steuben

Karty: Wait a minute. Wait a minute, Doc. Ah... Are you telling me that you built an SSTO... with a cockpit? Doc Krown: The way I figured it, if you're going to build an SSTO, why not do it with style. Besides I needed the extra reaction wheels and battery charge to --- "Back to the Orbit"

A bit biased, but my favoured author is "steuben." Right? *shrugs* maybe, maybe not. But, it isn't a popularity contest... well yes it is. But we don't really frame it as much of one. Those of us who pay attention to such things notice it. But, we are paying closer attention to the skill. Popularity will buy your bread. But, skill will buy your beer.

I've had a bit of luck using KER and balancing the engine torque to near zero and/or adding SAS units to compensate.

do able... just chuck into your favorite fairing and awa~~~y you go. well almost there's a few other tweaks to make. but that's your base.

I'm trying for a ghost story-ish vibe... don't know if I got it or not.

KSP Incident Investigation Committee Supplemental report into propulsion failure of Rocker-X3ANSZ Document Number: K-IIC-0046308-UXE Classification: Secret Code word: Unicorn This report should only be disclosed upon appropriate code word validation. This supplemental report has been submitted as part of Project Unicorn. The full report on the incident can be found under document number K-IIC-0046308-F. The reported communications between Rocker-X3ANSZ and R-0DN361 is problematic. The details presented by Pilot Maxanne Kerman and available telemetry are conflicting. Summary time line is as follows: - Pilot Maxanne reported she disabled several systems as part of the process of stabilizing the situation. This included portions of life-support and telemetry recording. The only communication equipment available was the C-16 class equipment in audio only mode. - Pilot Maxanne was able to make contact with another craft. The craft reported its name to be Rocker-0DN361, call sign Kotan. It reported that it was on an outbound trip to asteroid ZYH786. At the time both craft would have been in the Kerbin relative radio shadow of the sun. R-0DN361 would relay the report of the incident once he resumed contact with the KSC. - During the duration of the contact R-0DN361 provided Pilot Maxanne with both psychological and technical assistance. - R-X3ANSZ was in the radio shadow for approximately three hours after reportedly loosing contact with R-0DN361. After Deep Space Tracking indicated that R-X3ANSZ left the radio shadow KSC sent a one way message advising of receipt of the relay package. - R-X3ANSZ was recovered seventy-nine days later and is undergoing repair and refit. The details in conflict are as follows: - Deep Space Tracking reports there were no craft with a trajectory that would have brought it with in C-16 communication distance with R-X3ANSZ. - Upon recovery of R-X3ANSZ critical damage was observed to all communications systems, with sufficient repairs made to the C-16 to allow basic operation. - The transit record indicated that it was broadcast from the C-16 antenna of R-X3ANSZ. The transit record was damaged during transmission. The corruption centered on the record of intermediate relays of the message. That section of the package was determined to be unrecoverable. However, there are indications elsewhere in the package that the message was formatted using older, but still valid, data protocols. - R-0DN361 reported that it was outbound to asteroid ZYH786. This asteroid was catalogued two years ago. No mission to it is currently scheduled. - Pilot Maxanne reported details about R-0DN361 and Kotan while not of confidential or higher classification are not general knowledge. Some of the details predate Pilot Maxanne’s enrollment in the Rocker Group. - Kotan was aware of details about systems on R-X3ANSZ while not of confidential or higher classification that were part of a refit three years ago. - The registry of R-0DN361 is unique and was registered twenty five years ago. - The call sign “Kotan” appears in the registry three times. Only one of which appears in the SR-Pilot registry during the active life of R-0DN361. - R-0DN361 was recorded as lost nineteen years ago. The suspected cause is catastrophic reactor failure. Details of the investigation can be found in file K-IIC-00313031. It has been recommended that the flight status of R-0DN361 not be communicated to Pilot Maxanne. It is also recommended that Pilot Maxanne be returned to active status once psychological and physical evaluations are suitable.

Stop playing ksp and read. Head over to your local library and pick up a spread of sci-fi from classic to modern. From hard to very soft sci-fi. A good place to start would be "The World Turned Upside Down" edited by Drake, Flint, and Baen.

I think it is just a photo op thing by Walt. I stand by my OTP... or unpairing as the case may be.

Actually, it is control theory. It shares some math kinship with rocket science, and some of the applications are rocket science. In the specific cases it is simple with a known model, the math is well controlled. In the arbitrary model case, which KSP presents it, it gets... difficult. Even when using the very basic PID controllers that IIRC they were using. PID, Proportional Integral Derivative, controllers require about 110 to 150 hours of class time. Assuming you've got basic algebra down, about 40 hours if you have calculus down. If you have the knack for math, and you want to understand them. The fancier controllers H-infinity, sliding mode, require much heavier math than basic calculus, and additional time to learn the controller besides. But are frickin' sweet in some applications. That being said I can see why it would have taken several versions to nail it down. Working on a similar problem to the burn time calculator, I can see why they went with a close enough algorithm. Any kind of accurate prediction is invoking heavier math than I care to use on a daily basis. And is deeper math than most people know exists... even in rumor. Besides that's what correction burns are for.

Yes, the conventional approach is to ship the station in pieces to <insert location> and assemble it there. But... *brief moment of static* This! Is! KSP! <kicks rocket into a dry well> *brief moment of static* <singing voice>Long haired convention need not apply. Can't you read the si~~~~gns? </singing voice> *brief moment of static* My recommendation is to use a puller design along the long axis through the CoM of the station. Though, if you want to you can strap a whole bunch of engines to strategic, and/or random, points and balance the effects of the thrust with a number of gyros, and KER.

negative values for propellant ratios will allow me to generate fuel but not generate thrust... even if thrust is negative.

