science science science

[f.pelosa]

Hi,

I'm playing in science mode and I'm stuck as I don't know how to make more science points. Any suggestion?

These my achievements:

- explored several biomes on Kerbin (i.e. all places I reentered with my vessel, including water and exotic places (e.g. poles)

- low and high orbit

Mun, a couple of times in different landing sites.

In these locations I examined goo, temperature, did EVAs and used the barometer.

How can I earn some more science?

Thanks

F

Edited October 14, 2015 by f.pelosa

[Streetwind]

Welcome to the forums!

Off the top of my head, here are some of the things you did not mention doing (some of these require tech unlocks or even building upgrades):

- Crew reports (all situations, biome specific while landed)

- Seismometer (landed only, but biome specific and decently high payout)

- Gravioli detector (all situations except flying in atmosphere, high payout and biome specific everywhere)

- "Science Jr." materials bay (all situations, biome specific while landed, bulky but very high payout)

- Surface samples (landed only, but biome specific and very high payout)

Also verify that for the experiments you did do, you covered all the possible situations for that experiment. Not all experiments are available everywhere, and different experiments may be biome specific in different situations. You can often discern whether or not an experiment is biome specific by looking at the science report it generates (either while doing science or later-on in the science archives). A crew report taken in low Kerbin orbit report might say "Crew report in space above Kerbin", while an EVA report in the same location might say "EVA report in space above Kerbin's Grasslands". This indicates that crew reports are not biome specific in the "low orbit" situation (but they might be in others), while EVA reports are (but they might not be in others).

Finally, did you get the full payout for your experiments? Most of them only give a partial payout if you transmit them with an antenna. You only get the full payout by landing a vessel containing the performed experiment safely back on Kerbin and recovering it. Tip: You can repeat an experiment you already transmitted, and carry it back to Kerbin, where recovering it will give you the science you missed out on by transmitting. (A few experiments even give additional payout for repeatedly recovering them, but it's generally not worth to bother when you could be going to fresh locations instead.)

Beyond that - you can get more science by visiting more locations. The Mun has 15 different biomes to visit. You haven't been to Minmus at all, which has 9 different biomes. You can also briefly dip a ship outside Kerbin's SoI to get high solar orbit science and then return; and after that, there are five other planets with seven moons to explore, each with multiple biomes of their own.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Streetwind

[Guillotine]

You should go to minmus and get all the sience you can out from it, its also easyer to land and get back than mun.

If you have acces to mobile prosessing lab id recommend using that to some degree ( all thou it requires tons of electrical charge ).

[Mastikator]

There's also easy access to minimus and Kerbol.

You can also set up research bases and stations with the mobile research lab which converts data into science over time.

[Steelsunoa]

Well, if you can achieve a Mun landing and return you should be able to use the same, or similar, craft to go to Minums. Perhaps with your design you can get 2-3 biomes on Minmus in the same flight and still return. I assume you are doing crew reports, observing the science lab, and taking soil samples, despite not listing them. You should be getting plenty of science within your Kerbin/Mun/Minmus expeditions. You can use some biome maps found online or use an add-on, I prefer Kerbal Engineer Redux, to see the biome you are currently in/over to determine where you should target your next landing. Also, if you EVA in low orbit above the biomes you get science for each of those as well (not sure if you were already doing that). Keep exploring and bringing the data into the capsule, reset scientific tests that can be reset, and take more data.

This is an older video, but it may help.

[Alshain]

You shouldn't be having all that much trouble with science.

Put yourself in a polar orbit of Kerbin and grab the EVA report as you travel over each of the 9 biomes (polar because the planet will turn underneath you allowing you to eventually get them all). The Mun has 15 biomes and you can do the same. This trick only works for the EVA Report and Gravity scans, those two are the only per-Biome science you can do in space. For a full breakdown, see here and scroll down to the 'Activities' section.

