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Shuttle Challenge v4 - The STS thread [Stock and Mod Friendly] [THREAD CLOSED 06.08.17]


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And here I am again, back with Mission 4!

If you are wondering how I can "print" these successes so fast, I guess it's thanks to me having a working design from the start on that needed little tweaking to work fine in so far every mission :) Now the Station mission will probably be the last one I can do with the current shuttle I have, so once I have done that one it's time for some "real" upgrades - especialy since the Asteroid mission is suposed to use the shuttle as capture and landing device. Unless .... *dramatic music*

BTT, here is the album: https://imgur.com/a/7k8Pr Nothing fancy since there's not much going on. The only shocker was - yet again - the lack of dV towards the end and me desperately stalling the craft in order to not overshoot too much. Anyway, crew is back home sound and safe! Although the original NASA mission didn't plan to dock the crafts together, the positioning of my ports was so kind as to let me do it anyway, so thanks for that one, past-me!

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Hello everyone.

I have been away for sometime, but now i am back!

Here is my entry for STS-A1

Mod list: 

Kerbal Alarm Clock
Mechjeb2

Community Resource Pack
Interstellar Fuel Switch
Module manager

In this flight i only used Mechjeb info panel, and i am proud about it, Because i haven't ever launched space shuttle ever! So this was my first space shuttle. 

Test Flights:

  Reveal hidden contents

I am proud present you the: Solid Shuttle 02 (Creativity of the name. LoL)

LWlhHha.jpg

You can see details of the flight for STS-A1 in imgur gallery below:

http://imgur.com/gallery/vXEyE

 

So, i like to claim now the Pilot Badge of STS-A1

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Would it be ok for me to combine STS 2a, 2b, and 4 into one mission? I had went and did 2b after I noticed that 2a was next to it after an aerobraking pass and now due to CoL/CoM issues I need to rescue it. 

  On 2/17/2017 at 6:54 PM, Shadow dream said:

And here I am again, back with Mission 4!

If you are wondering how I can "print" these successes so fast, I guess it's thanks to me having a working design from the start on that needed little tweaking to work fine in so far every mission :) Now the Station mission will probably be the last one I can do with the current shuttle I have, so once I have done that one it's time for some "real" upgrades - especialy since the Asteroid mission is suposed to use the shuttle as capture and landing device. Unless .... *dramatic music*

BTT, here is the album: https://imgur.com/a/7k8Pr Nothing fancy since there's not much going on. The only shocker was - yet again - the lack of dV towards the end and me desperately stalling the craft in order to not overshoot too much. Anyway, crew is back home sound and safe! Although the original NASA mission didn't plan to dock the crafts together, the positioning of my ports was so kind as to let me do it anyway, so thanks for that one, past-me!

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Mine was purposely designed that way from the start and the execution of my mission will depend on how your mission is judged. I hope it is fine for the shuttles to dock.

Edited by 53miner53
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Success! :)

pJNeZoq.jpg

Full STS-1a  mission album here http://imgur.com/a/LlVfy

Using Procedural Parts and USI Life Support

Despite expectations, the first Mk.1a Orbiter broke up during re-entry (fortunately on its unmanned qualification flight), leading to a series of simulations to determine the cause. In the end, it turned out to be poor descent profile (Orbiter 3 must have been a fluke), and after a successful unmanned qualification flight of Orbiter Number 5, Lischell and Gemree were cleared to go to space. I did aim for a KSC landing, but it turns out that during descent the drag brings the landing site a lot further round the planet than I expected, so I vastly undershot.

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Hi there.

Just completed STS-4, STS-4R

Imgur: http://imgur.com/a/qKrgX

Mission Report: Shuttle Challenge

H5XNm4l.png

  Reveal hidden contents

That was fun.

I would like to claim the yCCnUU7.jpgBadge.

 

Thank you so much,

 

ME

Edited by Martian Emigrant
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Just finished STS 5, the first of the Space Station assembly.

