SunShooter Standalone: Elcano-One (MISSION ACCOMPLISHED)

[Geschosskopf]

Nope, something broke I've found the Elektron stops working when the tanks are overly full, so perhaps that feature somehow interfered with the resource draw of the fuelcell too? Half empty the tanks and run your rover again, and see if that feeds\produces resources as normal. The resource generator module might have bugged out.

Well, that was interesting... I did what you said and loaded the LH, LOX, and H2O tanks only 1/2 full. The results were:

• With both fuel cell and electrolyzer running and the vehicle moving at full speed (now about 22m/s), EC rapidly diminished. LH and LOX levels were slowly increasing and H2O levels were slowly decreasing.
  
• Shutting off the electrolyzer and leaving the fuel cell running caused the EC bar to max out and stay there, and vehicle speed went up to the normal max. LH, LOX and H2O levels all remained constant, the fuel cell consuming zero resources while spewing out gobs of power.
  

So, the electrolyzer appears to be working fine but the generator for the fuel cell is a magic, perpetual motion device

[B-STRK]

SunShooter Standalone Complex: Elcano-One

An Elcano Circumnavigation Challenge Entry by B-STRK

Leg 8: Cool Runnings (relatively speaking)

(Arch Crater to Survey Site 5)

Look, girls, we're in St. Louis!

Leevy: "What's a 'St. Louis'?"

A certain impatience gripped the air--perhaps from the new radiator bolted onto the US power pack back in the back; perhaps from having to sit for two, three hours waiting for the CARE Package to drop. Or maybe because it was Samene Kerman we're talking about here, one who preferred action to thought, one who wanted hands on the flight stick, one who preferred to just jump head first into the mission rather than mull over her fears of it. No, she was not as reckless as Jeb--or Leevy, for that matter--but when one is busy, one has less time to be afraid.

Doesn't stop the entire "being afraid" from lingering in the background, though. But perhaps something has changed...

Samene: "Alright, girls. Leg 8. A hop to the last base survey site, one hundred twenty clicks, nothing we've done before. Leev, just keep tabs on the fuel cell and radiator temps--no need to call them out, unless we're critical; just note them down so we can send the data back home when we're through. Just like before: track time-to-temp and any other relevant data. Call out if we hit 1,000, though. Okay, Marly, we've got some daylight to drive in from the waiting, let's not waste it."

CAPCOM: "Elcano-One, Crystal Palace. Sam, you getting a little antsy there?"

Samene: "You know the feeling, CAPCOM, when you've got a flight, and you're at the doorway of a plane, about to board?"

CAPCOM: "You mean, like I can't wait for this trip to start, or to get home?"

Samene: "Yeah, like that."

CAPCOM: "You're only halfway around the Mun, girls."

Samene: "And just like orbit, CAPCOM, it's halfway to anywhere, including home. And if this new radiator works out, we won't have to worry about our thermal limits for halfway to anywhere. We're pushing it this time."

---

Marliana may be trying to audition for a Formula-One team,

but nothing stops her from being a scientist first.

Marliana: "New biome, Mun highlands!"

Samene: "Well, run the test, M. What does the scanner say?"

Marliana: "The scanner says... this place is crap."

Leevy: "Oh well, not like we're planning a base here anyway."

---

Look, ma, I can see my car from here!

CAPCOM: "Stand by, Elcano-One. We have to bring the munbase rover into parking orbit."

Samene: "We're holding, Crystal Palace."

CAPCOM: "Copy."

Gene Kerman (FLIGHT): "NETWORK, send the command, start the programmed retroburn."

And as the SIVB booster's wake tears through the space behind it...

Marliana: "Crystal, Elcano-One. Lovely timing, we can see the SIVB retroburn from here. "

CAPCOM: "We aim to please, Elcano-One. The Maria base rover is in parking orbit. Resume your trip."

---

EDITOR'S NOTE: It's the radiator flux.

Leevy: "Hey, CAPCOM, it's Leevy."

CAPCOM: "Not that I ought to cite you for lack of radio protocol, but I'll bite. What's up?"

Leevy: "You might want to add this in all the procedure books. Anything inside a cargo bay? Don't count on it acting as a radiator in case you need to get rid of the heat inside."

CAPCOM: "Interesting... how you figure that?"

Leevy: "Because I just shut the ESME's cargo bay, and the radiator stopped radiating. And so did the fuel cell. And the other wdges. And the core. And the KIS container. And the--"

CAPCOM: "Okay, okay, we get the idea, Leevy. All future craft equipped with cargo bays open them up once in space. Especially if there's anything generating heat inside. You guys were running with the cargo bay closed in legs 1 and 2, right?"

Leevy: "Until the fuel cell lit up our caution alarm, yes."

CAPCOM: "Duly noted."