You can complete tier 5 without going anywhere but the Mun and without even landing on it. I just did it this morning in fact and I still have 200 science left over.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Alshain

[OhioBob]

Below is a check list that I use for collecting science in the Kerbin system. I find it helpful because I can use it to keep track of what science I've already collected and what new areas I should target. There are actually more biomes around KSC than what I've got listed - each building is now its own biome.

http://www.braeunig.us/pics/KSP/ScienceCheckList.pdf

In case you are unfamiliar with the "low" and "high" definitions, on Kerbin "flying low" is below 18 km, "flying high" is between 18 km and 70 km, "in space low" is between 70 km and 250 km, and "in space high" is between 250 km and the SOI. On Mun, the border between "in space low" and "in space high" is 60 km, and on Minmus the border is 30 km. The "flying" definition is not applicable to Mun and Minmus because they don't have atmospheres. For the borders of other planets and moons, consult the Wiki.

I also recommend that as you collect enough science to unlock a new technology, you should consider unlocking a technology that gives you a new science experiment.

[Mitchz95]

Any ship that can get to the Mun and back can get to Minmus and back. Lots of science over there.

[OhioBob]

(some of these require tech unlocks or even building upgrades)

Note that in science mode building upgrades are not applicable. Science mode beings with all the buildings at level 3. Building upgrades are required in career mode only.

[Alshain]

Below is a check list that I use for collecting science in the Kerbin system. I find it helpful because I can use it to keep track of what science I've already collected and what new areas I should target. There are actually more biomes around KSC than what I've got listed - each building is now its own biome.

http://www.braeunig.us/pics/KSP/ScienceCheckList.pdf

In case you are unfamiliar with the "low" and "high" definitions, on Kerbin "flying low" is below 18 km, "flying high" is between 18 km and 70 km, "in space low" is between 70 km and 250 km, and "in space high" is between 250 km and the SOI. On Mun, the border between "in space low" and "in space high" is 60 km, and on Minmus the border is 30 km. The "flying" definition is not applicable to Mun and Minmus because they don't have atmospheres. For the borders of other planets and moons, consult the Wiki.

I also recommend that as you collect enough science to unlock a new technology, you should consider unlocking a technology that gives you a new science experiment.

You are missing some. There is a Surface: Landed and a Surface: Splashed condition. With lakes, rivers, shorelines, and islands, it is possible to get science for both conditions in all biomes (except KSC biomes of course). Also there are a lot more KSC biomes than that now.

[cantab]

There's no shortage of ways to earn science points, so really it depends what you like doing. You can exploit the Mun and Minmus for all the science they're worth if you like. Or you can be happy with a few landings there and head off to the other planets with either probes or Kerbals as you like. Or you can set up a station or base with the mobile processing lab, once it's operating and stocked with results you can get a couple of thousand bonus science out of that. Or, once you have wheels, you can spend your time driving round all the buildings at the space centre.

(An idea for starting interplanetary: if you have a good Mun ship you can probably take it to Ike, the overall delta-V requirement is very similar.)

[f.pelosa]

hi guys, thanks for the help

I figure I am probably missing something on the usage of the mobile lab.

What I do is, I attach thermometers and goo bays to it, I analyse them and then I click on the yellow icon (shaped as a 'bottle'). Few seconds later I get the results from the lab. I click on the green icon (the notepad) and that's it.. I go back home with the ship. How do I get it to produce results over time?

Thanks

[Guillotine]

Transfer data to the sience lab and then you right click the lab and press start research. It will prosess the data and produce x ammount sience per day. Then you can transmit that researched data back to KSP.

[Streetwind]

That only works if the mobile lab has one or more scientist kerbals in it. The more scientist ranks, the faster it runs.

[cantab]

It's kind of complicated and one of the "game mechanic" aspects of KSP, by which I mean it's not obviously based on real physics. For a high level overview, results from experiments are converted into data in the lab by reviewing the experimental result and choosing to process data, a quick process. Data in the lab is then converted into science points in the lab by right-clicking it and choosing start research, this is a slow ongoing process. Science points in the lab can be collected by right-clicking it and choosing transmit science, and will only then be available to unlock tech tree nodes with.

