The Sun

[jabbashouse]

Hi all,

I was curious as to whether the Sun in KSP has any influence on a vessel that would be potentially orbiting Moho, as in heat or if being close to Kerbins Sun would affect Ablater shielding.

Im planning on sending a Science Probe to Moho at some point and im in between thoughts as to whether i should fit some sort of heat shielding.

Im hoping the answer to the Sun question is yes. As it would be a massive shame to go to all the trouble of having other bodies have heat entry influence but to completely ignor the Sun.

Thanks

Note

Realised that maybe i placed this post in the wrong forum. So im sorry for this if its the case.

Edited June 5, 2015 by jabbashouse
Possiblly placed thread in wrong forum

[MalfunctionM1Ke]

Heatshields will not protect you from heat emited by the Sun (If that is even a thing in KSP right now)

Ablative shielding is only usefull during reentry as the shielding will heat up and then brake off/ablate from the craft, carrying the stored heat with them before it is even able to conduct throughout the craft.

There is a little mod called, HyperEdit. Very usefull for testing designs in different places/conditions (but also considered a cheat by some because true experience comes from hard testing)

But the question about using it or not depends only on your way of playing the game

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/37756-1-0-HyperEdit-v1-4-1-May-14-2015-Teleporter-Orbit-Planet-Editor-More

Alt+H will make the Menu pop up during flight.

Edited June 5, 2015 by MalfunctionM1Ke

[jabbashouse]

Hi,

Thanks for the quick reply. I do prefer to hard test through error so i guess it will be a surprise.

Hopefully the Sun does have an effect...if not they should think about placing it in.

Edited June 5, 2015 by jabbashouse
Spelling

[Sof]

The sun has no effect. You aren't re-entering, so heatshields won't do anything.

[Gaarst]

Sun doesn't have an influence on its own on a probe at Moho but I can guarantee from experience a LV-N powered ship will not at all cool at Moho as well as it does at Kerbin.

Although getting too close to the Sun can overheat your probe (duh), while discovering 1.0, I had that a probe that intsa-exploded due to the Sun's heat (it was at 300,000,000 m)

[sal_vager]

By the way this is in the readme.

Heat Simulation:

- Completely revised part heating model, energy flux is considered, not merely temperature.

- All game temperatures changed from ‘Kervin’ to proper Kelvin.

- Radiative, conductive, and convective heating and cooling are simulated.

- Parts can have individual radiative, conductive, and convective properties.

- All parts now emit a blackbody radiation glow if they get hot enough.

- Conduction between attached parts is more accurately modelled.

- Parts can occlude other parts from being exposed to sunlight, celestial body albedo/radiation and supersonic flow.

- Reentry/hypersonic flight heating is now simulated.

- Added difficulty Setting to scale aerodynamic heating.

- Atmospheric temperature, and thus density, takes latitude and sun position into account.

- Celestial bodies accurately emit thermal radiation making nearby craft warmer.

- Service modules, fairings and cargo bays can be used to protect parts inside from heat.

- Heat shields provide (finite) ablation-based protection for parts behind them.

So yes, the sun will have an effect now, but it didn't used to so a lot of players have not caught on yet

[Harry Rhodan]

As it would be a massive shame to go to all the trouble of having other bodies have heat entry influence but to completely ignor the Sun.

Are you trying to heliobrake?

[StrandedonEarth]

Are you trying to heliobrake?

Maybe he wants to study sunspots from underneath

[AbacusWizard]

Fill your ship with cool cool ice cream from Minmus; that should cancel out any excess heat from the Sun.

[RocketPilot573]

Heatshields will not protect you from heat emited by the Sun (If that is even a thing in KSP right now)

Ablative shielding is only usefull during reentry as the shielding will heat up and then brake off/ablate from the craft, carrying the stored heat with them before it is even able to conduct throughout the craft.

Actually, heatshields will absorb any heat. Attach them directly to nuke engines and watch the ablator disappear.

