What do you place on a Satellite

[JLE]

Hi I was wondering what do you place on a Satellite to have the best equiped machine on KSP (Fuel, energy, science, communication). 

I want to learn more about satellites and how they work. 

 

Thanks!

[steuben]

my generic sat consists of
- one of every science available
- okto core
- small reaction wheel
- commutron 16
- a z-200 battery
- ox-4l array
- fl-t200
- and a 909 engine

 

[AlamoVampire]

Truly, it depends on the mission I want the satellite to do and where to do it. Generally tho, I use the circular 2.5m probe core, 2 of the circular 2.5 meter batteries, 4 rtgs a dish antenna and a smaller stick style antenna. After that what ever gear I need for the mission. If I want smaller, I just use smaller probe cores and the like. Beyond Duna you want the rtgs closer into kerbol solar panels and batteries work.

[Guest]

Probe core, antenna, science instrument (usually a thermometer since I only put sats up early on in career), solar panels, batteries, and some RCS for making orbital adjustments.

[eddiew]

27 minutes ago, JLE said:

Hi I was wondering what do you place on a Satellite to have the best equiped machine on KSP (Fuel, energy, science, communication). 

Tbh, the answer depends totally on where you're sending the satellite and why, but I'll give it a shot  

1. Fuel; carry only as much fuel as you need to get to your destination and insert into orbit there. Redundant fuel increases the weight increases the size of the launcher increases the cost.
2. Energy; as AlamoVampire says above, use RTGs for the outer solar system. I find you can do Jool on solars, if you use a decent number of extendible panels. However, only carry what you need, because again, weight and cost.
3. Science; any experiment you haven't got from the destination, really. No reason not to gather extra, even if your contract is specific. Always include at least one, even if the contract doesn't require anything, in case of "gather science from <x> orbit" contracts that may appear later. Click click, collect the money  
4. Communication; any antenna. In the next update, the smaller options will have smaller ranges, so you might want to invest in bigger dishes for interplanetary and reserve the little whips for Kerbin SoI only.

Edited May 9, 2016 by eddiew

[luizopiloto]

well... my sats have to be very lightweight and simple... and have at last 2 antennas... more than this depends of the mission goals...

[JLE]

Why the dish anthenas? 

Is the electric engine usefull?

[mrclucks]

It all depends on what kind of satellite you want.  Generic satellite in a vanilla install, I'll put a small probe core, a small fuel tank, the terrier, a couple hundred EC, a few solar panels, a few science expirements and a simple antenna.  If I'm playing with Scansat or any other mapping mod, I'll take the generic satellite and increase my battery size while also putting on every mapping part available so I can do all the different scan in a relatively short time from each other.  If you're playing with remote tech then its a whole other ball game and it would be best to ask in the mods thread or look for a guide/tutorial to help you out

[luizopiloto]

21 minutes ago, JLE said:

Why the dish anthenas? 

Is the electric engine usefull?

electric engines can send a probe from LKO to anywhere in Kerbol System... on a compact form factor... but it's not for the weak...

Edited May 9, 2016 by luizopiloto

[max_creative]

I have GIANT launchers, so I have GIANT satellites. I have the survey and orbit scanner, Two big antenna, all the science in a service bay, two or three ion engines, multiple big solar panels and RTG's, and a mk1 crew cabin.

All in one! 

Maybe I over engineered it... A little...

[eddiew]

2 minutes ago, max_creative said:

...and a mk1 crew cabin.

The idea of a satellite with operators onboard seems very cult sci fi... I want it, but I can't afford it in career :<

[luizopiloto]

If it have a crew cabin.... it's not a sat.. it's a station...

[spacebrick3]

In Sandbox, depending on the satellite, mine usually have two Gigantors and 4 RTGs, which is probably a little much, but looks pretty cool.

