Through Hardships to the Stars [Chapter 32 - Something Big II]

[Kosmonaut]

nice

[TheEpicSquared]

CHAPTER 26: MINMUS

 

Hardfield had received some worrying news. The Kerbin Government had redesigned their regulations on space travel, and they had gotten stricter. The old Brumby capsules wouldn't cut it anymore. A new capsule would have to be developed if kerballed spaceflight was to be continued.

However, after lots of negotiations, Hardfield had managed to persuade Kongress to allow the Brumby capsules on the DOV and on SpaceLab to stay, because they were designed for long-term habitation from the beginning and therefore would not be susceptible to failure anytime soon. The same was true for the under-development Duna Descent/Landing/Ascent Vehicle (DDLAV), but the regular Brumby systems would have to be replaced.

So the Youké [Chinese for traveller] CSM was born.

It was a huge step towards the future, while still retaining simplicity due to the monopropellant being the only propellant used on the vehicle. The abort system was overhauled as well. Now, it was attached to the side of the capsule, meaning that instead of discarding it every mission, it could be reused along with the capsule.

The Youké CSM needed a new rocket to lift it into LKO. Or rather, and existing rocket, with moar boosters attached.

Enter: The Cormorant A-4.

The Youké CSM was hidden inside the fairing of the A-4.

After final testing was conducted, the assembly was rolled out to the launchpad for the Youké's first flight.

The rocket enjoyed an on-time liftoff.

The four Kickbacks quickly accelerated the rocket through the atmosphere.

Then, they ran out of propellant and were separated, leaving the core to do its job.

A few seconds later, the fairings separated, exposing the Youké CSM to the upper atmosphere for the first time.

The first stage then separated as programmed, and the second stage fired up.

Soon, an acceptable apoapsis had been established and a maneuver was plotted for orbital insertion.

Soon, the Youké was safely in orbit around Kerbin.

As Kerbol descended towards the horizon, the second stage separated from the Youké.

The second stage deorbited as per standard procedure and left the Youké in orbit.

Meanwhile, the solar panels had deployed.

When the craft was back in sunlight, it was time for the RCS thrusters to be tested.

The Youké passed with flying colours. The new docking port was also tested...

And also passed its test.

Now was the last thing on the list. The four "Puff" monopropellant engines would be used to deorbit the craft. The command was given just east of the Great Crater, and the engines fired up.

A satisfactory trajectory was reached, and the Puffs shut off.

Upon entering the atmosphere, the Youké capsule detached itself from the service module. So far, the contraption was doing brilliantly.

As usual, mission control lost contact with the probe as it became enveloped with plasma.

It turned out that the new capsule had a lot more drag than thought, and so it would land on the opposite side of the continent. Whoops.

The barometer on the spacecraft detected a change in pressure in the atmosphere. At the same time, the flight computer detected the velocity of the craft, and found that it should be safe to deploy the chute. This computerized assumption was supported by the barometer readings, and the chute was deployed.

The solid-fueled abort motors had not been necessary on this flight, so it was decided that they would be fired in mid-air to reduce velocity to make sure they functioned properly. 

In normal flights, the abort system wouldn't fire on descent, so it could be reused along with the capsule.

At the predetermined altitude, the chute fully deployed, rapidly slowing the craft down to survivable speeds.

A few minutes later, the capsule safely landed in the grasslands.

The Youké's first mission was a success.

***

With the new CSM certified for kerballed flight, the next step in the colonization of Minmus could begin. It consisted of three polar communication satellites, in orbit around Minmus.

The were to be launched on a Cormorant A-1, the standard Cormorant stack, but with only a single booster on the side. Theoretically, it would work because of the Mainsail's ability to gimbal, but only a flight would prove its usability. 

The three satellites were stacked on top of each other inside the fairing.

At Kerbolrise, final checks were complete.

At the predetermined time, the Mainsail and the solitary booster ignited, and the entire contraption lifted off the ground...