 

http://imgur.com/gallery/4x0Fl

 

Teasers:

YHt70Xz.png

tRi67yu.png

iLcRxvF.png

 

To maintain a continuity, my previous orbiter "Leviathan" has been left stranded in space from the previous rescue mission after sustaining critical damage. Its newly upgraded sister shuttle "Behemoth" will now be used in conjunction with the Mk II launch vehicle. In the last space station assembly mission, as a bonus, "Behemoth" will perform a daring docking with "Leviathan" and attempt to safely de-orbit it into the ocean.

 

To be continued....

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  On 2/16/2017 at 9:14 PM, Speeding Mullet said:

Is the HRO to make another appearance?

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Apart from having to tweak the airframe again (yeah, haven't flown it for quite a while and the aerodynamics seem to have changed in the meantime), it seems to be operational

b02214fefcf1.png

P.S. Totally need to install more powerful secondary RCS for such landings - need more attitude control for such maneuvers (near-surface 90 degree turn) and just to avoid tipping while bouncing.

 

UPD. I managed to overdo the adjustments. That is I've tested it with the payload and some fuel on board and it still was a bit more nose-heavy than regular landing case, so I thought this would be good... Yeah, first attempt at return to Kerbin with practically dry tanks went fully ballistic. Ballistic reentry that is, LOL (hey, nothing burned up!). Barely got out of spin, almost got to a shore (barely insufficient fuel), and damaged the shuttle on splashdown (come on, it was 30 m/s on flaps! how this seaplane splashdown is supposed to work?!). Conclusion? mine more fuel, get proper balance. Then triple-check airframe balancing for the next flight

Edited by Alchemist
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Alright, completed the run. This time brought back a bit more fuel than necessary, but with this airframe it's not the issue.

Craft/configuration:   HRO-M03       vehicle transport heavy shuttle
Payload:                    Rubidium        mobile research & mining base

Report:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

Edited by Alchemist
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Ok, so the new Mun mission done. Still have Laythe to go
And you have a new STS-2b? Wait, that actually was the second demo-flight of HRO! And pretty much the kind of payload it was designed for. Well, it's probably a bit easier now with the auto-struts, but 2-port docking was good enough for this payload mass even back then

 

A few thoughts on progression:

  • Given the craziness of the asteroid mission, maybe it can also be moved to a separate branch, so that it's not a prerequisite to interplanetary missions?
  • Mun missions - land the shuttle and deploy a base straight away? Maybe there could be something slightly simpler before that... What about a mission to carry a lander of a more classic kind to munar orbit in the shuttle (and for commander level - to also bring the lander back to Kerbin in the payload bay)?
    There was something similar posted in the old tread - except it was Apollo-style CSM+LM deployed from the shuttle in Kebin orbit... and then returned back and recovered by the shuttle!
  • By the way, speaking of shuttle definitions - maybe STS-4/R4 could also allow ships without payload bay? Of course, the original case was about installing crew modules in the payload bay of a vehicle with big payload capacity. But why not to allow some broader options? From modifications with payload bay replaced by crew module to vehicles originally designed as crew shuttles (even pure mk1 is a possibility for this) as long as they have crew capacity and maneuvering capabilities to fulfill the mission
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Finished STS-9!

WI6uhbe.png

My shuttle is a spiritual successor to my old shuttle from the previous challenge, but designed from the ground up.  It keeps the nose-mounted external tank, but its new double wing shape allows the addition of two SRBs made up of 5 Kickbacks each.  There are now only 3 Vectors instead of 6.

Today I learned that asteroids decide on their size when you first see them, because it was 28 tons before, on the first failed mission.  The payload was a nose adapter with drills and a claw, and an ISRU unit, 2 radiators, and an ore tank.  There was another claw pointing up from the cargo bay, so the asteroid could ride above the shuttle on reentry.  Unfortunately, it was unstable and couldn't glide all the way to KSC.

The asteroid was 7.8 tons, but I converted a small amount of its ore to oxidizer and it was 7.1 tons on landing.

http://imgur.com/a/VcmPM

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  On 2/19/2017 at 1:14 AM, sdj64 said:

Finished STS-9!

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Nice execution! Especialy the Launch stage, that's an interessting design!

