Soviet 3b "Elcano" - A 24-hour Circumnavigation

[The_Rocketeer]

About the Mission:

Primary Objective: Complete the Elcano Challenge

• circumnavigate Kerbin without leaving the planet's land surface or oceans - SUCCESS

Secondary/Operational Objectives:

• complete the circumnavigation in as little time as possible (this means ISRU stops are out of the question) - PARTIAL SUCCESS (24 hours 44 minutes)
  • based on craft performance, this conditionally means one fuel stop only - FAILURE
• keep land-based transportation to a minimum - SUCCESS

The Craft (CRAFT FILE HERE)

The Soviet 3b "Elcano" is a tri-hull catamaran-hydrofoil capable of speeds up to 100m/s, with a maximum fuel capacity 40440 LF and a maximum crew capacity of 10 (or 4 in comfort). It is powered by two J-90 "Goliath" turbofan main engines, and 3 auxiliary J-33 "Wheesley" turbofan engines, providing a variety of thrust patterns for optimal speed and/or efficiency. Directional control is achieved by paired aero- and hydro-rudder surfaces (AV-R8 Winglets) mounted aft on the outer pontoon-hulls. The 4 hydrofoils themselves are 2 pairs of FAT-455 control surfaces mounted anhedrally to the 4 wheel-pod hardpoints. At a maximum of 50% fuel capacity and speeds exceeding 50m/s, they provide adequate planing lift to hold the whole vessel clear of the water, and must be dynamically trimmed by the helm to maintain direction stability and prevent porpoising.

The parent design process was originally intended to result in a non-stop circumnavigation, but due to operational constraints and time pressures the mission was forced to launch before such a design had been achieved - under near-optimal circumstances, the Soviet 3b can only be expected to cover half the planetary ocean surface without refuelling.

The Crew

Commander/Helmsman: Corly Kerman
Chief Engineer: Aselle Kerman
Relief Helmsman: Theonard Kerman
Assistant Engineer: Karelyn Kerman
Science Personel: None

FULL MISSION REPORT:
 

 

Edited August 9, 2016 by The_Rocketeer

[The_Rocketeer]

Day One: Good Times
 

Spoiler

 

Just before dawn the crew boarded, completed their pre-launch checks, and taxied gently down into the water. In a brief ceremony a flag was planted on the shore of KSC - The Finish Line. Corly took the first stint at the helm with Aselle in the number 2 seat. Under a heavy fuel load, the ship hit a peak sustained speed of 50m/s at full thrust, all engines burning hard. About 30 minutes in, the sunrise broke out behind the craft, lighting all the open water ahead. At end of the cape, the crew took the time to hop ashore where a flag was planted claiming the site for the Kerbal Space Program, and naming it for the Elcano's commander: Cape Corly.

Spoiler

Out into the open ocean, Corly had to make one or two course corrections to bring the Elcan onto a steady bearing for the next shore-stop, a scrap of land sitting alone off the desert shore, but once settled in the ship ploughed ahead, gradually picking up speed as she lightened. While Corly and Aselle took the duty shift, the relief crew played board games and nibbled snacks in the crew lounge and napped in their bunkrooms aft. The ocean seemed endless, until with the sun already past its zenith Aselle called 'Land-ho!' from the cockpit engineering seat. For being the first to spot it, the island was named for her: Aselle Island.

Spoiler

Setting out again, Aselle switched out for Karelyn. Keeping to a similar bearing, they made landfall again not long before sunset at a site they professionally named Progress Point - their first major ocean completely crossed and the site of the northward turn. With the dusk falling, Corly and Theonard switched seats again, the more experienced helmsman choosing to settle the craft into night-running personally. Following a bearing for an out-of-sight headland, they lost sight of land again as the shore retreated over the horizon into a large rectangular bay. It was quite dark when they reached the next stop, and with the weight of their challenge and the growing darkness pressing, they stoically named the spot Endurance Bay - two small headlands either side of a minor outcropping.

Spoiler

Shortly after leaving the bay, Theonard took the controls as Corly retired to the sleeping cabin, and following the shoreline headed into the passage between the continents. By this time the hydrofoils were allowing speeds exceeding 80m/s and to save fuel the auxiliary J-33s were shut down, but already the fuel guage was looking low. As they entered the intercontinental channel, the relief crew stopped to name the approach the Theonard Strait, only to have Aselle insist on going ashore at the opposite end and name the opposite approach the Aselle Channel. Being level-headed Kerbals, the two agreed not to fight but to give the passage a different name depending on whether the passage was north-bound or south-bound.

