Neshma

THanks Helaeon, just trying to work this bit out. I was using the original disable crossfeed concept to find them. How do you find the numbers? Could I disable crossfeed and control from here to find the first docking port in the save file, grab its UID and its rootID as well? Also if the original root part of the second "dockee" craft is gone (ie the truss which is now connected to the station) will I get a root ID if I control from here? Thanks for all your help!

Oh well thought I might be onto something So im still abit unsure about a few things in the methods for fixing this problem by Roscoe. Finding the two docking ports: THe disabled crossfeed worked well for me for finding one docking port and hence its uid. Is the uid the ID number for the docked pair, in which case the second instance would be the dockee while the first is the docker? Is there a separate docking ID? When the original root part for the docking ship doesnt exist anymore (ie it was part of the payload delivery vehicle) how do you create a new DOCKEDVESSEL script (ie new rootID) for your docked spacecraft? I tried Kalizec's method and managed to get the two docking ports to undock but the game still thought they were connected. They drifted apart but RCS thrust commands were carried out by both halves and made the game go abit loopy. Any help would be fantastic thanks everyone!

Hey BananaDealer sorry you've got me wrong. My question is, is the tug connected to the original root piece IT was created from? I think the problem is related to when you disconnect a construct from its own root part and attach it to another (essentially if the game identifies ships according to root part you are making it part of a different ship) <Station><Station Root Part> ----- <Tug><Tug Root Part> | \/ <Station><Station Root Part><Tug> ----- <Tug Root Part> I think this might be part of why the problem is happening, why we need to add in the DOCKEDVESSEL line to the save file to reidentify the added construct (ie. Your tug) as a separate vessel. Like I said though I dont know if this rule holds across the board since I have small RCS tugs which dock/undock regularly from my station which arnt connected to the root part they were created with. PErhaps its something to do with this root part theory and some other cause together which cause everything to bug up.

So im seeing a consistency here (I may be pointing out the obvious) which seems to be a major part of why this bug happens. It seems that separating parts of a "ship" (ie initial construct) and adding them to another (and removing their contact with the root part) is what causes this. In my own case I have a heavy lift vehicle with its own probecore (the root part for my ships) so that I can deorbit the launcher after delivery of the payload to orbit. So when I lifted the truss for my station, detached it from its root probecore and docked it, it broke that docking pair. Similarly I have a tug with two probecores to control it BUT the original root part probecore burned up with its heavy lift vehicle. I think this is why it is now welded to the side of my space station I had a period of mounting the initial probecore on a truss at the top of my rocket where I started the builds then ditching it before I hit orbit (since id include other probecores in the build, a moment of idiocy I think). To contradict myself here, I have several RCS tugs around my station which were launched at the same time (ie are no longer attached to their initial root part) and they seem to be able to attach/detach with ease! Love to see what you all think of my theory, it seems to fit with alot of the stories in this thread. On the same note, since I have a stuck tug without a root part (which is long gone, burned up in outer space) what rootUid could I use with the methods suggested in here? I have no original ship to add a DOCKEDVESSEL module to

Hi everyone, So Ive gotten to the mun and back, ive put up small craft, a heliocentric satellite, even shot a satellite or two to other planets. Im really stuck with heavy lift. I've been experimenting with various designs for heavy lifters, even trying to emulate factors from other peoples designs (playing career mode second last tier so skippers and the silver half orange tanks). Im using kerbal engineer so I can get an idea of delta V, ISP, TWR etc. Also im noticing the need to delay my gravity turns later than 10k, so im watching the apoapsis rise then when time to apoapsis hits 30secs im turning. Turning earlier seems to often mean my power isnt high enough, I catch up with the apoapsis and end up with a water landing. as suggested by scott manley im trying ot measure it by keep my apoapsis around 30-40secs (not sure if im bunging this up). First I was just wondering if there were any suggestions out there on tutorials for advanced rocket design. Second I thought i'd post photos of my rockets and see if you can spot the problems. Here is my planned interplanetary manned survey craft atop each of my current "heavy" lift designs. The first one is my oldest (hence...well just look at it) and the last is my newest. The survey craft weighs in at 57tonnes. They all fly perfectly well (no disintegrations) thought I did go crazy on the struts. Its power or perhaps flight path which seems to be my problem. Heavy Lift - 1 Heavy Lift - 2 Heavy Lift - 3 Any help would be great thanks guys. I'd really like to shoot off this survey craft and proceed onto a fuel tanker, space station and other such heavy lift requiring vehicles. Nesh

I'd like to thank all space agencies who collaborated with my own. We have finally recovered Jeb sans sanity and likely unable to walk for the rest of his life. Our astronaut discovered that using RCS to push a tumbling command pod is quite unhealthy but none the less he has been returned home safely! Thank you all and here is the mission report for your interest: The rescue of Jebediah Kerbal

