KSK

Too many years of playing WoW (all of them whilst married) taught me how to moderate gaming addiction, so I don't think I've gotten as bad as some folks on here. With that said, KSP was the giant, shiny, rocket powered nail in the coffin of my WoW playing.

Yeah I was doing something similar,walking over from the lander to a probe that I'd landed a while back just to get some pictures. I decided to use the EVA pack to speed things up a bit. Which worked so well that my brave moonwalker got himself into a very low Munar orbit. Unfortunately stopping proved to be trickier. Fatally so in fact.

Nice first post! I like the story very much, its very atmospheric and I'd happily read more. Well - more about the start of Jens' mission anyway - I think we can tell what's going to happen next Stylistically, there are a couple of things I would tweak. The big one is probably "The Mk1 Command Pod was bracketed retrograde to the three-man capsule". It's very clear but 'retrograde' doesn't really fit with the rest of your writing which is nice and descriptive and doesn't use much technical jargon! I can give you more details if you like but I didn't want to get too picky in this post - like I said, I liked the story a lot.

Probably. Either that or "Warning: This game will make you want to learn stuff and even do maths."

Meh - when you get old enough, 'Bedtime Fun' consists of pre-warmed slippers and a nice mug of Ovaltine* Gimme KSP any day. *I kid, I kid

Mmmmm Gummi Kerbals. And Kinder eggs too - heck they even start with the right letter Back on topic - I particularly liked "in space no one can hear you make rocket noises" Definitely want to see more lost blueprints appearing at the museum! In the meantime, have +1 rep.

"Spongium carbonate" I like it!

I love it! If I could request one little change it would be to add some stars or something to the background (yes I know this is photographically wrong ). Doesn't need to be much, just something to break up the wall of black. That would earn it a permanent place on my screen - although it looks pretty sweet as wallpaper right now!

Thanks - to both! I've got some ideas for a follow up and for the promised follow ups from my last thread. Seem to be spending more time writing than flying at the moment but it's fun either way