[max_creative]

Just now, eddiew said:

The idea of a satellite with operators onboard seems very cult sci fi... I want it, but I can't afford it in career :<

It's controlled by a probe core. I have the crew cabin because I have Kerbals floating all over the place in my save. And I play sandbox so I don't care about cost. If you play career I would suggest maybe having the survey and orbit scanner and then maybe try to cram in science equipment.

[suicidejunkie]

My current career game is oppressing AI; (they aren't allowed to be left unattended with a propulsion system).

So my satellites consist of a probe core, AA batteries, solar panel, tiny antenna, and a science package.  Typically bolted together by Bob using KAS.  When I unlock the tech, that'll be switched to RTG power instead.

For long distance RT comms, I've got ground stations at the poles for constant sun and sightlines.

[RizzoTheRat]

I use RemoteTech and ScanSat, so satellites are actually pretty useful.  Early game so far but I currently have

 - 4 KomSats orbiting Kerbin, each with a short range omin-directional antenna to maintain communication with each other and KSC, and 2 longer range directional antenna, one pointing at the Mun, and the other at Minmus.  They each have a FL-T100, terrier (smallest engine I have at the moment, OKTO, batteries and OxStats (only solar panels I have so far)

- 1 ScanSat in a polar orbit of Kerbin with Radar Altimetry and Multispectral sensors, plus batteries, Oxstats, OKTO and omni antenna.

-  Valentina in a lander on route to the Mun that's carrying 2 Komsats and Scansat to deploy once it enters Munar SoI

 

Later satellites will get upgrades to their antennae, solar panels and sensors depending on where they're going, and the engine and tank combination depends if they're launched from Kerbin SoI or dropped from another craft as part of a larger mission.

Edited May 9, 2016 by RizzoTheRat

[Cairol]

As I'm using RemoteTech, I mostly have communication satellites with different sizes / ranges.
They have
- Usually 1x Communotron 16 or 32 for SOI / orbital coverage.
- 2-x sat dishes. One pointed to "active vessel", one pointed to KSC, additional ones pointed towards other bodies, depending on their purpose.

Aside from the antennas, my basic setup for most communication satellites is like this:
1x PB-X150 Xenon container (or more for larger sats)
- If I go stock: 1x IX-6315 "DAWN" Electric propulsion system
  If I go NearFuturePropulsion: 1x IX-8219 "AFTER" Ion Thruster
  There are also older SAT designs in space with a "Spark" LFO engine. They work, but I would prefer Ions for almost every com sat today.
- HECS Core (has raction wheels built in)
- Solars (enough to supply all active antennas and other electrical systems plus some buffer margin for charging the batteries fast enough before going eclipsed.
  Type OX-4W or OX-4L for smaller sats or "Gigantor XL" panels for larger sats.)
- Batteries (enough to outlast the darkness time. Usually some Z-200, Z-1k, or with NearFutureElectrical: B-3k, B-6k)
- Some larger sats have RCS. But I would omit this in newer designs. Precise placement / orbital period tweaking is actually possible without that by using the thrust limiter.
- Girders to have attachment space for sat dishes
My larges com sats have 6 dishes and 1 omni to reach every planet. Two of them are in polar orbit around Kerbin as "main communications hub".
The smaller com sats are in aequatorial orbits around Kerbin and the moons to give SOI coverage. Either 3 of 4 of them. 17 in total for the Kerbin SOI.

I'm preparing a flight with my sat deployer for covering Duna. But I have to "practice" a bit more to get it done.
My first kerballed scout vessel was doomed, because I used too much fuel on the trip to duna with inefficient / bad maneuvers.
It's like it's rocket science or something...

[Curveball Anders]

3 hours ago, JLE said:

Hi I was wondering what do you place on a Satellite to have the best equiped machine on KSP (Fuel, energy, science, communication). 

I want to learn more about satellites and how they work.

The problem with sats in KSP is that they doesn't work/count the same way as in RL.

Getting a sat in a nice orbit is more or less a one-shot in KSP while in RL they continue to give good data for years and years.

But in a singleplayer game with free time-warp it just doesn't work game-wise.