Finally home, though somewhat medically compromised as depicted in my recent rescue mission! The daring rescue of Jebediah, stranded first Kerbal in space! (Pic Heavy)

Our story begins in the early days of the Space Program under the steady hand of Director Nesh. (It should be noted that Director Nesh did enjoy a solid session with a bottle of whiskey from time to time, usually leading to a much less steady hand) In those early days things were rough as we strove into undiscovered country (*cough* thanks star trek). The trouble started the day the KSPs physicists and aeroengineering team went out for drinks to celebrate a colleagues birthday. Stupidly deciding to go back to work several drinks later, an unknown engineer miscalculated the fuel requirements for establishing orbit and then deorbiting a capsule for reentry into Kerbin's atmosphere. Poor Jebediah Kerbin, the famous first astronaut of his kind, the first Kerbal to orbit his home planet!!!...was stranded on his maiden voyage aboard Nomad-1. Following an emergency procedure he had written himself 15 seconds earlier, Jeb exited Nomad-1 on an EVA and attempted to use his suits RCS thrusters to slow the pod down. If he could get the pod to drop lower than 70km, it would hit atmosphere, decelerate and return safely to the surface (assuming his capsules parachute worked!). After being knocked around by his wildly spinning pod, nearly being thrown into space and using up 90% of his RCS just trying to get back in (Nomad-1 had minimal electricity left, no solar panels, no SAS stabiliser system), Jeb settled in while the KSP learned how to actually build and fly rocketships, rather than catapulting poor Kerbins into the unknown without any clue of what would happen. It was a lonely year and a month on orbit for Jeb, without food, water and a command chair which doubled as his toileting facilities. Not only was Jeb stuck, but he was in an eccentric elliptical orbit making matching that orbit bothersome. So the the programs best engineers downed hangover cures and were put to work. Director Nesh had never lost a man and didn't intend to leave a hero in orbit! A year later after losing a man during the first docking of two manned spacecraft, Director Nesh was pushing for Jeb's rescue. (And a media blackout) The program got to work designing of the Capture Probe. A 4 stage rocket using solid boosters, 4 main engines, a final single engine orbital stage and the probe itself. She was an ungainly craft with a smaller engine for on orbit maneuvers as well as lots of RCS fuel for the careful attitude adjustments required for a daring rescue. The probe itself used a remote satellite core to control a capture scaffolding. This used a baseplate for adapting rocket sizes at its base, fitted with four struts to hold Nomad-1. To the struts were attached lights for the difficult capture and RCS thruster blocks. Solar panels and parachutes were added so the vehicle had power and could possibly be recovered. Batteries, SAS, fuel and more RCS were fitted behind the probe-core. Its systems checked out and so the launch window approached and the countdown began! And launch of Capture Probe to go save Jeb in his very smelly Nomad-1. Plus 19 seconds and counting, 2000m, 500m downrange. By 10,000m we had dropped our solid boosters and began angling for orbit. A short two minutes later and we were well into our orbital burn. Engine shutdown as our apoapsis went over 70km with another burn closer to apoapsis to make orbit. Initial assessment of Capture Probe was nominal, soon after her solar arrays were deployed successfully. Once we made orbit we began the awkward set of burns required to match orbit with Nomad-1. By 15 hours Capture probe was set to pass within 20km of Jeb whose comm frequency had been filled with potty language for months. The mission was proceeding as planned! Horror struck 16 hours into flight when mission control realised that leaving the probes extensive lighting system on had drained its batteries while we were on Kerbin's night side. So close to intercept and Capture Probe couldn't maneuver! A heavy decision was made to abort intercept in the hopes that a few more orbits would give the solar arrays time to recharge. A brave engineer quietly turned off the light switch he'd forgotten in his 3 step procedure document for the mission. Capture probe's solar arrays compensated and the batteries recharged. Mission control regained control and that engineer quietly slipped out as the flight director started rampaging for the culprit. Mission control staged the now empty orbital engine leaving the final stage to burn for a new intercept course. Tension rose as Kerbals below watched, knowing that fuel would be needed to deorbit, lest Capture Probe end up floating aimlessly with Jeb and not having even brought him a proper toilet! An hour later things were finally back on track with a mere 6km between Jeb's Nomad-1 and the Capture Probe. Half the fuel tank remained so there was no more room for more mistakes! Capture Probe approached Nomad-1 carefully. Mission control matched speed with Nomad-1 and at 100m throttled down the main engine, switching to RCS for line up and capture. 10 metres, careful jets of RCS maintaining alignment. Nomad-1 was in a 2 axis roll making her hard to predict. 3 metres! Careful now... And capture! of Nomad-1 at 17 hours, 30 minutes and 26 seconds into the mission. Getting our drunken Kerbal scientists back from the bar, we put them to work figuring out how much we needed to decelerate Nomad-1 to get Jeb home. With a periapsis (lowest point in his orbit) of 96km we'd need to get him below the 70km mark at least. 50km would be optimal to ensure air resistance brought the capsule down in a single orbit. Mission control had to be very careful as there was no secure docking between the two craft. Nomad-1 was lying on the baseplate and rolling around. Too much thrust in any direction could have destroyed both craft and killed the already delusional Jeb. With Capture Probe "in front" of Nomad-1, she carefully fired her RCS retrograde retrograde (against both craft's current direction of movement) in spurts, slowing both craft down. After several minutes of short burns, it was a success! Their combined periapsis had been dropped right down to 28km ensuring Nomad-1 would deorbit. Now Capture Probe had to separate from Nomad-1 otherwise reentry would almost certainly destroy both vessels. And detachment! Mission control was full of cheers as Nomad-1 proceeded on a course towards mother Kerbin. Using what little fuel it had left, Capture probe burned prograde, raising its periapsis to 83km to maintain a single orbit, allowing Mission control to focus on Jeb's reentry. Now Jeb was on his own. With such a steep descent and so long in the cold of space, some wondered if Jeb's capsule would survive reentry. Jeb hit the atmosphere at 1.7km/sec At 5,000m his parachute successfully deployed and at 900m it opened completely. Jeb had finally returned to Kerbin, minus the use of his legs and with severe dystrophy of his heart. He would probably be wheelchair bound for the rest of his short life...not to mention his ongoing psychosis, but he was alive!! Meanwhile capture probe was ready for reentry. Plans were in effect to attempt to bring it down in one piece so that it could be displayed at the Kerbsonian museum. Using the last of her fuel and a helping hand from her RCS thrusters Capture Probe began her final descent towards Kerbin. As capture probe hit atmosphere almost 19hrs after launch, mission control realised one of her solar panels hadnt been retracted yet. 5 seconds later it didnt really matter (notice the bits of solar panel flying out behind) Amazingly capture probe held together during her descent. And parachute deployed. 19 hours after launch, capture probe came to rest on the other side of Kerbin as mission control had yet to learn how to accurately land an orbiting spacecraft. Meanwhile Jebediah Kerbin was safely on his way back to the astronaut complex sputtering nonsense to the field medic. A week later he told a local paper he was "enjoying real food and having a healthy poop in a chair other than the one he usually sits in." He is expected to file for damages. And so the Kerbal space program continues with its hero Astronaut back on firm soil!!