Hey folks, This thread has grown quite a bit since the original First Flight short story. To make things a little easier (and thank you to those who suggested this), here are the links to the various chapters for ease of reading. Cheers, KSK Contents Prologue: First Flight Part 1: The Interplanetary Society 1: Space Program Rising (Part I) 2: Space Program Rising (Part II) 3: New Directions 4: Satellite 5: Two's Company 6: These New Engines 7: The Courage of Conviction 8: The Other Side 9: Kerbal in Space Soonest 10: Project Moho 11: The Seed 12: Poyekhali 13: All the Proof They Needed Part 2: Secrets of the Kerm 14: Decisions 15: New Homes 16: Mun Or Bust 17: We all build them - We all fly them 18: MarkusA380 Fanart 19: Reunion 20: Beached 21: Beyond Kerbin 22: Far Side 23: The Dish 24: Dreams 25: A Journey Around the World. 26: Circles. 27: Docking - Part I. 28: Docking - Part II. 29: And Rendezvous. 30: The Cords That Bind. 31: Echoes of Time. Part 3: Kerbal Space Program 32: Right of Conclave. 33: Project Eve. 34: Uncharted. 35: Dewdrops. 36: Preparations. 37: Pioneering Spirit. 38: With a little help... 39: Stormclouds. 40: Second Mün. 41: Training Days. 42: The Best Laid Plans. 43: A Voyage for the Ages. 44: Mün. 45: Priorities. 46: Pre-emptive. 47: Diplomacy. 48: Pilgrims. 49: Lightning. 50: Through the Eyes of a Child. 51: Under Pressure. 52: Halfway Point. 53: Craters. 54: If you cut us... 55: One Small Step. 56: The Days the World Stood Still. 57: Starseed. Part 4: The Age of Fire. 58: Engines and Engineers. 59: A Thin Red Line. 60: Children of Kerbin. 61: Shrinking the Ellipse. 62: Journeys. 63: Hopes. 64: And Fears. 65: Black Stripes 66: Prospecting 67: For Kerm and Kerbal. 68: A Time for Love. 69: Shaking the Pillars. 70: Crossroads. 71: A Grove for a Grove. 72: No Borders. 73: Hot and Cold. 74: Politics. 75: Blue and Grey. 76: The Skies of Minmus. 77: A Few Good Kerbals. 78: Names. 79: Instincts. 80: The Straw and the Mallek. 81: Darkness Falls. 82: Shattered. 83: The Two Jebediahs. 84: Special Order 42. 85: More Boosters. 86: Family Tree. 87: White Cross. 88: Grass Roots. 89: Bridging the Gap. 90: A Helping Hand. 91: Lab Coats and Lapel Badges. 92: Laying the Keel. 93: Through the Gate. 94: Every Kerbonaut's Friend. 95: Humilisia Falls. 96: Last Flight from Barkton 97: Written in the Starlight 98: The Needs of the Many 99: Remembrance 100: A is for Acorn 101: Telegraph Road 102: Coming Home 103: Shoulders to the Wheel 104: Knuckling Down 105: The Sage of Barkton 106: Starflower 107: Leviathan 108: The Rough and the Smooth 109: New Trajectories 110: Twenty-Five 111: To Walk Amongst Them 112: Legacy 113: We Will not Seek 114: Blackout 115: Now - and Forever Epilogue: Founding Father Artwork and Crafts I'm absolutely thrilled (and more than a bit humbled) to be adding this section to the contents list. Here are links to various illustrations, screenshots, in-game vehicles and (unbelievably) a mod, from First Flight created by readers of this thread. Enjoy - I know I did! "Those Trashcans definitely made it happen." The Kerbal 1 blasts off on its pioneering first flight. "It's Kerbin... just Kerbin." The Kerbal 1 crew get their first glimpse of their world from high altitude. By Yukon0009. "Four green hands clasped in quiet triumph as Kerbin's very first artificial satellite soared through the void." The Kerbin 1's broadcast from the KIS to kerbals around the world inspires the Speciality Fireworks Company's transformation into the Rockomax Corporation. By minepagan. "Moho 1 has cleared the tower!" Jebediah Kerman rockets into orbit - and history. By Yukon0009. "I think we've just got a very happy kerbal up there." Wilford Kerman notches up his own spaceflight firsts aboard Moho 3. By MarkusA380. "There's parking space to the left as you go through the gates, Ornie." Whether you need to pick up supplies for a morale raising barbecue or tow rocket stages to the VAB, Ornie is your kerbal. By Mr. Pseudonym. "Why don't you just do that, Jonton Kermol." Seen here in typical working garb, the kermol are the vital, rural half of kerbal society. By Krevsin. ------------------- Before the Space Program, before Mainsails and Mun rovers, before there was even such a thing as a probe core, there was just a group of friends with a shared