---

PSA: If your mission commander is not afraid, when in a scenario where, according to prior experience, she should have been afraid,

then BE AFRAID.

Samene: (in a flat, matter-of-fact tone, and after their third acrobatic hop) "Look at me, I am utterly unmoved."

Marliana: ":huh: Okay Sam, was that a shot at me going after every crater in sight?"

Samene: "No, really, I am utterly unmoved. You had us almost upside down the first time and I was as giddy as a little girl who's had way too much cotton candy. I am getting way too used to your driving, Marly."

Marliana: "Knowing you, Sam, I'm just going to blame the extra gas we put in the tanks and a working radiator in the back."

Leevy: (whining) "Don't harsh on her mellow, Marly. Not when she's finally gotten that flight stick out of her butt on this trip."

---

"Crystal Palace," announced Marliana, "Elcano-One, we are at Survey Site 5, and you can forget about this site. Five percent ore concentrations--and I have the concentration filter settings on 80%, this is supposed to be a hot spot!"

Well, I guess the ore is a lie," Leevy observed with much humor. "Ba-dum--"

"Crystal Palace, Leevy. No rim shots." A silent prayer of thanks from everyone for CAPCOM's interruption: really, Leevy, that was a lame joke. "Marliana, we acknowledge your readings. Crossing out Survey 5 from the candidates' list. And that's all she wrote for the base surveys. Your intentions, Elcano-One?"

Samene took the mic. "Brief us on our sitch, Crystal?"

What does this look like? This looks like progress. This looks like the home stretch. This looks like one last job, and then home free.

Translation: This looks BAD. Don't you watch the movies? It's almost the law that something screws up close to the finish line.

"Okay. One waypoint left before home, possible anomaly. And this is the longest leg of your journey: over 300 kilometers. Right now, you're nearly at the munar terminator, meaning if you move forward now, at your pace you'll be running in the dark. Ore macrosurvey says that the other hot spots of interest are north of your path, and too far north if we're bringing the CmLS into an equatorial orbit, so we're scrubbing those sites from the candidate list. Nothing of interest in your path, so it's a straight run to Waypoint 9. Finally, the CmLS is due for a couple of maneuvers that'll interrupt your journey, first one in a little over three hours. That is your sitch. It's your call Elcano-One. You can press, but you run in the dark. Or you wait the three hours for the CmLS to reach Munar SOI; that'll buy you some time for the sun to come up a little more. Give you more light on your journey."

For a girl who preferred action to thought, Samene was uncharacteristically thinking a lot. "The way I see it, Crystal, better if we wait till sunset before we set off, that'll give us maximum daylight travel time. But that's too long to wait. Is Dr. C there with you?"

So speaketh the heavy rover designer. "Elcano-One, Carlisle speaking, yes."

"You designed ESME to run in the dark as well as daylight, right?"

"That was the intention, Samene. But we've only had limited nighttime testing of the ESME. And certainly none involving munar conditions. You do not have to feel pressured on my account. What matters is that you complete your journey safely. Elcano will not mean anything if it means losing one of you girls to an accident." Say what you want about Carlisle's Elcano dreams, or even obsession: he was not going to sacrifice kerbals for a trophy on the wall.

Though he was not the kerbal on the Mun, the girls were. "Wait one, Crystal Palace." Samene took Marliana back to the crew tank, to join up with Leevy. "Okay, girls. Be honest with me. If I say we run in the dark, will you run with me?"

Marliana fidgeted. "Sam... I'm really loving how I fell behind the wheel now. I feel like I could take on anything. But all of that was with daylight, even the smallest amount." A pause pregnant with uncertainty. "The dark? I'm not sure."

"You ask me, girls, I'm game."

Marliana's eyes rolled of their own accord. "You're always game, Leevy."

"Just hold on to that confidence, Marly. The ICU-360 has good long-distance coverage. Narrow field, but long range. As good as daylight. I can hold the beam along the course, and sweep for peripheral. I say we run in the dark."

A point to Leevy's favor. But another factor to consider. "Have you checked the SCAN, Sam? Latter half of the leg, we'll be neck-deep in red tide."

ROVER: And the SCAN BTDT has lots and lots of red pixels to look forward to!

Cripes, it looks like someone slaughtered the local fauna all over the right side of the map.

"High altitudes," Sam observed. "Uphill climb most of the way."

"And if there are any craters, they're gonna be steep drops. I'm willing to say yes, Sam, but I need to tell you. It's going to be a slog to get to Waypoint 9. 300 clicks, into red tide, and in the dark. And we can forget running on cruise for the most part, with that kind of terrain. it can't take the uphill or rough ground. I have to be on the wheel, you on the stick, probably all those 300 kilometers. You have to know what you're getting us into."

Another thoughtful pause. But pilots are paid to make quick, decisive decisions. "Like I said, Marly. I'm so used to this trip I am utterly unmoved. And after this, is home. I can't wait. I want to go."