 

Just a small update on my side: I'm half way through the Station Builder. If there is one thing this mission has thought me, it's that I need to enhance my descent trajectory. I keep overshooting, desperately stalling the craft and bumping the Runway just enough to use my chute for stopping. If NASA was my boss, I'd be cleaning shoes by now :D

Here's the Album so far, I'll add the remaining shots once I've got 'em: https://imgur.com/a/O0Jr4

The Habitation Module is nothing fancy, just enough room for 7 Kerbals, enough bandwith for 56kbit internet connection and enough batteries to charge a mobile phone once. Well, thanks to Raster Prop I could add some cams outside to monitor the other modules once they are here.

The Science Module is basicly the Research Pod with high power antena and a Service Bay containing a small probe fitted with basic science. I tried to keep it minimalistic, just enough solar to power the engine (at best), 4 basic experiments to gather some science and a little RCS to re-dock easily (actualy I also used some to dock the module, lucky me I had that probe to control the Module)! I so have to try to build one that fits a Kerbal scientist and additional modules! Maybe upgrade the 2.5m bay to a Mk3 bay?

Edited by Shadow dream
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Hello, i want to participate and i am currently at badge no.1

i dont like making a lot of screenshots so i made a timelapse vid.

also i used K.E.R.

note: in the video you will see a short moment with a KOS - console... thats just installed but not used :wink:

 

hope i did everything right, because i misread the challenge at least 2 times ... yeah ^^ im not a patient reader :D

i checked the definition of the STS multiple times and my craft fit all restrictions :wink: so its a shuttle !! by definition :P looks more like a containership xD haha

 

edit.: i forgot some mods i have installed as well i dont know if thats important but im playing in SSRSS with kopernicus and stuff, no parts or something similiar, but to be honest :wink: the planets are inclined a bit differently maybe when going for duna i will use the normal solar system just in case. 

What do you say to kopernicus? i know it makes everything more complicated :wink: im just curious how we should handle this in the challenge.

 

 

Edited by Scabank
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Well, I started doing STS-2a, and while I waited for the orbiter to re-enter I uploaded most of the album http://imgur.com/a/SdvGk

Alas, things fell apart (quite literally) at the last minute, and Orbiter Number 5 broke up during re-entry. The two remaining Mk.1 Orbiters (Mk.1a Number 4, and Mk.1b Number 6) have been mothballed, and a replacement Mk.2 put through testing ready to attempt STS-2b instead.

 

Orbiter Number 5: Fortunately it oriented tail-first after losing the wings and slowing below its ability to remain aerodynamically stable horizontally, and the crew survived.

uammmKd.jpg

 

Orbiter Number 7 on the pad, with the standard Block 1 booster. As this is a test flight of the new Mk,2, the Orbiter number hasn't been painted on the side yet. Improvements over the Mk.1 series include more heat-resistant wings, removal of the small OMS engines in favour of using the main engines, a rebalanced layout to provide greater aerodynamic stability during low-mass descents and the ability to eject the cockpit to land on parachutes in the event of an orbiter break-up. This launch is the first of two qualification flights (this one failed when the orbiter stack lost control at booster separation, and the orbiter performed a suborbital flight and returned safely) that leads to modifications to the roll system to better stabilise the stack during ascent.

Bry1aFY.jpg

 

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  On 2/17/2017 at 2:23 PM, BubbleWrap said:

 

I have actually managed to build a spaceglider that can both launch like a shuttle, and actually land safely again :o

 

Expand  

Looking good there, welcome to the challenge!!  Can't wait to see how this one progresses!

 

  On 2/17/2017 at 4:07 PM, michal.don said:

Hi there,

To shorten the waiting for the next mission, I re-flew the fuel pod mission, this time with a modified shuttle to fit in the "stock" category. I replaced the SpaceY boosters with clusters of Kickbacks, and unistalled the KJR (the autostrut function was working fine, so I guess KJR is no longer needed), and was able to take the pod to 83,000 km orbit with fuel to spare.

All is documented in an imgur album:

http://imgur.com/a/zJvAb

All went fine, and no special maneuvers like gravity assists were needed, the shuttle is performing great even with stock boosters (I'm still going back to SpaceY, mainly for the looks).