dream who refused to let that dream go. This is part of their story. It was a bright sunlit afternoon as Geneney walked out to the launch pad. He could see the rocket in his minds eye. A gleaming tower of sculptured metal rising into the sky with a cluster of the latest generation engines at the base and the newest, most spacious capsule sitting proudly at the top. Ready to take him to the Mun, to Minmus or anywhere else he cared to go. He sighed. The reality of course was rather different. A rusty launch tower constructed from old scaffolding. A bunker full of worn out monitors and other abandoned electronic gear. And a last ditch attempt at a rocket that they had built from whatever junk they could scavenge up and weld together. Wernher's original LV-1 engine had proven far far more difficult to scale up than any of them had imagined. Getting the stability augmentation system to work had eventually been an exercise in stubbornness rather than elegant engineering. And as for the decouplers. Geneney shook his head. Best not to think about the wretched decouplers. He reached the first of the launch clamps and inspected it carefully. The rocket loomed above him, a battered metal cylinder with a tangle of plumbing at the base, connected to the familiar ribbed shape of the LV-15 engine bell. Four RT-5 solid fuel boosters attached to the sides by explosive bolts and a simple capsule secured to the top with more explosive bolts completed this most unlikely looking spacecraft. In Geneney's opinion 'booster' was an optimistic name for a squat drum of firework propellant with a cone attached to the bottom. As for sticking them on with explosive bolts... No - best not to think about the decouplers. Besides they had worked well enough in testing and none of them had been able to get the hydraulic pusher system to work reliably. Geneney could hear voices far above him as Lucan helped the three cosmonauts into the capsule. An occasional mumbled comment from Bill, Bob's nervous chatter and Jeb, talking up a storm in his enthusiasm. Geneney smiled to himself. Bill was still a believer, Bob... well Bob was loyal. If his best friends were risking themselves in a home-brewed rocket, then Bob would be there alongside them. And as for Jeb, he had never given up, despite all the difficulties, frustrations and exploded prototypes. He'd kept them going, with his permanent grin and irrepressible enthusiasm, even as the other members of the Kerbin Interplanetary Society had gradually drifted away. It helped that the grin hid a surprisingly competent engineer, otherwise Geneney was fairly sure that Wernher would have stuffed Jeb headfirst into the engine bell of the LV-10 test model and probably fired it too. His smile faded. The LV-10 test had been a definite low point and they still hadn't figured out exactly what went wrong. The LV-15 worked, although it wasn't close to being powerful enough and all their attempts to cluster multiple LV-15s together had failed. Eventually even Jeb had conceded that the multiple LV-15 design was just too prone to overheating and suggested using a set of RT-5 'Trashcan' engines instead. All the launch clamps seemed to be in order and a loud clang from above announced that Lucan had finally closed the hatch of the Kerbal 1. Geneney waited as Lucan clambered down the launch tower and the two kerbals hurried back to the control bunker. ------------- Geneney tapped his microphone. "Kerbal 1, this is Control. How are you guys doing up there?" Jeb's voice crackled from the speakers. "Cool, calm and collected, Genie. How's that telemetry looking?" If Geneney knew Bill and Bob, then calm was most probably a lie, let alone collected. No point in breaking the facade though. "Wernher's just running the last tests on the decouplers now Jeb. Five minutes to launch." Wernher pressed a button on his console and grunted in satisfaction as a set of indicator lights winked out. He flicked a switch and all five lights flickered briefly then lit up with a reassuring green glow. "All rocket systems check out. Guidance control and launch sequencing transferred to booster. Ready when you are, Gene." "OK then. We all know what we're doing. LV-15 engine start on my mark, 3 second hold down at full power as a last check, then we release the clamps and