"Same here!" piped Leevy.

"Then may my courage hold out," hoped Marliana. "I'm in."

"Let's do this. Leev, temp?"

Leevy checked her notes and instruments. "Fuel cell, 659, up from 572 when we started. Rate, five seconds per tenth of a degree, down from two seconds per tenth when we started. Radiator, 539. Four seconds to a tenth of a degree."

Samene nodded in approval. "Good omen."

"Except for the dark part," Marliana added.

"It's Beaxy who's scared of the dark. Back to the drive deck." Pilot and driver returned to their seats. "Crystal Palace, Elcano-One. We are punching through the terminator."

Looks were exchanged among the Mission Control staff. "Are you sure, Sam?" replied CAPCOM. "We need to be clear on this. If anything happens--"

"Then it happens. Doc C says that ESME can rule the night, then we see if she rules the night. I am however, setting a couple of safety protocols for everyone's sake. We don't run past thirty meters per second. Should keep the risk of a spillover low. And second, we only run in the dark for as long as possible."

"And considering that you have enough reactants to run the fuel cell for days, how long is 'possible'?

"Until I wet my flight suit."

No one laughed at that possibility. Driving in the dark raised all sorts of complications. Carlisle took over. "Elcano-One, Carlisle. You don't really have to do this."

"Not that we don't, Doc." Determination could be heard over the airwaves. "But we want to."

A moment's silence, then a smile graced the rover designer's face. "Thank you. ESME's all yours."

"Okay. Elcano-One, out. Girls, buck up. Let's do this."

---

MISSION STATUS: Eighth leg of circumnavigation complete. Survey Site 5 weighed and found wanting.

NEXT WAYPOINT: Possible Anomaly #3

Another uneventful leg. Another uneventful post. Which kinda led me to say, "Hey, things seem smooth enough, how about changing things up by driving in the dark?"

Yeah. That'll end well.

Weird, I know. Probably the processor code borking under those conditions--still not the expert here, though, so nothing authoritative on my part.

Edited July 6, 2015 by B-STRK

[Geschosskopf]

Uneventful runs are the best kind

[B-STRK]

SunShooter Standalone Complex: Elcano-One

An Elcano Circumnavigation Challenge entry by B-STRK

Leg 9: The Dark of the Mun

(Survey Site 5 to Possible Anomaly 3)

Say goodnight, ESME. Time to run past twilight.

Excerpt from To Aim for the Mun: A KSP Report on Pre-Colonization Era Space Activities

Life which evolved in the daylight naturally is wary of the night. It was not until kerbalkind discovered fire that they slowly began to master the dark--from the natural fire of lightning strike and volcanoes, to the tamed fire of torches and candles, and then the conquest of artificial lighting, which finally enthroned kerbals as a 6/426 civilization.

The dark is not kind to spacefarers. For those who have forsworn the use of radioactives, the night shadow (and later, the distance of the outer planets) cripples those dependent on solar energy, a defect unrectified until the arrival of LFO and H2/O2-based fuel cell technology, and much later, space-rated and kerbal-safe nuclear energy. For travel on the unforgiving, crater-scattered surface of the celestia bodies, the denial of light is the denial of information. And the denial of information can be lethal. Kerbalkind may have conquered the dark, but the dark nonetheless demanded the requisite respect. Especially the dark of the Mun.

When expedition commander Samene Kerman announced the decision of the Elcano-SunShooter expedition team to proceed with nighttime travel on the Mun, she was taking a big risk. Limited onboard light sources, coupled with the toughest terrain so far faced on this journey. Even her decision to limit their top speed to 30 meters per second (108 kilometers per hour/67 miles per hour) only brought limited comfort. These were highway speeds; what the ESME-01 was tackling then demanded the standards and caution of off-road driving. Low gravity may have bought the Munar circumnavigators precious time to reorient the ESME to a safe landing attitude, but in all the prior spillovers Samene and expedition driver-scientist Marliana Kerman had a clear view of their landing surface. As they discovered and ultimately reasoned out during their dark run, there are cases when, despite their lights, even that would be denied to them.

Samene: "Crystal Palace, Elcano-One."

CAPCOM: "Elcano-One, acknowledged."

Samene: "Small observation. Every time we run up the lip of a crater, the lights go."

CAPCOM: "As in the lights malfunction or--"

Marliana: "No, Crystal, diagnostics say that the lights are fully functional. We mean it's as if the terrain soaks up the light instead of reflecting it, or being lit by it. Even the spotlight is not immune, though at least it's the last to go. Point is, if we were running up to a crater, right as we near the rim, the lights go just like we said."

CAPCOM: "Well, that's... troubling. We're passing this data on to the eggheads in Theoretical Sciences for their analysis."

Samene: "Much appreciated. It does however give us some warning in the dark, that we're approaching a crater rim and its drop-off. A small positive."