Rocket science ain't simple. Even when it is simple like it is in KSP. Tutorial text length and style is a fine balancing act, and very much like cooked carrots. But, unfortunately for some one word is too long to read. Which isn't to say they don't need work. For the you are describing though you may want to leave the tutorials completely. They are probably the right length for a game. For a teaching device... probably not the right tool. You may have to go with a cookbook set of lesson plans either with the sandbox or a hacked career save... with maybe a shortened parts list.

1.2.2.1622

Are the launch a satellite with line of sight of <insert site> here contracts still around? I haven't seen one during my most recent round of play.

That was my initial design for the whole project. Build the modules on Kerbin and lift them for assembly in orbit. It lasted right up until I started designing the Cygnus class yard, a large prairie of 2x2 panels with modules hanging off the "bottom". There wasn't an easy way to lift the shop floor modules to orbit in a decent number of lifts. I was looking at the low triple digit range. It wasn't the mass that had to go up, it was the shape giving me the problem. This lead to periods 1 and 2 in the cue-card time table. The station modules range in mass from 27 tonnes up to 750 tonnes. Sections of the Cygnus ships will probably mass in that range. While it is doable from the surface of Kerbin; it is six times easier to it from Münar surface. Drop a mining, refining, and yard complex on the Mün and proceed from there. That first kit would have to come from Kerbin surface, of course. Early on it would be full modules to wherever. Later on it would be a blend of processed metals and specialty modules and parts... to wherever. So from there... Having rubber ducked it, it feels like I will need two yards at the start. The first would be an assembly area in Kerbin orbit. This would service the early intra-kerbin construction and assembly. The second would be in Münar orbit. This and it's kin would form the central part of construction of the later stations, orbital yards, and other ships short of the Cygnus, and her kin.

You don't have to draw well to storyboard. Mine look like a chicken walked across a piece of paper after having spilled an ink well. With a whole bunch of notation arrows... that usually make sense to me. Trust me, take the time to lay it out. Skipping the prep and planning steps to try and save time usually will cost you at least the time you saved skipping the planning and prep steps. And you'll have a better product if you do take the time to prep and plan.

Then write on a grand scale. The ebb and flow of power between countries, planets, and star systems. It is trickier to write... I haven't seen many examples of it. But, you may want to read through Well's "The Shape of Things to Come" as an example of that concept.

Given the script will be regularly checking a basic calculation with binary logic should work. The engine thrust at ASL will be used for the calculation. if A <=v2IvM/2(FvIa-gIvM) + AT fire engine. I suspect the engine will knock a fair bit around A. It will also hit 0 m/s above the ground since the thrust is calibrated to ASL rather then current altitude. If it isn't paying attention will probably hit the ground. So a safety check when the speed is around 10 m/s is recommended. But it will probably knock as well around 0 m/s with: A - altitude ASL AT - altitude of terrain v - current velocity Iv - ISP in vacuum Ia - ISP at ASL FV - Force in vacuum M - mass g - local g

You may want to dig out a few episodes of "The Magic School Bus", and maybe "Once upon a time ... Man" for examples on how to structure things. They are older, so don't forget Science Marches On. Another thing, you will want to storyboard everything. Do it in two runs. The first will be broad strokes maybe two or three for each of the three topics you want to cover. The second would be to cover in closer detail each of the topics. you'd probably be about eight to ten for each one, one board one scene. on this run you'll want to put in what the fellows will be saying in each scene.

300kN, with 215/255 isp... which engine is it?... or do you have a mix of them?

hmm.... will have to try this for my Eeloo-90 project. Any rough estimates on what it will save on total DV costs?

first question: when's it due? kerbal speech, that's just backwards Spanish sped up. so you can either use your own or text to speech software. as for the writing; start with these questions: what facts do you want to convey? once you know the facts you want to convey you can figure out the missions. facts first, mission second, body third. how much story do you want.. or need? my reflex is going to be a hand wave for the story and focus on the facts. enough story to glue things together. though later you can build a bigger story and re-release it, two movies for the price of one and a half. careful though that can be a pretty deep rabbit hole to go down. narration, not necessarily excluded. there are many styles of narration. both the style and the text have to fit the video, and the framing story. write first, film second. it will help with planning, preventing reshoots etc. and a quick addendum. there is also the thread as well where most of us comment and discuss things.

dang this is an interesting problem... time to break out the power tools. Now where is that copy of Maple V?... Behold the Power of Math!<dramatic thunder and lightning> A closed form function will beat a numeric approximation and can be recalculated if the engine and other hings change easily rather than rerunning the approximation. Besides the Newton fractal is a pretty good reason to not fully trust numerical methods. Cause i might be chasing a much more general case than i need to... but who cares 'cause Math! Question... that 300kN engine is it stock? if so which one... though the equation set can be generalised. Question... will it be landing in an atmosphere? if yes and a non-stock engine what is the ISP spread like? Question... from an arbitrary velocity relative to the surface? or nearly vertical? though again the equation set can be generalised. Question... will the script cycle constantly or will it just grab the value and run with it?

Builds, booms, repeats. And i've got a story to tell

right I forgot local g... so that turns the first approx. answer for distance into V0t-Mt2/(2F)+1/2glt for a straight down drop. extension for any thing else is pretty easy and left as an exercise for the reader.