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A friend and I have been working on the implementation of Dr. Robert Zubrin's Mars Direct 2.0 mission (described in his book “The Case for Mars”) for quite some time. For this we use KSP with the most realistic mods possible (RO, RP-1 etc.), some of which I try to make even more realistic, although this is not normally necessary as they are already excellent! But for the mission, for example, the new Raptor v3 engine is necessary, things like that. At the end there is the execution of the mission. We are also planning and working on a small publication to show things. Hopefully Dr. Zubrin's Mars Society, for example, will be interested. I would also like to reflect that here in the forum, I think that's important. We live in turbulent times! And we may not even have realized what is currently happening at SpaceX and what significance it could have for the whole of humanity. I will report here from time to time. Models will be published by me on KerbalX, videos etc. I will host and share here. Per Aspera Ad Astra. Tom. Brief description of the main mission components The aim is to establish a Mars colony. First of all, an Earth Return Vehicle (ERV1) is sent to Mars, where it lands at the planned site of the colony. ERV1 now begins to convert the CO2 from the Martian atmosphere into methane and oxygen with the help of the hydrogen it has brought with it. The ERV uses this to replenish its fuel reserves. After 2 years, the habitat ship HAB1 flies to Mars with 4 astronauts on board, accompanied by another ERV, the ERV2. During the flight, the TMI (Trans Mars Injection) stage is detached and connected to the habitation unit of the HAB by a long steel cable. The habitation unit and the TMI stage then orbit around each other and generate an artificial gravity that corresponds to that of Mars. Course corrections must still be possible with the RCS. HAB1 and ERV2 land at the colony landing site on Mars after a 9-month flight. The astronauts can leave Mars at any time with ERV1. Otherwise, the 4 astronauts stay for 2 years, then board the ERV1 and fly back to Earth in it, leaving the HAB1 behind. Artificial gravity is generated on the return flight in the same way as on the outward flight to Mars. Once on Earth, the steel cable is cut, the habitation unit enters the Earth's atmosphere with its heat shield and then lands on parachutes in an Earth ocean. At the same time as the first crew begins its return flight with ERV1, the third ERV (ERV3) and the second HAB (HAB2), again with four astronauts on board, fly from Earth to the Mars colony. Once there, HAB2 is docked to HAB1. The 4 astronauts stay for another 2 years and now have twice as much living space as the first pioneers. After 2 years, they also fly back with an ERV (the ERV2), while at the same time ERV4 and HAB3 fly to the colony. And so on. This is how a colony gradually develops. If the colony is to grow faster, any number of ERVs and HABs can of course be sent out at the same time. An immediate evacuation must be possible at any time with a sufficiently high number of refueled ERVs.

Screenshots: Trailer KSP 0.22 ! source of inspiration for Kraken Science. This Part pack include many Science parts with report values: 2 Probe Core, LittleFrog and ScaRaB system with 1 monopropellant engine : 2 Strategies for your career: Download: SpaceDock / GitHub Development considered completed, this mod will not receive new parts. Licence : Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) Installation : Please delete your old Folder before update! ChangeLog:

Current version: 2.5 for KSP 1.12.2 License: CC Attribution Share Alike 4.0 International ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I've been using this part for a while now since the stock one is way too big for some rovers and pods and I don't like to take up so much space to return multiple copies of an experiment. Any way I searched all over for something that would work, and this is all I was able to find, and it was way out of date and did not function with 1.5.1. The mod was originally made by Talisar but he has not been around for a very long time and the license grants me the write to continue to work on it so here it is in case someone else has the same needs I do. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- v 2.5.1 (06/27/2024) - Updated to KSP 1.12.5 v 2.5 (12/15/2021) - Updated for KSP 1.12.2 v 2.0 (06/04/2020) - Added the ability to "collect all" science from the vessel the container is attached to by right clicking on the container. - Added "Collect All" to the action group abilities. v 1.0.3 (06/02/2020 - Updated for KSP v 1.9.1 v 1.0.2 (12/20/2018 - Updated for KSP v1.6 v 1.0 (12/03/2018) - Reconfigured folder structure and updated all cfg files for KSP v1.5.1 Available on CKAN Download from Spacedock

Ever wonder that the science system in KSP is way too easy? Getting way too much science biome hopping on Minmus? Well, now you do not have to worry about that anymore! With this mod, you will actually have to explore the system! Science Labs are now for transmitting the full amount of science you would get on recovery, Biome hopping is non existent, the barometer does not work in space and more! This mod is still very early in development, so feedback would be appreciated! Download here: https://spacedock.info/mod/3674/Dan's Science Overhaul#info