And immediately started tilting east. Everyone held their breath... would the rocket fail?

Luckily, the Mainsail's gimbal lived up to expectations, and the rocket was now pointing up again, leaving a rather wobbly smoke trail behind it.

The early stages of the gravity turn went well, despite the early mishap.

Suddenly, alarms went off in mission control. According to telemetry, the rocket was descending!

"Oh dammit!" Hardfield exclaimed! "What happened?"

Someone called out, "We don't know, but the computer must have spazzed out. At any rate, we're decoupling the booster now, it's out of fuel..."

Slowly, the prograde marker rose above the navball horizon. 

And soon, the rocket was back on track.

However, a lot of Dv had been lost, and now the engineers weren't sure if the rocket would make it to Minmus.

Due to the mishap, the rocket was well below target altitude when the first stage separated.

Therefore, the trajectory was very shallow, and the fairing experienced ridiculous amounts of heat.

However, the apoapsis did eventually reach space, and the Skipper was shut down as soon as it did so.

A few minutes later, the fairings separated.

And soon, the contraption was in orbit.

A maneuver was plotted to get a Minmus encounter.

It was only a rough encounter, and the trajectory would be refined using a correction burn at a later time.

When the time came, the Skipper ignited again to perform the maneuver.

"Hardfield, we've got a problem... again..." called a person at a console.

Hardfield, who was now getting quite annoyed at the number of problems this mission was experiencing, replied, "Oh for SQUAD's sake, what now!?"

"It seems a tank is leaking, of MinmalSat-1, the satellite at the top of the stack."

"Well, that fuel tank isn't connected to any other tank, right?" Hardfield asked worriedly.

"No, it's isolated."

Hardfield sighed and said, "Good. At least then it won't drain the second stage. Now, I want you to start reprogramming the komputer for a possibility of detaching the two good sats in a manner that will put them half an orbit away from each other. We can use this faulty one as a backup if its tank runs dry."

"Affirmative, Hardfield. I'll tell the komputer crew right away."

Meanwhile, the burn had finished, and a rough encounter with Minmus had been confirmed.

The solar panels on the satellites were deployed, to make sure the craft had power during its coast to Minmus.

A 9.2 m/s correction burn was plotted to correct the spacecraft's trajectory.

The burn was completed on target.

A few days later, the Skipper ignited once again, and inserted the trio of satellites into a polar Minmus orbit.

Now came the complicated process of releasing the satellites, and getting them to their correct positions. MinmalSat-1  had not run out of propellant, and was hurriedly released, so it could perform its burn.

MinmalSat-1 propelled itself into a circular orbit successfully.

This greatly relieved everyone at the KSC, as now the leaking fuel tank wouldn't be a problem.

The other two satellites put themselves into good orbits as well, successfully completing the mission.

The sats wasn't perfectly equidistant, but they could all contact one another, so the system would work.

Now, it was time for the secondary objective of the mission. The upper stage would attempt to conduct a propulsive soft landing on the surface of Minmus. 

The deorbit burn was a brief affair. The newly constructed comm network provided ample coverage for the upper-stage-turned-lander.

The craft quickly neared the Minmal surface.

A velocity-reduction burn was conducted at 7 kilometers above "sea" level.

This reduced the speed of the craft from 210 m/s to a measly 19 m/s.

However, the inevitable pull of gravity soon meant that the engine had to be ignited once again, to prevent a catastrophic impact with the ground.

As the spacecraft neared the surface, the engine's thrust increased...

And then, the engine bell of the Skipper rested on the surface of Minmus, making the humble upper stage the first artificial object to land on Minmus.

The craft was put into hibernation mode, to conserve the remaining electric charge. The KSC engineers were now seriously contemplating attaching solar panels to upper stages, if they were going to double as low-gravity landers as well.

And so, despite the three incidents during the mission, Hardfield could log this one as a success.