I might try landing the pod sometimes soon, this could prove to be an interesting challenge, I'm not sure how the shuttle will reenter weighing 40 tonnes more than usually, but hopefully much better than with a large space potato attached to it :)

Expand  

Ah yes then someone comes along and blows the scoring out of the water hehe.  Was it a mistake to remove the 168t fuel pod?!  Anyway nicely done, I will update the OP soontm and here's a nice little stock badge for you!  et2p8E4.jpg

 

  On 2/17/2017 at 4:55 PM, TheKorbinger said:

I have a ~400 ton shuttle that is somewhat realistic...

Expand  

Cool, dust off the cobwebs and shoot some missions in the challenge thread with us :)

 

 

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  On 2/17/2017 at 6:54 PM, Shadow dream said:

And here I am again, back with Mission 4!

Expand  

 Nicely done there @Shadow dream.  There's something awesome about seeing two shuttles up there in the same place.  It was one of the most enjoyable maneuvers I have done in LKO I reckon.  Looking forward to seeing the station and how that comes together!   yCCnUU7.jpg

 

  On 2/17/2017 at 6:59 PM, SolidJuho said:

Hello everyone.

I have been away for sometime, but now i am back!

Here is my entry for STS-A1

Expand  

Woot!  Welcome back and welcome to the challenge!  Flying shuttles is really hard so well done on your first attempt!  I can see you are running a couple of mods there, but can you confirm your entry was pure stock from a parts (and fuel) perspective?  In the meantime I'll award this badge, but will happily award the stock if that's the case!   7RNmgnC.jpg

 

  On 2/17/2017 at 9:00 PM, 53miner53 said:

Would it be ok for me to combine STS 2a, 2b, and 4 into one mission?

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2A and 2B yes, but the others are designed to run as single missions really.  Also that would have you missing out STS-3 I think.  Oh yes and docking is just fine!

 

  On 2/17/2017 at 9:11 PM, Ourworldalpha1 said:

 

I am back Speeding mullet

Glad this legendary challenge is back:)

I will have a new shuttle shortly

Gene Kerman Told be sternly to make sure it lands(in one piece)this time :D

 

Expand  

Awesome!  Good to have you back and involved!

 

  On 2/18/2017 at 2:26 AM, BubbleWrap said:

Success! :)

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Nice you backed up your post with an entry!  now I can truly say welcome to the challenge!  For this first mission I'm comfortable that you have reached orbit etc, but for future missions more detail is requested to make it easier, and not have to come back to clarify things etc.  Take some screen shots without F2ing first etc as you go and include them in.  I'm all for pretty pictures, but I need to see whats going on too :)  Good luck with the next mission!   7RNmgnC.jpg

 

  On 2/18/2017 at 3:03 AM, Martian Emigrant said:

 

Hi there.

Just completed STS-4, STS-4R

Imgur: http://imgur.com/a/qKrgX

Mission Report: Shuttle Challenge

 

Expand  

Really glad you enjoyed it, I think I enjoyed that mission a lot when I completed it.  Amazing seeing two shuttles in orbit at the same time!  It didn't ever happen though did it?  Anyway, another worthy mission, and here's your badge!   yCCnUU7.jpg

 

  On 2/18/2017 at 3:37 AM, vladd148 said:

Just finished STS 5, the first of the Space Station assembly.

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Nice work, keep us posted of your progress!  Definitely want to see you de-orbit the stricken Shuttle.  I think @Alchemist just up and landed his on the back of one of his monster HRO's?!

 

  On 2/18/2017 at 10:49 AM, Alchemist said:

Apart from having to tweak the airframe again (yeah, haven't flown it for quite a while and the aerodynamics seem to have changed in the meantime), it seems to be operational

Expand  

Speak of the Alchemist himself!  Right, time to get into the detail.....

  On 2/18/2017 at 7:25 PM, Alchemist said:

Alright, completed the run. This time brought back a bit more fuel than necessary, but with this airframe it's not the issue.

