A new beginning: yet another career

[dire]

So I just remembered that I had been contemplating doing a mission report of every rocket for my next career, and since I just started one yesterday I think I'm still early enough for it to count.

Spoiler

 

Going off my mods directory, and some of these are strictly DLL dependencies, like Firespitter.

BahaSP

Community Resource Pack

Community Tech Tree

Contract Configurator

- Historic Missions

Crowd sourced Science

Dark Side Technology 

Firespitter

InterstellarFuelSwitch

JoolianDiscovery

KAS

KIS

Mechjeb2

Mk2 Expansion

Nearfuture Propulsion

Nearfuture Solar

Nearfuture Spacecraft

OrbitalTug

RcsSounds

RemoteTech (not compatible with RN_US_Probes)

RN_US_Probes

SmokeScreen

TarsierSpaceTech

TextureReplacer

UmbraSpaceIndustries

- FTT

- FX

- Kolonization

- Konstruction

- Kontainers

- LifeSupport

- ReactorPack

- SoundingRockets

WarpPlugin

WildBlueIndustries

- MOLE

Despite the fact that some of the probes for RN_US_Probes are really nice, I'm thinking about shelving that mod simply because a) I'm overwhelmed with too many choices early in the career, and I don't actually have the proper parts or infrastructure to launch a 5-ton interplanetary probe right now. b) Some of them are really really out of place, like they have end-tier stuff on them and I got them in the first two tiers. c) They don't use RT, which on the one hand is nice because with a new career I don't have a sat net up yet, but on the other hand it feels a little cheaty to be doing that. RT definitely makes the opening moves in the career a lot harder with the historic missions (where I have to launch, and often land, dozens of unmanned probes).

So here's a pic of my first orbiter for this career:

My progress so far has been pretty steady, with a quick succession of missions reaching ever higher past the planetary surface, culminating in this latest escapade where our probe was calculated as probably having been in orbit for at least ten seconds before the de-orbit command doomed it to plummet back to the planetary surface.

Let's pause for a brief review of what we've already done. Starting with a sounding rocket so small and so budget-constrained that it didn't even have a name (which we are retroactively naming Sounder 0) we've sent Sounder 0 off the ground; Sounder 1 just brushed the atmosphere, but failed to return much in the way of scientific value. Sounder 2 spent a solid minute in space and brought back a woeful pittance of useful information. Now with Sounder 3 we've not only sent a craft to orbit, but we managed to bring back a bit of data for once.

Now that we've proven the worth of our space empire, we expect a veritable flood of lucrative contracts!

And Jeb was the first astronaut to reach space. We think he redacted the command pod out of Sounder I because it looks better with a probe head, but probe I as saved is over on parts and probably height. Not sure how he managed that. The investigation is ongoing.

Edited September 9, 2016 by dire

[dire]

Our next task is to investigate a scandalous rumor that Kerbals have been doing unnatural things in order to lift off the ground and get high...without the benefit of rockets! We sent our best man to look into it.

It is clear from the beginning that Jeb's not at all sure he believes these rumors, and his first attempt at a craft is what we could call a "Kerbal-manned Rocket-assisted Take-Off" or KRATO. It's an unusual piece not only because Jeb is personally flying it but because once the boosters fall off, he'll be relying on the mysterious natural buoyancy of the aetherial substance. Many critics claim that flight in this way is impossible.

And in fact Jeb's first flight experience suggests that, although the rockets can accelerate the craft to 100 m/s and keep it above ground level, the jet engine is too wimpy to keep the heavy craft airborne for long. It simply doesn't have the horsepower required to keep the craft aloft. On the face of it, this experiment had clearly and obviously disproven these "Aethernaut" rumors. However, Jeb wasn't ready to give up. He was willing to try again...and again...and again...

...Until finally his fourth iteration of the humble "Scout I" is able to stay airborne and even achieve speeds approaching 120 m/s, all while sipping the tiniest pittance of fuel!

However, on his third and final contract for the day, Jeb runs into a problem: The mountains stand between him and his contract, and they reach higher than the generous 4km ceiling that his Scout I can handle.

Fortunately the butterfly-shaped wings are exceptionally maneuverable at the low speeds Jeb is flying at, and he's able to grab the contract by buzzing within meters of a sheer cliff.