CAPCOM: "We copy that. Have you seen the phenomenon elsewhere besides crater rims?"

Marliana: "So far, no. Our worry is if there's some patch of terrain like this that's larger than the outside of a crater rim. We need visuals in case we flip or fly to assure a terrain-level landing. If an entire crater wall was like this, for example..."

CAPCOM: "Let's focus on the positives for the moment."

---

Of their onboard lights, their primary instrument was the Bahamuto ICU-360 turret spotlight, operated by expedition engineer Leevy Kerman. It had unmatched illumination power, capable of lighting their path out almost to a kilometer, even further in some cases, depending on the terrain elevation ahead. Its weakness was its narrow cone of illumination, necessitating Leevy to sweep the light in order to illuminate the terrain left and right of the rover's projected track, in case it became necessary to change course. The crew learned to anticipate trouble spots ahead based on observing the silhouette of the pitch-black terrain against the backdrop of stars above the horizon, then use the spotlight to confirm their observations and make course corrections, all while in motion--sometimes as fast as the 30m/s limit Samene had set.

While the Mk1 forward fixed spotlights paled in comparison to the power of the ICU-360, their wider coverage at least gave a little peripheral vision to the ESME crew. In addition, in the event of a ramp jump or spillover, when the rover took to the air, by observing the angle the Mk1 lights made on the ground as Samene pitched down, she could gauge the slope of her landing surface and adjust accordingly for a flat and safe landing, even in the dark. Of course, these lights were nonetheless subject to the same anomalous weakness identified by Marliana, making landing on crater rims and similar terrain a treacherous affair.

---

One consequence of running in the dark was that there was no way for Crystal Palace to visualize the terrain far ahead, from a higher perspective (usually orbital height), and thus advise the Elcano team on potential pitfalls. The available SCAN SAR data substituted for visually confirming the long-term course, but without a narrow-band scanner on board the Elcano crew could not access fine-resolution data, instead relying on gut feel, as extrapolated from the available slope and altitude macrodata.

Samene: "Crystal Palace, can you have a check on our nav data? We're sending a proposed course change for verification."

CAPCOM: "On it. What is it?"

Samene: "I'm proposing we divert north, to swing around this depression that the SAR partially uncovered. With what we've discovered about the lights and the terrain, I don't want to risk having any blind steep climbs or dropoffs."

ROVER: "CAPCOM, confirm on what Samene is saying. They continue on their course 270, they will run into this ravine. We don't have a full picture of the area, but the alimetry data suggests they will drop as much as 2,000 feet having to navigate through that valley. They should be clear 'bout 3-4 deeg's north lat."

CAPCOM: "Thanks ROVER. We copy your intent, Elcano-One. Recommend running a course as close to bearing 000, but without sacrificing too much westward progress, until north of latitude 04-North."

---

Earlier in their run, Leevy had the fortunate opportunity to snap a picture of Kerbin eclipsing Kerbol behind them. Now, with Kerbol far behind them on the opposite side of the terminator, Kerbin instead rose in front of them. It was apropos, Marliana later reflected, that on this penultimate leg of their circumnavigation, they would be running towards Kerbin, as though the planet beckoned them on, beckoned them back home.

Leevy: "No, really, girls, I think we should submit this picture and the eclipse one to [thread=24533]the KSP Fan Works thread on the official game forum[/thread]! They look cool enough."

Samene: ":confused: Wha--'official game'? What game?"

Marliana: "'Fan works'? Leev, is the oxygen percentage in the cabin too low again?"

---

Oh, look! Didn't we just plant this flag so-and-so ago?

Closing in on their ultimate objective--the very beginning of their journey--was bound to provoke some emotional reaction from the crew. It turned out to be Marliana--Samene, though rather easily spooked, turned out to be rather stoic as well, and while Leevy was quite an emotional livewire, hers seemed welded permanently to the "happy" circuit.

Samene: "Crystal Palace, be aware, we just caught the transponder on the starter flag, as well as the Regan and the rover lander... Marliana, are you actually crying?"

Marliana: ";.; N-no, just a few stray tears."

(Samene raises a wry eyebrow, with a very amused glitter in her eyes)

Marliana: "What? I mean... that's where we started, right? And here we are, after a long time, seeing it once again."

Leevy: ":rolleyes: I'll bet the other circumnavigators weren't this emotional when this happened to them."

---

To facilitate fine maneuvering in the munar gravity well, the Sunset SRV's central cluster can be shut down,

and its outrigger engines throttled.

Closer to the end of the leg, the Elcano team took a time-out, as allowance had to be made in Crystal Palace's bandwidth and resources for the Cismunar Logistics Station (CmLS) to be brought to her parking orbit. This space station was a keystone to establishing the SunShooter Program's first munbase, providing close-by habitation and resources for the base crew that would deploy once the ESME had accomplish her mission. Customarily, a space station that would be brought to operation would then be christened, like the ships of old, with her designated name or callsign.