Spoiler

The fuel situation nearing critical, Theonard asked Aselle to wake Corly to confirm the landing site location of the fueller drone that was intended to resupply them around the half-way mark. Corly directed him to a sandy outcropping on the western shore, but no fuel probe was there. While Karelyn went ashore to plant a flag on the newly named Sandy Head, Corly frantically radioed KSC. Turns out Wernher had tried to pilot the probe with a flight routine that he had programmed himself, and the rocket had lost control during re-entry and crashlanded on 'chutes about 130km off target - condition uncertain - but fortunately would require only a minor detour to reach. Furious, Corly commanded Theonard to gun the craft high onto the hyrdofoils and make best speed for the new location.

Spoiler

With only 100 LF remaining - less than 0.25% of full capacity - the crash-site came into sight. Wisps of smoke curling into the starlit sky, it was clear that the landing had been rough - but the craft had survived, and incredibly the tanks had not been punctured. However, the computer cores had been destroyed, and KSC were unable to manouver the probe into a docking. Perplexed, the crew thought their mission was over, until Karelyn suggested using differential thrust to slew the Elcano round into the probes docking claw. On the third attempt the claw at last latched onto the port pontoon's forward section. With a little tinkering, the fuel was at last flowing into the ship's empty tanks.

Spoiler

A little before dawn on the second day, the Elcano deeper in the water and the probe riding high and empty, she cut loose and set off on her second great ocean crossing. Their faces grim - their one-stop run threatened - Aselle suddenly shared something that lightened their hearts: in the hurry to reach the fuel probe they had already crossed the equator into the Northern hemisphere!

Spoiler

Full album here.

***

Coming soon: Day Two, Part One - Landfall

Edited July 19, 2016 by The_Rocketeer

[Geschosskopf]

Good luck.  And good job avoiding the Kraken with the refueling.  Moving INTO a Klaw can be quite a problem.

Good luck.  And good job avoiding the Kraken with the refueling.  Moving INTO a Klaw can be quite a problem.

[The_Rocketeer]

Thanks @Geschosskopf. The mission is actually already completed, I'm just taking my time writing up the full report - so many screenshots!

I'll probably get the remaining parts of this report written up and posted tomorrow. Coming soon after that I'll be starting a serial on a land-based polar Elcano which I expect to take very considerably longer!

[Maverick_aus]

@The_Rocketeer Great going! You're craft design is bold. I liked the description of its design and handling attributes. Yes I had a similar thought to Geschosskopf re: moving onto a Klaw. And that extra hop to the stranded fuel tanker was close thing! 

[The_Rocketeer]

Thanks @Maverick_aus! The craft really was the result of a design-and-refine process going back several whole game sessions of tinkering-and-testing. The Soviet series happened to 'win the contract' over a number of 'rival designs' (in other words I tried all kinds of crazy designs and this bodyplan seemed to have a significant advantage so I took it into development!). I still have hopes of an eventual non-stop circumnavigation but the tyranny of the rocket equation affects even jet-powered boats it seems.

[The_Rocketeer]

Day Two, Part One: Landfall

The change in speed from pre- to post-fuelling was dramatic - no longer clipping the crest of the waves on the foils at 100m/s, but wallowing deep in the water at about half that. However, full fueltanks and the prospect of an easy run up to the land-bridge were brightened further by the sunrise, and after the frantic night-time rush for supplies the crew were relieved to be moving on, their mission apparently none the worse for wear.

Spoiler

The sun had barely cleared the horizon when the cry of 'Land sighted!' once again sung out from the cockpit. Another smallish, lonely island in the middle of a broad ocean, but more temperate by far than Aselle Island - a paradise of verdant rolling hillsides and gently-sloping sandy beaches. Having done most of the gruntwork fixing the damaged pumping gear to refuel the Elcano, Karelyn was in her bunk paying little attention until she was summoned on deck for a particular honour - in recognition of her efforts to save the mission, by unanimous agreement, the other three crew had determined to name this place for her - henceforth to be known as Karelyn's Island. Bashful, flattered and exhausted, Karelyn sat on deck and took in the view while Theonard swam ashore to plant the KSP flag.

