inigma

six. details here: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/64159-SSI-Proton-Class-Shuttlecraft-%28Minmus-Return-Sport-Utility-Shuttlecraft!%29-VIDEO

Heh, could I submit this one for an under-challenge? I know it doesn't fit all the rules, but it works! Prob one of the best RAPIER SSTOs designed to date (at least I think so) Enjoy! Forum Thread: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/64159-SSI-Proton-Class-Shuttlecraft-%28Minmus-Return-Sport-Utility-Shuttlecraft!%29-VIDEO I think it clearly violates Rule 2 because it only has 40 RCS fuel to save weight, and Rule 7 as it uses several cubic struts to hide engines within the tanks, but hey, I think the trade offs were worth it as it can go to Minmus and back! It's also is technically a VTOL, but anyways...let me know what you think!

Already have it (with windows facing angled in) for easy egress. It's the Proton T1. What's posted is the Proton T2 with the mk2 cockpits. About the Proton: In the words of a famous starship commander... "that one tough lil' ship." Worf: "Little?" The base Proton can surprisingly carry a good amount of additional weight into space. It's just waiting to be tinkered by all as the Dremmel of small SSTOs.

Posted upcoming variants.

Craft file posted!

This is the SSI Proton III. It is a sport utility auxilliary VTOL SSTO spaceplane capable of round trips to Minmus, and one-way trips to the Mun, and forms the base model of a line of Proton series shuttlecraft intended for multiple mission roles. The Proton Class Is the latest series of shuttlecraft designed by SSI engineers to meet your auxillary spacecraft needs within a planet's SOI and its surrounding stations and natural satellites. Heavier variants are even intended to allow one-way trips to other planets, and if refueled, able to make it back to Kerbin. The Proton III: Is a Type-1A shuttlecraft, meaning the Proton will send a single Kerbal to his vacation resort on Minmus and back again in style without refueling. Technically speaking, any craft that can round-trip Minmus can also one-way the Mun. It does both well. The Proton has now been rebuilt entirely from scratch with better landing legs, a universal docking adapter, and a simpler flight profile. Certified by SSI engineers, it is ready for inclusion in the SSI General Catalog. Enjoy! Part Count: 62 Weight: 14.8 tons of pure awesomeness Fuel Remaining at 110km orbit: 300+ (130 needed for Minmus roundtrip) Real Time to Orbit: 9 Minutes The Proton lands on landing legs (or nothing at all if you're daring) This is the certification video for the Proton I. It has since been deprecated. Do NOT follow its flight profile. A new Proton III video will be posted soon with a correct flight profile! In the meantime, please read below for the Proton III flight profile. SPACEPORT: SSI Proton III (Type-1A Shuttlecraft) Craft File (Click Buy Now (it's free) since Spaceport is bugged.) MEDIAFIRE: SSI Proton III (Type-1A Shuttlecraft) Craft File MEDIAFIRE: Diplo-Rov Proton Transport & Refueler Controls: 1. Basic Jet VTOL engine (BJE) 2. TurboJet engine (TJE) 3. RAPIER 4. RAPIER mode switch (air/space engine toggle, emergency use only) 5. Nuclear space egine (space engine) 6. Two Rockomax 48-7Ss landing rockets 0. Undock Universal Docking Adapter G. Landing Gear U. Lights Proton III Flight Profile: Please read the craft description drop down in the Space Plane Hangar Take Off: The Proton is heavy, as it is packed with all the technology needed to achieve its mission. It has the longest warmup period of any SSI craft. Engage the VTOL Basic Jet Engine, full throttle, until max thrust achieved. The craft weighs 14.87 tons, near the 15 ton max the BJE can lift. The Proton, packed with features, is heavy, and will take a long time to warm up and lift off. About 30 seconds (I edited the warmup out of the video). Don't be discouraged if the craft sits on the pad a long time prior to lift off. This is normal. Nothing is broke. It will lift off. 1. Take off using BJE. 2. Turn on TJE and RAPIER for climb. 