GNC: "Engine cut-off on Sunset SRV in 3... 2... 1... mark. We are in parking orbit, one hundred kilometers altitude."

Gene Kerman (FLIGHT): "Understood. PAYLOAD, uncouple."

PAYLOAD: "Unlocking battery reserves on CmLS. Docking clamps retracted. CmLS is free."

Gene: "INCO, send disposal command to the SRV. Let's log this as the Sunset's first successful mission. And bring the station online, SPARTAN."

INCO: "SRV RCS to reverse. We have reverse doppler on proximity radar. Executing separation maneuvers."

GNC: "Reading SRV executing disposal burn. She's suborbital."

An entire ~200 ton space operational station. Fully provisioned and all.

Delivered in one launch by the Shimmer Next-Generation Launch Vehicle.

Thank you very much.

SPARTAN: "Bringing CmLS to warm standby status. Charging life support, extending radiators... done. Unlocking primary monopropellant tank, LFO still locked. Brining secondary SAS systems online. FLIGHT, ClMS is now on warm standby. We have activated the Munar Station Lelani... er..."

Gene: "SPARTAN? Something wrong?"

SPARTAN: "Lelani... Melanin? Mayonnaise? Mononucleosis? Maydaytovarich? Who the hell came up with this callsign?"

Christina Kerman (MOD/Program Director, and the one who the hell came up with the callsign): "Something you want to say, SPARTAN?"

SPARTAN: "Er, nothing, ma'am." (scribbles furiously on a folder) "FLIGHT. We have brought online the Cismunar Logistics Station Lelani..." (holds up the folder, on which is written in easily visible script MAYOLANOFAVICH)

Gene: "Understood, and thank you SPARTAN. NETWORK, log the STN Lelani..." (points to SPARTAN, who holds up the sign again) "however-you-pronounce-that in the database."

Christina: (giving Gene the stink-eye) ":mad: It's pronounced Ma-yo-la-no-fa-vich, same way it's spelt."

Gene: ":rolleyes: And I pity whoever in the Tracking Center is assigned to type that nightmare of a name into the database."

---

Even the ESME has limits. Limits that would cause car accidents back on Kerbin.

Also, you think they look happy? No, my friends, that is the look of hearts breaking, and kerbals crying on the inside.

Really, that is the look of DENIAL on all their faces.

DIRECTOR'S NOTE: Dangit, Marliana, you were weepy when sensors caught the Elcano-01 flag, why won't you cry on command now?!

Alas, all the caution in the world could not ensure perfect foresight, though at least what transpired was not a tragedy. Getting to the ninth waypoint sent the ESME into the bottom of a crater, and when the anomaly they sought could not be found within its confines, the crew tried to aim for the rim north of the waypoint, believing what they sought could be found there.

Marliana: "No! We're moving backwards!"

Samene: "Are we on--"

Marliana: "YES! The pedal's mashed down as far as it can go. Leevy, can you up the--"

Leevy: "NO! All wheels are maxed out, ratio 2. Can we switchback up--"

Samene: "NO! KER's reading the slope at 47 degrees (though I don't know why the BTDT's giving me 35...). Even if we were to tackle this with switchbacks, tacking the slope with alternate horizontal climbs to lower our pitch, there isn't enough traction on the wheels to keep our track. Gravity will just drag us back down laterally, we'd be losing our progress every switchback."

Marliana: "Are you sure? I could swing 290 right now and see--"

Samene: "I've been watching our track through your course changes, Marly. It's not going to work!"

Marliana: "Damn it! So what, we abandon looking for this anomaly?"

Samene: "We may have to."

Leevy: "We have a KAS winch in cargo. I could set it up--"

Samene: "If it was daylight, I'd probably say yes, but even then I'm not sure. This is a steep and tall cliff. I'm estimating taller than 500 meters from dregs to rim. The cable's only about 200 meters long, so we'd have to hopscotch, winch ourselves up in stages. But brakes won't hold our position on this wall, so when we release the grapple, we'd be sliding down while trying to set up for the next shot. Same thing if we EVA and grapple the cable up there ourselves--and I'm not risking any of us losing our footing on a five hundred meter slide. When others tried this in a Kerbin circumnavigation, they had the benefit of two winches, sufficient lighting, a larger crew, and an elaborate crane setup. We're on our own, with only one winch, and in the dark. We have to let this anomaly go."

Marliana: "Again, damn it! That anomaly is up there, and I know it! If we'd only stayed on the rim instead of going down this crater... Samene, you know how much it hurts for a scientist to be told she has to let go of the discovery she's been chasing--"

Samene: (snapping) "As painful as a mission commander realizing she can't complete her mission, and that there's not a damned thing she can do about it, Marliana, now do you still want to compare butthurt notes?! Or do you want our legacy to be turning into debris at the bottom of this crater?!"