light up the Trashcans. That last bit is probably going to be a bit bouncy guys, so as soon as the LV-15 lights you'll probably want to hold on to something." "Gotcha, Genie." Geneney took a deep breath. "LV-15 ignition in five...four...three...two...one.. Mark!" Lucan and Geneney turned towards the main monitor screen. Behind them they could hear Wernher rattling through the ignition checklist. "Firing gas generator, turbopumps powering up and IGNITION!" Fire erupted from the base of the Kerbal 1, rapidly focusing into a single hard bright flame. A steadily increasing rumble could be heard outside as the LV-15 throttled up to full power. "Holding for three...two...one..." The bunker shook to a thunderous roar as all four RT-5s ignited, sending sheets of flame washing across the launch pad. The image on the monitor flared brightly. Spots danced in front of Geneney's eyes as he stared at the screen trying desperately to spot the Kerbal 1 amongst all the static. As the image came back into focus, all Geneney could see was a badly scorched launch pad. The noise in his headphones suggested that this was due to a successful launch rather than a catastrophic explosion but the faint screams didn't sound at all good. The static on monitor 2 didn't look promising either. "Wernher - talk to me!" "LV-15 performing well, all four RT-5s are running. All decouplers intact," came the calm response. "Capsule telemetry and sensors offline." Geneney gripped the arms of his chair tightly. "Which means?" "We have no way of telling how high the capsule is travelling, how fast or at what angle." Lucan interrupted him "If the decouplers haven't fired...I can still hear the engines in my headset, so the rocket should still be in one piece." He snapped his fingers. "The main data cable - it probably just came loose during the launch. Wernher, try SCE to Aux." Geneney's knuckles turned white as Wernher searched for the switch on his console. Then, with a click, monitor 2 lit up, as telemetry suddenly flooded in from the Kerbal 1. A slow smile spread across Geneney's face as he got to his feet and slapped Lucan on the back. Above his head, the numbers for altitude and velocity of the Kerbal 1 were both steadily increasing. ------------ "10 seconds till burnout." Geneney kept his fingers firmly crossed as he waited for the Trashcans to shut down. Five seconds to go, two, one... and nothing. The roar of the engines still filled his headphones. Five more seconds, ten more seconds. He was just turning towards Wernher, when everything went quiet. There was a series of muffled explosions and four lights on Wernher's console winked out. He grabbed the microphone. "Kerbal 1, this is Control. Come in Kerbal 1! Jeb, Bill, Bob - can you hear me!" Jeb chuckled. "Hearing you loud and clear, Genie if you'd let us get a word in edgewise!" "Jeb - thank the Kerm! Are you guys OK up there?" "The Bobcat here is looking a bit blue but we're all good. Nothing but Class A Badasses on this rocket ship!" Jeb paused to savour the moment. "Yeah, this rocket ship...", his voice trailed away. "Dammit guys we did it! Faster than any kerbal has ever travelled, higher than any kerbal has ever travelled and way way noisier than any kerbal has ever travelled! I told you those Trashcans would do the trick!" "Well we've still got a couple of things left to do, Jeb but yeah - those Trashcans definitely made it happen. Thirty seconds of fuel left for the LV-15." Lucan was keeping a close eye on the telemetry. The Kerbal 1 was actually accelerating slightly now as the last litres of fuel drained away, until at last the engines shut down. The last light flickered out on Wernher's console accompanied by a final muffled bang from the speakers. "Shutdown and booster separation confirmed, Jeb. We figure you should top out at around thirty to thirty five thousand metres." "Thanks, Luco. Not bad for a first flight, not bad at all! Looks like I won that bet with the Bobcat too - he reckoned we'd get to twenty five thousand at best!" Bob laughed nervously. "Are you sure they were just the standard Trashcans, Jeb? If we get down from here in one piece, I'm not sure I'll be able to get out of this seat, I got mashed into it so hard." "Didn't touch them, Bobcat. They sure did make for one heck of a ride though. What