There's a tutorial that taught me how to use it, http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/119620

You want a scientist in the lab throughout, and you also need a method of controlling the ship, so either a command pod with another Kerbal in it or else a probe core - the lab isn't a command module and it cannot control the ship.

[dangerhamster]

One little trick early on is to not save/transmit the raw science but simply process in the lab and then discard the experiment. You can then put another lab in position, run the same experiments and just process the data again. Rinse and repeat as needed.

[FlyingPete]

If you can get to Mun and Minmus, you should also be able to nip just out of Kerbin's SOI to do 'in orbit high over the Sun' science experiments. Then turn about and head back for Kerbin.

[Clipperride]

Every large crater you see from orbit on the Mun is a different biome and all worth visiting for the Science Points. There is also the polar region, highlands, lowlands and the canyons that lead off two large craters (they count as one).

An un-crewed probe sent out of Kerbins SOI also gets more science, although you do loose some points for transmitting rather than returning the data.

Minmus also has plenty of different locations (most are nice and flat and at 0m altitude) for yet more points. It's possible (with the use of a couple of Mobile Labs) to unlock the whole tech tree without visiting other planets SOI.

Most places give reduced points the second time you conduct experiments there. I found this especially useful for keeping the orbiting Labs full of data.

[f.pelosa]

hi all again.

Reading around, I found that a button called "start research" should be present in the menu for the mobile lab.

What I find in my menu is just "process data". After some 10-15 seconds you press it, you can collect science points (or send them via radio) and that's it.

I find no way to start a long-term reseach..

What am I missing?

Thanks

AC

[Clipperride]

Once you have processed the data, it should be available for the lab to use in its research. As long as you have processed some data you should see the "start research" button when you right click the Lab.

[Sampak]

To add to what others have already mentioned, I too was in a lull as far as needing more science in Science mode, in order to unlock stuff. So I decided to revisit the Mun and Minmus, this time by complete chance with a 2.5M lander with about 2,000-3,000 m/s extra dV and used it (with my 'skills' it took me a whole night of crashing and reloading) to hop over several different biomes on the Mun, and Minmus, and ended up netting probably 1500-2000 science points, which I promptly spent on science experiments (Graviolli detector, etc.), and other 'fun' bits (3.5m rocket parts and power gen).

Start 'hopping' biomes on Minmus because it's much 'cheaper' with delta V and piloting mistakes, and once you've had your fill, recover that craft on Kerbin, and head out to the Mun and try the same. I went against my usual habits and on these high payout trips went into Polar orbits, just to force myself to land and get science from previously 'virgin' biomes.

[eric bloedow]

one final trick i figured out...quite tricky: have another ship land on Mun or Minmus, do experiments, then dock with a station that has a lab! that will give you more data to analyze. it also helps to have 2 scientists in the lab-but having 2 labs on one station doesn't help.

i currently have TWO stations with labs, one orbiting Mun and one orbiting Minmus!

[GoSlash27]

Hmm...

Nobody's mentioned all the biomes on KSC itself, including the rooftops. There's lots of freebie science there.

Best,

-Slashy

[Clipperride]

As Slashy mentions there are quite a few science point to be had at KSC. Personally I waited until I had some basic rover parts before trekking round getting them all. With the use of the Mobile Lab, I unlocked all the tech tree in the Kerbin/Mun/Minmus SOI, apart from a flyby of Moho and a Moho impactor. Looking back, I'm sure you can unlock all the stock parts without venturing past Minmus

[MarvinKitFox]

Hmm...

Nobody's mentioned all the biomes on KSC itself, including the rooftops. There's lots of freebie science there.

Best,

-Slashy

erf? rooftops? ROOFTOPS???

gwarsh!