(Marliana recoils, sits back in stunned silence. No one could speak for a full minute)

Leevy: (philosophical) "Well, every mission is bound to have its glitch technical or kerbal error. 'Shooter IV forgot to add antennas to the Celestia CM boilerplate. IX almost bombed from insufficient thrust. Both IX and VIII missed the optimum VPA. Not to mention what happened to XIII. It's a miracle we've all gotten this far, and stay alive."

Samene: "So you're saying we've finally had our glitch for this mission?"

Leevy: "No, only that our mission isn't about glitches. Or dwelling on them. We've gotten so much done, girls. Losing an anomaly in the dark isn't much damage to our scorecards."

Marliana: "Let's... Heading back down. At least we can mark this crater."

Samene: "We could wait for daylight, if you want--"

Marliana: "No need. That anomaly will still be here, and someone else will just have to catalog it for us. Leevy's right. Circumnavigation's nearly complete. Let's focus on that."

---

No comment. You want tissues, Marly?

Leevy: "A little dramatic much?"

Marliana: "Hey, at least I'm honest. Let's just get this journey done, shall we?"

Samene: "Yeah. Crystal Palace, Elcano-One. We're letting go of whatever anomaly this is. We're heading home."

And setting aside their disappointment at not fulfilling their goal for this leg of their journey, the crew instead focused on what lay ahead: the final leg. And after that...

Home.

---

MISSION STATUS: Ninth leg of circumnavigation complete. Search for anomaly abandoned due to lack of light and steep terrain.

NEXT WAYPOINT: Where it all began.

EDITOR'S NOTE: That anomaly is the second Mun arch. The procedural engine happened to bracket the arch with craters. I'm not sure if it's a procedural crater overlaid over a pre-built crater, or procedural on procedural, but a >500m climb at >45 degrees in the dark fell apart, so either way, curse you procedural crater engine!

ADDENDUM: Credit where credit is due: the part about the winches used in a Kerbal c-navigation is [thread=123141]the journey of the Banzai! by Squiggsy[/thread]. It was what inspired me to carry a couple of winches in the KIS container in ESME's cargo bay, along with an assortment of other parts, in case a crater wall needed to be scaled in a similar fasion. Except that I had to sacrifice one winch and the KIS bases to make room for the water wedge when it got swapped out for the US radiator before Leg 8, which ruled out replicating Squiggsy's feat. Dang.

Edited July 9, 2015 by B-STRK

[Geschosskopf]

Damn, I sure wouldn't drive in the dark on Mun, especially hunting arches. It's dangerous.

According to ancient Kerbal legend, at night the arches come to life and stride across the moonscape like giant Slinkies. Sunlight turns them back to stone so they try hard to bet back home before dawn. Anyway, they are never in their normal places at night and are impossible to track because their footprints are indistinguishable from all the other small craters. They also have a tendency to stomp you if you happen to cross their paths. So it's best to leave your arch-hunting to daylight .

NOTE: I got this idea because one time I found an arch at night and it happened that due to a combination of procedural terrain and my own terrain detail setting, 1 end of the arch was the ground outside a fair-sized crater and the other end was in the air just inside the rim. It looked just like the arch was in the process of stepping over the rim and walking down into the crater.

[B-STRK]

Damn, I sure wouldn't drive in the dark on Mun, especially hunting arches. It's dangerous.

According to ancient Kerbal legend, at night the arches come to life and stride across the moonscape like giant Slinkies. Sunlight turns them back to stone so they try hard to bet back home before dawn. Anyway, they are never in their normal places at night and are impossible to track because their footprints are indistinguishable from all the other small craters. They also have a tendency to stomp you if you happen to cross their paths. So it's best to leave your arch-hunting to daylight .

NOTE: I got this idea because one time I found an arch at night and it happened that due to a combination of procedural terrain and my own terrain detail setting, 1 end of the arch was the ground outside a fair-sized crater and the other end was in the air just inside the rim. It looked just like the arch was in the process of stepping over the rim and walking down into the crater.

Okay, that is now my new KSP headcanon: the Mun procedural craters were created through history by sentient slinky arches. Which explains why no two playthroughs of KSP have the proc-craters in the same place. Now to explain the procedural craters on other applicable worlds...

EDIT: Ack, and I now need to add a hyperlink to Squiggsy's Banzai! crane lift, since that was what was being referenced with the winches.

Edited July 9, 2015 by B-STRK

[Geschosskopf]

Okay, that is now my new KSP headcanon

Glad you like it. Let's try to make it canon canon . Various places in Celtic Europe claim to have walking menhirs so why not walking arches on Mun?

