Odin Munar Progam - Odin 20 Part 1

[Xeldrak]

The eighth manned mission in the Odin munar program, and the third to land on the Mun: Odin XIV

It was the last of the "H missions," targeted landings with one-day stays on the Mun with two EVAs, or munwalks.

The reliable Sleipnir V booster worked flawlessly as always during the ascend. Six minutes after launch, the Odin spacecraft had entered a 102.6 km x 99.9 km orbit around Kerbin and the crew started system checks, readying everything for the trans-munar injection. After one hour in space the crew was done with checks and fired the S-IVB stage to put them on their way to the Mun. Ten minutes after finishing the burn, it was time for the transposition and docking maneuver. The CSM seperated from the remaining craft, turned 180 degress and docked with the MEM. Command Module Pilot Bill Kerman performed the maneuver. He then used the RCS to pull the two docked spacecraft away from the spent S-IVB stage. Now everything was set up for their coast to the Mun - time for a nap and some snacks.

After the usual one day trip to the Mun the SPS fired over the it's fars side, slowing down the spacecraft in order to enter a munar orbit. After a few hours around the Mun Valentina and Bob enter the MEM and ready it up for its trip. They soon undock and lower their orbit. After 26 minutes they start the main breaking maneuver and slowly decended into the giant midland crater. Because of a new decend profile fuel started to become crital soon. However Valentina expertly steered the MEM to a precission landing with the last drops of fuel. The engine ceased working just one meter over the munar surface and the MEM set down safely although a bit rougher than usual.

After completing their landing checklist Valentina an Bob donned their space suits. It was time to once again step one the Mun. Right after egress Valentina planted the obligatory flag and went on a small mun stroll while Bob set up the two OMSEP stations. On his way back to the MEM Bob collected a few samples and the first EVA had to be concluded.

After a little nap and some snack in the MEM, the two kerbonauts where ready for their second EVA. They once again exited the MEM and went on a walk to the nearby crater where they examined it's rim. It was decided to name the crater "Jebediah" in honour of the famous pilot who lost his life in the Odin I accident. Valentina climbed down into the crater to collect more samples while Bob stayed behind on the rim, watching her. After returning to Bob they examined several more rocks and finally returned to the MEM.

Once inside they took another nap, sorted and bagged their samples and prepared for liftoff. After spending a whole day on the munar surface, Val fired the ascend engine to return to the CSM. After about one hour the two spacecraft docked in munar orbit. Bob and Val transfered back to the CSM with their collected samples and. The ascend stage was jettisoned and left to crash onto the Mun while the now reunited crew fired up the SPS to return them back to Kerbin.

The trip home was uneventfull, only disturbed by a small midcourse correction. 126 km above Kerbin the Service Module was jettisoned, the crew was commited for reentry. Protected by the heat shield they hurtled through the atmosphere before splashing down safely, four days, three hours and three minutes after launch.

 

 

Edited November 30, 2015 by Xeldrak

[Sharkman Briton]

Wow! Moar stuff! That [CLASSIFIED] is very [CLASSIFIED] and I wonder if [CLASSIFIED]

[Xeldrak]

Thanks - nice of you to appreciate the [CLASSIFIED].

[Dafni]

Very cool mission! And very nicely documented too, I enjoyed it! How about some craft files?? I'd be interested in your Odin11to14

Edited September 6, 2015 by Dafni

[Xeldrak]

Sure, I can hand out craft files

I should probably update the crafts-section in the original post, the lander and the CSM deserve their own post.

I uploaded the Odin 14 .craft file for now. Odin 11-14 are basically all the same. O11 had only one experiment-package and O13 can ejects its power supply

Mind you it's the raw file I work with, nothing polished. So I didn't write any desciptions and the higher stages are all a little messed up since I operate the spacecraft mainly by mouse once it's on a transmunar trajectory.

Edited September 6, 2015 by Xeldrak

[Dafni]

Thank you!

[Xeldrak]

A landing place for Odin XV has been determinated: The Plaid Plateau

It is located closely to the Northwest craters. It provides a nice, flat landing area and the closely located Riley rille and munar Arch are of great scientific interest. The new mun-rover greatly increases the operational range of the Kerbonauts.

[Xeldrak]

Odin XV is the first J-Type mission, meaning it will spent extended time on the Mun.