***

Hardfield was back in his place of (nearly) permanent residence: his office. As usual, he was sorting through the heaps of paperwork, wondering if he would need to get another 10-pack of pencils, seeing as his current army of wooden-clad graphite sticks was rapidly running out. 

"Some new pencils would do you good, Hardfield..."

Hardfield jumped and nearly fell out of his chair. It was the Hybridium.

"Hardfield... you must tell Caldos that I talk to you as well... It is the only way.."

"I know what you're thinking... why do you have to tell him...? It is not my duty to tell you... you will find out in time..."

"And whatever you do... Do not let interest in the space program falter... You will never succeed if that happens... NEVER!"

Hardfield, not aware of his own actions, shuffled through a stack of papers, and pulled out a particular sheet. It wasn't him. The Hybridium were controlling him, and once the sheet of paper was in front of Hardfield, he had control of his body again.

The big red text on the page was the only thing Hardfield could focus on. It said:

SPACELAB TERMINATION - APPROVED

"If this continues, it will be too late... You will fail, Hardfield... DO NOT LET THIS CONTINUE..."

Hardfield was still looking at the stark red letters on the document. He had tunnel vision, and couldn't tear his eyes away from the bright colour.

A shiver ran down his spine, and he dropped the paper.

[KAL 9000]

ITS .craft file: Could you have the Procedural Fairing Structural Fairing extend up until it reaches the top section? Something didn't load right. 

The ÜberGuppy transport plane is loading all four ITS tests. Standby for delivery to KSC from my super awesome evil fortress top secret science lab deep inside Mount Kerbverest!

[TheEpicSquared]

Just now, KAL 9000 said:

ITS .craft file: Could you have the Procedural Fairing Structural Fairing extend up until it reaches the top section? Something didn't load right. 

The ÜberGuppy transport plane is loading all four ITS tests. Standby for delivery to KSC from my super awesome evil fortress top secret science lab deep inside Mount Kerbverest!

Sure, I can fix it.

It'll launch in chapter 27.  

[Angelo Kerman]

Nice! The new launcher and craft sort of reminds me of Orion and SLS, looks like a good ship. Looking forward to seeing how this develops, let's hope that Spacelab's termination doesn't end up with a multi-year gap between space stations!

[KAL 9000]

Change of plans: The one-month ITS test will just be in Kerbin orbit, not docked to SpaceLab. 

And I (and my company) are willing to help with getting public interest! 

STRATEGY: JAI Helps 

+3  per week 

+100%  from contract rewards 

+1  per  gained after strategy is in effect 

+1  per 10,000  gained after strategy is in effect 

 

Edited February 6, 2017 by KAL 9000

[obney kerman]

On ‎2‎/‎6‎/‎2017 at 11:58 AM, KAL 9000 said:

Change of plans: The one-month ITS test will just be in Kerbin orbit, not docked to SpaceLab. 

And I (and my company) are willing to help with getting public interest! 

STRATEGY: JAI Helps 

+3  per week 

+100%  from contract rewards 

+1  per  gained after strategy is in effect 

+1  per 10,000  gained after strategy is in effect 

 

What is he up to...

Edited February 9, 2017 by obney kerman

[TheEpicSquared]

Unfortunately, I'm ill, so don't expect a new chapter this weekend.  

I'll make sure to get one out by next weekend for sure though.

[superstrijder15]

It's okay not to give us chapters @TheEpicSquared. Good luck getting well again! Let's pray for your recovery by sacrificing someone to the Kraken!

[TheEpicSquared]

On 06/02/2017 at 6:39 PM, Angel-125 said:

Looking forward to seeing how this develops, let's hope that Spacelab's termination doesn't end up with a multi-year gap between space stations!

Let's hope it doesn't! The Hybridium wouldn't be too happy if that were the case.  

