How the heck do I orbit over a waypoint?

[crekit]

I'm using SCANSAT on a 1080 screen. The accuracy required to meet the contract is sub-pixel (aka impossible to eyeball). I have no idea how the heck I'm suppost to do this.

Kerbin, above 70km, sub-orbital (I just drop my perapsis under 70km for a moment as I pass- works on the possible contracts.)

Edited March 18, 2017 by crekit
typo

[bewing]

Orbiting over them is a very difficult way to do it in general. Atmospheric waypoint contracts are meant to be done with airplanes -- they exist to encourage you to build airplanes. To do one from a craft in orbit, you actually have to be in orbit. (Not just suborbital.) Then you modify you inclination so that your peak latitude is just a little bit higher than the latitude of the waypoint, and to the east of the waypoint. Set your Pe at that point, just a bit below 70km, and wait for the waypoint message to show up, and cross your fingers that you will be close enough when you get there.

I think that the waypoint targets are funny shapes. At the proper altitude, they are dozens of km across. But below and above that altitude, they taper smaller.

 

[crekit]

38 minutes ago, bewing said:

Orbiting over them is a very difficult way to do it in general. Atmospheric waypoint contracts are meant to be done with airplanes -- they exist to encourage you to build airplanes. To do one from a craft in orbit, you actually have to be in orbit. (Not just suborbital.) Then you modify you inclination so that your peak latitude is just a little bit higher than the latitude of the waypoint, and to the east of the waypoint. Set your Pe at that point, just a bit below 70km, and wait for the waypoint message to show up, and cross your fingers that you will be close enough when you get there.

I think that the waypoint targets are funny shapes. At the proper altitude, they are dozens of km across. But below and above that altitude, they taper smaller.

 

-- In response to airplanes --

It's above 70km so I have to use a rocket ship. I actually built a plane to do these missions before I realized that they had to be above the atmosphere (I don't have that kind of tech!)

I've found most of the contracts for atmospheric flight have been too high for my planes to go anyway (18km is above what I can do without rockets/high end jets). Pair that with having to fly the jet around the entire planet to get to the location, and jets become useless really fast. Trust me I really want to build and play with them xD, but they just suck too much.

Also these missions aren't always on Kerbin, sometimes they are on the MUN. The maneuver I'm trying to pull is completely necessary in missions like that.

-- How SCANSAT helps --

Scansat shows your orbitpath predicted in the future, so I don't have to just guess where I'll be, which is REALLY nice. I'm just having problems because the target area is so small.

-- What I'll do next --

I'll try coming in at a lower altitude, that might help (I was at about 83km?). I thought because it said "above 70km" I didn't have to worry about height though.. they should be more intuitive with that kind of stuff if that's the case.

Will report back if lowering altitude helps!

-- What I found out --

I went RIGHT over it this time, and it still wasn't close enough. You're right, I was too high-- god damned contract didn't say freaking thing about being too high just too low. That's such BS. Now I gotta align this crap all over again...

#rage #ksp

Edit: I did it. It's super easy when you know to be at the right altitude

Edited March 19, 2017 by crekit
Not always on kerbin

[bewing]

It doesn't take much tech to create a high altitude hybrid jetrocket. Three junos surrounding a terrier can make a very capable little plane that'll hop over 19km three times in a flight.

But yeah, you don't really want to take the atmospheric contracts on the other side of the planet unless you are also planning on visiting the badlands on the same trip.

And if you unlock the wheesley, you get panthers regularly on contracts as gifts. And the panthers can do it all easily, with an MK1 jet design.

 

In any case, I'm glad you found your answer.

-- but the rage may be slightly misdirected ... that's not a stock contract you just filled. It came from a mod, and that mod displayed the contract fineprint and set the size of the waypoint.

 

Edited March 19, 2017 by bewing

[crekit]

56 minutes ago, bewing said:

It doesn't take much tech to create a high altitude hybrid jetrocket. Three junos surrounding a terrier can make a very capable little plane that'll hop over 19km three times in a flight.

But yeah, you don't really want to take the atmospheric contracts on the other side of the planet unless you are also planning on visiting the badlands on the same trip.

And if you unlock the wheesley, you get panthers regularly on contracts as gifts. And the panthers can do it all easily, with an MK1 jet design.

 

In any case, I'm glad you found your answer.

-- but the rage may be slightly misdirected ... that's not a stock contract you just filled. It came from a mod, and that mod displayed the contract fineprint and set the size of the waypoint.

 

Wait wheeley? Panther? Contract gifts?

And while this may have been a mod contract I had the same issue (to a lesser extent) on actual stock contracts. But yeah, this one was from a mod.

[bewing]

The Juno is the most basic jet engine. Rather pathetic, but amusing. The next step up is the Wheesley. Very efficient -- Mach 1.5 supercruise at middling altitudes.

After that you get the Panther engine with the lovely afterburners. Mach 2.5 supercruise at 20km altitude. Can fill any stock contract without effort, or circumnavigate the planet.

And when you get a contract that asks you to test an engine, you don't have to do it right away. As long as you don't complete the contract, you get to continue using the engine without ever researching the technology. The contract system usually asks you to test prototype engines of the next level higher than the engine you already have.

 

[crekit]

6 hours ago, bewing said:

The Juno is the most basic jet engine. Rather pathetic, but amusing. The next step up is the Wheesley. Very efficient -- Mach 1.5 supercruise at middling altitudes.

After that you get the Panther engine with the lovely afterburners. Mach 2.5 supercruise at 20km altitude. Can fill any stock contract without effort, or circumnavigate the planet.

And when you get a contract that asks you to test an engine, you don't have to do it right away. As long as you don't complete the contract, you get to continue using the engine without ever researching the technology. The contract system usually asks you to test prototype engines of the next level higher than the engine you already have.

 

Wait those contracts temporarily unlock the part?! WHAAAAAAAAT?!!!!!!?

I thought it was encouraging me to unlock it myself!

...Again, why doesn't it say it will lend you the part in the contract xD