3. Point 70 deg until 20km 4. Point 0 deg until 27km 5. Point 15 deg until 40km (TJE flamesout near 30.5km), turn RAPIER off to restart TJE, then turn RAPIER back on until next TJE flameout.) (Keep toggling RAPIER on each TJE flameout.) (Cease using RAPIER above 34km) (Orbital Speed: 2280m/s by 40km) 6. Point 0 deg until 70km (TJE flameout by 42.4km. Decrease throttle 1 tick at a time until TJE restart. Do this all the way into orbit) (Apoapsis should be over 110km, and Periapsis near 40km) 7. Circularize your orbit with the Nuke. 8. Land on airless bodies with the Rockomaxes as needed. 9. Use the RAPIER's space thrust for emergency space power only (it drains fuel fast). You will need at least 130 fuel @80km Kerbin orbit or better to plan a successful round trip to Minmus. Experienced pilots should be able to arrive with up to 330 fuel or more at 110km orbit. Craft Notes The Proton represents the core of SSI engineering principles of avoiding clipped fuel tanks (it's not supposed to be a fuel cheat craft) while allowing clipping of other parts (representing the progress of Kerbal "minituraization" technology) to meet design aesthetics (to look like a Star Trek passable shuttlecraft). TURAN Engine Design Utilizing SSI-developed TURAN (TUrbojet RApier Nuke) engine stack technology for unprecedented power, this incredibly compact craft is capable of practical trips to nearby planetary satellites and back, and thus forms the backbone of the SSI fleet. The Proton is all yours for the low introductory price of a download and a like. Reviewers who post their test drive results will receive special mention in upcoming video productions of newer model Protons, and may even make a cameo appearance. Why a RAPIER? Why is SSI using a RAPIER of all things? To look cool? To jump on the RAPIER bandwagon? Hardly. Read on. Before the naysayers say their nays, SSI has discovered something about the RAPIER that apparently no one else has (as far as we know). The only real advantage the RAPIER brings to the party is the discovery of increased fuel and speed efficiency during the cruising phase of SSTOs, but only when coupled with a Turbo Jet Engine, and not solo. This involves feathering/toggling the RAPIER on until the TJE flames out, and then recovers as demonstrated in the video. For some remarkable reason as yet unexplained by SSI scientists, this yields a 30% increase in net fuel efficiency for the entire mission. This discovery alone has made the Proton capable of fulling its mission objective as a small auxillary Minmus return craft. In short, without the Rapier, the Proton would not be possible. Please see the Proton development discussion for further reading about the advanced case for the RAPIER as a practical engineering solution: The Case for the Proton RAPIER Proton Tranporter & Refueler Craft GR-1 Diplo-rov Transporter Refueler Veeltch developed a refueler for the Proton. It also doubles as a Proton transporter. Thanks Veeltch! 1. Park the Diplo-rov with docking port straight above the Proton's docking port. 2. Switch to the Proton and target the Diplo-rov's service port. 3. Engage the Proton's vertical engines to lift up and dock. If the Proton has no fuel to perform the dock, you can brake your Diplo-rov hard to force a dipping crashing dock (hence the name Diplo-rov). GR-X Transporter Refueler In development is the SSI Ground Refueler, the GR-X capable of fueling and transporting a number of SSI craft. Upcoming Proton Variants And to whet your appetite for more, here are some upcoming variants: Proton H: Munar-return and one-way Duna capable heavy shuttlecraft Proton T: Kerbal transport shuttlecraft Proton U: Utility shuttlecraft with multiple docking ports for various attachments such as these extra lifting engines for dropship work SSIS: Your shuttlecraft HQ (Aeon, Ion, Neutron, and Proton T docked) Conclusion All craft files are open source - so feel free to modify or copy any of the designs and technology. No credit necessary (but certainly appreciated)! We aim to further the KSP experience for all! Your comments, thoughts, or suggestions about this craft are most welcome in this Spacecraft Exchange thread below! Let me know what you think!