Although Jeb has plenty of fuel and plenty more contracts to go, he decides that before he continues he needs something bigger, faster, definitely with a higher ceiling. The Scout I has done its job and proven those Aetherial nay-sayers wrong, and earned a fair bit of coin in the process, but one brush with death is enough; it is time to collect his science and his lucre and call it a day.

Edited September 9, 2016 by dire

[dire]

The Scout II flies twice as fast, goes twice as high, carries almost twice as much fuel, and uses three -fewer- parts than the scout 1, all by swapping out the wimpy mk0 jet pair for a single Wheezely. Preliminary flights suggest that the craft can maintain speeds in excess of 150 m/s for not less than two hours, perhaps as long as three or four.  However, one long, yawn-inducing flight to a target zone convinced Jeb: Must go faster.

Now that Jeb has dispelled all doubts regarding the existence of the mysterious Aetherium, on whose invisible wings a sufficiently clever Kerbal may ride (provided they also bring actual, visible wings), funding has come flooding into the Kerbal Space Center. It is time for Jeb to once again pick up his true dream: Get high, go fast.

Edited September 9, 2016 by dire

[dire]

"Tourists want to breathe the fresh, clean space-air," Jeb grumbles. "Admin is talking about putting up a string of satellites so we can use satellites to talk to our satellites. And I've had enough of this paperwork! I've had enough!" He waves at a jumbled pile of forms with a radius of a half-meter.

"I'm going up. I'll let you guys know if I see anything cool while I'm up there."

"Control, I put a rocket on the pad. I am go for launch. Tee-zee-go! Hahahaha!"

"Jeb, wait!" Gene broadcast frantically. "You haven't filled out your requisition for control fins...in triplicate..."

"Grumble grumble triplicate...Are there any other forms we have to fill out before we get high?" Jeb asked.

"Well, there's still the --" 

"I don't care. Tee-zee-go!"

"Jeb....kkkzzssshh...snacks...." Mission Control's voice faded into illegibility as Jeb wandered further and higher than any Kerbal had ever dared to venture.

"Man, I sure could go for some snacks right now," Jeb said.

...

As the lone capsule landed on the twisted, shattered remains of the Science Jr., the hatch swung open and Jeb, sans space-suit, staggered out and collapsed onto the green, green grass. The recovery helicopter was already overhead, and even as smoke still clung to Jeb's suit a news van came to a screeching halt.

"Mr. Kerman, you have just returned from the first ever trip to the Mun! Do you have any words you'd like to say?"

"So...hungry...." Jeb whispered, smoke still clinging to his orange flight suit. "Thirteen hours...no snacks..."

Edited September 9, 2016 by dire

[dire]

"Jeb, it's not that we don't believe that you actually flew past the moon. The psych evaluation is coming in next week, and -- "

"You're lying! I know you don't believe me. That's why, this time, I brought six tourists with me. And snacks! Snacks for everybody."

"Jeb, did those people actually agree to go with you?"

"Just give me launch clearance and nobody gets hurt. You'll see. I'll show you. I'll show you all! And have some emmantaler waiting for when we get back."

"Jeb, we can't just let you take rockets out willy-nilly whenever you -- "

"I don't care, Gene! Tee-zee-go!"

"-sigh- An excellent pilot, but definitely crazy. Well, at least we still have the -- it's gone?! What do you mean it's gone? Jeb took it! Jeeeeeeeeeeb!"

From The Daily Kerbal: 

Dr. Hedrich Kerman made headlines today as he conducted original research on the effects of space travel on the Kerbal psyche. "One sample vas not enuff," the doctor quoted to an enthusiastic news team. "I had to go and see this for myself. And seence it vas our anniversary, my vife vould keel me eef I did not bring her along also."

The doctor, along with his wife and four volunteers, accompanied famed pilot Jebediah Kerman on what Jeb claimed was a trip to the Mun.

"Yes, I did go to the Mun, and yes, you can too! For the low, low price of only 100,000 credits, Kerbal Space Center will build you a custom seat on one of our Mun-faring rockets. It's safe, it's cheap, and it's definitely for real."

When asked if it was true that Jebediah was undergoing a psychological evaluation because Gene Kerman, head of the KSC, thought he was dangerously insane, Jeb had no comment.

Edited September 9, 2016 by dire