Bowak

Today I learnt how to use Mechjeb and I love it. I can already dock and I've been experimenting with it to semi-automate routine tasks such as refuelling my space station and sending up replacement crew.

When you right click on screenshots to rotate the camera.

With a new design always test your staging in a 'simulated' launch, dropping anything except SRBs early so you can be sure that everything's in the right order and that you won't find yourself ditching a vital component half way across the system. I view this also as a way of testing the abort procedure for a failed launch.

I may yet have to do that as I've decided I'm going to use the current station as a testbed. I have a small rocket that's capable of getting 1 Kerbal to Munar orbit and back. I'm going to see if I can replace the capsule on this with a hitchiker module and probe controller to try returning the station's crew to Kerbin. This'll give me more docking practice and eva practice. If the station survives this (I've got one set of solar panels retracted, ready for deployment if I manage to smash the others off in an accident) then it's going places. I also really like the idea of using the two rockets together, it'd feel more like an actual space programme. Assuming the station survives I'll then try shifting it to the Mun. In one piece if I can, or split into two if necessary. If it survives that it's eventually going to Duna as I know I'll want to see just how many places I can take it before disaster strikes.

I wasn't going to play again today, but now I'm thinking that this little base would look much better orbiting Mun. Time to throw together an unmanned nuclear stage to push it out there.

I originally purchased KSP at I think 0.13, had a mess around and then left it for a year or so until a couple of weeks ago. I've so far managed a couple of trips around the Mun along with several disastrous failed rockets. This morning I put up my first two space station segments and successfully docked them: http://imgur.com/a/eCWp3 The first part of the station is simply the space station core pre-loaded with the game. Part two is a modified space station core with the multi docking port replaced with a large RCS tank and an array of RCS thrusters at each end of it. My next task will be to design my own station, but for now I wanted to concentrate on designing the rocket to get them into orbit. I'd originally set the tanks to asparagus stage but it turned out to be unnecessary and it's an exceptionally stable rocket. I'm going to experiment with removing the additional 720 tank and retrying asparagus staging to have all 3 mainsails running at launch. There are parachutes on each habitation module to allow the crew to land safely if I mess the launch up. As I hadn't expected to be successful the screenshots of the 2 rockets launching and the safe return of a crew module were taken quickly afterwards to complete the album, so the separations happen earlier into flight than they would have done.