Spoiler

With the island behind them the crew settled into the usual cabin-routine, the Elcano gradually rose as the fuel burned away and at last the hydrofoils began to tell. Speed crept up steadily as the wide empty ocean slipped rapidly by. The afternoon wore on, and the crew found themselves frequently distracted by a compulsion to longingly sweep the horizon for signs of land, their collective will urging the craft ever faster onwards. Earlier than expected, but much later than demanded, the cry at last went out - mountaintops visible off the port bow. Taking bearings from the peaks, Corly triangulated their position and ordered a slight course correction to the north.

Spoiler

Dominating the crew's attention, for the longest time the mountains seemed to hardly grow at all, and yet quite suddenly there they were looming large. As the sun continued its long dive towards the horizon, the Elcano approached a series of inlets, looking for the deepest to take them farthest inshore. The view of the formidable hills was discouraging. Aselle knew the Soviet 3b was hardly an all-terrain vehicle, more a rather-weighty boat with a single set of retractable wheels, and absolutely zero redundancy - damage to the craft's undercarriage would be utterly irreparable and catastrophic to the mission. Corly, doubtful himself, tried to reassure the crew - Wernher's team had established that there was a safe-route connecting inland lakes. The land-based sections would be short and gentle... he hoped.

Spoiler

Finding the right inlet, the crew headed to its bottom, well to the west of the other nearby bays and coves, and took the time to appreciate the beauty of their surroundings while they could.
 

Spoiler

Nearing shore they were relieved to see a gentle beach. Reducing power, Corly deployed the undercarriage and with a series of gentle dampened thuds the craft reared up out of the water. Smiling at one another despite themselves, the crew got down to work. With little left of daylight, they quickly planted the obligatory flag, naming the site Landfall Cove, and set off inland to cover as much of the crossing as possible before darkness...

Spoiler

Full album here.

***

Up next: Day Two, Part Two - The Crossing

[Claw]

Nice job. I know you said you're done already, but keep up the good work!

[The_Rocketeer]

@Claw already well into the concept stage for my polar trip

[The_Rocketeer]

Day Two, Part Two: The Crossing

The climb off the beach and over the dunes was fairly gentle, and as the journey towards the lakes progressed the crew were rewarded with beautiful views all round. Coniferous trees were spotted to the north and west, and the mountains that had first been sighted almost due west gradually moved further southward. The landscape was far from flat, but in general the grades were slight and for the most part the craft coasted unpowered with a touch on the brakes or a burst of thrust all it took to keep up a steady 20-30m/s. Aselle reported significant fuel savings over the equivalent thrust required for sustained speeds on water - a great encouragement.

Spoiler

From the charts it was plain to see that the first overland stage was to be the longest, stretching from the shore at Landfall Cove to a large inland lake all-but bisected by the land, leaving only a narrow east-west channel between two large lobes of water. The crew kept up a steady and controlled rate of travel, but the sun sank ever lower, and as they climbed what seemed to be the last major ridge before the lakeside, it vanished behind the crest - only to burst out again as the Elcano cleared the summit, illuminating the lake below. To the left a sandy beach provided the perfect slipway into the water, and once afloat again Theonard ran ashore once more to plant a flag, naming the water Lake Triumph.

Spoiler

Back in her natural element, the Soviet 3b rapidly accelerated up to cruising speed, chasing the failing sunshine. Over a change of shift, the off-duty crew - first Aselle and Theonard, then Karelyn and Corly - gazed out of the lounge windows awestuck by the beauty of the Northern and Southern shores, where the hills and mountains slipped ever farther to the East.

Spoiler

Despite the impressive burst of speed, the sun had already dipped below the horizon as they approached the narrow passage between the lake's lobes. The water grew shallow here, so as a precaution Theonard once-again lowered the undercarriage. As the reached the centre of the strait, Aselle once more hopped ashore to leave their mark, naming the passage The Elcano Channel. They set off once more into the dusk, and judging the water deep enough Thenoard stowed the undercarriage once again. Moments later two soft bumps vibrated through the fuselage.

"What was that?" called Aselle.

"Nothing," Theonard answered, "just the gear stowing - must have picked up a bit of driftwood or something..."