Because of this I have decided to split up the documentation into two or three parts.

So without further ado:

Just before boarding the rocket said:

Bob K.: "Where are the keys for the munar rover?!"
Valentina K.: "I've got them. I will drive."
Bob K.: *winces*
Bill.: "You two have fun on the surface. I'll be in orbit - listening to some disco music"

The ninth manned mission in the Odin program, the fourth to land on the Mun, and the eighth successful manned mission: Odin XV

The launch was scheduled for shortly after sunrise. Even with the naked eye you could see that something was different. The shoud of the mighty Sleipnir V had to be altered to accomodate the Munar Rover, the most exiting technical innovation on this mission. But the booster had no problem with the increased weight. When the countdown reached zero, the cluster of Mainsail engines fired, creating a fiery inferno beneath the rocket that slowly started to move upwards.

Even if the acceleration was small in the beginning, the rocket soon reached high speeds. Two minutes after liftoff, when the first stage separates, the rocket is moving at over three times the speed of sound. The sky turns black and the curvature of Kerbin becomes visible when looking out the window. Five minutes into the flight, after a short cruise phase, the S-II stage reignites to circularize the orbit. Once the burn is completed, the spent stage is separed and the shroud is ejected. But this time there was a small problem: Some of the charges to blow the shroud did not fire. So while the shroud was fractured it did not fly off as intended. However the spacecraft was able to "break free of it's cocoon" using a bit of thrust.

After a one hour period of system checks in orbit it was time to go to the Mun. The S-IVB stage fired and put the crew on its course to our distant companion. Ten minutes after the burn was concluded it was time for the docking and transposition maneuver. The CSM separated and turned around. Bill Kerman, the command module pilot, docked the two crafts and pulled them away from the spent S-IVB stage. With this last hurdle gone, the crew relaxed, ate some snacks and took a nap while they cruised toward the Mun.

About one day later the crew fired up the SPS while passing behind the backside of the Mun to decelerated the spacecraft and enter a munar orbit. Bob and Val, giddy to test out their new equipment, soon board the MEM and undock. Leaving Bill behind in the CSM while they descent down to the Plait Plateau. Because of the increased weight, Val has to set down the lander softly. A rough landing like on Odin XIV could tip the lander an potentially strand both of them on the Mun. But the seasoned pilot she is, Val gently sets down the MEM on the ground, right in the target zone and with four seconds of fuel to spare.

Looking out the window, they can both see the munar arch aswell as mons matterhorn. This will be a few interesting days.

 

 

Edited November 30, 2015 by Xeldrak

[Xeldrak]

On the Rover said:

Bob K.: "Do you think this is safe, Val?"
Valentina K.: "No. No, I don't think so."
Bob K.: "Why don't you break a little then?"
Valentina K.: "Ah...you know. I can't find the break."
Bob K.: "It's right there!"
Valentina K.: "What? I think there is a problem with your mic."

After landing Bob and Val decided to take a little nap to be in top shape for their first EVA. Once both were awake, they ate some snacks and then donned their space suits. After egress one of the big innovations on this mission was deployed: the munar rover. During the flight it was attached to the side of the MEM and was now separated and paced in a upright position next to the lander. Val checked out the fuel tank, the batteries and the fuel cell before both kerbonauts got onto the rover.

The commander took the helm and the two kerbonauts headed to the Riley rille, about two kilometers to the north. Val accelerated to 10.4 m/s, which seemed like a reasonable speed. With a few breakes to collect samples and to recharge the batteries they arrived at the Riley rille and stopped at it's edge. Val and Bob exited the rover and collected a few samples of the sorrounding area before getting back on the rover to head straight into the rille. They followed the rille eastwards, stopping now and then for more samples.

Once the sides of the rille got more even they exited the rille, back to the plateau. Having spent so much time collecting samples Val puts the pedal to the metal to get back to the Lander, since they still had to set up the OMSEPs during their first EVA. Val accelerated to 41.4 m/s while Bob started to quiver. The flight surgeon in ground control suspected Bob of having a heart attack when the two Kerbonauts hit a small bump and lifted off the munar surface for a few meters.