While I was showcasing my Grimes Flying Laboratory replica, I was still a bit disappointed that it was just a means to show off new aircraft lighting rather than it being an actual laboratory with experiments and everything. I have seen many (and built a few) mobile bases with laboratories on them, and I remember Marcus House making a super trainer that can also double as a passenger transport years ago, but so far the only plane or SSTO I've seen with an onboard laboratory is Matt Lowne's flying Laythe base. So, I decided to build my own and started a thread where everyone else can show theirs off too. Maybe even get a little competitive with them along the way. Here are the rules on how your craft can qualify. First and foremost, it has to have at least one (1) MOBILE PROCESSING LAB. After all, it's not a flying laboratory without a lab. EXCEPTION: If you're using a balloon or dirigible mod that includes a part that can generate science points, that is allowed. Be sure to mention that, though. It has to have the following scientific instruments mounted: REQUIRED: Thermometer Barometer Seismometer Gravioli detector Atmospheric GCMS OPTIONAL (not required, but recommended): Materials Mystery Goo It has to be capable of flight in its final form, as in after all preceding stages (if applicable) are spent. You can use delivery rockets to get the flying lab to its destination (e.g. Laythe, Duna, Eve), but the lab has to fly on its own once it arrives. You are also allowed to make it capable of traveling on land and/or water, but it has to be able to fly. Craft has to be able to land and takeoff in its final form; where specifically doesn't matter. Otherwise, it's just a miniature space station or interplanetary transport vehicle. Crew must be able to get in and out of the craft. It doesn't matter if the final form can only fly on Kerbin, in space, and/or on other planets. The specifics on its performance capabilities will determine division placement and awards. More on those later. ISRU and/or docking capabilities for the end-stage okay, regardless of whether or not it leaves Kerbin's atmosphere. Though I suppose you wouldn't really need docking capabilities if your craft can't even get past a suborbital trajectory over Kerbin. Stock and/or DLC parts only. Autopilot/navigation/gauge mods okay. Generally, no mods outside of DLCs that come with additional parts. EXCEPTION: mods that come with balloon or dirigible-related parts are permitted, but those craft go in a separate division. If you want to allow a specific mod that conforms to the other rules, let me know and I'll take a look at it before deciding if it shall be allowed. Pictures and/or video of the craft in action are required. You can test it in Sandbox mode. If it can perform up to regulations there, it can do just fine in Career. Multiple entries per person allowed. In fact, it is encouraged if you want different awards under your belt. Qualifying entries and their respective awards will be shown in the Wall of Fame. Here are the divisions and division-specific awards for when your craft qualifies. Depending on the entry's capabilities, it might even qualify for more than one division award at once. ALL Divisions - awards that can be awarded to qualifying entries of ANY division. Agena Award - is docking-capable. It may not be practical for a Kerbin-only entry, but it can be for spaceplanes and body-specific landing craft. Alicorn Award - can submerge itself in water as well as fly in the air. The final form cannot detach anything, though. It has to be able to swim underwater and fly in one piece. This award applies for other planets with liquid on the surface (e.g. Eve and Laythe). Daffy Duck Award - can take off and land on water safely as well as land. This award applies for other planets with liquid on the surface (e.g. Eve and Laythe). If it can fully submerge itself underwater, then it qualifies for the Alicorn Award instead. Greenie Award - goes all-electric; no Lf or Ox required (except for balancing only). Huey Award - is capable of vertical takeoffs and landings. And yes, helicopters can qualify for this. Landers for Duna and celestial bodies without atmospheres do not count, unfortunately. Jetpacker Award - can serve as a land vehicle as well as an aircraft. E.g. flying cars. Office Award - has a total capacity of 19 or more people. Pilot + 2 scientists + 16 miscellaneous. You don't have to load your craft with that many people to qualify, just prove that it can carry that many. Olde Tyme Award - uses propeller engines that require Lf and air intakes. Jet engines cannot be the primary source of propulsion. More likely to find these on Kerbin, but you could maybe try this on Laythe too. Eve and Duna are not good places to win this award, since their atmospheres are not suitable for air intakes. SEAL Award - final form can do well as a sea and a land vehicle as well as an aircraft. Again, no detaching anything in its final form. Self-Sustainer Award - can refuel itself using ISRU. Electric planes do not qualify for this since a competent engineer would install some means for the plane to recharge itself, whether it be via solar panels, RTGs, or both. Supersonic Award - can cruise faster than 343 m/s. If it can do a suborbital trajectory around Kerbin, then it qualifies for the Kermit Award instead. Homesick Division - vehicles that cannot go past a suborbital trajectory of Kerbin. Kermit Award - can go in a suborbital trajectory (and not a full orbit) over Kerbin. Cannot substitute for the World Traveler Award or the Verne Award. Verne Award - can circumnavigate all of Kerbin without stopping to refuel. Has to stay within the atmosphere at all times. Electric planes that can do this can qualify, but it is recommended that you fly west with the sun at a velocity of approximately 175 m/s. World Traveler Award - has a range of between 1,885 and 3,770 km without stopping to refuel. Has to stay within the atmosphere at all times. If your craft can fly that far, it can go anywhere on Kerbin. If your craft can do a full circumnavigation around Kerbin, then it qualifies for the Verne Award instead. Diamandis Division - for spaceplanes and other SSTOs. Has to do a full orbit around Kerbin to qualify, and plans must be in place to return it to Kerbin. Armstrong Award - can land on the Mun before returning to Kerbin. If it can do that, then it can certainly do the same thing on Minmus. Will add the Apollo Commendation if it can do that without having to refuel itself in the middle. Which will then be substituted for the Double Commendation if it can land on the Mun AND Minmus before returning - AND without refueling before leaving the Mun (which means refueling on or around Minmus okay). Which will then be substituted for the Twin Gods Commendation if it can do all that without refueling at any point. Dirtblood Award - can get itself to Duna before returning to Kerbin. Refueling stops in the middle allowed. Will add the Watney Commendation if it does not need to refuel itself at any point. Jupiter Award - flying lab can do the Jool-5 before returning to Kerbin. Yes, that means that your kerbals have to walk on the surface of Tylo. Refueling stops in the middle allowed. Will add the Totally Insane Commendation if it does not need to refuel itself at any point. Lazybird Award - build a spaceplane to carry your lab-equipped spaceplane. For a concept demonstration, check this out. New Home Award - can get itself to Laythe and back. Refueling stops in the middle allowed. Will be substituted for the Jool-5 Award if the craft is capable of completing its namesake challenge. Will add the Iceberger Commendation if it does not need to refuel itself at any point in its mission. Snowball Award - can get itself to Eeloo before returning to Kerbin. If it can do that, it can certainly do Dres. Refueling stops in the middle allowed. Will add Halley's Commendation if it does not need to refuel itself at any point in its mission. Labazon Division - for planes, landers, or other landing-capable flying laboratories that are not designed to return to Kerbin. Detachable delivery rockets allowed. Awards listed in order of proximity to Kerbol as opposed to alphabetically. Hermes Award - for craft that will stay at Moho. Aphrodite Award - for craft that will stay on Eve. Will add the Scorcher Commendation if it can circumnavigate Eve on one tank of gas OR one full charge of batteries (day or night). Will add the Icarus Commendation if the craft can do a suborbital trajectory around Eve before landing safely in one piece. With how large Eve is and how thick its atmosphere is, it does not seem possible to do a full orbit and land safely in one piece. You're welcome to prove me wrong, though. Mun Hopper Award - for craft that will stay on the Mun or Minmus. Will add the Aldrin Commendation for craft that are designed to work on both moons, as in they are intended for inter-moon travel. Ares Award - for craft that will stay on Duna. Will add the Braun Commendation if the craft can do a suborbital trajectory around Duna before landing safely in one piece. Which will then be substituted for the Paperclip Commendation if it can do a full orbit around Duna before re-entering and landing safely in one piece. Which will then be substituted for the Whole Enchilada Commendation if it can operate in Duna's atmosphere and at least land on Ike before going back. Anaerobic Award - for craft that will stay on one of the following celestial bodies: Dres Pol Bop Vall Eeloo Harland Award - for craft that will stay within Laythe's atmosphere. Will add the Olympic Commendation if it can circumnavigate Laythe on one tank of gas OR one full charge of batteries (day or night). Will add the Frederick Fleet Commendation if the craft can do a suborbital trajectory around Laythe before landing safely in one piece. Which will then be substituted for the Starline Commendation if it can do a full orbit around Laythe before re-entering and landing safely in one piece. Dead Kerbin Award - for craft that can get on and off Tylo safely. Heisenberg Division - specifically for balloons, blimps, zeppelins, et cetera. Detachable delivery rockets allowed for entries that leave Kerbin's SOI. Cluster Bomb Award - for Eve entries. Graf Zeppelin Award - for Duna entries. Resurgence Award - for entries that do not leave Kerbin. Skytanic Award - for Laythe entries. Man, that was a long list. Now that it's out of the way, I eagerly await what you all come up with. The spoiler below shows my entry, which qualifies for the Homesick Division: Old Tyme Award, the Fliegendlabor. WALL OF FAME @Mars-Bound Hokie (ORIGINAL POST) Homesick Division: Olde Tyme Award with the Fliegendlabor Homesick Division: World Traveler Award with the Surveyor