did you think, Bill? Hey - are you OK there, Bill? That window isn't coming loose is it?" "Oh... Oh wow... Guys you need to see this." Bill silently reached out a hand and Jeb wordlessly passed him the camera. Geneney blinked. He'd never heard Jeb sound like that before. Almost awestruck. "What is it, Jeb?" "It's Kerbin... just Kerbin. Only not quite and all of it at once. And the sky - it's full of more stars than you can believe. Greens and blues and brilliant white clouds and then black and stars." "You're not making any sense, Jeb." "No, no I don't think I am. You're gonna have to see this for yourself, Genie." Geneney sighed. "You know we're never going to get another shot at this. The Kerbal 1 was all we had left," he said sadly. "Actually, Genie, if even half of Bill's photos come out, I think you're going to get to see this quicker than you can imagine and in a bigger and better rocket than you can imagine too. Hey, Bill, if you're done with that camera, pass it over here. Genie, I'm taking off my helmet, sticking the camera into it and wedging it under the control panel for safekeeping." Geneney's jaw dropped. "What, why, what are you doing? What happens if you get an air leak?!" Jeb's voice was uncharacteristically serious. "I'll just have to hold my breath, Genie. Whatever happens to Bill, Bob and me, you need this camera. It's all the proof that the Kerbin Interplanetary Society needs and it's going to change everything." --------- Two small green figures stood on the roof of a makeshift concrete bunker, anxiously peering out to sea. Geneney glanced at his watch and then scanned the horizon again, too nervous to look away for more than a moment. He knew that he probably wouldn't see the capsule from this distance but the parachute should be visible. And it should be visible any moment now. Beside him, Wernher suddenly stiffened and pointed at the sky. An orange streamer popped into view, plunged towards the ground and then fluttered skywards. Geneney's heart was in his mouth. If that was the drogue chute then... YES! Two orange discs burst into the sky and then unfurled into the welcome, welcome sight of two fully opened parachutes. Geneney and Wernher looked at each other, grinned in triumph and then threw themselves down the stairs as fast as they could. "Lucan, Wernher - boat. Now! We've got three kerbonauts to pick up! Epilogue - two days later Four members of the Kerbin Interplanetary Society were lounging about at the Jebediah Kerman Junkyard and Spare Parts Company. Bill was in Jeb's office working on his camera, whilst Jeb was out with a pair of customers, helping them rummage through a pile of old engine parts. As the three of them strolled back towards the office, Geneney overhead snatches of conversation. "Were you boys anything to do with a mighty lot of noise out by that old rusty tower the other day?" Jeb nodded, "Yup, that was us, sir. Testing some bits and pieces from the junkyard." The older of the two customers chuckled. "People back in town reckon they saw one of those rockets flying into the sky." He snorted. "Load of nonsense if you ask me, never mind what those crazy interplanetary characters keep talking about. Although I have to admit, they do make some mighty fine explosions." Genneny stifled a grin as Jeb tried his best to keep a straight face. Just then Bill popped his head around the office door. "Hey guys - photo's came out nicely. You want to take a look?" Jeb smiled. "Love to, Bill." He turned towards his customers politely, "and would you good kerbals care to join us?" Geneney stared at Jeb's office wall. Most of Bill's photographs were blurry views of not very much, taken out of what was obviously a very small window. Several more showed what looked like maps. But none of the eight kerbals crammed into the room had eyes for anything other than the largest picture in the middle. This too was clearly a view through a window but beautifully sharp. A very obviously curved line down the middle separated inky blackness from brilliant blue, dusky brown and lush green. Far away in the distance, the familiar battered grey ball of the Mün rose over Kerbin. Geneney blinked back tears. Jeb was right. They had really done it. They could do it again. And there would be a Space Program. Chapter 1. >>