[B-STRK]

SunShooter Standalone Complex: Elcano-One

An Elcano Circumnavigation Challenge Entry by B-STRK

The Final Leg:

(Crater of Tears to the Point of the Beginning)

And we run, with a lonely heart/And we run for this killing love/And we run, 'till the heavens above

And we run, running in the dark/And we run 'till we fall apart/And we run, 'till the heavens above

- "And We Run", Within Temptation ft. Xzibit

66 kilometers. Surely that's not a problem anymore, is it?

"Okay, Marly," ordered Samene, "run us out of this crater."

"So as long as we don't run into another impassible gradient, Sam."

"Let's hope not. Leevy?"

"Shining a light on it. Try aiming a little southwest, it kinda looks traversable there. Just gun it!"

---

Samene using the Mk1 lights to orient her landing attitude.

Marliana: "And we're out! And airborne."

Samene: "Don't worry, I can see our landing, clear as crystal. ESME OWNS THE NIGHT!"

Marliana: "Yeah, just not steep gradient slopes."

Leevy: "You're still on that, Marly?"

Marliana: "Just stating a fact, Leev. It's behind us now. Let's circumnavigate, shall we?"

Leevy: "That's the spirit!"

---

There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to kerbal... It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition,

and it lies between the pit of kerbal's fears and the summit of his knowledge.

This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call the "We Are SO Disassembled Zone."

Especially if Marliana turns left. I think it was left that was really dangerous.

A look out the cockpit window. The order was instinctive for Samene. "A'ight, be advised, Crystal: We're dark again. Girls, brace for drop."

A hundred meters later, Leevy observed: "We're not dropping."

"Yeah, I can see that, Leevy." replied Sam. "Marly?"

"We're dark on both sides. Hmm..." It's not wise for a driver to ruminate and drive at the same time, especially in the dark (though let's admit it: we've all done that in our driving lives, amirite?). "OH CRAP WE'RE RUNNING A RIM BRIDGE."

An OH CRAP or any of its equivalents is enough to trigger the appropriate response from Mission Control. "Elcano-One, Crystal Palace, a what?"

"Two craters close enough that their rims merge," Marliana hurriedly replied. "So it's a realy narrow land bridge, except that it's also sucking up our lights."

"Oh, don't turn, Marliana, don't turn!" Samene cried.

"What do you think I'm doing, Samene?! Just brace us in case we DO drop!"

---

Samene: "Terrain's flattening out some. Crystal, I'm putting her on cruise."

CAPCOM: "Let's not get careless, Elcano-One."

Samene: "We know, mom, we know. I've still got my finger on the cruise-kill button."

---

EDITOR'S NOTE: I was breathing a sigh of relief at this point.

Samene: "We're ten kilometers out, Crystal!"

(NEW VOICE): "Alright Sam, way to go!"

Samene: "Whoa--Jeb?"

Jeb Kerman: "Yep! Be advised Elcano-One, everyone is here in the room right now. Even Val's team onboard 'Shooter XV is networked in. We're all watching you take it home."

Val Kerman (SunShooter XV): "Tonks to Elcano-One. But no pressure, right?"

Samene: "No pressure, Val. Thanks for all the flight lessons, teach. You've saved our butts on too many occasions."

Val: "My pleasure, Sam. My pleasure."

Bill Kerman: "Hey Leev, still keeping things weird up there?"

Leevy: "Not as weird as your decoupler bridge, boss."

Bob Kerman: "Elcano-One. This is Bob. Marliana, you holding up?"

Marliana: "A-OK, Bob. ESME's been giving me no trouble at all."

Bob: "Bet'cha can't wait to get out of the driver's seat and back into a lab, huh?"

Marliana: "Actually, Bob... I'm thinking about transferring to the Pilots Division."

Bob: "Wait--a pilot? JEB! YOU ARE NOT GOING TO TAKE MY KERBALS AWAY FROM ME!"

Jeb: "Hey, I had nothing to do with it this time! You're the one that put here in the Elcano crew!"

(scuffle breaks out in Mission Control)

CAPCOM: "Oh my gods... Elcano-One, just keep running the way you are. We need to break up a fistfight here."

---

KSP will have to get around to disposing of that lander.

Littering on the Mun is a bad thing.

"That's what I think it is, isn't it?" Marliana asked.

"Aaaaand... we're here!" declared Samene. "That's the ESME lander."

Fierce grins all around the cabin. "Lock the spotlight on the start flag, Leev."

---

"Crystal Palace, Elcano-One." Samene's voice was solemn over the radio, though you could hear the emotion bubbling beneath. "Mission accomplished."

"WAY TO GO, SAM!" cried Jeb.

"Good job, Marly!" congratulated Bob.

"Whooo, go Leevy!" whooped Bill.

"I've taught you girls well, haven't I?" asked Val, from the cabin of the Nymphadora Tonks making its approach towards Minmus.