Once back at the lander Bob seperated the OMSEPs while Val took care of the rover, making sure nothing hat broken. They then deployed the OMSEPs together, carrying them to their location about a hunded meters of the MEM. At this point it was time for another Nap, as physical activities in spacesuits are quite taxing. So they headed back into the MEM, munched a few snacks and hung out for a bit.

Well rested, they donned their spacesuits a second time and, after some persuasion on Vals part, they both got on the munar rover and headed for the "von" and "Kerman" twin craters. They are obviously named for Wernher von Kerman (whose ego is so inflated he needed two craters named for him). Up to now, they were on schedule but the way to the ridge of "von" was steeper that it appeared from a distance, so the two kerbonauts lost some time while crawling up the slope at a snail's pace. Bob was happy. Once on the ridge Val stopped for a few quick samples before heading straight into the crater and up it's westward flank. While geologically interesting this side also provided a nice downward slope to accelerate toward the bridge between the two craters. Bob did not know that Val had bet fifty funds that she could jump from one crater to the other without touching the ground between them.

Sadly Val lost her bet as they set down rather hard on the munar surface between the craters. Since the remaining flat surface was to short to break, Val instead accelerated and they hurtled on straight into the Kerman crater. When hitting the ground inside the crater one of the rovers tires blew. So Val brought the rover to a halt near a nice rock and, while Bob calmed his nerves collecting samples, Val replaced the tire. Once again late on ther schedule, they headed back to the MEM as soon as the rover was fixed. A small stop at Kermans ridge to collect a few samples and straight then straight to the lander. During the trip to the lander Val checked the new tire and the rovers reaction wheel by driving on only two wheels. Bob was no amused.

One last this was planned for the ende of EVA2: setting up the Flag. So Val retrieved it from the MEM and placed it nearby. Both kerbonauts took a few PR shots with the flag before climbing back into the MEM. Time to relax before they set out for EVA3, the most extensive EVA ever attempted.

 

 

 

Edited November 30, 2015 by Xeldrak

[Xeldrak]

In the Atreides crater said:

Valentina K.: "Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?"
Bob K.: *pants* "That....was......AWESOME!"
Valentina K.: "I knew there was a pilot inside you, Bob."

While Kerbol slowly crept closer and closer to the horizon, indicating the time the crew definitively had to leave the Mun, Bob and Val readied up for their last and most extensive trip with the munar rover: EVA3.

Once they were straped onto the rover, they headed out to the munar arch in the south west. At first the terrain was nice and even but the closer they got to the arch, the steeper it got. Soon enough Val had to revert to a zig-zag pattern to get up the hill. The rovers limited torque really made this a tedious climb. But on the plus side, the zig-zag pattern lead them to the edge of the St. George crater where they could pick up a few samples. This way they wouldn't have to stop later.

When approaching the arch Bob and Val realized its incredible size. They stopped at it's eastern base, where Val got of the rover and collected a few samples before activating her personal RCS to get up the arch. Once ontop Val collected several more samples and made pictures of the sorrounding terrain and the arch itself. They should keep the scientists at Kerbin busy for some time. Even though Val wanted to spent more time ontop of the arch, it was time to move on. After her descent Valentina got back on the rover and buckled up. Now was the time to really test the rover.

Val put the pedal to the metal and headed for St. George crater. At 24.8 m/s the Kerbonauts jumped into the crater, a 300 meter drop. They were airborne for about 20 seconds, before hitting the ground and blowing one tire. But this time Val would not break to replace the tire but continue accelerating, heading straight into the Atreides crater. She got up to 41.1 m/s before the ground dropped away below them.

Almost one minute later and 1000 meter below they hit the ground in the Atreides crater. On impact the munar rover converted into a munar sled, meaning all tires blow and leaving Val without any way to steer. Hoping they stop before the drop into the Leto crater, Bob and Val slid through Atreides. Thankfully they stop within time. While Val was still high on adrenaline Bob started to replace the tires. It was time to collect a few samples from the Atreides crater before heading back. They headed up the western flank of the crater and then get the rover up to speed, crossing the crater and jumping of the north-east ridge off it into the fringe of the Riley rille.

The Riley rille was their way back. They head up the rille, onto to the Plait plateau. Once again the steep terrain pushed the rover to it's limits. Val and Bob had to stop several times to recharge the batteries, as the fuell cell did not supply enough energy to keep them charged while driving. After almost 40 minutes the Kerbonauts were back on the Plait plateau and approached the MEM. Once back, Bob and Val got all their samples into the lander and took another quick nap before it was time to liftoff.