"I'll check it out when we reach shore again. You'd better hope the gear's intact, Theonard, or we've all got a long walk home."

Theonard sense through the control column that the Elcano was holding a strange roll attitude, requiring retrimming of the rudders to hold her heading, and speed had dropped slightly, but that makes sense, he thought, if the the gear was towing a large piece of driftwood - imbalanced drag would tow the ship of course...

"I'm sure it's fine Aselle."

Spoiler

When they reached the dusky western shore, the tell-tale dashboard lights reported the gears once again successfully lowered, and maximum thrust was required to climb  the steep incline out of the water - so steep in fact that the handbrake couldn't hold her and Theonard was forced to clear the summit before parking to make an inspection. Aselle climbed down and looked around with her helmet lights - no driftwood... gears in good shape... and then she saw it.

"Oh no! We've lost a the port bow hydrofoil! The whole thing's just gone!"

"What do you mean gone?" came Theonard's panic-stricken reply, "How can we have lost a hydrofoil?"

"I mean gone, in the sense that it isn't there! That's not all... the port hydro-rudder's gone too. Theonard, this is a disaster! You'd better wake Corly, he's going to be devastated."

He was indeed. Calling an emergency crew meeting, the team discussed options and agreed that they had no choice but to plant a flag and press on to the ocean shore again, there perhaps to await recovery. The Elcano had performed adequately on the calm waters of the lake, but an ocean crossing was another matter altogether. Besides which was the reduction in speed - the likelihood of reaching home on what was left now was very remote, even if they could balance the craft and keep her on a steady bearing.

Deeply depressed, the team drove on into the darkness

Spoiler

Once again there seemed to be one last ridge between them and the ocean. Once again the full thrust of the engines forced the vessel up the steep slope. Once again at the crest water glistened below and before them. This time, however, the downhill run was steep. Very steep! "Hang on!" shouted Theonard, as the Elcano picked up speed. Thinking fast, he threw all engines into reverse thrust and hit maximum throttle, simultaneously pumping the brakes.

Spoiler

Skidding and sliding, the massive boat lumbered down the steep slope as Theonard wrestled with the controls. The undercarriage took a pounding as she lurched once, twice over rough gullies on the steep slope. At last the thrusting engines seemed to find some purchase on the air, and the speed began to fall, the craft finally rolling onto a long flat-ish plain down to the water's edge. By his quick thinking and skilled control Theonard was somewhat redeemed in the eyes of the crew - this life-threatening incident put the relative disappointment of the damaged hydrofoil into perspective - even if the mission was over, at least everyone was going home alive.

Just before the ocean shore itself was a small pool, which after the dramas of the crossing Karelyn suggested should be dubbed the Pool of Tears. Separating the pool from the ocean proper was a broad sandbar, which the Elcano rolled across, and down once more into the water - the Homeward Shore.

Spoiler

With the vessel once more afloat, Aselle called the crew to a meeting once more.

"Kerbals," she said, "I've got an idea..."

Full album here.

***

Coming soon: Day 2, Part 3 - Limping

Edited July 22, 2016 by The_Rocketeer

[Geschosskopf]

13 hours ago, The_Rocketeer said:

"Kerbals," she said, "I've got an idea..."

Bummer about the lost parts.  I wonder what causes that?

Maybe somebody can KAS/KIS the remaining parts into a balanced configuration?

[The_Rocketeer]

47 minutes ago, Geschosskopf said:

Bummer about the lost parts.  I wonder what causes that?

Maybe somebody can KAS/KIS the remaining parts into a balanced configuration?

I'm pretty sure now that *ahem* Theonard  (who's this Rocketeer guy anyway?) was a little premature on his gear-stowage judgment and they clipped the ground as she settled - she rides a lot deeper below planing speed.

Re: KAS/KIS, but this was a stock-only run...!

[Geschosskopf]

6 hours ago, The_Rocketeer said:

who's this Rocketeer guy anyway?

He's the guy with the huge lats and triceps that keep his hand-held rockets from meeting head-on in the center of his skull  

 

[The_Rocketeer]

Day Two, Part Three: Limping

"The record-run is over... there's no helping that. But maybe we can still finish our circumnavigation. The Elcano already floats, so our main issues are going to be balance, to keep her straight and level... well, here's what I have in mind..."