Interkosmos - Science Parts for KSP - Interkosmos includes 6 Science parts inspired by real experiment : Photopolarimeter, Photometer, Hydrometer, IR Spectrometer, GasAnalyzer, Crystallisation Facility The Crystallisation Facility is also a Crystals Generator, with electricity and time the part could produce 50 Crystals Unit (new resource). When you recover the part full of crystals, you win 5000 Really helpful for career! Download: Spacedock / Github Development considered completed, this mod will not receive new parts. Licence : Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) Changelog : Graphic Patch made by @DiscoSlelge Tweakscale Compatibility patch made by @hraban Translations : English / French

MK3 Science provides MK3 Mobile Processing Lab MPL-LG-8, Dependencies Kerbal Expeditionary Group (included in download) Conflicts None Credit to Squad for exterior models Sci-Fi Shipyards-StarVision and Boogaman for Enterprise Pictures MK3 Science mod KSP Changelog V1.1 Uploaded the correct file that Removed Cockpit and tester parts. Changed interior to Enterprise. Changed crew capacity to 8 Added a Command Module, low output RTG, Antenna, and resources. Adjusted part price Added Kerbal Expeditionary Group dependency included in download Download here

I used to post on this forum in 2014, back when I was 13, and things have changed a lot since then. What never changed, though, was my love for KSP. And I decided the best way to show my love for KSP and make a return to the forums at the same time is with a mission report, as I've always loved those. A video game is about gameplay anyway, is it not? The mission in question I'm posting about is a Science Mode mission. It was a well-planned and fruitful fly-by of Minmus, that of which rewarded me with a lot of science points. Everything from ascent to landing was nominal, and I had enough delta-v thanks to using drop tanks (which I would highly recommend if you're looking for ways to get more delta-v) that, by the time I had reached a circular-ish (as in not perfectly circular) low orbit around it, I was eager to attempt to make a landing, but knew that a lack of landing legs might have spelt out stranding Jeb on Minmus, so I decided not to do that. The Experiment Storage Unit's ability to store science stuff truly came in handy on this mission, because, without it, I wouldn't have been able to store multiple experiments how you can't if you don't have it. That's how I was able to store eight experiments instead of the lower amount it would have been restricted to. The placement of the ESU indeed made the final re-entry stage taller, but it had no noticeable negative effects, as I had postulated that it wouldn't. As far as water landings go, I actually landed quite close to shore, with an impressive amount of science points to boot. Talk about a successful mission, eh? 203.1! That is no joke compared to the much more modest numbers that I used to get. In fact, the type of stuff that I can do now is what would make the KSP poster me from something like ten years ago as of writing this very impressed about it. It's moments like that which remind me why I fell in love with this game in the first place. As Jeb safely touched down near the shores of Kerbin, I couldn't help but feel a profound sense of accomplishment. The science points gathered were impressive, marking a significant leap forward in my pictured Science Mode career within KSP. Reflecting on the mission in retrospect now as I wrote this post, I can't help but marvel at the advancements in my gameplay skills since my early days of basic missions done on pirated copies of Kerbal Space Program. This time, every decision felt deliberate and informed, from the choice of using drop tanks for extended Delta-v to the careful management of scientific data with the Experiment Storage Unit. From the KSC launchpad, Jeb's spacecraft soared into the Kerbin sky, its design meticulously plotted to optimize delta-V and fuel usage, hence the drop tanks. And with the precision of a seasoned veteran Kerbonaut, Jeb soared gracefully towards Minmus in his spacecraft, fueled by the aforementioned drop tanks. The decision not to risk a landing without proper equipment showcased Jeb's commitment to safety and mission success, a decision that later proved wise as he navigated doing science work above the icy landscape of Minmus from a cautious yet cozily close orbit instead without a hitch, with more than enough delta-V and fuel to spare. The Experiment Storage Unit, smartly integrated into the capsule design, stored a treasure trove of scientific data from multiple experiments worthy of earning nods of approval from the Kerbals at the KSC back home. Especially from the scientist Kerbals over at the Research & Development Facility. Oh, and let me tell you about the return burn from Minmus! Funny thing that. Jeb's was cruising back towards Kerbin, and everything seemed on track, right? Well, the maneuver that was done for that had put me in a unique position that I was not expecting it to — a slingshot course from Kerbin to the Mun and back! Now... normally, you'd think, "Hey, free Mun fly-by, cool!" But, nope... not this time — I had over 100 points of science on board from that epic Minmus trip. And I was not about to risk losing all of that. So, instead, I slammed the brakes, metaphorically-speaking, using a retrograde burn and rerouted into a smooth re-entry trajectory instead. Sure, it would've been awesome to swing by the Mun and back, but science is science, folks. And when you've got that much valuable data packed into your capsule, you play it safe. Although Jeb may have missed out on a Mun adventure, it was ultimately way more worth having those science points safely tucked away than to risk it all. KSP's all about calculated risks, and this time, caution was definitely the name of the game. Jeb might be a daredevil in space, but I feel like even he knows when it's time to play it safe for the sake of scientific progress. Anyway... that's all. End of mission report story. If you're reading this, I want to thank you for sharing in my excitement and passion for Kerbal Space Program. My thoughts that the Kerbal Space Program community is truly something special have remained unchanged, and I'm glad that a lot of you folks are still here. I look forward being part of the KSP1 community again, as an adult with advanced knowhow now, as well as sharing more adventures with you like this all soon. I'm glad to be back, and more than curious to hear what all of you here at the forums have to say — especially after not having made a forum post before this in so long. And, plus, my fingers have started wanting to type words about the serious business that is putting cute little green creatures into space more than ever. Here's to the many more missions, discoveries, and discussions ahead. Fly safe, aim high, and may your orbits be ever stable! Cheers, Qwotty