The sun was almost setting when the two Kerbonauts fired the ascend engine and left the Mun behind. A few orbital maneuvers later and the Crew was finally reunited. Just one more thing to do before leaving the Mun: Deploying the subsatellite. Happy to have something to do, Bill happily went to work. He opened the CSM equipment bay and activated the subsatellite engine. With just a little nudge it slowly drifted out of the CSM and into it's own munar orbit. The crew stayed just long enough to make sure the satellite was successfully deployed before preparing the trans-kerbin injection.

The trip home was uneventfull. The crew ejected the service module, as usual, when they approached the atmosphere of Kerbin. But due to their long stay on the Mun they had to reenter over Kerbins night side. They safely splashed down in the middle of the night, five days after their launch.

 

 

 

Edited November 30, 2015 by Xeldrak

[Clipperride]

Having recently watched the Apollo 15 mission on DVD (I'm a bit of an Apollo geek at heart) I must congratulate you on finding such a suitable spot on the Mun to recreate the mission. I love that KSP inspires people to fly such missions.

Just be careful not to snap off a mudflap from the rover

PS How did you counter the weight of the rover throwing off the CoM?

[Xeldrak]

Thanks - it's good to know that I'm not the only one reading mission transscripts and original NASA press-kits.

The fully fueled MEM weighs 14.4 t and the rover only 1 t. I simply moved the 2 OMSEPs to the other side of the MEM and left the rest to the SAS.

Hm, I just realised that it weighs less than the LM

[Clipperride]

Thanks - it's good to know that I'm not the only one reading mission transscripts and original NASA press-kits.

NASA have done a great job in making their archive public. I love reading through things like the Apollo Surface Journal. I was lucky enough to get to write a couple of articles for Sky at Night Magazine for the 40th anniversaries of A17 and Skylab.

Are you going to fly the Skylab and Apollo Soyuz Test Program missions? Then there's the Apollo Applications Program . There were some interesting ideas making use of the modular nature of the CSM and LM, with 2 Saturn V launches per mission. It's sad that those flights never took place, although with the margins back then, its maybe good they stopped when they did.

Happy landings

[Sharkman Briton]

Good work! Though I would suggest saying somewhere on the post that the parts are on what the roman numerals translate into, I don't know those things XD

[Xeldrak]

They don't teach roman numeral anymore?! Well, the first link in every mission description is always a link to the corresponding Apollo mission. In this case it's in the ODIN XV, Part 1 post.

I'm definitely going to do skylab. The manned skylab missions could be a little boring, since there is no real IVA in KSP. But as I also did stuff like the two Pad Abort Test and four Little Joe II tests, not doing all three manned mission might be inconsistent. Apollo-Soyus is planned, but I'll only do it if I come up with a good soyus booster/spacecraft.

Plans beyond that are vague but in my universe NASA continued the program I somewhere read, that a apollo astronaut lobbied for a landing on the far side of the mun after deploying a small network of com-satellites arround the Mun, wich sound like an awesome idea I will try to realize. After that maybe a Eve flyby or even a Duna landing, we'll see. I haven't had much time to investigate the future plans from back then, yet.

I recently ordered "Apollo: The Lost and Forgotten Missions" by David Shayler, I hope that it will give me further ideas for the future of the Odin Program.

[Parkaboy]

The Spaceflight History blog (formely Beyond Apollo) also has a lot of interesting bits on the Apollo Applications program. Could be useful!

[Clipperride]

Several astronauts went as far as creating a detailed mission timeline for an Apollo 18 mission to the far side of the Moon. They hoped it would be a big enough step forward to warrent the funding. Remember NASA already had the LM CSM and Saturn V, but couldn't afford the ~20million in running the mission. I believe it would have been with, as far as I recall , at most a single relay satellite that they would reply on reaching lunar orbit.

A great book of you can find it (although not cheap for its size) is the Apollo Scrapbook (I can find the ISBN if you're interested) which has many pictures of the AAP missions. Although you can probably find pictures online with a little hunting Basically using a standard decent stage to automatically deliver living quarters or lab before the manned mission set off. Also long duration lunar orbit missions and a space telescope that became part of Skylab.