With everyone gone for the holidays, I figured I'd give lurkers a reference point to visit some awesome threads. Enjoy! Mod, possible to make this a sticky at some point?

Updated OP to include extended range definition in preparation for the certification and publication of the new Proton series shuttlecraft.

If you ever want access and test SSI prototypes such as the Proton series, just shoot me a PM with your email and I'll give you dropbox access. I might even promote you to full SSI Enginer and give you your own space station with your Gladius docked (which you never gave us an updated version yet ) in our official save file. Exo, the same invite is yours too. Let me know if you want access.

Coming soon to an Open Source Construction Techniques for Craft Aesthetics thread near you! All of them are SPH part clipping goodies discovered and used by SSI Engineers: Hidden Wings Hidden Cockpit Landing Gear Hidden Fuel Lines (did you know you can rotate the beginning fuel line strut?) TURAN Mk. 1 Engine Design (used in the new SSI Shuttlecraft Types I and III Proton series) VTOL Design (using a cubic strut instead of a mount) Hidden/Sunken Lighting Hidden RCS Cluster

reminds me of the ring in Contact.

My son loves this car.

My Kerbal Alarm clock button is jammed up in the top left overlaying my time indicator. I can't seem to move it. When I click it, it moves my time indicator forward - and blocks my view of it. Can your button be moved? I'm running 1080p. Furthermore the button appears on my Space Center page before I go to any building. Annoying. Uninstall reinstall doesnt seem to fix it either. Downloaded latest version from spaceport.

Sometimes the most impressive things are the little things. The recently designed SSI Proton Class shuttlecraft is quite versatile. A true sport utility personal VTOL SSTO shuttlecraft capable of round trips to the Mun or one-ways to Duna (and no clipped tanks).

The SSI Shuttlecraft Type III Proton T Class (Prototype) The Proton T class is intended to transport more than one Kerbal to various destinations - most likely one ways to Minmus and possibly the Mun (not tested). The Proton T and the Proton Heavy variants prove the versatility of the base Proton model. In fact, exchange the Proton T's side mounted windows for docking ports or radial decouplers and you've got a Proton U utility spacecraft meant for carrying satellites into orbit, or construction parts.

The SSI Shuttlecraft Type B Proton Heavy Class (Prototype) (capable of round trips to the Mun, and one way trips to Duna)

The SSI Shuttlecraft Type I Proton Class (Prototype) (capable of return trips to Minmus, and one way trips to Mun)

to the escape pods!

That craft is worthy of an SSI submission if you're up to it. What are its range capabilities?

Tested in .23 still works. Beautifully.

Therein lies the secret nature of this project. The craft reportedly only uses the RAPIER as an air-breathing booster to climb from the ground into cruising altitude, which for some reason known only to Kerbal physicists, a TurboJet and RAPIER is faster (as in accelleration) and thus more efficient at this than dual TurboJets, even with the extra .3 tons of the RAPIER. Unknown to the outsiders, the RAPIER on this classified prototype is not the same engine used for orbital insertion, nor for space propulsion. The RAPIER's space capability is switched off. By doing this, rather than twin Turbos or Turbo+Aerospike, the craft realizes a noticeable fuel savings. Only more testing will confirm if this design merits a true efficiency increase, but early leaked results are showing great promise.

My friend and I installed fresh server, updated clients, per instructions. I was able to build a station solo, and he an orbital transfer vehicle. Then we tried rendezvous. I would sit in the station, and he rendezvous with his ship. We experienced several bugs, one which I didn't see reported yet on github: When switching to watching his vessel come in, a duplicate vessel spawned inside his current vessel and I saw a massive explosion of debris as apparently physics didn't like having two objects occupy the same space. On my screen I saw double the amount of debris... and a minute later my friend saw the same debris field, kilometers away, while still piloting said ship (he saw nothing as I switched over to watch him). There might have even been triple debris... I don't know, but it was more debris than parts for a single ship. He decided to switch to my station (which I had left) and he said my station spawned inside itself and BAM, catastrophic explosion resulting in a spectacular 1000 piece debris field... double or triple the number of pieces of the original station. Looking at the Tracking Center, we saw 3-7 duplicates of our craft... and the debris fields. I loaded one of my duplicate stations and it appeared fine. So we tried staying in our ships this time around for rendezvous. He launched from KSC, and I undocked a tug from my station. We tried meeting up for rendezvous, but we both kept seeing each other warp away from the other by a few kilometers. I got the sense that I overshot him on my approach to him. He tried to disconnected, then reconnect, and get in his vessel... and it exploded with the vessel spawn duplication bug described above. We even tried ground rendezvous, where I would fly 42km away from KSC, and land, and wait for him. He warped away from me and we never met up (it didn't help that he crashed his ship attempting to reach me, so I can't confirm if ground rendezvous is possible). We tried one last idea to force a rendezvous situation: I went to my station, and undocked another tug, and I then went to my tug. He went to the station. The station exploded for him. We would have exercised more patience with attempting rendezvous, but it was 5 hours into these adventures and we never saw each other and only got within 1.3 km at best of each other before warping away. We gave up at 2am. I'm reporting the duplicate spawn sudden destruction kracken bug here in case it's not been reported before. Have fun duplicating it. The debris fields are beautiful this time of year.

As well as a flying saucer, or at least according to the news paper report. It's reported to be a VTOL SSTO that's been seen by eyewitnesses flying on jets alone 2300 m/s straight into 100k orbit without so much as a sweat. It's official handling is classified, as is the existence of the project, but rumor has it it can run circles around the VAB or nearest large asteroid while being chased by TIE fighters. All SSI certified craft are guaranteed to meet all certification requirements, and this includes balance and handling. They don't call them personal sport-utility spacecraft for nuthin'... Apparently it's little brother has been seen as well, but is rumored to be a one-way craft that has been seen on the Mun by amateur astronomers: