The Elcano Challenge : Ground-based circumnavigation

[Squiggsy]

Hi all, just popping on to say I will be doing an Elcano Challenge once more when the 1.0.5 update comes out, buoyancy will have been updated and I think I might do an equatorial circumnavigation of Kerbin, or go to Laythe to get the full experience.

I had so much fun doing the last one (if you want to see it click the Kerbin Circumnavigator image in my sig), did some of the coolest stuff I've ever done in KSP and the Banzai! was an awesome craft. It's great to come on here and see people are still doing this, crazy brilliant peoples that you are!

(Also Fengist why do you have to go and make such awesome boats and yet ferry's are banned in this challenge? love what you've done with the mods since I've been AWOL)

[Just Jim]

OK, 1.0.5 just came out, and as much as I hate to do this, I think I'm going to have to stop where I am. I really, really want to start a new career with the new contextual contract system, sorry. I will attempt this again when I can in my new game.

[TheCardinal]

OK, 1.0.5 just came out, and as much as I hate to do this, I think I'm going to have to stop where I am. I really, really want to start a new career with the new contextual contract system, sorry. I will attempt this again when I can in my new game.

Sorry to hear that Just Jim, but ... what's stopping you from having a 1.0.5 next to a 1.0.4?

[Just Jim]

Sorry to hear that Just Jim, but ... what's stopping you from having a 1.0.5 next to a 1.0.4?

Actually, this challenge factored heavily into my decision to restart my career.

My current career game is old, since 1.0 came out, and I've been about everywhere I can go. But this challenge made me realize I never really fully explored Kerbin itself, nor the Mun or Minmus before moving onto Eve and Duna.

So I will be starting a new career, but thanks to this challenge opening my eyes, and the addition of buoyancy in 1.0.5, exploring and eventually circumnavigating Kerbin, then the Mun, Minmus, Duna, etc... will all be part of my new, long term game-plan.

[Squiggsy]

Oh wow I didn't expect 1.0.5 so quickly! Setting up an Elcano copy of the game now and seeing what the update has brought us! Excited to get back on an adventure

[damerell]

I could tell a new version of KSP was coming because I'd decided to do something in 1.0.4. In fact, in a series of Kraken-related frustrations, I'm back in 1.0.2. The target this time is Kerbin, by my usual method of ploughing right up the equator.

I have later versions, but this is the first running prototype of the Mk III. It's just a steer to the left and a veer to the right, it's time to Elcano again!

[Squiggsy]

The design phase of the Banzai MkII or whatever I'm going to call it has begun, going to use USI Freight Transport parts, building a Recreation Room in the hanger, IT FLOATS SO BEAUTIFULLY! I love the new buoyancy!

I will be heavily Welding parts to reduce part count, it currently stands at 50, but the time I'm done I want it to be a sub 20 part craft so I can keep scatterer and EVE and make my journey prettier

[SpaceplaneAddict]

In order to complete my Dres Awareness challenge and this, I will circumnavigate Dres by land.

Rover has been constructed, with the help of the UbioZur Welding LTD Continued mod.

[Octa]

How much can i mod the game so the entry is still considered "stock"?

I design my craft with stock parts only, apart from a BTDT-Scanner. The rest of my mods which i would use for this challenge would be

ScanSat: for the BTDT-Scanner and well, i need a map for navigation.

KAS/KIS: Fuel Transfer, iirc, my rover can still be pure stock but can still be refuelled by another craft with a fuel hose (or do i need docking?)

Mechjeb/Pilot Assistant: This is rather tricky. I guess the informational stuff from MJ shouldn't be a real problem. Then we have the autopilot from PA and the rover autopilot. I'd use them to lock heading or speed for some parts of the ride, so KSP does not need 100% of my attention during this challenge.

[SpaceplaneAddict]

I doubt MJ's rover controls or Pilot Assist would de-stock your entry. However, KIS/KAS might also de-stockify your entry.

[TheCardinal]

Scansat and MJ have have been OK'ed for stock. I also use KAS/KIS but i wouldn't call them stock as those allow you to make changes to your verhicle while underway. If you really want to do it with only stock parts, use docking for the transfer of fuel.

[Sanic]

In order to complete my Dres Awareness challenge and this, I will circumnavigate Dres by land.

Rover has been constructed, with the help of the UbioZur Welding LTD Continued mod.

Wait a minute...

You're going to be the first person to officially circumnavigate Dres.

Fengeist doesn't even have a medal for Dres yet.

[Octa]

Scansat and MJ have have been OK'ed for stock. I also use KAS/KIS but i wouldn't call them stock as those allow you to make changes to your verhicle while underway. If you really want to do it with only stock parts, use docking for the transfer of fuel.

Ahhh darn, i totally forgot about that feature of the mod. So it's without KAS/KIS then. Good thing i asked before i started with the design.

[McFarnsworth]

I might give this a shot one of these days. Shouldn't be too hard if I can do most of it on water.

[damerell]

Well, it's time to set off from KSC. And to KSC.

[Azimech]

I only used MJ's rover autopilot but got listed under mods anyway. Oh, and I used kerbpaint.

[Claw]

Fengist,

So, oddly enough. I had totally forgotten I did Dres and never posted it. So this trip is about a month old, but here is the mission report.

If you want to skip to the punchline, here's the album. Sorry it's a bit thin, but there's only so many pictures of black and dark grey terrain one can post.

Javascript is disabled. View full album

Cheers,

~Claw

[Friethjoph]

(ack! acciidental enter - cull the post! not finished with the tour yet!)

Edited November 13, 2015 by Friethjoph
accidental sending...

[Castille7]

Fengist,

So, oddly enough. I had totally forgotten I did Dres and never posted it. So this trip is about a month old, but here is the mission report.

If you want to skip to the punchline, here's the album. Sorry it's a bit thin, but there's only so many pictures of black and dark grey terrain one can post.

http://imgur.com/a/GId4E

Cheers,

~Claw

Congratulations on another long journey completed, I am near completion of my first Elcano Challenge to Circumnavigate Kerbin and I know now all the trials and errors that are involved but misplacing the recovery ship?......lol That was funny, love your humor! Also that is one neat little Rover.

[SpaceplaneAddict]

Fengist,

So, oddly enough. I had totally forgotten I did Dres and never posted it. So this trip is about a month old, but here is the mission report.

If you want to skip to the punchline, here's the album. Sorry it's a bit thin, but there's only so many pictures of black and dark grey terrain one can post.

http://imgur.com/a/GId4E

Cheers,

~Claw

And here I was, planning what I thought was the first Dres circumnavigation.

[Claw]

Also that is one neat little Rover.

Thanks.

And good luck to you! I find that these trips can be quite frustrating at times, but also quite an adventure.

And here I was, planning what I thought was the first Dres circumnavigation.

Ah, sorry. I don't mean to undercut you. Though I will say that Dres was one of the most fun bodies I've done so far. With the one notable exception of the phantom explosions. I have no idea what's up there, but I had to stick to the higher terrain to reduce the problems. Hopefully you won't have the same issues.

Good luck!

Cheers,

~Claw

[nigelvn]

Good job Claw!

in the meanwhile am I still stuck at Eve, I do have to say it takes quite a long time if your rover drives 20 m/s and can't handle physics warp XD, Oh well, have to kill time till my long planned mission for 1.1 anyway.

[[ Jeremy ]]

With 1.0.5 bringing in the new buoyancy model, I thought it was time to re-attempt the challenge:

One downside with the new model is that you can't make fast boats anymore, from ~200m/s to~75m/s between versions, guess there's gonna be more fuel stops I guess, already have a little something for it already.

[Friethjoph]

Fengist!

I started the Journey of the Magellan, a catamaran of 188.6 tons and 36.5 m length, using only one non stock part - the MJ to steer the thing to the coast - and one mod atop - Ship Manifest to transfer fuel from some extra tanks. Those are to replace the flags - as the journy was to be planned 90% seagoing <In the end it turned out to be 99% seagoing>. After 35 minutes all my buoys were ready to use (each one is basically 2 tiny fuel tanks, a docking port junior and a tiny core) - in other words: the 2 huge engines had sucked 616 units from 44 tanks to get them dry and uber floaty. At a count of one hour, I switched off the engines, but the hulk of a boat just didn't want to slow down too much for some time - it took like 1.7 km to fully break, btu then again I didh't drive very fuel efficient and at about 30 to 35 m/s. Back in the Kerbal Space center, the command center checked on the mission status and ran a calculation based upon the distance it had managed and estimated, that they should prepare some fuel transport to the ship, and that it might have trouble at climbing the beach for the short land-trip it had to do to get back to the ocean... On arriving on the other side of the ocean the main fuel tanks were down to 500 units and still no refuling solution had been found and Bill's grabby hands had accidently dropped the electric gears for continental drive somewhere in the mid of the ocean. And jab forgot to extend the gears on aproach, resulting in stranding - and loss of the control fins. Still, Jab fired up all engines and got the ship on land, but then structural failiure happened and scattered the Magellan all over the area - but the crew survived!

http://imgur.com/a/Kg2zo

So... KSC has to modify the Magellan to a Mk2 which was easy, and it would fix the refuling for now...

The changed design removed most of the empty areas for fuel tanks, skipped on the empty cockpit and thus shortened the 'speedboat' part a bit, and skipped on the large buoys in the rear compartments - the ones that mark the start of the seaway. Also, the engineers found a better way to affix the land gears - via docking ports instead of things Bob could blow off by touching the wrong buttons. Also, a pair of Canards was added to act as fins into the water... and a second one to grant a tiny bit of lift so the whole calculations at least went decently ok... and a ladder system to get into the cockpit. As the Magellan is by far not air transportable, it was fitted with a drone core and sent on the way alone to pick up Jab and Bill. For some reason (mainly keeping the throttle at a point the engines only fed 0.51) the Mk2 was far better in fuel efficiency for the first hour, despite the much larger weight due to the almost doubled fuel - and for reasons yet to be determined it did not have a nasty trait the original Magellan had: no drift to the steering- or backboard. If calculations from the HQ were right, that should hopefully bring the Mk2 around the planet, while the first vessel had suffered from sudden death after about a third of the tour. Using MJ as a navigation aid (it is utterly useless to steer vessels that are swimming as of now), the estimated time of arrival at the crashsite was almost 3 days drom the launch of the Mk2... good thing Jab and Bob are Kerbals and there is no Food/Water/Oxygen mod installed. After 3 hours the first buoy of the Magellan Mk2 got dropped, filling in into a gap in the buoy line dropped earlier. Not too many opportunities for good photos though: all blue out there, and the scatterfield is still 2.5 days away... With the throttle at 47% the ship went on at steady 17.3 m/s. Faster travel would be too expensive on the fuel, and we want to go as far as we can without refuling... because... KSC forgot to add a docking port for refuling besides the ones that were added to carry buoys and nobody had yet found a way to get a fuel tank to there and then dock.. a problem yet to be solved - probably using some cargolifter type plane and a red tank on wheels... but not needed yet: About 29300 units fuel remaining after hour 4 of the original 36400 units, so the operation ran through an average of 1775 units/h resulting in a theoretical operation time of 20 hours, 30 Minutes, 25 seconds - but the efficiency goes up once the tanks empty and the throttle can be lowered to maintain speed. Trimming the fuel backwards to get the nose up a tad resulted in a speed bump at same throttle, so again raised efficiency, probably because the front gear lifted out of the water a bit more. So I could throttle down to 40% and keep at 17.1 m/s while dropping consumption to a nominal 0.44 units/s (or 1584 units/h). Hour 5 got us another buoy out, and a recalculation of the way half an hour later, as we get close to the cape looking like Florida, results in an ETA of 5 hours to the scatterfield of the Magellan. One of the waypoints has been really off it seems. At hour 6 we passed under the cape looking a bit like Florida, time for another buoy. And still not even at the point our Kerbonauts (which seem to have driven in a circle last night because of pilot sleeping at the keys) have stranded their vehicle. Hour 7 arises and still on open sea, the fuel gauge in the 10 grand tank falling to 50% while the auxiliary tanks added in the Mk2 are still full to the brim - so about 12500 fuel per engine left or 25000 for the whole machine. This brings it to a remaining operational time of 16 h 32 m 3.8 s - and we are about 1/8th around as it seems. 1.5 days into the rescue mission, the target is almost within reach, the scatterfield shows up on the radar, and the main fuel tanks promise to be still decently filled after this part - luckily the land-riding can be done for free, as those are electrical engines and we have some solar panels on board. An hour later the still remote controlled Mk2 passes just 50 meters close to a buoy layed by the first Magellan, and turns into the bay to pick up the pilots of it. getting there takes about most of an hour again though and crew pickup is best done swimming... but instead of slowing down right, the machine desintegrates right at the beach when it is about to surface there with 15 m/s! Much too fast!

http://imgur.com/a/9JvNc

So back to a quicksave... 2 hours back and just a bit later a gamecrash. So luckily not TOO much lost... Firing up the engines again, the tour is back to try to go to completion.... This time not one but tow of the buoys set out detonate one of their swimtanks, but after a mission time of 10:45 the beach is once again in sight, and about 29000 units of fuel left in the tanks. And the Magellan Mk2 washes ashore gently with 4 m/s, stopping inwith the gears in the sand. The transport needed engine support to climb up to the crash site, but transfer eventually worked... once the Mk2 pared atop the crew quarter that had survived the crash. The ladder is 'just' a but short, and lowering only works when removing the drive legs. So much for the automated part of the journey, next part is again crewed!

http://imgur.com/a/OInh4

After 4 attempts to cross the hills I decided to make the southern turn I had planned only on the sea, taking the destroyed vessel as a start for the actual run, the end point being the bay on the inner side. This also meant I didtched on the land gears used to get to the water - and the shipwreck, and made a patented turn - one engine forwards, one backwards and ready is a fulturn! So back on course, north, and then west! 2nd day of the Magellan Mk2 dawns with a dropped buoy, and the tour goes on... without the gears and the first tanks down to 2.2k and 15k Reserve (Estimated time at burn at 0.37: 1h 39m 5.9s + 11h 15m 40.5s), the ship manages to get a 25 m/s and not a tiny bit divertion on the course, but I worry that the 6 day tour will need refueling. On the other hand, the tour goes pretty close to the KSC, so they can just "drop" some fuel for use into the water... let's see what the eggheads think of. Then said, that does not count the speedboat part of the ship, which is the cockpit, bicoupler, 2 radial intakes sans oxidizer and 2 Wheesly engines, which contain 580 units of fuel, and no estimation of useage yet... Though an estimated 6 day route means about 36 hours needed operation time, and thus I am pretty much short on fuel, not knowing which distance the speedboat can cover on its own. The route back to the cape of good hope looping area is said to be one day of sail away, but the engines begin to pick up speed at the same RPM, increasing it to 27.4 m/s when Bill and Jab pass between the isles. All in all the tanks are half empty by then, and all secondary tanks but the reserve are connected again as the main front tank is almost empty but for 200 units anyway, thus giving a pretty good trim. So, just because of me getting bored, a speedboat test is put inbetween - at 0.09 useage it manages 30 m/s in a dolphinlike dance over the water... so it could run alone... 1h 47m 24s, but it is faster than the main, so should be able to cut at least the last 2 hours of the tour... But.... Back to the Magellan Mk2 on its way to the Cape.... It just cuts mile after mile... Until it is about 80 kilometers close to the KSC after almost exactly 3 days mission time. In an effort to refuel the catamaran-ship, a drone consisting of mainly fuel tanks, 2 Goliaths and LF+O driven verniers gets sent out to replenish the fuel reserves which have fallen to dramatic levels. Docking with the added verniers for hight proves to work, despite the fact, that there are still buoys attatched to the starbord side, and after pumping all fuel from the refuel to the ship, there is still a gap of 4000 units in the tanks, but 31000 units of fuel with a consumption of 0.37 units/s and a speed of 20.5 m/s give an estimated operational time of 23h 16m 23,8s and an estimated reach of 1,717,567.6 m, so about 1.7 Mm. At the best coursem, the distance still to cover is somewhere around 2Mm, so about 300 km short on fuel - but then again the reserve might work for that, and we will go faster as the fuel tanks empty. However, the count of buoys carried results in a change of plan: they will only get dropped each 3 hours from now on, to mark the approximate way. After passing the cape, the new target was set to just at the fringe of the polar caps - mostly southwards. And as time goes by, it seems all the calculations are naught - at 4 days, 3 hours the useage is up at 0.4 in time acceleration, but speed rose due to better buoyancy to 25.7 m/s and an hour later to 27.5, but all estimations show, that I am still some hundred km short - while the route ranges in the 1.6 Mm area, I estimate that the fuel in the main and the speedboat bring me forword about 1.3 Mm. So I have to invent a way to get at least something around 5000 Units of fuel over the continent to wherever my vessel runs out of fuel. But then again, the distances estimated by the MJ waypoints are notoriously off, as the planet moves and the points seem to be affixed in a strange way - if placed in orbital view, they start to float upwards after some short time! A fresh measurement suddenly brought the distance to go to just below 1.2 Mm - and thus within the reach of the ship! If that is true, I will be able to complete the tour! As I cross the area to the last ocean, just between south pole and the tiny isles, the constant recalculations show I might even come to the other end of the land without having to drop the main engines and fuel tanks but for the very last part or not at all, if I don't divert from the path and cut close to the large island blocking the direct path - and if I can pass through to the gulf at the east, where I intend to. To maximise the reach, I use the fuel trim again, pumping all the fuel backwards but for the reserve, resulting in a small, but measureable speedbump as the bow rises a tad, and still the loss of mass results in more speed and thus a reach extension for each burnt unit of fuel. On the other hand. it proves that there is no gap in the east. but a shallow hill that has to be crossed. Skimming towards it at reduced speed, actually climbing over it takes two attempts, but to prove superiority, a buoy gets dropped atop of the hill, promptly blowing up. As the land drive was dropped after picking up our two Kerbalnauts, the whole thing was kind of a tricky thing, but after crossing the top it was just breaking to get a slow and steady deline back into where the ship belongs. Following are about two hours of skimming over waves and dropping the last buoy in the middle. The end result after an unnerving backwards parking maneugher is, that Bob and Jab have no more than 315 units / 13 minutes 7.5 seconds of spare fuel (plus the stuff in the emergency speedboat) while sitting in their cockpit. Getting out for a Photo, they are just on the other side of the land they have crashed the Magellan Mk1, and now they circumnavigated the planet over the southern route.

http://imgur.com/a/4OKIB

A few statistics:

667 km on the Magellan (+ probably an uncharted loop) in something around 2 kerbin days

650.1 km autonomous travel of the Magellan Mk2 in about 2 kerbin days

2.686 Mm on the Magellan Mk2 in approx 6.5 Kerbin days

93.3 km autonomous travel of the refueling ship in approx 1-2 hours.

------------------------------------------------------------

3.353 Mm travelled crewed

743.4 km travelled autonomous

0 m travelled via air.

38 Buoys (or parts of them) placed

16 debris pieces left

1 replacement vessel used and seaferried to the crashsite

1 refuling ship used

140 photos taken

Measurements (Mk1/Mk2)

Wet Weight: 187.5t/254.9t

Dry Weight: 80.6t/73.0t

Parts: 216/201

Height: 10.3m/10.4m

Width: 15.3m/16.5m (the keels are not aligned parallel in the Mk2 but tapper to the front)

Length: 36.5m/36.6m

Edited November 15, 2015 by Friethjoph

[Castille7]

Fengist,

Circumnavigate Kerbin Elcano Challenge Completed

The beginning was still looking like Craft testing for me, a few times I started the Mission and tweaked the Craft until I was satisfied with the first leg of the Long Journey. Immediately I noticed it was less troublesome to travel by water rather than by land so I chose to make a water travel route. With speeds up to 70 m/s on the water and the ability to use Warp at 3x helped towards the end of the trip because my first attempt at warp 3x the craft was not holding a good course so I didn't bother with it for awhile. Most the the trip was only at 1x or 2x warp. I am sure the Mission Time could have been reduced drastically if I would have discovered this sooner. The Craft was designed with Mk2 Inline Cockpit, an ISRU Converter, Fuel Cell Arrays, Thermoelectric Generators, Small holding Tanks, Wheesley Engines, Drill-o-Matic, Z-4k Rechargeable Batteries, Large Reaction Wheel, Structural Intakes and with a great suspension system.

Craft Type: Catamaran/Amphibious - Indy Xtreme GT (Indy Xtreme Global Transport)

Mission Start Date: 11.06.2015

Engineer's Report

Parts:165

Mass 26.0t

Height:5.5m

Width:9.8m

Length:12.2m

Crew

Pilot: Jebediah Kerman

Co-Pilot: Bill Kerman

Driller/Surveyor/Engineer: Camgard Kerman

The Route

Photo Album

Javascript is disabled. View full album

The Craft that inspired the design for the Indy Xtreme Global Transport

Craft File

Indy Xtreme

Craft File

Indy Xtreme GT

Edited November 19, 2015 by castille7