Made with permission from @Daishi, one of the creators of the Universal Storage 2 mod and aimed at compatibility with @Angel-125's Wild Blue Industries suite of mods and adding value to undersea exploration and microsat design. Notable features include: Racks have height variants (1, 2 or 4 rows). The 2.5m and Buffalo 2 racks contain WBI science processors. Integrated probe body wedges which include solar panel, battery, RCS and are cargo bays or inventory parts. Experiment wedges are designed to require time and resources when started and only work when submerged. One or more experiments are concerned with ocean life and won't function on planets that are not whitelisted. As they may require several in-game days, submarine vessels have more reason to wait and hang around. Milli-kit boxes fit the cargo bay wedges or will precisely fill the solar inventory wedges. The boxes' features can be installed into the host part (primarily the solar inventory wedge) via the WIP Rackmount mod. High-volume (relatively, without the nerf of stock balancing) battery wedges can hold generous amounts of ElectricCharge. Known Issues Some wedge experiments are intended to have defined negative (undersea) altitude ranges. This feature does not appear to function. The affected experiments are the Bathymetry series and Goo Evolution series. Indicator Lights integration might not work properly on the Milli-kit experiments. Indicator Lights integration does not work on the experiment wedges. They do not use stock modules. Dependencies B9 Part Switch Wild Blue Tools Wild Blue Core Recommends RackMount (WIP, not on CKAN) Buffalo 2 Indicator Lights Supports/Suggests FreeIVA and Connected Living Spaces (the racks that have hatches are crew passable) LICENSE :: CC-BY-NC-ND DOWNLOAD :: GitHub :: SpaceDock

Kuriosity Science Kurious events that inspire our kerbals to complete some science! Kuriosity Science on SpaceDock Also available on CKAN! https://github.com/Cadestronaut/KuriosityScience Balance and other feedback most welcome! Features Generate completed science experiments from your kerbals whilst they're in flight Each kerbal in flight is running a Kuriosity Experiment whenever possible These experiments take a variable amount of time, depending on the specific experiment and how 'rich' (i.e. the science point multiplier) the particular location of the kerbal is Each experiment has it's own conditions, and is typically not specific to a biome/location/situation - so most can only be completed once per kerbal Different parts can support (or prioritize the running of) different experiments, and can also impact the rate at which experiments run - for example kerbals in a lab run experiments faster than those in a command pod Ability to customize the rate at which experiments run, and the amount of science returned Design goals Aiming to give some more reasons to keep kerbals in space for prolonged periods, in a variety of different situations and craft Ideally intended to work in conjunction with a life-support mod (for example the excellent **KLSS**) Increasing the options for gathering early-game science, whilst not being OP in a more mature game Extendable via **Patch Manager** patches to define new experiments and attach them to parts Planned Features UI to review experiments that each kerbal is running or has completed Updated localization Changelog: About modding KSP2 This has been my first experience modding a game, having been a fan of KSP & KSP2 since the early days. I had read a lot about some of the perceived challenges and barriers to modding KSP2 that some of the KSP community had expressed, and was curious to see for myself. Although the modding scene here is small, it's been able to (within ~15 hours) guide me to the point of creating the first version of this mod, by solely using the SpaceWarp wiki, Patch Manager wiki, lurking in the KSP2 Modding Society Discord, and looking through some of the excellent examples of mods that have already been created. I'd like to call out a few of the modders whose work here has inspired and taught me, even if they don't know it... Cheese3660, Falki, Leonardfactory, Munix, Schlosrat, Safarte ...and many others Licence: MIT

This is a probe expansion pack inspired by real missions from the mid-1960s to now. Including probe cores, engines, solar panels, and new science parts! Parts are inspired by (Including some replicas of) Voyager, Pioneer 10, Venera, Cassini, Mariner, Kepler, New Horizons, Juno, And more! Current working on the Viking Mars lander. IMGUR ALBUM To prevent issues, please remove any previous versions of the mod before updating CURRENT Branch - Github Repo Please be sure to download the latest BETA branch repo for best compatibility. See changelog for a list of recent changes Need Support? Please read the FAQ Requires: Firespitter or B9, DMagic ScienceAnimate and ModuleManager Older Beta v0.16.1 Download: Mod configs included: Remote Tech by @rakol Tweakscale by @Jso SCANsat by @akron Sample Crafts v0.3 for BETA v0.16.1: (Two Barquetta Communication Satellites, Barquetta-Odyssey, Deep Space 1, Landvermesser, Mariner, Quetzal, Tatsujin, Tatsujin-Express, Torekka, Vorona, Vorona-SAR, Meridiani-Draco, Explorer Telescope) Nerva HT Engine 1.0 Released! Link to release thread or download below: Spacedock Dropbox Real Plume config by @VenomousRequiem. Module Manager required for RealPlume configs. License: CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 Please let me know if you release anything based on my work. I'd love to check it out! Want to support the mod? Check out below, and thank you! Paypal

I’ve seen a lot of talks about the science gathering in the For Science update. From what I can see, the discourse comes mostly from the science gathering feeling less personal than it did in KSP1. This of course is from the fact that now we only have to press one button and then all the science is done at once without us having to look at each part and feel like we are the ones doing the science and not just a robot that knows how to do this all. Many have suggested that we just go back to the way it was done in KSP1 where you have to select each individual science part to do the science. I however, feel like that is not the solution to this problem because there was obvious frustration with that system as well, and it would be foolish to say it is not convenient to have the ability to do science so simply. I would like to propose a solution to the science collection debate. I would suggest that the science button on the left side of the screen does not instantly do all of the science experiments available, but instead opens a special menu (maybe combined with the science results menu) that would have all of the science modules sorted with buttons to do each experiment. Kind of a special parts menu where you get to feel like you are the one in control. It keeps the simplicity and convenience of not having to find each and every part but also lets you feel the personal connection to the Kerbals doing the experiment. I think this change would achieve all that the audience is wanting from the gameplay of taking science while also improving on KSP1’s method. I hope I was able to explain that well, I am not good at UI design so I can’t make any photos to explain.

Science gathering in KSP1 has always felt a bit pointless to me: It was just about clicking your thermometer or whatever in the right place and left you with nothing but a funny text and some points. But you don't really get any new insights: You can see any planet/moon and its properties in the tracking station. I think that just by hiding some information from the player one could make science a much more meaningful part of the game: For example, the "physical characteristics" tab in the tracking station could be filled only after according measurements. Also, what if celestial bodies were blurred out in map view and the tracking center, as if you would see them through a telescope on Kerbin? And only became detailed once you got a spaceship into their SOI? Things like that would add a component of discovery that would make science/career mode so much more exciting!

We earnt 16k profit from one launch in Rocket Scientist difficulty using a ridiculous zero tech rocket that took us to Dres and back. Kerbal leg power was also essential for this great success.

Hello, where in files i can edit for how long does the experiments take to complete? For example in current state Starlab and WSLR for radiation test are unusable since they are being affected by biome nad when that changes, experiment stops but wont resume when same biome appiers again. Plus Only way to start new biome test, is the original need to be erased, so u are in cycle of loosing bioms, restarting and all over agein loop. Pretty much imposible to make any science with Star lab or WSLR other than water/oceans/seas. So i would like to pretty much edit time duration for a 1sec to collect as much science as possible. Thanks for hlep.