Love all these ideas, some great stuff for EVAs on planets. One thing I havnt seen mentioned which keeps coming to me is on orbit repair and building type activities. - Allow Kerbals to bring repair/extra parts on orbit (ie struts!!!) then EVA to attach parts - Allow space station construction to include on orbit strut deployment to improve the stability of your constructs - Allow space station construction to include on orbit experiment deployment - Allow damaged parts to be repaired by EVA Kerbals Id love to see "firsts" added into science points (First EVA, first docking, first on orbit repair, first on orbit construction etc.)

I was actually surprised to note that my very first docking in space ala- Gemini 6/7 did not get me any science points. It was a fun mission though. I really like the idea of space telescopes, communication satellites as well as exploration missions being part of the scientific advance of your KSP program. Also I think EVAs could really use more punch, id love to see repair/extra parts being stowed and Kerbals to be able to attach them on orbit. Allow struts to be added to space stations to make them stronger (and hence bigger), add solar arrays etc ala the ISS construction!!

Hi everyone, So I am planning a rescue mission in my KSP career game. You see in the beginning of our space program we may have miscalculated fuel requirements required to deorbit our good friend Jebediah. This has left Jeb on an elipsoid orbit with an apoapsis of about 250km for approximately....2 years. With the presumption that he continues to have breathable air, food, water and waste disposal facilities I have been planning a mission to rescue Jeb from his infinitely stood up date with Kerbal. The biggest challenge here is that he doesnt have any sort of docking post, just a Mk1 Command Pod with an Antennae (I dont think he even has power, hope he's got some blankets in there!). My plan is this. Build an unmanned intercept vehicle using lander legs to create a "capture" cage such as a few people have done on various youtube videos. Ill get this vehicle up to rendezvous with Jeb, lightly capture his pod and then light my engines carefully to bring down our cumulative speed, hopefully to the point where his pod is successfully on a deorbit path. Then let him go, get out of his way and deorbit the rescue vehicle without its debris pummelling his small cold life boat from above. Any thoughts? Do you guys think a capture and burn will annihilate his pod? Cheers everyone!