KSK

Thanks - and sure! I'll need to set an account up somewhere for sharing files though - what do folks normally use? I'll include a pilot's guide too - it's not the most aerodynamic thing in the world but it does get three kerbals to orbit with enough liquid fuel for reasonable cross range capacity after re-entry. Suggest using the RCS for on orbit maneuvers though.

I built a spaceplane with the Mk3 parts that I don't think looks too bad. I definitely agree with points 1 and 3 though.

Heh. Thanks for the heads up on the docking. I've added another line to (hopefully!) clear that up.

Thanks Lightning - next chapter coming right up! The whole thing was getting quite long, so I figured it would probably stand being split into two... Docking - Part I Hanbal gnawed on one knuckle and listened to the familiar cadences of Mission Control ebbing and flowing around him. Controllers murmured into their headsets, requesting system reports, issuing orders to their teams and relaying updates to the flight director. Keyboards clacked away, orchestrating shifting patterns of data that rippled over dozens of monitor screens and lit up constellations of tell-tale lamps. Like the eye of a hurricane, the orbital tracking screen was the single point of calm at the centre of the data storm. The familiar map of Kerbin was empty apart from a single stylised rocket icon representing the Endurance on its launch pad. For now, Hanbal's gaze was fixed firmly on the next screen, which was currently showing a view over that very same launch pad. Compared to previous generations of Rockomax boosters, Endurance looked deceptively simple. A gently tapered capsule sat atop a single unbroken tube of metal, with an engine bell attached to its base. The whole assembly was capped by a latticed spire, which in turn was topped with a cluster of smaller rockets. Only the tubing wrapped around the upper end of the engine bell - and the thin plumes of vapour rolling down her flanks - suggested that Endurance might be something different. Hanbal caught a familiar whiff of hair oil as the control room door swung open behind him. He flicked a look to his left as Danfen joined him at the rail. "Cutting things a bit fine weren't you?" he said quietly. Danfen nodded. "Took longer than we thought to clear that last hold. Turned out to be a faulty sensor on the hatch." Hanbal's reply was cut short by a squawk of feedback. Nelton adjusted a dial on her console. “Understood, Bunker. That's a Go for terminal count." One of the controllers got up from his seat, walked up the steps to the viewing balcony and locked the door. He nodded briefly to the two engineers and hurried back to his console. Danfen glanced up at the monitor. The view over the launch pad flickered and was replaced by a close up image of the launch tower fuelling arm. Two thick hoses emerged from a port on the booster and disappeared off screen. The port itself was thickly rimed with frost and every so often a chunk broke away and dropped out of view. The image sputtered and dissolved into static before switching back to the view from the launch pad camera. “She doesn't look like much from this distance does she?" said Danfen. “No," said Hanbal, “the single booster makes it tricky to get a sense of scale, unless you know what you're looking at." Danfen chewed on his thumbnail for a moment. “It's a nice simple design though," he said at last, “Two stages, two engines, two decouplers. No B1s strapped on the side to stress the airframe, less off-axis thrust to balance." Hanbal snorted. “You forgot the two tankfuls of liquid oxygen," he said dryly. “That's quite enough stress on the airframe for my tastes. Not to mention a main engine that's about an order of magnitude more powerful than any liquid fuelled stage we've ever flown before." Danfen's knuckles turned white on the rail. “I know," he said, “We learned a lot from the SK1-O though - version P is much more robust." “Oh the Skipper is a good engine," said Hanbal. “Best machine we ever put on the stand and the test flights went off without a hitch. It's just..." Danfen completed his thought. “Yeah. It's a big engine to put a crew on top of. Incidentally - 'Skipper'?" “The propulsion team's nickname for the SK1-P," said Hanbal. “I don't recall who started it... but it stuck." Danfen laughed. “You'll need to think of a better name for the upper stage," he said. “The 'Skigger' doesn't have quite the same ring to it." Below the balcony, the tempo was picking up. The keyboards rattled away and the various clicks and clacks from the other controls grew steadily more urgent. One by one, auxiliary monitors lit up around the main orbital tracking screen, displaying detailed readouts of the different spacecraft systems.The controllers remained focused on their consoles, silent except for crisp, clipped reports to Nelton as they each signed off the final items on their checklists. “APU disconnect Go." “Capsule is on internal power." “Tank pressures nominal. Clear for LOX feed detach." “We are Go for autosequencer start." Nelton tapped her microphone for attention. “All