Aselle's plan was controversial. There was initial resistance from Corly and doubt from Karelyn, but in the absense of an alternative and the realisation that the mission was already a scrub if nothing could be done, ultimately the submitted to the audacious strategy.

Step one: Plant a flag
'Just in case we all die, it would be nice for KSC to know where we met our fates. Besides, it's tradition!'

Spoiler

Step two: Run the ship aground with the gears stowed

'The damaged sections are at the prow and stern. If we run through the shallows there's a good chance we'll knock the same parts off the opposite pontoon, and if we loose a gearpod or two... well, we've already done the land part, so who needs them?'

Spoiler

Step three: trim the fuel aft to put as much weight as possible over the remaining hydrofoils

'Of course there are limits to what we can do, but with a little re-trimming and a few practise runs we should be able to keep her from driving her bows into the waves.'

Spoiler

Step four: Improvise

'This is a lot of hydrodynamic changes. There haven't been any testing to see how the Soviet 3b performs under these circumstances, and home is still a long way off. We're going to have to cross our bridges as they come. Still, from an engineering perspective based on my own expertise, this is as close as we're going to get to an optimal arrangement now.'

Spoiler

Aselle's steps were taken. Bashed and bruised, the Elcano was no longer a hydrofoil but an old-fashioned boat with outrageously excessive pitch authority aft. With the remaining fuel reserves restowed as far aft as they could go, she sat with her bow rearing slightly, as though eager for the off. After a few short runs up and down the inlet, Corly and Theonard agreed that the aero-rudders would be next-to-useless for low-speed manouvering, and that they would have to use Karleyn's differential thrust trick to yaw around to a new heading.

Enshrouded in the fullest depth of night, they once more set out into the great ocean - the one that would bring them back to the KSC and home. At the last major headland of their coastal leg, they stopped to name the site for their colleague Bob, a long-time denouncer of hydrofoil technology.

Spoiler

The Elcano was less than she had been, but still a dependable seacraft. Trimming the aft planes proved tricky, and the diminished yaw stability occasionally caused her lightened bow to wander, so Aselle suggested pumping some fuel back to the forward tanks and slightly decreased the planes attitude. Her engineering know-how once again triumphed, yet as the craft lightened it became necessary to repeat these steps again and again, minor adjustment after minor adjustment to keep to their true course. Sitting deeper in the water, the craft's peak speed barely scraped 60m/s, but still every second meant 50 or 60 meters closer to home.

It had been long since they had left the headland, and dawn was not far off, when at last the sighted land once more. According to Corly's chart, this was a large and unexplored island, theirs the first feet to stand upon it. The usual flagplanting was carried out - in memory what the Elcano had been, they named the site Sovetia Hydrofolia - a name they all agreed afterwards was far less beautiful than their beloved craft deserved.

Spoiler

Underway once more, Corly laid a course for the distant continent that paralleled the island's wild and jagged coastline. The island somehow reminded all the crew of the awesome power of their journey so far, and the incredible beauty fraught with unpredictable dangers. As the island slipped from sight astern, the sunrise began to glow in the east... what a day it had been.

Spoiler

Full album here

***

Coming soon: Day 3 - Mayday

Edited July 22, 2016 by The_Rocketeer

[Geschosskopf]

7 hours ago, The_Rocketeer said:

 

Day Two, Part Three: Limping

 

Way to improvise

 

[The_Rocketeer]

Day 3: Mayday

With Sovietia Hydrofolia and the dawn behind them, the Elcano pressed on again into the wide ocean. The remaining fuel dwindled, and to make matters worse the wandering helm became more and more difficult to anticipate. Corly shut down the J-90s and fired up the J-33s, hoping the lower centre of thrust would help stabilise matters. It did, and although the J-33s were less efficient engines and provided weaker thrust, they were also much less thirsty. They were still able to maintain a good-though-reduced cruising speed, and Aselle's mental arithmetic suggested that in their greatly modified trim this now meant a net fuel saving - more meters covered per fuel burned, she proudly announced.

Spoiler

But it remained obvious that it wouldn't be enough. With less than 10% of fuel remaining, the crew were desperate for a sight of shore. The minute slipped by in near silence - no more board games in the crew lounge, every pair of eyes scouring the horizon. In the end Theonard and Karelyn spotted it at the same time - a distant lonely peak that with the passage of time grew into a long low shore.