Oh, spoiler for the next chapter down below:

Spoiler

@KAL 9000, I crashed your rocket.  It'll be making an appearance in ch 27, just not a very successful one.  

Don't worry, I'll get it up successfully chapter 28.  

@superstrijder15 Thanks! I'm getting better! And more good news: We have a break starting on Thursday, which means more time to play KSP!  

Edited February 13, 2017 by TheEpicSquared

[DarkOwl57]

On 2/11/2017 at 7:19 AM, TheEpicSquared said:

Unfortunately, I'm ill, so don't expect a new chapter this weekend.  

I'll make sure to get one out by next weekend for sure though.

aaaawwwrw . Doctor Dark is in the house! I'll have your writer up and typing in no time!!!

*5 minutes later*

Oh kraken why's he flatlining?! What?! HUH?!?!? WHAT DO I DO?!?!? NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

 

In all seriousness, Get well soon mate!

[KAL 9000]

48 minutes ago, TheEpicSquared said:

Let's hope it doesn't! The Hybridium wouldn't be too happy if that were the case.  

Oh, spoiler for the next chapter down below:

  Hide contents

@KAL 9000, I crashed your rocket.  It'll be making an appearance in ch 27, just not a very successful one.  

Don't worry, I'll get it up successfully chapter 28.  

@superstrijder15 Thanks! I'm getting better! And more good news: We have a break starting on Thursday, which means more time to play KSP!  

Did anyone die in the crash?

[TheEpicSquared]

1 minute ago, KAL 9000 said:

Did anyone die in the crash?

You'll have to wait and see  

[KAL 9000]

Just now, TheEpicSquared said:

You'll have to wait and see  

I hope they signed the waivers. 

JAI is not responsible for injury, death, dismemberment, loss of limbs, mutation due to exposure to radiation, explosions, mental BSOD, or any other harm caused while operating the ITS.

 

[TheEpicSquared]

Chapter 27 should be out tomorrow or the day after (I might not be able to get it out tomoroow due to the spacex launch)  

[TheEpicSquared]

 

On 13/02/2017 at 3:41 PM, KAL 9000 said:

I hope they signed the waivers. 

JAI is not responsible for injury, death, dismemberment, loss of limbs, mutation due to exposure to radiation, explosions, mental BSOD, or any other harm caused while operating the ITS.

 

Don't worry, the KSP has good lawyers.  

[TheEpicSquared]

CHAPTER 27: GOOD AND BAD

 

With the successful Minmus comm network mission, the KSP was ready for another mission to Minmus.

The contraption that would be hauled to orbit this time was the brand new Minmus Reusable Lander.

It used the all new Youké capsule, with a low-gravity lander engine under the fuel tanks. Due to the low gravity of Minmus, the suspension of normal landing legs would bounce the craft for several minutes after touchdown, so the MRL used four anchors, each with a mass of one ton, to firmly secure the lander to Minmus when it landed.

The comms and power systems were also top-notch, and the solar panels were smaller versions of the highly powerful Duna Orbital Vehicle solar arrays. 

Additionally, the MRL included lots of cargo space, where various items to be used on EVAs were placed. The docking system was also directly taken from the Youké CSM, which meant that docking the MRL and the Youké would be a seamless procedure.

The first Minmus Reusable Lander was bolted to the top of a Cormorant A-4 for its flight to Minmus.

This particular MRL was named Cygnus, after the famous kerbal astronomer Bilt-Cygnus Kerman.

The assembly was rolled out at night.

It lifted off with the Mun in the background.

Due to the rather excessive TWR, the onboard komputers quickly initiated the gravity turn as the rocket rose through the sky.

By then, the smoke from the SRBs was already clearing up at the pad.

In just 40 seconds, the rocket had risen over six kilometers into the air and had long since breached the sound barrier.

The SRBs were jettisoned when they burned out, and the Mainsail continued alone.

Stage separation and second stage ignition was nominal.

And soon the craft was in orbit.

