How do I burn prograde?

[JackBush]

I've read that at a certain point in getting into orbit I ought to "accelerate prograde" or "burn prograde". I don't know what this means, nor how to do it. Can someone please explain?

Edited September 19, 2015 by JackBush

[Red Iron Crown]

It means to burn in the direction the vessel is travelling. Line up the navball with this marker and you'll be pointing prograde:

[JackBush]

It means to burn in the direction the vessel is travelling. Line up the navball with this marker and you'll be pointing prograde:

http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/images/thumb/a/a4/Prograde.svg/64px-Prograde.svg.png

Well, that was easy. Thanks a lot.

[Thegamer211]

Well, that was easy. Thanks a lot.

If your issue is solved, edit the title and mark the thread as [Answered]

[Hagen von Tronje]

Well, that was easy. Thanks a lot.

http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Navball

This has some great information on the navball's functions and the terminology we use with it.

http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Maneuver_node

And here's a similar one on maneuver nodes - maneuver nodes are simply planned directional burns to adjust a trajectory in a desired way, and they're actually a great learning tool! In a sandbox game*, if you place a ship in orbit, you can click the orbit and create a maneuver node, from which you can adjust the trajectory along the paths described in these articles (pro/retrograde, anti/radial, anti/normal), and the game will provide immediate feedback on how this changes your trajectory and orbit by showing your predicted orbit after changes made. Toying around with it can really help you visualize how orbital physics work, or at least it helped me quite a bit!

*The function is of course available in all modes, but in career you have to unlock it first.

[Red Iron Crown]

Fun fact: Prograde doesn't mean what we think it means. "Prograde" means moving in a west to east direction. What we call prograde is really called posigrade.

[JackBush]

http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Navball

This has some great information on the navball's functions and the terminology we use with it.

http://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Maneuver_node

And here's a similar one on maneuver nodes - maneuver nodes are simply planned directional burns to adjust a trajectory in a desired way, and they're actually a great learning tool! In a sandbox game*, if you place a ship in orbit, you can click the orbit and create a maneuver node, from which you can adjust the trajectory along the paths described in these articles (pro/retrograde, anti/radial, anti/normal), and the game will provide immediate feedback on how this changes your trajectory and orbit by showing your predicted orbit after changes made. Toying around with it can really help you visualize how orbital physics work, or at least it helped me quite a bit!

*The function is of course available in all modes, but in career you have to unlock it first.

Thanks for this info, too.