stations report in please. Booster?" “Go, Flight." “Flight Dynamics?" “Go, Flight." “Guidance?" “We're Go, Flight." “Telco?" “Go, Flight." “CapSys?" “Go, Flight." “Spacecraft?" All the controllers smiled as James' and Sherfel's voices rang out in unison. “Go!" Hanbal's eyes scanned the screens restlessly as he silently counted off the final moments to lift-off. The water jet sound suppression system started with four seconds to go, drenching the base of the launch pad and shrouding the bottom of the booster in a dense mist. At two seconds, a painfully bright light flared through the fog, faded briefly and then exploded into a torrent of golden fire blazing out of the SK1-P engine bell. Thousands of litres of water instantly blasted into clouds of superheated steam, lit from within by the incandescent glare of rocket fire. For a fraction of a second the rapidly building downdraft from the engine sucked the billowing mass back towards the rocket and out through the flame trench. Then, the sheer volume of exhaust pouring out of the Skipper overwhelmed the trench capacity and enveloped the launch pad in a roiling inferno of fire and smoke. Somewhere in the midst of the maelstrom, a set of launch clamps fell away. “Lift-off. We have lift-off!" Hanbal clenched his jaw as Endurance clawed her way unsteadily off the pad. Come on, come on, comeon! The launch escape tower twitched from side to side as the booster fought it's way skyward, guidance systems struggling to keep the unwieldy machine upright. Then the noise hit them. Even from Mission Control, the roar was terrifying, shaking windows and knocking cups off consoles. The overhead lights rattled in their mounts. sending shadows pitching and swaying over the display screens. The vibrations pounded through the Hanbal's chest, gripping it in a primal embrace until he felt his entire body shaking in sympathy with the booster. “Tower is clear!" Danfen let out his breath explosively and grinned fiercely at Hanfal. On the monitor screen, Endurance's engine lifted clear of the launch tower, lofted out of the chaos by a solid, brilliant white pillar of fire. Now the rocket was picking up speed, accelerating smoothly as it climbed its own length and then it's own length again past the top of the tower. Far below on the ground and completely obscured by the dense smoke, the last tongues of flame gambolled across the launch pad, twisting and swirling in the superheated air. “Approaching Max Q." Nelton pushed a switch on her console. The overhead speakers crackled and roared and then fell silent. Everyone suddenly heard Sherfel calmly working through her checklist. “Endurance is supersonic. Pitch and roll looking good. Skipper readouts are nominal." Danfen chuckled as James' voice came over the loop. “We got ourselves a nice smooth ride here, Flight - once we managed to get off the ground." “Copy that Endurance" said Nelton blandly. “I'll be sure to let the engineering teams know that you approve of the anti-pogo systems." “I just hope the second stage is as smooth," muttered Hanbal. Danfen squeezed his shoulder. “It'll be fine. How many times did we run through the chill-down procedure in testing?" He raised his hand before Hanbal could speak. “Yes, I know - not the same as doing it under flight conditions. Admit it though Han - we couldn't have asked for a better launch to try it for the first time." Hanbal scowled at him and turned back to the monitors. ------------- Endurance sped through Kerbin's upper atmosphere. The brilliant yellow white flame from its main engine had long since fanned out into a dirty orange plume glowing dully in the the thin, frigid air. Then, with a final cough of sooty flame, the SK1-P shut down. A sudden sharp crack of explosive bolts split the rocket in two and the spent lower stage fell slowly away, beginning a slow end over end tumble as it dropped back to Kerbin. A second, smaller set of bolts fired with a popping noise, sliding the interstage ring free. It slipped easily over the second stage engine bell and began its own long descent to the ground whilst the rest of the rocket coasted serenely upwards. ---------- “Second stage ignition confirmed, Flight!" “Thank you, Booster. Guidance?" “Looking good, Flight." “Telco?" “We're Go, Flight. Routing the backup telemetry through the air to ground link but primary data is coming through the satellite feed." "Flight - Booster." “Go ahead, Booster." “Escape tower jettison confirmed Flight. Clean separation." Hanbal's shoulder's dipped by a fraction of a centimetre. “It worked," he murmured, “it actually worked." “Just like it did in testing," agreed Danfen. “I'm no trajectory expert but I'm guessing that three kilometres per second at one-two-five kilometres, means we can't be far off the flight plan." “No idea," said Hanbal. “It's enough to drop them back into the sea on a reasonable trajectory though if anything goes wrong." He glanced at the monitor. “Thrust looks okay, fuel consumption is right on the curve." Danfen nodded. “No atmosphere left to stress the airframe. If she's held together this long, she..." Hanbal