Count me in on the 'No Kerbal left behind' team. Which is probably why I do so many unmanned flights.

Hi, Not sure what's happening here - RCS shouldn't be that twitchy. Could you post a screenshot so we can see what's going on? Just one of your two space station parts parked 10m away from each other will be fine.

Wow - thanks for the kind words and +rep. I'd have been happy getting comments for my first bit of writing, let alone such enthusiastic ones! @Mekan1K. I have some ideas on Kerbal agriculture and life support systems that I plan to add when I get a moment to write them up. Any suggestions on what else to explore would be gratefully received, along with any proofreading. Granted this is only fictionalised 'science' but I'd like it to be self consistent if nothing else. Feel free to add your own thoughts too! @Needles_10. Oh that sounds fun. Lots to write though and I don't think editing it down to 'mostly harmless' is going to cut it I think I'll keep the Hitchhiker version separate from this one but look out for a 'Don't Panic' thread sometime soon... Quick question - did you spot the Hitchhiker reference in my 'encyclopaedia' piece?

Social structure. Although they are individually sentient, each Kerbal remains a symbiote of the Kerm tree network (referred to by the Kerbals as The Kerm) and this is fundamental to any understanding of Kerbal society. Broadly speaking, the Kerbals belong to one of three main social groups, group membership being a decided by biological function rather than individual status. Indeed, the groups are both fluid and socially equivalent. Group membership is largely down to individual choice, subject to the overarching requirements of The Kerm. The Kerm-an (literally outside the Kerm) often shortened to Kerman are the main technological drivers in Kerbal society. They are the most outwardly visible part of Kerbal civilisation to the extent that less sophisticated galactic observers have mistaken them for the entirety of Kerbal civilisation. The Kerman are also exclusively male. The Kerm-ol (with the Kerm) or Kermol for short, are primarily forest dwellers and are responsible for tending The Kerm. Living in close proximity to The Kerm enables the Kermol to switch between male and female forms and bear children. The Kermol tend to be reclusive and are rarely seen by off-world observers. The An-Kerm (inside the Kerm) are non-corporeal entities that exist solely within The Kerm and are necessarily the most closely attuned to it of all Kerbal social groups. Broadly speaking, the An-Kerm are the true leaders of Kerbal society and interpret and communicate the will of The Kerm to the Kermol. Communication appears to depend on direct contact between The Kerm and the Kermol rather than a purely telepathic link. The Kermol spread the word of The Kerm to the various Kerman regional leaders or Presidentia. In general, a Kerbal will only become An-Kerm shortly before physical death. Under certain circumstances, Kerbals may be raised An-Kerm whilst still alive and exceptionally, their An-Kerm personas may be reincarnated as new Kerbals following the untimely demise of the original. Reincarnation is not a straightforward process and the reincarnated Kerbal will not retain any memories of any events occurring after becoming An-Kerm. Kerbal names consist of one or more given names followed by their current social group name. Thus, to many observers, the Kerbals consist of a single "Kerman" family or tribe. Psychology In general the Kerbals are an easy going species, characterised by an intense curiosity about their own world of Kerbin as well as the other worlds of the Kerbol system and beyond. This natural drive to explore is usually tempered to some extent by a very real anxiety caused by separation from The Kerm. However, any doubts and anxiety caused by a journey away from The Kerm are normally overwhelmed by the sheer joy of finding and exploring new places. Their physical resilience and possibility of literal reincarnation mean that Kerbals tend to be risk tolerant. In some notable individuals, risk tolerance is taken to extreme levels that would be regarded as foolhardy by most other galactic civilisations. Industrial and economic development Technologically, the Kerbal civilization is comparable to that of most other nascent spacefaring races in the galaxy. In contrast, their industrial base and general level of economic development are notably more primitive than their technological status would suggest. Two reasons have been proposed for this, one straightforward and the other more subtle. At heart, the Kerbals are still symbiotes of The Kerm and deliberate damage to The Kerm is anathema to them. Therefore their drive for industrial development is inevitably subsumed and limited by their drive to avoid environmental damage wherever possible. More speculatively, their symbiosis with The Kerm gives the Kerbals an enormous social safety net. Each and every Kerbal knows that they can rely on The Kerm to provide the civilised basics of food, clean water, shelter and protection. In that sense, no Kerbal is truly poor. As a result, they tend to be generally disinterested in acquiring excess material wealth and the notion of mass producing consumer goods for sale and personal profit rarely occurs to them. Thus Kerbal industry tends to be characterised by individual craftsmanship and bespoke works rather than heavy manufacturing and mass production. Thus, Kerbal technology almost inevitably has a rather eccentric and often somewhat ramshackle appearance. Historically, Kerbal technological development has been driven by phases of expansion and a deep seated urge to extend The Kerm to new lands. They are exceptionally proficient seafarers, navigators and astronomers. Spaceflight Ever since the discovery of the other planets in the Kerbol system, Kerbal astronomers have dreamed of the possibility of carrying the seeds of The Kerm to new worlds. More recently, it has become apparent to the Kerman that continued industrial and technological development can only realistically take place off-world due to the overriding need to preserve the Kerbin environment for The Kerm. However, the question of how to actually reach those worlds has never been satisfactorily answered… until now. The Kerbal Interplanetary Society began as a group of hobbyist engineers and aerospace enthusiasts, gathering together at Jebediah Kerman's Junkyard and Spare Parts Company. Mainstream Kerman society regarded the KIS with amused tolerance, particularly after any more than usually spectacular failure of their prototype 'rockets'. However, the pioneering sub-orbital flight of Jebediah, Bill and Bob Kerman aboard the Kerbal 1 was to change everything. The first blurry photographs of Kerbin from high altitude sparked a wave of excitement throughout Kerbal society. From the intrepid Kermans of the KIS to the most reclusive An-Kerm, the promise of spaceflight spread like wildfire. Now, the Kerbin civilisation stands on the threshold. The Spare Parts Company is no more, replaced by Jebediah Kerman's Junkyard and Spacecraft Parts Company. Other rocket companies such as Probodobodyne Inc and the Rockomax Corporation have sprung up, seemingly overnight. Finally, the KIS has been replaced by a far larger organisation. One that has drawn upon the talents and skills of Kerman, Kermol and An-Kerm from across the planet. One that is dedicated to the exploration of space and taking The Kerm to worlds beyond the ken of Kerbalkind. That organisation is the Kerbal Space Program.

