SRV Ron

When building asparagus staging rockets, it is less confusing to do the following; 1. Assemble the core stage. 2. Place one pair of vertical decouplers on the core stage using 2x symmetry. 3. Build the booster stage in 2X. 4. Attach the fuel line pair from the booster to the core stage. Do that at the bottom fuel can to avoid fuel flow issues. 5. Copy the assembly by selecting one of the boosters at its decoupler using Alt left mouse click. 6. Paste to the core stage. 7. Put that pair of decouplers into its own staging location and under the original pair. 8. Rearrange the fuel line so that it goes to the adjacent original pair instead of the core stage. 9. Copy the assembly as before using Alt left mouse click and paste in place. Note, the fuel lines will be placed correctly this time. 10. Arrange the staging for that pair as normal. This is so much simpler then placing a 6x symmetry and trying to rearrange everything after the fact. Here is an example of what that would look like using NovaPunch parts for simplicity of setup.

A rather simple design that made Minmus, can also do Mun, and returned with plenty of fuel left over.

Hopefully, it won't be down for over a week like what happened the last time there was an upgrade when unexpected problems showed up during the conversion process.

Sometimes that works, other times it doesn't. Do a quick save before planning a maneuver that you are unsure of. That way, if it fails, you will have a better picture of when to start your burn for the planned maneuver.

The beauty of Sandbox, compared to the early Career mode at present, is that you can set your own goals. I would suggest setting up an Excel Spreadsheet with all stock parts and balance their cost with realistic values instead of the current placeholders. Then, set up another spreadsheet with a space program containing goals, technology limitations, and a budget that expands depending on those goals. You can have several cost values on a given part that cost less the longer your program runs, and how often they are used. Example, solar panels would be extremely expensive at first, but cost comes way down with time to represent continuing development in their production. That way, you can start your program with a limited budget that at first restricts you to sounding probes that rely on batteries, then later allows you to place probes in orbit powered by solar cells, deep space probes using nuclear power, and eventually start your more expensive manned program.

While this design will do the job with plenty of fuel for landing and return; This much smaller design worked just as well with plenty of fuel reserve for landing and return. Mun takes less fuel to get to but more to land and return which this ship will easily do. Practice on Minmus first, then go for Mun.

Those faring can do a lot of damage if you cluster the LV-N and don't rotate them in such a way that they don't hit anything. They have taken off engines upon staging.

To use a multi stage lander, such as this design from the demo that could also land and return from Duna, requires a good sized rocket using asparagus staging. After launching this standard staging design, I had sufficient fuel in the second stage to orbit and crash it in Minmus. The third stage made a landing and return with lots of fuel left.

That could be an efficiency launch to orbit. That would be based upon a ratio of launch weight and the weight placed in orbit, say about 100k circular, around Mun, or around a target planet. While not specified, the fuel can payload should have independent maneuvering and docking capability.

Then, there is five orange fuel cans at once to orbit. Lots of fuel left in the orbital stage;

All Stock in 0.23 Last stage booster is recoverable from orbit. An older design not eligible but easily doable with stock.

Ditch the RCS. Use a donuts tank or two and an ant engine. It will be lighter and more efficient then using RCS alone.

Smallest, lightest, and cheapest with a full package of scientific instruments, landed on Mun. All stock.

For model rockets, there is a COP, center of pressure. So long as that is to the rear of the COM, center of mass, the rocket flies straight. That same flight characteristics remains true in KSP physic even with SAS off and no external commands issues. Let the COP get ahead of the COM and the rocket will swap ends at the slightest instability or issuance of a steering command. In space, the COP becomes irrelevant. Of course, if the COM and COL are not aligned, the rocket will not only swap ends, but tumble out of control.

For stock KSP; The biggest, before 0.23.5, is the five fuel cans to orbit launcher. The smallest single stage to orbit. A slightly larger fuel tank version made Mun orbit.

There is the slinky ship of 100 donuts tanks. Incredibly flexible as it whips around like a wet noodle. If matched with the right engine and flown carefully, it can achieve orbit. Another ship is made using a NovaPunch 7 to 1 adapter. Long tanks under it start dancing around knocking off the engines and other parts, then, it starts walking down the launch pad to parts unknown. I have no idea what holds that together. Add one set of braces on the base and this ship flies OK.

One other note. Place the Goo pod pair on the capsule. They have to be safely returned if you want the science points from them. A picture with the Resource panel opened would let us confirmed if running out of power is the issue here. SAS is on but it looks like you are not yet landed.

One other note. Place the Goo pod pair on the capsule. They have to be safely returned if you want the science points from them.

Unless you use mods, the only easy way, as Claw mentioned, is to place the rocket on the pad, go to map mode, and click on the status marker on the right. Then, just hit Esc and revert the flight back to the VAB. Here is one example for an interplanetary orbiter probe.

Experiment with different designs and multi stage crafts. Here are two designs that, with careful flying and power management, made Mun orbit and return. Do try for just a flyby first, then go for orbit. You can try the ones pictured here but will gain more experience by using the Kerbal School of Hard Knocks of building and testing your own designs. Put stuff together, see what works, modify the design until it works even better. Keep in mind that simple designs will work best. Two early career Mun and Minmus orbiters; A difficult to set up maneuver but guaranteed safe return Mun flyby. The NASA figure eight. Early career ship based upon the design with the SRB in Mun orbit. And, its return. Note battery life left on a ship that had no solar panels and used an LV-909 on its third stage.

Joint connections are much better in 0.23.5 even with the 3.75 and 5 meter Nova Punch mods. However, the better connections still cannot overcome poor design. And, a rocket with 100 stacked donuts tanks will still whip around like a wet noodle.

Starting on Career is an excellent way to learn how things work without getting confused with a huge number of parts. As you gain more experience, you will have more parts available to play with to see what works and what doesn't. Congratulations on achieving orbit and a safe return. Your next goal, do a Mun and Minmus flyby, then orbit them and return. Those missions should enable you to unlock a probe and solar panels. Then, your next goals are landing and return from Minmus, then Mun using a probe. Do your first landing on the seas in Minmus. You will soon see why you landed there first once you attempt a Mun landing. When you can safely acomplish those missions, you can send Jeb to collect soil samples to return to unlock some heavy rocketry for interplanetary flights. Enjoy.

It is definitely a loss of power issue coupled by the unbalanced use of one Goo pod. That unbalance is running the battery dry since the LV-909 has no generator. Try the same flight with a balanced pair of Goo Pods. With proper power management, you should be able to complete the mission without solar panels.

Right now, it just appears to be a placeholder although their emotions in flight appears to be guided by those values.

The aerodynamics on the cupola, when flying in Kerbal's atmosphere is the culprit. While the torque is less, it is not by that much. It is just once it hits a critical point, the Skipper engine cannot gimbals enough to correct from the instability without fins. Once in space, there is no issue. It seems to be an issue in 0.23.5 as I have not encountered that problem in the past.