Edit - The books is - Lunar Exploration Scrapbook by Robert Godwin. Worth a look if you can get it through the library.

Edited September 13, 2015 by Clipperride

[Xeldrak]

Thanks for the tip with the blog - this guys has some nice posts, I'll have to read.

I'm located in Austria, so getting a book like this through the library is hard. But I found a rather cheap, used one through Amazon. I think I'll have a look. Thanks for the recomendation!

[Clipperride]

If you can get a good second hand one, so much the better. It's a fascinating book, just a bit short for the full retail price IMO. There are even pictures of a Gemini based manned Lunar lander plus a hard shelled EVA suit that makes the wearer look like a robot from a low budget 1950s SciFi film.

Also - how did you find your landing sites? Are the all from the standard Mun or is there a mod involved? As a back yard astronomer, I'm especially fond of Apollo 15 as, in perfect seeing conditions, I can just about trace out the big curve in Hadley Rille through the telescope. Sadly that's the closest I'm going to get to it. Growing up with the later Apollo flights I assumed I'd get to go to the Moon as an adult and do feel a touch cheated. Thank goodness for KSP and our virtual adventures.

[Xeldrak]

Well, I can't wait to see the book

The landing site can be found on the standard Mun, the Plaint plateau is just a bit east off the huge Northwest Crater. I have a sandbox savegame where I will use a small craft to check out locations on the mun.

However in this case I was really lucky. I was looking for something like the Hadley rille and remembered that Seer I landed at the entrance to a valley. So I the checked the region and basically found the Plait plateau. In the linked screenshot you can allready see mons matterhorn, aswells as Leto and Atreides. If you look close you can see the Arch aswell, but I overlooked it. I only realized I had found a munar arch during descent with the Odin XV MEM . After reading the mission transscripts, I decided that I had to give names to the features, "Bob and Val were driving to another, huge crater" just wouldn't cut it.

And in this screenshot you can basically see the Seer I valley from the other side, looking back at the probe.

I've had trouble with a landing spot for Odin XVI but it will probably be the highlands to the south-east of big Southwest Crater. It's not as varied as the Plait plateau but at least it's a highland. There are some highlands near the Muns northpole aswell, but a polar landing is something special. I'd prefer to wait for later Odin mission, where I can be more creative.

Also, kerbalmaps was somewhat helpfull.

[Clipperride]

I really hope you enjoy the book* and keep posting mission reports. If you enjoy recreations there will hopefully be lots to inspire you. It was assumed that after the initial landings that there would be two missions a year flown to do some in depth science on and around the Moon. I look forward to reading more

* If you want to read more the two best books (IMO) are "How Apollo Flew to the Moon" by D Woods and "Exploring the Moon" by D Harland. The first tells you everything about the flight and the second about orbiters, landers and EVAs. Both are a few years old now so you may find them cheap on Amazon marketplace or EBay. I do like a good book as well as the Internet (/oldschool)

[Xeldrak]

They tell me the book is on it's way, I await it in pleasant anticipation. In the meantime, a few anouncements.

Since the original three have by now become veritable space and Mun veterans, Mission Control has decided to add two more crews to the Kerbonaut roster.

I present the Odin 6:

John W. Kerman                Commander                                      Odin 16
Thomas K. Kerman II         Command Module Pilot                   Odin 16
Charles M. Kerman, Jr.      Munar Excursion Module Pilot        Odin 16
Eugene A. Kerman             Comander                                         Odin 17
Ronald E. Kerman              Command Module Pilot                   Odin 17
Harrison H. Kerman            Munar Excursion Module Pilot       Odin 17

The second great announcement is, that a landing site for Odin 16 has been found: The Hilbert highlands

The Kerbonauts will investigate how the highlands were formed. The Caushy, Laplace, Newton and Legendre craters will be their "natural drillholes", providing samples of the stone below the Hilbert highlands. The big Leibnitz, Gauss and Noether craters provide additional targets of scientific interest.

The exact landing zone is between the Newton and Laplace craters.