Craft/configuration:   HRO-M03       vehicle transport heavy shuttle
Payload:                    Rubidium        mobile research & mining base

Expand  

A supreme effort Alchemist, well done on passing out the first Mun mission.  I suspected when I was designing this that the HRO would just be able to do it.  I really liked the point about shifting the fuel and watching the response from the SAS input.  That is a clever clever trick to get everything balanced nicely in the stock game!  Here's a nifty little badge for you, and again, welcome back!   UOxFfeM.jpg

 

  On 2/18/2017 at 9:51 PM, Alchemist said:

Ok, so the new Mun mission done. Still have Laythe to go
And you have a new STS-2b? Wait, that actually was the second demo-flight of HRO! And pretty much the kind of payload it was designed for. Well, it's probably a bit easier now with the auto-struts, but 2-port docking was good enough for this payload mass even back then

Expand  

Haha so it was!  Yep there's been a few changes with the missions, but mostly not stuff that would affect the vast majority so I decided it was worth it!  Here's your badge :)   YbUvgWK.jpg

 

  On 2/18/2017 at 9:51 PM, Alchemist said:

A few thoughts on progression:

  • Given the craziness of the asteroid mission, maybe it can also be moved to a separate branch, so that it's not a prerequisite to interplanetary missions?
  • Mun missions - land the shuttle and deploy a base straight away? Maybe there could be something slightly simpler before that... What about a mission to carry a lander of a more classic kind to munar orbit in the shuttle (and for commander level - to also bring the lander back to Kerbin in the payload bay)?
    There was something similar posted in the old tread - except it was Apollo-style CSM+LM deployed from the shuttle in Kebin orbit... and then returned back and recovered by the shuttle!
  • By the way, speaking of shuttle definitions - maybe STS-4/R4 could also allow ships without payload bay? Of course, the original case was about installing crew modules in the payload bay of a vehicle with big payload capacity. But why not to allow some broader options? From modifications with payload bay replaced by crew module to vehicles originally designed as crew shuttles (even pure mk1 is a possibility for this) as long as they have crew capacity and maneuvering capabilities to fulfill the mission
Expand  

I was toying with moving the asteroid mission to a separate branch a few days ago.  It's kinda a "fun" category rather than a serious mission so I can definitely see it as a separate category.  I'll have a think about how that can look.

I guess with the Mun Missions I wasn't sure what do do either but wanted to get something down.  I'm actually happy with it being one mission for the moment, but am going to possibly introduce a Kerbin 2 mission which would be to land on the Mun and Minmus in one mission then return.  Again something to think about, but there are other things to think about first.  Duna specifically and Laythe I think could use some follow on love.

Re: STS-4/4R that's a good call.  I might comb through and see which missions definitely done't require a cargo bay.  I mean technically landing a potato doesn't, as it doesn't really fit in to any cargo bay available anyway!

Thanks for the suggestions :)

 

  On 2/19/2017 at 1:14 AM, sdj64 said:

Finished STS-9!

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HAHA This shuttle I loved, and remember it well now.  I always thought the front mounted ET was totally bonkers, and the more I look at it I realise it is totally bonkers, but also a brilliant engineering solution!  Good to have you back and seriously, congratulations on this superbly put together mission.  Even though you didn't make it to KSC I thought the way you dealt with the asteroid and the modules you designed were excellent, so bear with me and I will update the OP!   cpvdNsy.jpg

 

  On 2/19/2017 at 11:24 AM, Shadow dream said:

Just a small update on my side: I'm half way through the Station Builder.

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Nicely nicely!  Just update me when you are done with the mission and I will review the rest of the report for you!

 

  On 2/19/2017 at 10:00 PM, Scabank said:

 

Hello, i want to participate and i am currently at badge no.1

i dont like making a lot of screenshots so i made a timelapse vid.

 

Expand  

Hey hey welcome to the challenge @Scabank!  Let me just review your video......UM?  WOW that is one crazy crazy shuttle.  Haha seriously I've never seen anything like it, even in 4 iterations of this challenge.  Never the less, we are not the kinda folk to shy away from the non traditional in here, and so yep, um, that's a shuttle lol.  It's more of a Space Galleon, but yup, shuttle :)

With your challenge entry, and mods specifically, I really need to know what mods you are running to be able to categorize.  For example you are using SSRSS which is Stock system, Kerbal sized, so I'm confident I can award you stock on those grounds, but basically are you running any part/fuel etc mods at all used on this shuttle?  I'll award you stock for the moment anyhow:   Rvs3vgQ.jpget2p8E4.jpg  and will update the OP once you confirm your mod list.