*disclaimer*: this is going to be a very long post concerning the science gameplay, my experience of it and the things that I think would make it even better. I might cover subjects already talked about in other topics, but everything being somewhat tied together, I feel the need to draw the big picture of what science could become. Before the main piece, let me say that "For Science!" was really what I was waiting for (in terms of features, progression, challenge and fixes / improvements) before going back to the game after early access release. The team did a amazing job and made KSP fun again for me despite the remaining issues and all the work still needed. So much so, that I've officially beaten my KSP1 playtime and gone way further into the game! A - Science should be more educative I feel there is a missed opportunity here. A big part of KSP is learning interesting stuff and getting a grasp of how things really work (in a delicate balance between a realistic enough simulation so that you get the concepts but fun enough that it doesn't feel like a real rocket scientist job nor qualify you for it ). For context, in KSP1, I personally hated the mystery goo because it felt to me like the "unrealistic" / "sci-fi" experiment. So, while I get the idea that having a science part for each kind of sensors (thermometer, barometer, anemometer, ...) might be too much, I would really like to have some "real" (in the game world context) data show up. So yeah... you can tell me the "Science Junior" is a bundled weather station that does several type of experiments at once and give me a fun and yet interesting text reports attached to the overall experiment, but please: Give me real sensors and instruments (seismograph, spectrograph, radars, lidars, ...) and give me the numbers / data that goes with them because I would love to learn the range of temperature on the Mun, how big the earthquakes are on Pols on the Richter Scale, or how hard the wind blows on Eve... or Jool! Make me learn what kind of other interesting experiments and data real world scientists are after! B - Science could be more immersive I think it would be more immersive, more interesting and more challenging if science was better tied to gameplay in addition to being a currency. Let's say at the beginning of the game we have only sparse and imprecise data on the planets and moons (less than we have now in the tracking station) : First we could launch and run the first experiments in Kerbin low orbit and we would learn the Kerbin inclination (about that... it would be nice to able to see the inclination of planets in the map with a line going through the planet, the equator line, and our current angle relative to one of them), then do the same in high Kerbin orbit and learn if a Geostationary orbit is possible and what the Altitude and Speed needed are, and those informations would be permanently added to the map (or to "The Science Diary", see below). A bit latter down the line and I want to go to Eve. Now, I could go blind, or I could send a probe with the proper experiments to learn what the temperature and pressure are to select the most appropriate parts for my next mission, and to see if my Kerbals would survive the trip. Time to go to Jool? Maybe running that radioactivity experiment would be wise before sending that big ship (if we had environmental hazards for sensitive electronic or needed to shield Kerbals from high levels or radiations *wink wink*). Wanna go on Eeloo? Oh, did we forgot to tell you? We only have a rough estimate of it's gravity, it's in the range [0.05-0.2], maybe you should send a probe with an accelerometer to measure it before trying to land Kerbals on it! This kind of mechanics would have the added bonus to bring the opportunity for more missions both to guide the player in what experiments serve what purpose and also in its overall exploration of space. C - I need the "Keri Diary of Science"! Ok, all those experiments are greats! But there is a lot of different types, lots of biomes and lot of bodies (the astrophysical kind, not the Kerbal kind... although... ). I'm tier 3 and I'm starting to get lost on what I did and what I didn't do. Doing a mission in KSP takes time, and there is a lot you can do, so doing a mission to realize half way through it that you've already done that experiment in that very place is a real bummer (and one reason to get bored out of the game). So, what we need is a journal to track our progress, plan our missions and re-read those reports we forgot to read because we where so happy and eager to clic on that "send" button! It could be a panel that can be deployed in the tracking station when checking a body characteristics. It would contain a section for each kind of "place" (high orbit, low orbit, atmosphere, surface, undewater), an entry for each kind of biomes, and sub-entries for each type of experiments. Some of them would be grayed out or invisible so we don't get any spoiler beyond the obvious ones (high and low orbit would always be presents, atmosphere would be visible for the obvious one like Duna or Eve, experiments would not be visible until you've unlocked the corresponding parts, biomes would not be visible until you have encountered / entered them once). They could also contain a picture (so you know how to visually identify the biome once you've unlocked it). And of course, once the experiment has been collected back to KSC, it would display the report/results. It would also have the added benefit to motivate the completionists into even more missions and game time \o/ (though I suspect the hardcore ones are already tracking all that by hand ). And it would do so, even if the science points where not useful anymore to their progression because everything is unlocked. It would be also nice to have the ability to map the biomes like what the "Orbital Survey" mod do (and maybe map other things like "illumination" to find those places in semi-permanent shadow or light for our future colonies, now that we have axis tilt!). Also, surface waypoints/markers please! *pleading* D - Various things in unspecific order: I think the "robotic arm sample" and the "Kerbal sample" shouldn't have the same value to have an incentive to send Kerbals (think a vial of dust vs a bag full of rocks). Overall I haven't really felt the need to send any Kerbal in space over robotic missions (aside from when a mission asked me too and between tier 3 and 4 with the 1st version of orbital lab) . I'm sure some will make the argument that it is realistic, but I feel like sending Kerbals in dangerous situation is part of the fun, and the approach "robotic" first as pathfinders and "manned" next as more thorough exploration feels better. Now, I suspect this might be addressed with colonies and then later with resources. In the same spirit, I think there shouldn't always be a robotic version of the experiments (like the diving bell), or there should be a big tradeoff (like with the robotic version of the orbital lab) either in resources (electricity, number of science points, ...) or weight or volume (maybe the automated version should sometimes be bigger). Also, the robotic arm needs to be smarter (or configurable) in the way it can deploys to do the sampling so we can give him vertical orientation for example. The orbital science lab should at the very least have a separate "deploy" option, so it can stay deployed and resume experiment immediately when triggered. Ideally, I think the orbital science lab (especially the habited one) should be able to buffer more than one experiment at a time and automatically resume progress when switching biomes. Otherwise I don't see how you could ever do the Kerbin's "beach biome" for example. I get the idea to unlock science parts progressively (incentive to make more missions instead of only one big "mother of all experiments") and to scale science points given by experiments according to difficulty/reachability. But the tier of first unlock should also play a role in the points given. Having 16 points for the radioactivity experiment on Kerbin when at that point in the tree any unlock is in the 1.5k range feels utterly useless. At least something in the 80-160 range would make you feel like it would help you gather the points your are missing for the next unlock. Kerbol (the star, not the sytem) needs some love guys! I was really disappointed to have my cheap (can't get too close without radiators *wink wink*) "Parker Solar Probe" not being able to gather any science, even in low orbit, with the "Science Junior". Also, I'll say it there: with it's static surface and lack of solar filaments, Kerbol is visually... underwhelming, compared to what many other games can achieve regarding stars. Having the atmospheric science part makes me hope for either Inflatables Parts (for balloons and airships) and Rotors/Propellers (like "Ingenuity" on Mars). I like the automatic transfert / cloning of science experiments & samples, but I personally fix the limit at "while I can imagine the manned capsule having inside storage, those probe core sure does feel like they have internal memory for reports but doesn't feel like they have a container for the physical samples". Thus I would advocate for "Sample Container" Part that would be needed unless you have a capsule / cockpit. Also, regarding transfert. I know it happens through port docking, but let's say I'm flying a tiny drone in Duna atmosphere to gather the atmospheric samples, then flying it back near my return rocket with Bob waiting there. I could "eject" the probe core and have it being "parachuted" down near Bob (instead of having to dock a mini airplane onto a lander which is... much harder). I didn't see any option that would allow Bob to retrieve the experiments from the probe on the ground. Did I miss something ? E - Prospective: Science complexity & balance Ok... this is probably going to be the more controversial subject, and probably something that should only come in the distant future or in a mod (if ever). And don't forget that many of the arguments (around balancing some aspects of the game) that I will make here, might be addressed through colonies and resource gathering further down the line. I think it would be interesting to add complexity that could be tied to specific Parts / Experiments in the mid to late game in terms of experiment timeframes and coverages. In term of timeframe we could have: Short term experiments like what we have right now, Surveys like monitoring temperatures over a full day / night cycle or a full orbital revolution. It would bring specific challenges like being able to power something up for a full Mun day/night cycle or having to keep a permanent CommNet connection with Eeloo for nearly 20 years (assuming survey reports are too big to be stored in the vehicle and need to be streamed back continuously). In term of coverage we could have: Single "on the spot" sample like what we have right now Multiple outspread samples with minimal distance between them like putting 3 seismograph running at the same time in the same biome with a minimal separation distance of say 100km to do some kind of triangulation or having to collect 10 samples in a concentric circle around your first one in order to have reliable data and validate the experiment. It would incite players to be creative with rovers or efficient lander designs you can send in batches, etc... Full (or close to it) surface mapping of bodies or areas (ex: 80% of a specific biome) like a lidar survey that would require players to have a satellite in polar orbit or a specific orbit like the equatorial ridge of Dres. Of course you could match timeframes and coverages for even more challenges! That's all folks! If you read this, thank you very much for taking the time, you are one brave soul ! TL:DR : Science is great but could be even better! More educative / instructive, better tied to gameplay and engineering challenges, with proper tracking and planning, and finally maybe a bit more challenging.

I understand the team desire to cut down on single use science experiments but I feel like this has left the amount of experiments feeling rather barren. So I've made a small bundle of ideas for different experiments that could be done, keeping in mind the design goal of making all the experiments more involved than simple button presses. Telescopes! Artificial gravity wheels! Plane science! I hope you enjoyed reading my ramblings after having delved into the current For science! update. Thus far I'm halfway through tier two in a max difficulty ramp up save file (200% reentry heating, -50% science), and this came as a response to feeling like the current science system, while a good base, is rather lacking. I hope these are some fun ideas for you all to chew on! Have a lovely morning, evening, or night! ^w^ ~Sammy