Edited November 30, 2015 by Xeldrak

[Clipperride]

With 26.7km to drive on Apollo 16 you have some fun ahead. Although the Lunar speed record is only 17.1 km/h or 4.75 m/s. Happy landings

[Xeldrak]

The tenth manned mission in the Odin space program, the fifth to land on the Mun and the first to land in the munar highlands: Odin XVI

 

This mission marked the first time other Kerbonauts than the original three would head out to the Mun. Commander John W. Kerman, Command Module Pilot Thomas K. Kerman II and Munar Excursion Module Pilot Charles M. Kerman Jr. had been training for a long time for this mission to our distant companion.

The Sleipnir V rocket worked flawlessly during the ascend. Once the first stage was burnt out and jettisoned, the S-II stage carried the spacecraft all the way to orbit. After the problems during Odin XV the new shroud design had been reworked and now separated as intended, together with the S-II stage. The crew spent one and a half orbits, just over an hour, in orbit around Kerbin to check all systems before firing up the S-IVB stage for their trans-munar injection.

The S-IVB stage worked as intended and put the crew on their desired path. With the burn completed the crew prepared for the last crucial maneuver before their cruise to the mun. Ten minutes after TMI burn was completed the CSM seperated from the remaining craft and turned around to dock with the MEM. Command Module Pilot Thomas K. Kerman performed the maneuver flawlessly, just like the endless times he had practiced in the simulator. In the mean time the Commander had prepared some snacks and the crew could slack while they were cruising towards the Mun.

Once in munar orbit, the crew started obeservations of the munar surface and prepared for the decent to the surface. About one hour after MOI John and Charles undocked and headed for the Hilbert Highlands. With the heavier J-mission MEM they have to take a very direct approach. Therefore just nine minutes after undocking the Gauss Crater and the Highlands came in to view. John initiated the main breaking maneuver and just five minutes later the MEM touched the munar surface, right in the target zone.

After taking a quick nap inside the MEM John and Charles donned their spacesuits for their first EVA. John was the third kerbonaut to step onto the munar surface, followed by Charles a few minutes later. Their first task was to deploy the Munar Roving Vehicle and the two OMSEPs. After checking out the MRV, Charles and John each carry one of the OMSEPs to their deployment areas, about fifty meters away from the MEM. Once back at their lander they strap intro the MRV and take it for it's first ride.

Their first target was the Newton crater. It actually consists of two craters, so the kerbonauts stopped at both centers to collect some samples before heading north-east, out of the crater. Next they drove along the ridge of Caushy, stopping periodically to collect samples and make pictures. The third station was the northern cluster, an indentation in the munar surface of unclear origin. John and Charles collected several samples and pictures of the sorroundings, hoping to shed some light on it's origins.

This marked their furthest distance from the MEM on EVA1, at about eight kilometers. The kerbonauts then crossed the Hilbert highlands to get to Legendre, a crater on the southern edge of the highlands. Here they also collected several samples from the center of the crater before driving along it's ridge to the southern cluster, where Charles got off the MRV to collet several samples. Just like it's cousin on northern side of the highlands, the southern cluster is a series of indentations of unknown origin. Having secured these samples aswell, John and Charled headed back to the MEM.

They transfered today samples into the ascend-module and called it a day. Time for a nap and some snacks.

 

 

 

Edited November 30, 2015 by Xeldrak

[Xeldrak]

As any reader of this thread probably knows by now, aerospace engineers love their abbreviations. Therefore I collocated a small glossary that I will add to the original post, just for reference:

• CDR - Commander
  
• CM - Command Module
  
• CMP - Command Module Pilot
  
• CSM - Command and Service Module
  
• EVA - Extravehicular activity
  
• MEM - Munar Excursion Module
  
• MMP - Munar Excursion Module Pilot
  
• MOI - munar orbit insertion
  
• OMSEP - Odin Munar Surface Experiment Package
  
• S-IB - First stage of the Slepinir I and IB booster
  
• S-IC - First stage of the Sleipnir V booster
  
• S-II - Second stage of the Sleipnir V booster
  
• S-IV - Second stage of the Sleipnir I booster
  
• S-IVB - third stage of the Sleipnir V and second stage of the Sleipnir IB booster
  
• SM - Service Module
  
• SPS - Service Propulsion System
  
• TKI - trans-kerbular injection
  
• TMI - trans-munar injection
  

Edited September 22, 2015 by Xeldrak