 

  On 2/20/2017 at 1:46 AM, BubbleWrap said:

Orbiter Number 5: Fortunately it oriented tail-first after losing the wings and slowing below its ability to remain aerodynamically stable horizontally, and the crew survived.

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Ooops!  Definitely not a nailed landing hehe.  Oh well, these things happen in the dangerous world of flying shuttles, so best luck with iterating your shuttle, and can't wait to see the finished mission that I can judge on!

 

Wow that was a lot of updating, hopefully I got to everyone!

SM

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I was going to add 4 in because I needed the rescue mission anyway so I could move the CoM of the shuttle that is in flight by adding and removing docked fuel tanks and refueling the shuttle. I don't care all too much if I get the 4 badge, and I could launch 3 before I land the rescue mission if I need to, but the rescue mission is underway.

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Ok thx for the fast answer.

Mods used by me:

K.E.R. / Kopernicus for SSRSS (stock sized real solar system) also including different sky box and enhanced planet visibility. so just mods about looking except K.E.R.

i am not using parts other than stock parts so the K.E.R. is at usage without any parts build in. also fuel behavior and / or parts are not used. just plain stock.

 

in my opinion it is not completely vanilla because of the PE and AP information i can see at the top of my screen (the only reason i am using K.E.R. so i dont have to switch to map always xD ) what normally is not a thing in the vanilla game. BUT STILL STOCK :wink: i would say :wink:. will go for challenge 2 now.

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Performing STS-2b will, of course, require a fuel pod to retrieve and thus Orbiter Number 7 is back in space performing STS-1b first. http://imgur.com/a/CpQgm

 

60jKI8j.jpg

The Mk.2 uses Smart Parts to get around the ongoing instability issue at booster cut-out / separation by shutting down the engines for a few seconds when the booster is empty, though it wasn't needed for this launch.

 

Assuming all goes well, the mission schedule is now drawn up all the way to OTS-32 which would be Mun STS-1, but I'm expecting to run into issues either with STS-2b, or with STS-9 :P

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STS 2a commander and 2b complete!

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B0eMT8zRijNmUGpvU3hidUE5VVU

Also could be counted as STS 4 as well, as I needed to rescue the first shuttle from CoM issues due to attempting to bring 40 tons of downmass at the rear end of the cargo bay. The first shuttle ended up bringing back no downmass, while the other shuttle brought the orbital tank and an orange tank home. It had brought up 2 orange tanks and a monoprop tug to refuel the other shuttle. The other tank and the tug are waiting for me to need refueling later.

Edit: and I didn't break the runway this time. Or visit R&D.

Edited by 53miner53
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Hello again, data for challenge 2 and 3

 

Challenge 2)

Brought back what i placed there first in about 1,000,000 meters without using its fuel up, also bused a drone to handle everything

2 comsats that are functional with AP/PE of geostationary Orbit +/- 32m

 

Challenge 3)

Hubble Orbit at PE ~855km not circular shape 28,71° inclination

2 solar arrays built in orbit with mmu´s

Ii downloaded the hubble craft @ https://kerbalx.com/xoknight/Hubble-Space-Telescope

 

i really hope i didnt misread something ^^ that happens a lot to me :wink:

Greetings

 

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I would like to claim the STS Commander badge for STS 5-8! 

gDmEbjw.jpg

Finally finished. Unfortunately this last mission the Kraken appeared and ate my STS-7 science module. Not wanting to anger him any further, I swiftly docked the last module and made a swift getaway!

Album:

STS 5 - http://imgur.com/a/4x0Fl

STS 6 - http://imgur.com/a/QzCSJ

STS 7 - http://imgur.com/a/SdsG3

STS 8 (+ Kraken proof) - http://imgur.com/a/xc2Dd

Mission previews:

MOp5H0B.png

lFQFrN7.png

pEiMNGp.png

 

Also decided that it's far easier to land by overshooting the runway and flying a rectangular pattern. Leaves far more room for re-entry errors and allows me to consistently make the runway!

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