This is my first foray into KSP fan-works. Rather than post an after-action report (none of my missions have been particularly original or exciting so far ), I thought it would be fun to try and put together a vaguely coherent backdrop for the Kerbal Space Program and for Kerbalkind in general. Aceassasin's thread on theories of Kerbal biology, finally prompted me to actually write down some ideas that have been floating around in the back of my head for a while. Thanks Ace. Encyclopaedia Galactica Article ZZ9sZA - The Kerbol System Section 3 - Kerbin (Kerbol 3) Subsection 5a - Overview of dominant lifeforms Introduction Symbiosis can be defined as the process whereby unlike organisms live together for mutual benefit and is an evolutionary strategy that has been found on many planets throughout the galaxy. However, the planet Kerbin (Kerbol 3) is unique in all the Charted Worlds for the depth, complexity and sheer pervasiveness of symbiotic pairs within its ecosystem. Preliminary surveying and cataloging reveals that each plant species on Kerbin has its own animal symbiote. These provide a wide range of ecosystem services for their plant partner, most notably seed dispersal and active defence against competing species. The benefits to the animal partner are less clear. In many cases the plants do not provide a food source, indeed in a few cases a symbiotic pair has co-evolved to such an extent that the biochemistry of a particular animal partner is entirely dependent on specific micronutrients synthesised by the plant partner, significantly reducing its ability to adapt to changing ecological circumstances. The dominant plant species on Kerbin is the Kerm tree. Each Kerm tree is part of a planet wide network, linked through a complex array of direct root to root connections and indirect chemical signals. The signal processing capability of the Kerm tree network is substantial and forms a trans-planetary neural network akin to that found on Pandora, Chiron and the other Manifold worlds. The Kerm network monitors and regulates the Kerbin ecosystem with exquisite precision. It is unclear whether each tree in the network is individually sentient but their symbiotes are both sentient and the primary technology using species on the planet. They call themselves the Kerbals. Kerbal physiology Visually, the Kerbals are humanoid in appearance, although their cranial capacity is unusually large compared to their overall body size. Their characteristic protruding eyeballs give them good binocular vision and excellent spatial perception. Their skin is a uniform green colour, although the precise shade can vary from individual to individual. Hair cover is limited to the top of the head and exceptionally to facial hair. The few Kerbals that do possess facial hair appear to possess it in great abundance, although it is unclear whether this is driven by aesthetics or by innate biology. Kerbals are hermaphroditic and may switch between a female form and a male form several times throughout their lives. The switch appears to be triggered by an as-yet unidentified pheromone secreted by the Kerm trees. Female Kerbals appear to be marsupial and carry their young in a pouch. It has been speculated that the unusual Kerbal body proportions precluded the development of the more typical mammalian reproductive mode. Biochemically, a Kerbal are more similar to plants than animals. Their bodies are tough and woodlike, with movement being provided by the cooperative motion of bundles of lignin-similar fibres. Motion is generated by the twisting (short form) and untwisting (long form) of fibre bundles, rather than the more common ratchet type molecular motor - see for example the Terran actin-myosin system. Their green coloration is due to an evenly dispersed layer of subcutaneous chlorophyl and as a result, Kerbals are phototrophic, although they normally depend on both heterotrophic and phototrophic nutritional modes. However, in emergencies, a Kerbal can survive solely as a phototroph although at a substantially lower metabolic rate, similar to the hibernation modes observed in other galactic species. For more detail on Kerbal metabolism and biochemistry we refer the reader to the collected works of Professor A.C. Eassasin.

Apologies for the brief threadjack but just wanted to give a thumbs up for Sir Name's lyrics :-) Love it, even if you have got that darn tune stuck in my head now!

Hey Small and welcome to the forums! Building a real life satellite would be awesome. You could always get it to play the KSP theme tune on continuous loop. Think of it as a modern version of Sputnik's 'beep....beep...beep' :-)

1) Yes, this is normal. Once two ships are docked they show as a single ship on the map. Likewise if you launch a ship with more than one probe core attached (so that you can de-orbit spent booster stages for example) then the extra cores only show up once you decouple or undock them. 2) I'm not completely sure but yes I think so. 3) No. You could have a single large ship consisting of the station module and an 'engine+probe' section attached to it with a decoupler. Dock the whole thing to your station, decouple the engine+probe and you're good to go. 4) Yes - right click on the core you want and select 'Control from here'. You can do the same with spare docking ports too, which is helpful for lining up the station to receive new modules. Sorry about the bullet point answers - hope they help.

If you havn't done so already, it might be worth going to Minmus for a practice run at landing large stuff under rocket power. The lower gravity on Minmus is a lot more forgiving and will hopefully give you some idea of how maneouverable your structure is and whether it holds together.

Welcome to the forums. Nice satellite designs! My own sats tend to be smaller and utilitarian (read - boring ), maybe it's time to get a little more creative.

I like it! Bit too fiddly for me personally but awesome to see that it does actually work.

Can't wait to see that station! Good luck and welcome the the forums!

That's great news! I can't believe we're getting real rocket scientists turning up here - that's awesome. Welcome to the forums!

The KSP wiki has a section on historical space missions with some nice rocket designs in. Complete part lists are included for all of them so that might be somewhere to borrow some ideas for your own rockets.

You are having a bad problem and will not get to go to space today...