A rough encounter was plotted. It would be refined later with a correction burn.

Then, the fairings were separated.

The Cygnus separated from the drained second stage, and began its burn.

Six minutes later, the burn was complete and Cygnus was on its way to Minmus.

A correction burn was successfully executed to improve the trajectory.

A few days later, upon reaching Minmus, the craft began its orbital insertion maneuver.

Soon, it was in orbit.

Two more burns later, and the orbit was lowered successfully.

Then, the deorbit burn was performed, sending the Cygnus into a trajectory that would  crash it into Minmus.

The spacecraft silently travelled through space.

Soon, it was worryingly close to the surface. Everyone was wondering when the komputer would ignite the engine.

Right on schedule, fuel and oxidizer once again rushed through the networks of pipes leading to the engine, and thrust was produced.

Slowly, under engine power, Cygnus made its way down to Minmus, following retrograde all the way.

Cygnus went vertical just meters above the surface.

"And we have touchdown!" a mission controller said. Cheers erupted across the KSC.

The craft had nearly a full tank of monopropellant left, so it was decided that it would be used to do some moon hopping, with hopes of finding a suitable location for a base.

Cygnus lifted off once again, this time using RCS thrusters.

A quick puff of the main engine put the craft on a trajectory towards a suspiciously flat part of the mountains.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the land wasn't as flat as it seemed, but would still make a good location for a preliminary base.

Due to a lack of bipropellant, it was decided that the RCS thrusters would handle the landing as well.

The thrusters performed admirably, and soon the Cygnus was back on the ground, just as Kerbol was setting behind the horizon.

***

With the Cygnus mission a success, it was time for a small, single launch base to be developed, for long-term habitation on Minmus.

Unfortunately, development was going slow. The R&D guys were arguing over the best methods of expansion, transportation, and pretty much everything else related to base building.

That's when help arrived.

Walt Kerman, head of PR, politely knocked at Hardfield's door.

"Come in!"

Walt stepped in and said, "I've heard you've been having problems with the Minmus base, yes?"

"That's right..." Hardfield replied.

"Well, I just got a letter from Kosmos Interplanetary Dynamics, saying they have constructed a working prototype of a small, single launch base to Minmus. Exactly what we need!"

Hardfield said, "Kosmos Interplanetary Dynamics? The same people that gave us the Pompadour Munar Survey probe?"

"That's them", Walt replied excitedly. "They've got a base for us! If we accept their prototype, we could accelerate the Minmus program by several weeks!" We could have kerbals on Minmus in, maybe... two munths!"

"Well, it would certainly be quicker than our current plan. Tell them I accept, and that they have permission to transport their prototype to the KSC for further study." And with that, it was decided.

Activity was ramped up in the days following Hardfield's decision. Within a week, the prototype base, dubbed the Alchoujian Base 1 by Kosmos, had arrived.

Hardfield was positively ecstatic. 

"It's... it's brilliant! It has everything we would need! Give my personal thanks to Kosmos, will you?" he asked to no-one in particular.

The few issues it had were ironed out in just a day, and soon a landing system had been implemented.

The landing system consisted of a propellant tank and a LV-909 Terrier engine. The plan was that the base would descend vertically, touch down on the engine bell of the Terrier, and then would tip over onto the landing legs of the base, which would have been extended in advance.

What could possibly go wrong?

***

In the space of just two weeks since Hardfield's decision, the Alchoujian Base 1 had been bolted on top of the trusty Kerbol Light.

Launch day was nice and clear.

With Kerbol in the background, the four Moa engines of the first stage lofted the rocket into the air.

The launch camera captured a breathtaking view of the rocket as it ascended.

In no time, the craft was high up in the atmosphere, way above the cruising altitudes of all but the most modern passenger planes.

The first stage separated nominally, its fins keeping it steady as it plummeted away from the second stage.

The huge fairings separated without a hitch as the spacecraft left the atmosphere.