poked him sharply in the ribs. “Don't say it. Just don't." The two engineers watched the telemetry whilst Endurance climbed steadily to orbit. The atmosphere in Mission Control was still alert but the relaxed postures of the controllers and cheerful tones of the crew told their own story. Nelton however, was still sitting bolt upright at the flight directors console, head flicking from side to side as she shifted her attention from system to system. Occasionally she leaned forward and spoke quietly into her microphone, eyes still focused on the screens. “Flight, this is Booster. Second stage shutdown in twenty." “Thank you, Booster. Flight Dynamics?" “We'll need confirmation from Tracking,"said Lemgan “but right now, it looks like we're right at our predicted orbit." Muted applause rippled around Mission Control. Nelton gave her team a moment to celebrate before tapping her microphone. The room instantly fell silent. “Good work, everyone. Endurance, do you read?" “Loud and clear, Flight," came the the prompt reply. “Our board is green and our view is... well our view is out of this world, Flight." “Copy that, Endurance. Okay, I want both telemetry channels online for the next manoeuvre Suggest you take half an orbit to do some sight-seeing and then get set up for transposition and docking on the next pass over Foxham. ------------ Endurance drifted serenely in orbit, spinning slowly about one axis to keep her nose pointed in the direction of flight. Reflected light from Kerbin shimmered off the spacecraft hull, lighting up thruster mounts like miniature stars and turning the polished antenna dish a deep blue. Two of the thrusters spat fire in precise bursts bringing the slow rotation to a halt. Puffs of flame flared in the darkness and a dark crack raced around the tapered forward end of the booster. Four curved steel petals folded back revealing a stubby cylindrical module nestled atop the booster second stage and allowing Endurance to float freely for the first time. A delicate choreography of thruster pulses pushed her clear of the booster, flipped her neatly over and then drove her back towards the booster with her nose aimed squarely at the centre of the docking port attached to the forward end of the module. Delicately, with the merest puffs of flame from the thrusters to correct her course, Endurance brushed against the open port. There was a long pause as she seemingly gathered herself for the next effort. Then, with all four thruster blocks firing majestically against the starry blackness, she pulled away from the empty booster, hauling her prize from it's steel cradle into open space. The module resembled a giant polished thread reel, cylindrical but with a thick raised rim at each end. Equipment boxes girded the centreline and the hull was festooned with hand - and foot - holds for spacewalking kerbonauts. A pair of small portholes were set into each side, glinting in the raw sunlight. Endurance was securely attached to one end, her heat shield pointing along the direction of flight. Inside, James let go of the the thruster controls and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. Beside him, Sherfel tapped away at a small keyboard set into the edge of her control panel. “And done. Okay, Flight, orbital program loaded, RCS mode to Docked." “Confirmed, Endurance. You're clear for an orbit raising burn in twelve minutes, circularising in fifty one. Stand by for burn parameters." “Copy that, Flight - got my pad right here." Sherfel cocked her head to one side, brow furrowed as she copied two strings of figures into her flight log and then read them back to Nelton. “That's a good read, Endurance. Telco is picking up some noise on the backup telemetry link, requests you cycle breakers 22a through c." Sherfel pulled out the toggles on her panel, waited five seconds and then pushed them back into place. “How's that, Flight?" “System is cleared, Endurance. Thank you." ---------- The meagre acceleration from the thrusters cut out and James and Sherfel bobbed up against their harnesses. Sherfel tapped out an enquiry on her keyboard and the flight computer promptly flashed up three numbers. “One nine seven by one nine three by twelve," she reported. “Good enough for now, Endurance," replied Nelton. “According to CapSys, air pressure in the hab module is good, so you're Go for ingress at your convenience." Sherfel couldn't quite keep the excitement out of her voice. “No time like the present, Flight, she said, unbuckling her harness and pulling herself free of her acceleration couch. She swung her legs slowly to one side, caught hold of the handgrips set into the edge of her control panel and pushed herself down under the two couches. She studied the hatch for a moment then braced herself and pulled the locking lever firmly down. The hatch came free with a clunk of retracting bolts. The air pressure between the linked spacecraft equalised with a gust of air that rippled Sherfel's hair and wafted the scent of adhesives and fireproofed upholstery into Endurance. “Mmmm," said James from above her head, “that new