I've got about 40 hours into 0.2.0.0 which is/isn't a lot depending on how you play etc. I've driven across Duna in rovers from the South Pole to the North pole starting with 0.1.0.0 (that was a horrible time) and since release I've gone to Duna and "explored." I absolutely love Science Mode and felt it was severely lacking in KSP1. Here's a few ideas I've got for the devs and community to consider. Below is a series of images from my most recent Duna mission that is still ongoing. I'm using it as it is what inspired me to write this feedback. First a short story from my journey to Duna. I had 319 dv to get a capture with Duna. I had an encounter setup to 34km as I was hoping this would work. I I had my little engine left with 154 dv and a dream. Hoping I wouldn't burn up in atmo. The Kraken was kind! Successfully captured by Duna and on the way to the target! I was short of the target. But all things considered, I was fortunate to be on the surface of Duna and not orbitting Kerbol. The moment of truth! Would my contraption work? Would my rover blow up? Would it land properly? Success! The landing pad worked and the jerry rigging I did with decouplers and two gear wheels worked to get the rover off the landing pad! That is when the pain set in. I had the exhilarating experience of landing on Duna by the skin of my teeth. I was nervous and thankful to be on the surface of Duna. Now I was set to explore. I've driven a lot on Duna (from South Pole to the North Pole) so I was confident in traversing Duna. I didn't get the exhilarating experience while driving on Duna. It felt very tedious yet again to be driving on Duna. I had already been to the destination I was headed in previous versions. What was the point of doing the same thing over, but now it has a science reward? It felt dissatisfying. I felt that science had to be better. I want that wonder and curiosity of I don't know what I could find around the next meteor crater feeling. Below you'll see the route I took with the time it took me. One hour and 29 minutes driving on the surface of Duna "exploring." The Challenge: How do we Explore? What are exploring for? Why are we even exploring? What is the question that the science we're gathering trying to answer? Disclaimer: SOME of these may already be in the works and I may not be aware that things are being worked on or they are things that won't be added. Please add to this and address those issues if something I bring up is something that will be added/never will be added etc. Let's start with the things that need to improve that are currently in the game as they relate to exploration. Exploration in its current state is missions being given out by the Mission Control. They're pre-determined locations that the dev's have that reward science points. There's apparently a few "hidden" locations scattered across the Kerbol system. With nothing in game to point players in the direction of these "hidden" locations, and no scientific tools at our disposal to scan areas, it becomes quite tedious and time consuming combing the surface of Mun or Duna for something special. The problem: there's nothing between point A and point B 1. What is the point of "Exploration" if we never discover things along the way to the big discoveries? 2. Why collect samples with probes when there's no way to gather the samples and return them other than having the probe return to Kerbin? 3. Kerbonauts have no specialization anymore. There's no pilot, engineer, or scientist. It's pointless picking a crew to do a mission. Ideas/Solutions: 1. Modify the Exploration Missions (the ones focused on going to a specific spot on a planet/moon) build upon each other, like clues and the players solve the mystery. 2. Add small scientific discoveries and a RNG of bonus science. For example, on Duna you're driving a rover and you collect a sample. Have the odds of the sample collected be worth more science points. 3. 2% Argon in the atmosphere should mean I find trace amounts of argon somewhere and I'm able to collect it with the correct scientific tool. 4. Add a science module that can be used to scan area's on planets for anything interesting. Kerbal it up and make it not 100% reliable. It may lead to something, and it may lead to a rock. 5. If players are going to drive across planets in rovers, have things to do while you're driving on the planet. I'm supposed to be exploring Duna and searching for evidence of life or why there's monuments and attempting to learn more science. But all I do is drive on a planet, where no dust accumulates on my solar panels, my rover likes to flip randomly, and every rock I see I can't drill into. 6. Specialize the Kerbonauts again. Let scientists be able to collect samples from the science jr's again and reset them. That way you can get a probe to orbit Mun/Minmus and on a follow up mission you can have your crew dock with that probe to collect the science it gathered. 7. Science should be the core mechanic that drives resource gathering. 8. Add handheld scientific experiments for Kerbonauts to conduct on the surface of planets/moons I want to feel like I can discover anything on the surface of any moon/planet that I'm on. Right now, I feel like other than a few landmarks, there is no exploration. It's a delicate balance. Getting science points shouldn't just be "hey it unlocks this part in the tech tree, that's the whole purpose of science points. You get the science, and you get parts!" Science points should also be more dynamic. "Events" happen on planets and if you can observe it you get more science for it. Maybe later on you add a dust storm on Duna that can be observed with atmospheric science. That is large scale and requires a lot of dev time. On a smaller scale, players should have procedurally generated science nodes/resources that spawn when they land on a surface of the Mun. For example, if player lands on Mun in X Mare, within 1000m of the players landing zone, there is up to x amount of special science to be found. Things that aren't tied to the landmarks and easter eggs. Just things that exist specific to these requirements: 1. The Planet/Moon 2. The Biome it's in Please feel free to add to the solutions and bring up any problems you see as well.

Current Research Inventory shows a list of all the experiments and samples you've run over the course of your mission. New reports show at the bottom of the list. My suggestion is that the order of these is reversed so the newest Observation/Data/Sample shows first on the list while the oldest shows last. The reason for this is that I've already found myself in the situation where I couldn't remember exactly which experiment I had run last, and having to scroll down the list is a bit confusing, while having the new reports show first in the list would make things much simpler and smoother in my opinion.

PLEASE READ THIS POST FOR INFORMATION ON THE FUTURE OF THE MOD SEP v2.7.1 This is a continuation of the mod originally created by @AlbertKermin, and now co-authored by him, myself, and @DMagic. I'm merely starting a new thread so that I (as a more active user) can maintain the thread as needed. SEP now runs on a custom science plugin, allowing much more complex science over time. (See the next post for more images!) Changelog: Mod Support: This mod has custom science definitions for CaptRobau's wonderful Outer Planets Mod. This mod has custom science definitions for KillAshley's New Horizons Pack. @Nils277 has made a Central Station wedge for use with his Kerbal Planetary Base Systems mod. Run a SEP off your ground base! RemoteTech compatible (requires Module Manager) AntennaRange compatible (requires Module Manager) Dependencies: KospY + IgorZ's wonderful Kerbal Inventory System/Kerbal Attachment System. Credits: AlbertKermin, for creating the original MSEP mod, helping create the original SEP mod, and contributing sciencedefs for the current iteration. CobaltWolf, for creating the new models and parts used in the mod. DMagic for creating the new plugin on which the science system runs. KospY, for the Kerbal Attachment System mod without which my mod could not exist. Vaga, who created the RemoteTech compatibility patch. Kerbas_ad_astra, who created the AntennaRange patch. Beale, whose solar panel texture we used (with permission). Enceos, for his amazing help with converting the original mod to use KIS. JefferyCor, for advice on repairing one of this mod's more troublesome bugs. Dunrana for helping write the Science definitions, testing, and generally getting me back to work on the mod. Shameless plug: Need a lander to carry your SEP down to the surface? Like a fine wine, SEP pairs excellently with Bluedog Design Bureau - which includes a stockalike version of the LEM lander! License: This work is presented under a Simplified BSD license. Art assets used in Surface Experiment Pack were made by Matthew (CobaltWolf) Mlodzienski and are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. All credit for the wonderful new textures/models/artwork goes to CobaltWolf, who retains the copyright to his work. All source files for the mod, including uncompiled textures and models, are available upon request. We back boys!