"Apparently better than you've taught me, Val?" joked Ronlorf, her second in command, over the same radio net.

"Only because you keep humming Miley Kerman songs over the intercom during training, Ron," she chided.

Jeb turned to Carlisle Kerman, the kerbal who had designed the ESME, all but twisted his arm to reschedule their historic Mun landing to SunShooter XI, in order to launch the support pieces necessary for accomplishing the Elcano challenge in SunShooter X. A decision the pilot hotly contested before, but now... "Not bad... for an amputated space plane." He offered his hand. "Congratulations, Doc."

Carlisle graciously received it. "Thank you. Quite generous of you, for an overdramatic, puffed-up space cowboy."

Jeb snorted. Good-naturedly.

"Well, you've done it," Christina said, coming up alongside Carlisle.

He shook his head. "No... they did it. it'll be them to receive the trophy. I'm just glad to have given them the instrument of their victory."

---

Samene: "Hey Marly, since I was the one that planted the start flag, and you were the one to drive us all the way around, you want to be the one to plant the finish flag?"

Marliana: "My pleasure."

---

This screencap is brought to you by Universal Storage

Giving you exclusive parts to playtest with because heat dynamics is borking everything since 1.0

Or since Leg 7, in ESME's case.

Marliana: "Crystal Palace, we are putting the ESME into cold quiescent status. Shutting down fuel cell."

Leevy: "It's amazing how she held up through the run, especially after we got the radiator bolted on."

Marliana: "Four hundred kilometers, and over seven hours of non-stop use, since we plugged the radiator wedge in."

Leevy: "And you can count the stress test we ran up to Arch Crater, too. Okay, confirm fuel cell circuit is offline. She's cooling down, fast."

Marliana: "ESME is running on reserves now. Leev, let's get the solar panels bolted in before we shut her down completely."

---

Samene: "She's a good ship."

Marliana: "No doubt about it."

Leevy: "I wanna do it again."

Samene: "Ugh, Leev, as much as I am proud of what we've accomplished, all I wanna do now is head home for a hot bath, fresh Snacks!, and a big, fluffy bed."

Leevy: "How about a yacht?"

Samene and Marliana: "Huh?"

Leevy: "Well, Fengist was the guy that launched this challenge, right? [thread=125063]He's also got a boat shop[/thread]. It'll be cool, girls! Just us three, on a luxury yacht in the middle of the ocean, away from it all..."

Samene: "Heh, I'll keep that in mind, Leevy. Let's get on board the Regan."

---

Samene: "OH CRAP! Elcano-One to Crystal Palace. The Regan's out of EC!"

CAPCOM: "Come again?"

Samene: "The battery's drained. I think someone forgot to lock the batts when she switched the ship to quiescent mode, right, Marliana?"

Marliana: ":blush: Whoops?"

Samene: "Ugh. Well, we're stuck here until sunrise charges our batts, Crystal."

CAPCOM: "Understood, Elcano-One. Will you be alright?"

Samene: "Yeah. We may not have any EC for the heaters, but we do have some space blankets on board. And the Snacks! are just as edible cold as they are hot."

CAPCOM: "Okay. Sit tight, Sam. By our estimates, we'll actually have to bring SunShooter XV to parking orbit around Minmus first before we can attend to your return trip."

Samene: "Copy. Out. What a way to end a trip, huh?"

Marliana: "Sorry..."

Samene: "Don't kick yourself about it. They can't take this circumnavigation away from us just because of a drained batt on the lander. Let's just hunker down until we can go. Wanna trade Snacks!? I'm not a particular fan of cherry."

---

Later, as the sun rose over the horizon...

CAPCOM: "Elcano-One, Crystal Palace, 'Shooter XV is parked, and we are ready for your return trip."

Samene: "Understood, Crystal. Engine ignition in 5... 4... 3... 2... and... mark!"

Leevy: "That's a funny feeling."

Marliana: "What is, Leev?"

Leevy: "Upwards Gees. Being in flight once again." (looks out the window, towards the deactivated ESME) "It's like I'm leaving a part of myself on the Mun."

Samene: (patting Leevy on the shoulder) "We all are, Leevy. We all are."

---

MISSION STATUS: ACCOMPLISHED

TRAVEL TIME: ~4 days 5 hours 31 minutes (Kerbal)

ALL SOULS ACCOUNTED FOR

ONE LAST JOURNEY, BEFORE THE TRIP HOME: to STN Lelani Mayolanofavich, in 100km orbit around the Mun

To be continued in the Epilogue...​

Edited July 10, 2015 by B-STRK

[Geschosskopf]

Bravo! Congrats on getting around Mun! Of all the places with enough gravity to make driving really a thing, Mun is IMHO the worst. I salute your accomplishment and your field-testing of experimental US parts that I hope to be using myself shortly .