Meritania

If I was you, I'd develop the contract system after you've developed your 'futuristic science' point system. Personally, I'd love a mod which adds to the tech tree and makes you work to get it. All the mods I have now basically did this because once I reach the end of the tech tree I feel its very much 'game over'. I'd love to develop ion drives to the point where they can lift a capital ship from a planet's surface to orbit and then onto hyperspace. Go into the Interstellar Medium, do some research then return with your data ready to unlock some crazy new tech that could hyperwarp you to the nearest star system.

I'll throw in my two cents since I'm really looking for a good space station and colony mod. I'd say stay away from all the life support parts because there are other modders who do that kind of thing and spend their time coding it and what not, and if I were to build a colony pack then I'd probably integrate their parts into it. Instead what I'm thinking about is either some kind of 'long term gameplay investment' like the interstellar pack where one advance that leads to another, or some kind of science factory, that once built contributes science to the R&D as it continues to operate. You could have some sort of biodome produce plants, and then some kind of piloted vehicle could transfer the plants to it and then either driven to a botany lab to be converted into science, or a biomass refinery to produce fuel or a pasture dome to feed animals. The animals could then been taken to a different lab for a higher science output or converted to TAC food or what evs. Come up with something fun, different and interesting and I'll definitely install.

My Jebediah had quite a strong service record, being the first into orbit, first to EVA in space, first to circle the Mun, however his luck ran out when we tried to launch a space station, as a single mass, it came down with a bang, I'm sure he fought magnificently at the controls, keeping his head cool while all around him were losing theirs... literally. Some of the labs survived however Jeb's module did not. There are many a kerbal who owe that fella a drink in the afterlife. Bob however has a more mysterious fate, after a failed Mun landing, may have been caused by landing on a steep sided crater, Bob was left in a command module detached from the rest of this ship, with only a comm unit and 11 days supply of food, water and oxygen. He was however abandoned up there for 3 weeks while we advanced technology to build a more reliable ship to rescue him, after a few hours trip back to Kerbin, I may have forgotten about his incoming flight and his ship was not listed at the tracking station when I checked later. His kerbalnaut report describes him as 'mission in action', maybe he crashed head first into Kerbin, burnt up in the atmosphere or maybe he felt disrespected by the KSC, unceremoniously left, and is now living it up in some tropical paradise regaling locals and tourists at a Tiki bar about how he was the first kerbal on the Mun. It is a mystery.

Absolutely spiffing damsels!

I'd like to say 'wow' to the concept. I've been designed an ion-powered craft that as far as they go, is quite nippy. It's acceleration is about 1 m/s^2 and recharge its batteries fairly quickly and can go from low kerbin orbit to Minmus in one charge! It's still nowhere near capable of landing on anything or gliding. I'm tempted to wait for docking and build some kind of 'throw away' landing pod, that once it brings the astronauts to and from a moon or planet, can be thrown away. New ones can be picked up from a kerbin space station, that themselves have been brought there from the Kerbin surface. It means that 'Ion Prince', will never need to 'end it's mission' and always has ample power, fuel and oxygen supplies. Oh and welcome to the forums.

Theories on the formation of Minmus A human perspective on the Kerbin System The planet Kerbin in the Kerbol System has long been of interest to planetary astronomers. The planet is the most likely candidate for intelligent life beyond Earth. While much smaller than Earth, the planet has similar gases and gravity and more amazingly of all, abnormal radio band transmissions for a planetary object. This paper however finds interest in the moons of Kerbin. The closest object to the planet is 'Mun'. This object is suspected to be similar to Earth's moon. More bizarrely is the highest orbiting moon, Minmus, a celestial body similar to that of Europa in orbit around Jupiter. Minmus itself seems to be an anomaly and it is the aim of this paper to discuss the theories to the formation on Minmus. Planetary Collision Similar to the formation of Earth's Moon and Mun, this theory suggests that a planetary collision between Kerbin and another object formed both moons. Kerbin however, due to the smaller gravity of the planet, caused a wide spread debris field which coalesced into two moons. The denser materials, such as silicates & metalic oxides, formed Mun in lower orbit and the lighter materials such as water & methane formed Minmus in a higher orbit. Comet capture This theory suggests that Minmus was once a comet from the dwarf planet cloud of Kerbol's outer system. The comet was then captured from its irregular solar orbit by Kerbin. Protected in Kerbins magnetic field, Minmus lost its tail as it was protected from Kerbol's radiation. Minmus shows signs of glaciation which suggests the moon was once warm enough for the ice to form water and liquid methane in order for it freeze as a smooth surface. This could because Minmus was previously much closer to Kerbol. Planetary capture This theory suggests Minmus formed as a planet on its own close to Kerbin's orbit however as Kerbin grew, the heavier materials were more attracted to the larger planet. The gravity of Kerbin could have also ripped Minmus apart several times over, leading to Minmus's distorted shape and eventually incorporating the failed planet into the Kerbin system as a moon. The orbit of Minmus being not along the orbital plane with the planet suggests it is highly likely the moon was captured and not formed in the Kerbin system. The Geography of Minmas The major difference with Europa is while the ice moon in our system is close to Jupiter. The gravitational tides of which cause the moon to have a molten core, which could very well warm an ocean of water under the ice, which very well may support life. Minmus is too far from Kerbin and too small to have an active core and appears inert. The Ice Oceans however could be subject to tidal friction, either from the gravity of Kerbin or solar radiation during the day cycles. The expanding and contracting ice against the shore rock causes weathering and gives the ice oceans their distinct canyons. Finding evidence to support the theories will provide difficult at this distance. Maybe the Kerbins have discovered the answer and will one day share their secrets...