Soon, a stable orbit was achieved.

A rough course to Minmus was plotted. As usual, a correction burn would be performed later on.

The Penguin ignited for the burn.

"Second stage tank depleted, confirm go for separation?"

"Confirmed, we are go for separation."

The command was given for separation...

"Dammit! What happened?" yelled Hardfield.

The explosion jettisoned the spent second stage with extreme force.

"What happened?" Hardfield asked again.

"It seems something went wrong with the decoupler, and the explosive charges detonated something on the decoupler body... the Terrier has sustained some damage..."

"How much?"

"16 percent. It should be able to produce thrust, but the critical overheating chances have gone up from 0.8 percent to 73 percent."

"Hardfield was now thoroughly worried. "Will the engine be able to function at critical overheat?"

"Barely. It'll produce thrust, but..."

Hardfield's mind raced. It would take them weeks to get another base in if this one failed... but it would also take weeks to send a repair crew. He made up his mind. "Continue the burn."

The command was given, and the Terrier left the debris behind as it burned for Minmus.

"Alright, we have a rough Minmus periapsis," said someone at a console. "Based on the thermal data from the burn, it seems the 909 will be able to tolerate the overheating. I'm plotting a correction maneuver now."

The correction was successfully executed.

And with that, it was waiting time.

***

The base was almost at apoapsis.

Then, an alarm came in. It was time for the final burn to put the Kerbol Space Telescope, provided by Sandwich's Raging Rocket Co, in its final orbit.

The spacecraft was floating through space, all systems functioning.

At periapsis, the Skipper ignited for one final burn.

Soon, final orbit was reached.

The Kerbol Space Telescope was then released from the rocket, ready to begin its mission mapping asteroids and the outer planets.

Without the long-range antenna of the telescope, the second stage could not acquire a signal from the KSC, and so it was doomed to orbit Kerbol forever.

***

With that mission over with, it was time to get back to Alchoujian 1, which had entered the SoI of Minmus.

Lodfurt, head of spacecraft systems on this mission, laid out the plan. "Alright. So, as you all know, the Terrier has suffered from an anomaly, and therefore we're not going to do the entire orbital insertion burn in one go as originally planned. Instead, we're going to burn until we have an apoapsis inside Minmus's SoI, and then we're going to give the Terrier one orbit to cool off. We'll complete the burn on the next periapsis pass. Got it?"

With the plan laid out, the Terrier started burning.

"We're getting an overheat signal!" a controller called out.

"Hold on..." Lodfurt replied.

"We have an orbit! Shut down the Terrier!" Lodfurt commanded.

By the time the spacecraft came back down to periapsis, the 909 had cooled down to normal temperatures again.

The rest of the burn was completed.

"We have an on-target orbit!" Lodfurt called out. Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Now, it was time for the hardest part of the mission: the landing.

A maneuver node was created to put the base onto a proper trajectory, to get it near the Cygnus.

Thermal data showed that the 909 was still abnormally warm, but it was predicted that it would be able to handle the landing.

The deorbit burn had to be stopped 6.8m/s short because of overheating issues.

The landing legs were deployed on target.

As Alchoujian 1 descended, Kerbin, the Mun and Gilly could all be seen, a rare alignment.

Soon, the landing site came into view.

It quickly got closer.

The Terrier ignited again for the landing burn.

 "The engine's beginning to overheat again..."

"We've got an overheat signal, Lodfurt! Do we terminate?"

"No, hold on... if we terminate we risk damaging Cygnus as well..."

The Terrier was performing quick, small burns to put it near Cygnus, and this was severely overstressing the already damaged engine.

The spacecraft went vertical.

The Cygnus was clearly in view now as Alchoujian 1 fell towards the ground.

With an overheat of roughly 40 percent, the spacecraft approached the surface.

"Almost there," said Lodfurt.

"We have touchdown!"

Mission control entered a flurry of activity. 