[Wiseman]

Yes, Moho and the Sun will do their darndest to cook your craft in orbit. I sent an LV-N powered orbiter/lander probe, and for once my issue wasn't delta-v but heat. I was able to leave orbit from Kerbin using the nukes without too much trouble, but braking around Moho was even more of a bear than usual. In addition to LV-Ns running really hot, the radiative heating coming from the Sun made it very hard to cool off. I wound up needing to space out my orbital insertion into three (still pretty big) burns, with 10 minutes or so to cool off in between, but I still lost most of my small radially-attached science equipment. To be fair, that was my fault, as they were radially attached to the fuel tank connected to the LV-N cluster inside of a cargo bay.

I noticed that I was able to cool down reasonably well after the first burn, out at the edge of Moho's SOI; but radiative cooling as far less effective the closer I got to Moho.

[Captain Sierra]

Yes, Moho and the Sun will do their darndest to cook your craft in orbit. I sent an LV-N powered orbiter/lander probe, and for once my issue wasn't delta-v but heat. I was able to leave orbit from Kerbin using the nukes without too much trouble, but braking around Moho was even more of a bear than usual. In addition to LV-Ns running really hot, the radiative heating coming from the Sun made it very hard to cool off. I wound up needing to space out my orbital insertion into three (still pretty big) burns, with 10 minutes or so to cool off in between, but I still lost most of my small radially-attached science equipment. To be fair, that was my fault, as they were radially attached to the fuel tank connected to the LV-N cluster inside of a cargo bay.

I noticed that I was able to cool down reasonably well after the first burn, out at the edge of Moho's SOI; but radiative cooling as far less effective the closer I got to Moho.

You try using radiators? THe stock 1x6 panels have the capability albeit its rather pathetic. You want serious thermal dissipation, grab one of these mods

[bitbucket]

The environment around Moho is about 500°K and it doesn't take much to make parts overheat.

[imaspacestation]

- Atmospheric temperature, and thus density, takes latitude and sun position into account.

[Cydonian Monk]

I can confirm craft nearer to The Sun do indeed overheat. I've not managed to get into Low Solar Orbit, but I do have a probe inside the orbit of Moho that is now glowing a bright shade of red and threatening to explode.

[NathanKell]

Never keep cargo bays shut in space. Stuff inside can't radiate to get rid of heat.

As for heat shields: not only do they ablate to lose heat no matter the source of heat, they _do_ actually shield things behind them from solar flux. Indeed. most any part will; sun occlusion is (somewhat) modeled.

[luizopiloto]

Isn't "The Sun" a Newspaper?

here is Kerbol...

[MarvinKitFox]

Hm? Does this mean re-entering on the dark side of Kerbin will cause less heat?

What about flying spaceplanes into orbit? Will flying at night produce less at a given speed?

Yep.

You can fly faster in a plane at night, and over the arctic regions. (just a bit, but it is different)

[Reactordrone]

Isn't "The Sun" a Newspaper?

here is Kerbol...

Not according to contracts and the science archives within the game.

[magnemoe]

Actually, heatshields will absorb any heat. Attach them directly to nuke engines and watch the ablator disappear.

Simpler, just make an LV-N tug with 4 engines around an 2.5 m tank with an heatshield at bottom and run it hot, this will melt the heatshield even after landing.

[nigelvn]

unfortunately the days of orbiting the sun on 1000 m are over

[merendel]

Never keep cargo bays shut in space. Stuff inside can't radiate to get rid of heat.

As for heat shields: not only do they ablate to lose heat no matter the source of heat, they _do_ actually shield things behind them from solar flux. Indeed. most any part will; sun occlusion is (somewhat) modeled.

Intresting so we can make a sundiver probe with a stack of heat shields on top that it hides behind like an umbrella as it does its near pass? I'm going to have to go try that

[Mad_Maelstrom]

Intresting so we can make a sundiver probe with a stack of heat shields on top that it hides behind like an umbrella as it does its near pass? I'm going to have to go try that

The heat from aerobraking is a discrete amount of heat, the Sun will be a constant flow of heat. I suspect once a heat shields starts ablating it is only going to last a few minutes, so I think your best bet for getting close to the Sun is to use parts with high temperature limits.

[Captain Sierra]

I have a second sundiver probe inbound now, this time with radiators. I'll let you know how it turns out.

[NathanKell]

Remember to angle your radiators edge-on to the sun.