I always use sats and probes first anyway, despite it's not being efficient at all.

But I'm a silverback and I do what I think is fun

[DChurchill]

2 hours ago, RizzoTheRat said:

I use RemoteTech and ScanSat, so satellites are actually pretty useful.

Must. Have. ScanSat. And DMagic Orbital Science. Must have DMagic Orbital Science.  With those two mods, satellites become very viable ways to get science.

The only probes I send up with as much science as I can cram onto it are probes leaving the Kerbin SOI. Otherwise they're built for purpose. And without DMagic, I'd build a couple in early game and then mostly forget about it as there's not many stock science instruments. I currently have a probe OTW to Duna that's stuffed full of instruments and a duplicate in LKO waiting for the transfer window to Eve. I fully expect to keep that design around and just improve it when I unlock an appropriate node. In a fit of originality, I call it {insert planetary body name here} Reconnaissance Orbiter.

[AlamoVampire]

why the dish antenna? well, for one, they look cool, but, in terms of practicality, they have the greatest range, and once (read: IF) comnets become a thing range is what you need.

[Znath]

Most of my satellites I launch are just ore-scanners.  They're also all over-engineered with ion engines to be able to change orbit.. not that they ever do.
  So there's one king-probe with the planetary scanner, and then little ones with just the narrow scanner so I can get accurate location data.  Kerbin has like 10-12 and Mun has 3 right now 2 polar 1 equatorial.  I may soon shift the polar ones to equatorial since that's where the circumnavigation vehicle is traveling.  Why wait an hour or two for the same one to orbit when I can put 3 up?

[samstarman5]

An OKTO or HECS, one or two science parts, antenna or dish, solar panels, one battery to give enough power while in shadow, a bit of fuel and like a Spark for orbital maneuvers, and a Pod or a Mk1 or Mk2 Crew Cabin for an emergency habitat with a docking port.

7 hours ago, suicidejunkie said:

My current career game is oppressing AI; (they aren't allowed to be left unattended with a propulsion system).

So my satellites consist of a probe core, AA batteries, solar panel, tiny antenna, and a science package.  Typically bolted together by Bob using KAS.  When I unlock the tech, that'll be switched to RTG power instead.

For long distance RT comms, I've got ground stations at the poles for constant sun and sightlines.

My space program is offended by your oppression of our AI drone friends. When kerbals are lost, one can always depend on an AI drone to bring the science home!

[Sereneti]

a probe core
1* radio-isotope generator
2*(2*3)solar-panels
some science-equipment
a antenna
3 small "inline" batteries
a xenon tank
a ion engine
a smal reaction-weel

yes the satelit is more expensive that it have to, but i dont regreat the ion engine+Xenon
( I often got "change the orbit of this probe" contract ...)

This satelite generate les power than the engine need, but the batteries are chaching the energy.

The Batteries can hold charge for ~ 100DV...
 

 

 

[Superfluous J]

I have 2 basic needs for satellites: Completing contracts and scanning ore. The contract-completing ones have exactly the bare minimum to complete the contract and no more. The scanning ones have the large clamshell dish and whatever is needed to get that into the polar orbit of its destination world.

like @luizopiloto I like launching these tiny things with SRBs. I also like launching them at about a 3-5 degree angle from the launch pad and just let them gravity turn themselves into orbit. Fins recommended.

[GoSlash27]

4 hours ago, 5thHorseman said:

I have 2 basic needs for satellites: Completing contracts and scanning ore. The contract-completing ones have exactly the bare minimum to complete the contract and no more. The scanning ones have the large clamshell dish and whatever is needed to get that into the polar orbit of its destination world.

like @luizopiloto I like launching these tiny things with SRBs. I also like launching them at about a 3-5 degree angle from the launch pad and just let them gravity turn themselves into orbit. Fins recommended.

 Same here. The satellite has whatever the contract says it must have. Other than that... it just has what *I* need it to have.

Best,
-Slashy