"Engine check?"

"Engine 30 percent overheat."

"Systems check?"

"Systems are looking good."

"Confirm we are go for tip-over?"

"Stand by..." came the reply.

"Roger, standing by."

"We are go for tip-over. Repeat, go for tip-over!"

"Roger, initiate tip-over procedure..."

Slowly, the base started leaning over...

"Tip-over confirmed!"

"Alchoujian Base 1 has landed!"

Cheers erupted across the KSC, as a huge amount of stress and worry seemingly disappeared.

This lasted only for a few minutes, though, and soon it was back to business.

The base used its powerful reaction wheels to orient it towards the Cygnus. It was supposed to have landed 100 meters away from it, but it had landed over 130 meters farther than the target distance.

This meant improvising.

"Engine health check?"

"Terrier has 20 percent overheat, everything else is good."

With all systems checked, the Terrier ignited for a series of small burns to push the base closer to Cygnus.

The base finally came to rest 97.4 meters away from Cygnus.

 Close enough.

***

News had just come in from a company called JAI. Apparently, they had been collaborating with SpaceY, a renowned rocket parts company, to make a rocket allegedly capable of carrying 100 kerbals to Duna and back!

And today, it had arrived kn the VAB.

"Holy SQUAD..." was the entire KSC's first reaction to this rocket.

"It's... massive..." was Hardfield's reaction. "It weighs in at almost 3 kilotons! Can the launchpad even support this kind of mass?"

Denken, head of R&D, replied, "We've had to make some adjustments, but yeah, it should work... hopefully..."

The minimum number of crew needed was four. Sherzer, Rodgas, Karsie and Jedgar Kerman were the crew for the inaugural flight of the Interplanetary Transport System.

The massive rocket was painstakingly rolled out to the pad on another clear day.

It lifted off with a huge roar.

"Gravity turn is nominal," Sherzer reported.

It seemed everything was going well. But then...

"Major guidance anomaly! KSC, do you copy? Major guidance anom-" The transmission was cut short and an impending silence fell over Mission Control.

The ITS was deviating from its planned trajectory, and was now pointing downwards.

Somehow, among all the commotion, Jedgar remembered an old saying of the KSP... "If your engine is pointing up, you won't go to space today."

Seems like I won't be going to space today... thought Jedgar.

Meanwhile the rocket had flipped past the point of no return.

Jedgar snapped into action. He shut off the first stage...

...And separated it from the spacecraft.

Desperately, he tried to get the spacecraft away from the booster.

In a flash of genius, he had the brilliant idea of using the second stage engines.

Things were exploding all around, and the landing legs deployed. However, the craft was meant to operate in space, and was a big unwieldy hunk of metal in the atmosphere.

The RCS system helped, but not by much.

Eventually, using the engines, Jedgar managed to get the spacecraft pointed up.

It was only then that he looked around him, at the other three kerbals on board.

They were conscious, but the G-forces had them pinned into their suits. They couldn't move.

Jedgar tore his gaze away from the other kerbonauts and refocused on the control panel.

Jedgar managed to get the craft stabilized. It looked like they were going to make it...

...But then the komputer spazzed out, and the SAS was disabled. "SQUAD damn this hunk of junk!" Jedgar cursed, as the ITS tipped to the side.

The sudden jerk of the craft had damaged the fuel lines, and now the engines shut down as the ITS tipped nose down.

Somehow, Jedgar managed to get the spacecraft pointing upwards again, and the reorientation of the ITS meant that the engines came back online.

However, the aerodynamic forces acting on the spacecraft meant that without its SAS system, the rocket couldn't stay stable.

Frantically, Jedgar wrestled with the joystick, trying to get the craft back to retrograde.

He almost did, but then the damaged fuel lines broke completely, and the engines shut down once again.

The ITS was now dropping like a stone.

Jedgar knew his only chance was the RCS system. But even that couldn't do much in the dense atmosphere...