Spoiler

Triangulating their position and checking their heading, speed and fuel reserve, Corly picked out a headland still some distance away beyond which he said they were sure to exhaust their fuel. The ship slipped steadily along the coast and down to the last little headland, which they agreed to name Desperation Point. Through gritted teeth, Corly ordered Aselle to begin a mayday broadcast, their failure to achieve a one-stop mission at last impossible to ignore.

Spoiler

Back at KSC, Wehner's guilt over the accident with the fuel probe had already prompted him to prepare an emergency fuel delivery in the final stages - a rescue mission that he had dubbed Lightningbird 2. Valentina and Bill had immediately volunteered to crew the mission, and as as the crackling SOS signal came over the radio-set, he ordered a scramble - Lightningbirds Are Go!

Spoiler

The massive lumbering seaplane-tanker was not fast, but she was solid and reliable - a rare success for Wehner's design team. Under the expert care of Val and Bill, she soared into the air and set out eastwards over Booster Bay, crossing the headland and closing on the Elcano's last reported position. Spotting her, Val came in for a textbook landing and brought the Lightningbird 2 up to but her docking claw against the port pontoon. With the sun slipping behind the hills, the fuel began to flow. Grinning and waving at each other through the windows, the crews expressed their happiness at seeing one another and their gratitude for the desperately-needed fuel supply.

Spoiler

Their rescue complete, Val and Bill gave a final wave goodbye and a wink for good luck, and took off for home.

Corly took the command seat once more, and with her tanks once again swilling with plenty of fuel, the Elcano set off for the cape. Compared with her recent ocean crossings, the run to the end of the peninsula was short, but night fell quickly and with one last crossing before her at her reduced speed it was clear that home-by-dawn was not to be. Naming the tip of the shore for Kermankind as Cape Kerman, Corly made the final turn for home.

Spoiler

Little there is to say of the final crossing. The major dramas behind them, the off-duty crew collapsed exhausted onto their bunks and made up for their sleepless night on the landbridge, and the on-duty crew continued their careful trimming of fuel and planes, now easy with practice, and as the craft made her run for the shore the dawn chased them. No sight of land was expected until close to dawn, and indeed none there was.

Spoiler

Day 4: Full Circle

Yet with the dawn came their reward. Sightings first of Runway Island, then of the mountains beyond KSC...

Spoiler

And at last KSC itself:

Spoiler

On finally reaching home, one last surprise was in store. As the Elcano closed to visual sight of the Finish Line marker, the Kraken promptly consumed it! Theonard, a devout of the faith, reprimanded himself and his crew for failing to have given proper thanks for their ultimate success. Saying hasty prayers, the crew dropped anchor, planted a new flag - Full Circle - and gathered for a group photograph.

Spoiler

The End!

All the flags:




Full album here.

[damerell]

Well done.

[The_Rocketeer]

Thanks damarell

This is my first complete ground circumnavigation, but I feel like if I didn't actually cheat, I certainly cut a lot of corners. If I were to offer advice to others planning a ground circumnavigation, I would say don't look at it as a race, but as an adventure. The finish line is, after all, just a flagpole at a place you've already been many times. It's the things between here and there that make the trip worthwhile.

I have done some preliminary groundwork for a land-based circumnavigation of Kerbin which I hope will be my next big project if I can keep RL concerns under control... the surface of Kerbin has much to offer those with brains to anticipate the unexpected and the endurance to stay the course.

[Geschosskopf]

7 hours ago, The_Rocketeer said:

The End!

Congratulations!  That was an extremely ambitious project and though it might have failed in some of your more extreme goals. it was a bloody great success all around!

When  I did a similar trip, by the time I was close to KSP, I was actually feeling imaginary salt crusted around my seemingly sunken, bloodshot eyes, my hands were shaking with sympathetic fatigue, and my brain was dulled by the constant engine noise even though I'd had the game's sound off and was listening to music the whole time over several real days with full nights of sleep in between.  Somehow, this challenge put me more in the Kerbals' POV than anything I've ever done in the game.  I admit to being crazy, but I hope you felt something of the same.

[seanth]

Bravo! I hope to follow in your footsteps soon

[The_Rocketeer]

Top post edited on request to include a link to craft.