we have any choice, Mal. MALLOCK: Rozer would've never allow it to happen, we should- BERTY v.2.0.8b: Doctor Cambo, I'm detecting an abnormal heartbeat in professor's Mallock biosensors readings. I suggest you take him to the medic bay and examine in case of some complications. MALLOCK: My heart? CAMBO: What, you think you can't have a heart attack in space? MALLOCK: But I'm feeling fine! CAMBO: Take this stress pill. BERTY? BERTY v.2.0.8b: Thorough examination is advised. BILL: What's going on? JOHNDON: G-great, you've woken him up! MALLOCK: Good for him! He was with Jeb on the Mun and he's the oldest of us all, instead of sleeping he should be doing something about- CAMBO: Please calm down, professor. You're coming with me. BILL: Where's he going? Did I miss something? NED: It's nothing, Bill. It's nothing. *** BERTY v.2.0.8b: Orbit insertion burn in T minus 13 minutes and 3 seconds. Payload C is expected to enter Laythe sphere of influence in T minus 1 hour 24 minutes and 46 seconds. JEB: Would you let me go after we're done with it? BERTY v.2.0.8b: No. The time for rest in scheduled after successful polar orbit insertion by VallSat. JEB: And what about funeral? BERTY v.2.0.8b: It's not our priority right now. JEB: But think about the crew morale! We can't let him wait for much longer, the crew- BERTY v.2.0.8b: I've reach a conclusion that the most satisfying way of performing a proper funeral from a psychological stand point will be to put the remains of doctor Harsen in a trajectory that will send him into the Jool's atmosphere. This would require additional work with the coffin. To minimalise time of extravehicular activity required for this this operation must be performed while IMV “Proteus†is on route to Tylo, which can only be done after complete refueling. JEB: But it will take days! He'll start… he'll start to decom- BERTY v.2.0.8b: Potential biohazard can be reduced completely by putting the remains of doctor Harsen to the coffin immediately after executing orbit insertion burn. To futher minimalize the risk of infection, the coffin can be attached to the hull. Exposure to radiation during such extravehicular activity will be well within safety limit. Furthermore, by installing additional batteries the coffin could provide a valuable data. JEB: You can't be – data? What data? BERTY v.2.0.8b: Biochemical activity in microgravity is always worth investigating. Strong magnetosphere of Jool can also significantly- JEB: You want to experiment on him?! BERTY v.2.0.8b: Yes. It would be a terrible waste to ignore such occasion. Organic material- JEB: Organic material? It's Harsen, not some koddamned Petri dish! BERTY v.2.0.8b: Jeb, you're acting under the influence of your emotions. The potential benefits of such research can be enormous. The results of experiments conducted here may save lives in the future. It would be unethical to ignore this. JEB: You are talking about ethics while considering doing this? You are insane. BERTY v.2.0.8b: Jeb. As I have stated on a numerous occasions, as artificial intelligence I cannot be described with terms used to describe living beings. Sane or insane are useless categories, thus using them leads to wrong conclusions. Besides, this is an obligatory procedure for all deceased crew members. JEB: No. No way. BERTY v.2.0.8b: You can access the files concerning this issue, Jeb. Codename “Mystery Gooâ€Â. JEB: … BERTY v.2.0.8b: Orbit insertion burn in T minus 10 minutes. JEB: So he was right. We really are expendable... BERTY v.2.0.8b: I think you are still being unnecessary emotional about this, Jeb. There is no rational reason to not make use of an organic material already brought to the Jool system. JEB: When they find out, nobody will listen to you. BERTY v.2.0.8b: Yes. That's why you are going to prepare the experiment after all operations scheduled for today are completed. JEB: My Kod… why are you tormenting me like this? BERTY v.2.0.8b: Your cooperation is required for the successful completing the mission, willing or unwilling. This mission is too important for me to let anyone compromise it, Jeb. JEB: BERTY, please… after Bob I can't… I can't- BERTY v.2.0.8b: I'm sorry, Jeb, but there is no alternative. The science must be done. *** BERTY v.2.0.8b: Laythe encounter in T minus 30 seconds. BERTY v.2.0.8b: Laythe encounter confirmed. Plotting trajectory corrections. BERTY v.2.0.8b: Polar orbit achieved. Circularizing in progress. BERTY v.2.0.8b: Final orbit achieved. Payload C ready for the rendez-vous. *** JOHNDON: Thank you. NEILGAS: For what? JOHNDON: For keeping my c-company. Everybody is arguing this days, it's nice to- NEILGAS: Look, I just didn't want to sit in hab B with Mallock after all this. JOHNDON: Oh. NEILGAS: Hey, err, it's not like- JOHNDON: It's no-nothing, really. NEILGAS: :sigh: JOHNDON: … NEILGAS: So… the probe. It's going in a polar orbit, right? JOHNDON: Yes. This will give us the c-complete planetary scan after some time. NEILGAS: Planetary? JOHNDON: Oh, right. Well, these muns are so big that they deserve to be planets, like Dres. If it wasn't for Jool, they surely would be. NEILGAS: Mhm. JOHNDON: LaytheSat released! NEILGAS: Shouldn't BERTY do this? JOHNDON: Why? I'm the r-robotics specialist. He's overseeing, that's it. Plus, it's good to have something to do, you know? NEILGAS: I guess it is. BERTY v.2.0.8b: Inclination change maneuver calculations completed. JOHNDON: G-great. Initiate the burn. NEILGAS: So many months together and it didn't even say goodbye. JOHNDON: Oh, we will be talking with the probe a lot in the next few weeks. I'm su-sure he'll have quite a story to tell about this ice planet. *** BERTY v.2.0.8b: Jeb. It's getting late. You should start preparing for the extravehicular activity to mount additional equipment into the coffin. More powerful batteries are vital for the research to be successful so far from the Sun. JEB: … BERTY v.2.0.8b: I can assure you that we will initiate the refueling procedure as soon as the Automatic Miner Unit 2.0 secures its orbit above Vall. Then after transfer burn to Tylo the crew will have the possibility to perform the funeral ceremony. JEB: … BERTY v.2.0.8b: Don't be sad, Jeb. Doctor Harsen will continue to serve kerbality and science even after his death. He will be put to the fullest possible use, which is all I think that any conscious entity can ever hope to do. Don't you agree, Jeb? *** MISSION STATUS ***

The new chapter IS coming Soon.

Precisely

No kill like overkill, huh?

I know but it's too big for my taste.

Ah, so you already thought of this. That's great

Awesome You know what, you can also release other version of it without the rails (?) for Lunokhod, thus creating cool Soviet-style lander. Put on top of it vanilla lander pod and you can go to the Mun like a true kommunist :>