The RCS was still running when the ITS impacted the water.

The engines all broke off upon impact, as did the capsule.

A huge splash erupted as the gigantic spacecraft was smashed into pieces.

Karsie Kerman lost consciousness.

Eventually, the water settled and the few components of the spacecraft not destroyed by the blast, and not sunk by their weight, were bobbing about ironically peacefully.

Jedgar Kerman was the only one still conscious. Slowly, he removed his helmet and exited the somehow intact capsule.

He looked down. Below him, the engines and various other components were sinking. 

He couldn't care less.

With the last of his strength, he hauled himself to the top of a crew compartment. His legs filed him and he fell onto the dull metal.

After lying there for a few seconds, he had regained enough strength to stand up.

The VAB was barely visible above the horizon. Rescue teams would be here soon.

He repeated that statement over and over as the got back in the capsule.

Rescue teams will be here soon.

Rescue teams will be here soon.

Rescue teams will be here soon.

Rescue teams will be here soon, Jedgar thought. But as he looked over to his side, he knew another thing.

They wouldn't be here soon enough for Karsie Kerman.

[KAL 9000]

Welp... They signed the waivers, so I couldn't care less . 

The infamous rocket flip? Happens to me all the time.

[DarkOwl57]

ooohhh... What about pressing "Recover Vessel"? Or are you simulating a recovery?

[KAL 9000]

New idea: @TheEpicSquared, add enourmous control fins to the first stage. And bring the Procedural Interstage Fairings up so that they connect, it's messing up the aerodynamics.

Like, Tweakscale those Big-S wings and elvons to make 'em ginormous!

Edited February 21, 2017 by KAL 9000

[obney kerman]

RIP

Karsie kerman

"Maybe we shouldn't have put crew on an untested spacecraft sent in by a company with -200 rep".

Edited February 21, 2017 by obney kerman

[KAL 9000]

1 hour ago, obney kerman said:

RIP

Karsie kerman

"Maybe we shouldn't have put crew on an untested spacecraft sent in by a company with -200 rep".

-200? Why, you little [CENSORED]! I have 908  on the forums right now, thank you very much! And I did test it! It never did that during testing!

And I think Stage 2 needs more fuel. Can you Tweakscale up the Procedural Tank so it's taller? Thanks .

[obney kerman]

2 hours ago, KAL 9000 said:

-200? Why, you little [CENSORED]! I have 908  on the forums right now, thank you very much! And I did test it! It never did that during testing!

And I think Stage 2 needs more fuel. Can you Tweakscale up the Procedural Tank so it's taller? Thanks .

Jeez I'm sorry!

Edited February 21, 2017 by obney kerman

[Kosmonaut]

RIP Carsie

Also, a while ago, I created a "Duna Survey". Its a very large, and has no landers. Do you want it? It involves a large scanner and a bunch of small commsats. Thoughts? THanks

[obney kerman]

Dear Hardfield, I have a Minmus lander I think you should use. It is the Minmus variant of our Albatross CSM. I think you will want it. Don't worry, It has an abort system and parachutes. The Kerbals will be quite safe. Here are the specs:

Spoiler

Payload name: Minmus rocket MK1

• Payload provider: Kerbin academy of space exploration (KASE)
• Type of payload:
• Payload mass: 197 tons
• Payload height: 29 meters
• Payload length: 9.1 meters
• Payload width: 4.3 meters
• Payload part count: 95
• Is the payload stock or modded: stock
• Which body should it orbit: land on minmus 
• Intended orbit: launch to 70 KM kerbin orbit, burn for minmus.
• Short description of the payload A new kind of CSM
• .Craft file: https://kerbalx.com/Obney_Kerman/Minmus-rocket-MK1

Warning: picture is misleading.

P.S. I'm sorry about Karsie. She knew the risks.

Sincerely,             Gene Kerman

                               Director, KASE