spacecraft smell! Air pressure is holding steady, Sherf." Sherfel lifted the hatch out of its frame and stowed it carefully under the capsule couches. Then she wriggled through the narrow passageway into the habitation module. “Okay - I'm in!" she called out to James. “Beginning inspection." Two gently curved shelves extended along the length of the cabin walls in front of her, dividing the main accommodation area into upper and lower sections. Yeah, yeah, no up and down in space, Sherfel corrected herself automatically, but it doesn't make much sense to put the controls on the floor. Each shelf had a neatly stowed sleeping bag and set of restraints fastened to each end. She peered under one shelf and was surprised to see what looked like a set of thick rubber bands clipped under it. Oh right - the exercise bungees. The cabin gangway was uncluttered but a pair of sack chairs - fitted with the seemingly ubiquitous restraints were stuck to the floor under each shelf. Grinning to herself, Sherfel pushed off from the wall behind her and drifted towards the centre of the room, languorously stretching out her limbs as she went. Compared to the cramped confines of Endurance's cockpit, this was luxury! She caught one of the sleep shelves with one hand and deftly spun herself about to face the passageway back to the capsule. The reason for the narrow passageway instantly became clear. A bulkhead sectioned off most of the aft end of the cabin and two familiar signs stencilled on the bulkhead door made it very clear what lay behind. Hand over hand, Sherfel worked her way along the shelf and nudged the door open. Wonder how this is supposed to work in zero-G? She was confronted with a seat perched atop a steel drum and surrounded by an improbable looking set of plumbing and attachments. Okaaay - that's... different to the training rig. Those bits over there must be for the guys I guess. Either that or the engineers on the ground have more of a sense of humour than I thought. You know what? I think James can be the first to boldly go on this particular mission. She edged her way out of the tiny chamber and closed the door firmly behind her. Right, sanitation this way, so that way must be the galley. Sherfel drifted over to the forward bulkhead and cautiously pushed the door open. Sure enough the small room contained little else but two water spigots and shelf after shelf of ration packs. Clipped to the front of one shelf however, was a very welcome surprise. Her eyes widened in incredulous delight at the row of capsules, each half opaque and half transparent and each containing an incongruous splash of green foliage. She unscrewed the top of one capsule and gently bruised one of the thick fleshy leaves between her fingers, sniffing happily as they released a familiar aroma. Pepper cactus! Well this place is certainly looking up. Plenty of space, a bit of greenery and a chance to do a little home cooking. She bent forward and read the labels on the other tubes. Marrowort, citrella, saltleaf, yellow clover and firewhisker. Oh this will do nicely! She screwed the lid back on the capsule and made her way back out to the main cabin, trailing the pleasantly astringent scent of pepper cactus through the open door behind her. “Everything looks in order through here!" she called. “Gotcha, Sherf,"James called back. He paused, “and Mission Control are giving us a Go for power up." “Copy that. Deploying PV arrays." Sherfel flipped back the locking bars over two prominently placed buttons and pushed the one marked PV-A . A green light began to blink on the control panel next to it and then, after an interminable wait, settled into a reassuringly steady, green glow. The needles on one set of dials swung smoothly over and other sections of the control panel began to light up. Sherfel scanned them, nodded to herself and pressed the second button. The second green light blinked twice, then suddenly glowed orange. Sherfel jumped as a loud buzzer went off next to her ear and hastily pressed the button again. Not good. Five seconds to cycle the systems then lets try that again. The second attempt was no better. The buzzer sounded again and the orange caution light was replaced by a baleful red malfunction indicator. She jabbed the button again as James' startled voice echoed through the passageway. “What's happening through there, Sherf? Bus A looks good but I keep getting warning lights on Bus B initialisation." “Not sure, Jim, I'm going to take a look outside." Sherfel pushed off towards the nearest window, hitting it with a solid thud. She craned her neck, trying to get a view back down the hull that wasn't hidden in a glare of sunlight. “Can't see much from here, Jim. Give me a plus ten roll." “Copy." Sherfel stared out of the window as Endurance started a slow spin. Kerbol disappeared behind the hull and long shadows crept out from behind the hand holds and equipment boxes attached to the cabin exterior. Then she stiffened. Oh sweet Kerm... “Hold it there, Jim. And... you'd better tell Control that we've got a problem here." << Chapter 26: Chapter 28>>