I did not really see or hear anything about a KerbNet mechanism which would allow real-time and on-rails scanning of CB surfaces. Also is there any information about telescopes and if the Exploration mode will start with undiscovered celestial bodies in the Kerbol system? Nothing about the buoyancy system? Do we have any clarification if probe exploration before manned has been set as a priority? What else did you expect to be included in the For Science! update and was not announced or mentioned?

What are your expectations for the time-span until the heat, buoyancy features, new CBT-terrain and Science milestone are added to the game?

[Licensed with Mozilla Public License 2.0, more information in the License.md file] KerbalFunds: You just need that small amount of Funds/Science for upgrading/building/researching? You can get it easily now, using KerbalFunds! In the uploaded version, you can press L at the KSC to get the menu and press submit to close it. This video isn't the current version, the uploaded one can also add science points. Here is the spacedock page: https://spacedock.info/mod/3326/KerbalFunds Source code repository on GitHub: https://github.com/jdopss/KerbalFunds Changelog: 0.1: initial release 0.2: taskbar support button added, licensing

KERN - Kerbal Council for Nuclear Research KERN is a mod that will implement particle physics into the game as a way to gather rare resources like anti-matter. There will be three models of a particle accelerator. Small, Large, and XL versions all unlocked via a tech tree. The components will only work with the correct size (can't combine an XL with a S). To keep sizes down, each model is going to contain multiple components organized in a way that allows them to be pieced together to create a functional particle accelerator. The player will be able to add any amount of components together as long as they're the correct size. Key components will be the beam generator and collector. The Waveguides will be attachable to each other. The more you attach, the longer your particle accelerator will be. For practical purposes, you won't need a ridiculously long particle accelerator to harvest anti-matter. For fun, maybe you wrap kerbin in a particle accelerator? Low Tech - Small (Present) - Linacs Med Tech - Large (Near Future) - Cyclotrons High Tech - XL (Far future) - Synchrotrons As Science mode is introduced I'll be working on a long journey of creating a particle accelerator for KSP 2. The plan is for it to be used on Kerbin to create anti-matter (or some rare fuel type). This is my first big project and first I want to start with the modelling process. // Links: Github: https://github.com/cvusmo/KERN Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@cvusmo Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/cvusmo Twitter: @cvusmo //DEVBLOG INFO: The DEVBLOGS will be updated periodically. I'll upload a DEVBLOG on a Thursday/Friday as I reach certain milestones. DEVBLOGS will appear in numerical order starting with DEVBLOG #1. Links will be provided with a detailed description on what the linked video covers. This is to keep the size of the thread down. The main DEVBLOG will be visible as a full video. //Devblog #1: I find it amazing how rockets are fueled. The cryogenic fuels are fascinating to me. With particle accelerators, they use Liquid Hydrogen to maintain temperatures around -253 C / -423 F. That's really cold. As I'm developing the particle physics mod I'm noticing little QoL's I want to add to the game. I'm a huge fan of resource management in games. As such, I'll be looking forward to modifying the resources when they get added to the game. For now, adding simple VFX to get the effect of cooling. The idea is that when the player interacts with the particle accelerator they can click an option to "cool accelerator" and it would execute the cooling effects and then add the liquid hydrogen to the component. This would then help keep the particle accelerator operating at the correct temperature as that will be a key element to making this work without exploding. Day 1 - Blender Design Day 2 - Conceptual Design (Animation/Texture) //Devblog #2: Friday I'll be posting DEVBLOG #2. Here's a sneak peak of the progress I've made this week. //Devblog #3: Now that summer is coming to a close, and I'm back from holiday it's time to get back to posting regular content! I'm really enjoying making mods and a lot of the content I'll be making will be covering that in the Devblog series. It takes a lot of my time to make these mods (which I enjoy doing). I'm looking forward to brainstorming fun ideas to do in KSP2. I need to get the colony established on Duna for starters. 1. Devblog bi-weekly series covering all mods I'm working on 2. Weekly videos released between Fri-Sun covering KSP2 gameplay 3. Shorts goal of 3-5 a week Here is Devblog #3 in the works in Premiere Pro! In this episode (which comes out Friday July, 28) I'll be going over KERN and FFT. I'll be going behind the scenes to show some of the texture process and what things look like in Unity. THIS will not be a tutorial on how to make a mod. It's just going to show the behind the scenes and it's something the devblog series will continue to do. Hope everyone is having a good Monday!

MIR Space Station (MIR) The Soviet Space Station MIR for Kerbal Space Program. By @Sampa and zer0Kerbal, originally by BobCat, DECQ and Dragon01 adopted with express permission and brought to you by KerbSimpleCo Features by BobCat Modular space station. MIR Core module with living quarters, six docking ports and a detailed IVA. Kvant-1 Astrophysics module with an X-ray experiment and a docking port. FSM space tug for delivering Kvant 1 to the station. Kvant-2 physics module with an airlock. Kristall docking module with two additional docking ports. Spektr power module with 4 solar panels. Priroda Kerbin observation module with a big Travers antenna. Docking Compartment for improving docking clearance. By Blista100, used with permission. Zarya FGB with high fuel load and RCS configured for flying with Unity module attached. Zvezda service module (MIR Core variant) with 4 docking ports. New solar panels and an ISS-style docking port. Preamble by Wikipedia See more