I think I spot a potential 'first kerbal on Eeloo'. Unless you subscribe to the idea of keeping your friends close and your enemies closer!

Cheers - and yes - you can do a lot with polymers! In principle there's a lot of scope here for some quite complex polymers and other industrial chemicals. First tweak your Fischer Tropsch reaction to give you alkenes as well as alkanes. Then you have syngas (CO/H2) and alkenes to work with, which gives you alcohols and aldehydes (through hydroformylation) and then trivially, carboxylic acids. If you can find a source of nitrogen then you can also make ammonia and from ammonia, amines. Once you have alkenes, amines, alcohols, aldehydes and carboxylic acids then there's not a lot you can't make. The devil would be in the details though - making a suitably light and robust set of reactors to do all this would be challenging to put it mildly. Not to mention keeping them running.

I'd always assumed that Liquid Fuel represented kerosene or whatever the kerbal equivalent is, simply because all the liquid fueled engines burn with a big bright flame. Also, liquid hydrogen is a real beast to handle and store, so it doesn't seem quite right to have it available from the start. It's not a problem though - simply add the Fischer-Tropsch reaction to the list: (2n + 1) H2 + n CO → CnH(2n+2) + nH2O Water hydrolysis + RWGS + Fischer- Tropsch = Liquid Fuel, although methane engines would probably be easier to run from ISRU generated propellants.

Jeb sees aliens. Reality or madness? Headbutting spacecraft - one kerbonaut goes hyper.

Count me in as another reader who's enjoying the ride so far and looking forward to seeing that 14th flag raised on whichever planet you have mind!

The story itself is looking good. Nice mix of characters, a bit of background for Ronney and plenty of scope for excitement and adventure on the journey, or alternatively, plenty of time for Ronney to fill in more of the background to the mission, if that's what you have in mind. There's already one interesting question to answer - why Dres for the first interplanetary mission and not Duna for example? I like the diary format too! Where you could improve is in the presentation. Nothing major, just using a couple more paragraphs and putting speech in quotation marks would make it easier to read. Purely as an example (feel free to ignore) Hope this helps!

Ahh - my mind skipped over the final 'a' in that last sentence. Didn't mean to send poor old Ronbo to Duna! Then again - first kerbal on Duna might (might) just command the chops to shut Oggy up occasionally. ... Nahhhh! Not going to happen.

I vote for Ronbo! Behind that mild mannered, conservative flight director and administrator lies.... something

How about SIMON for SIlicon Mimic Of Neuronal structures. As a bonus you get to include as many 'Simon says...' jokes as you like.

Oh those would make superb bumper stickers. "My other car is powered by More Boosters!" "Wave when you reach Minmus!" "This is not a heap 'o scrap - I just need another couple of struts." etc.

Great stuff! Loved the dynamic between Jeb and Jedwig, the 'bad things are usually attributable to a series of small events' build up to their current predicament and especially Jeb's fear of hibernation, which absolutely makes sense. Even in the computerised world of spaceflight, your Jeb is very much a hands-on pilot, so yeah - being completely at the mercy of the equipment and not being able to do a thing about it would be hard. I liked the 2001 stuff too! Unless Jedwig has any orbital-mechanical wizardry he can bring to bear, I'm guessing the crew are going back into hibernation for a while. In which case Rodsy might want to double check the AE35 antenna steering module before he goes to sleep...

Page 17, figure 9 shows the launch trajectory for the Saturn V. Doubt it's strictly to scale but it should give you some idea. I never knew about the coast phase before third stage ignition either - it tends to be the way I do it in KSP but I never realised that's how it worked for Apollo as well.

and Cathmandu?

Lol, I can just picture the scene 10 years later. "OK Houston, drive is safed, life support systems are nominal. OK, that's strange. The flight log indicates unexplained ingress through Pod bay alpha." "Yeah we're thinking a glitch too Houston. It's not like anyone was likely to drop in and say howdy." Crew member approaches carrying a dog-eared, mildewed and somewhat sticky magazine in a pair of (thoroughly) sterilized tongs. "One moment Houston." "Ohhhhhh K. Houston we have a positive diagnostic on Pod bay alpha. Trust us - you're not going to believe this..."

Nice! I like the 'Now I see fire inside the boosters' refrain.

Oh this is going to be good. Political machinations and the Jeb & Jedwig show!

Nice work! I think you can edit thread titles yourself using the advanced edit options.

That was a heartwarming epilogue. Crazy, borderline homicidal but definitely heartwarming.

Put my first useful spaceplane into orbit. This little craft will put three kerbals into a 95x95 km orbit with plenty of monopropellant for on orbit maneuvering and enough fuel/oxidiser for de-orbit, re-entry and a powered landing. On orbit! And safely home again.

Pics or it didn't happen.

Just a quick note. The complete, edited and single-post version of this story is now available here. Includes a bonus epilogue!