Eloquent Spacecraft Systems 4x Scale Repository

[septemberWaves]

This is going to be an ongoing repository for spacecraft that I am designing for the 4x scale Kerbol system (including the Outer Planets mod). I don't think I can provide a schedule for new content at present, but I will be remaining in 1.3 and with the same mod set regardless of any future game updates until what I am doing here is complete.

I'll design a single crewed exploration mission (with as many vehicles as I feel necessary) for each planetary system, probably relying mostly on a modular exploration infrastructure and reusing similar design philosophies for different spacecraft. I will also assemble a series of space probes for assorted purposes, and several sets of launch vehicles to use for launching all payloads.

All spacecraft in this thread will be optimized for a Kerbol system with orbits and planetary radii at 4x normal scale, and atmospheres at 1.5x normal height. Changes from the default difficulty settings are: Commnet ranges are 4x the default, signal is required for control, re-entry blackout is enabled, and atmospheric heating is at maximum.

Craft files will not necessarily be released immediately with each update; I will release them only when I am satisfied that the vehicles are complete.

Edited August 10, 2017 by eloquentJane

[septemberWaves]

Project Quicksilver

Project Quicksilver is a launch vehicle creation and testing program. The aim is to create simple liquid-fueled rockets for transporting payloads of up to 10 tonnes to low Kerbin orbit (115km altitude). The Zephyr crew vehicles will also be developed as part of Project Quicksilver, as they are launched on Quicksilver rockets. All Quicksilver rockets are, therefore, crew-rated.

Instructions for use:

Spoiler

Every Quicksilver rocket is designed for the default vehicle orientation in the VAB. This means that it is assumed that the command pod orientation will be the default, and the rocket will be attached beneath the payload without being rotated. The vehicle should execute a 90° rotation shortly after liftoff.

All Quicksilver rockets can be flown to low Kerbin orbit on full autopilot by MechJeb. Even if you plan on flying them manually, it is recommended that you use the MechJeb autopilot at least once to learn how they fly, especially if you are not used to 4x scale planets.

The Mechjeb autopilot settings are the same for every Quicksilver variant:
Orbit altitude = 115km
Orbit inclination 0°
Force roll 0°
Autostage on
Stage fairings at 75km

Auto-deploy solar panels and Auto-warp can be either enabled or disabled. Every other autopilot setting should be disabled. There is no need to change the ascent path from the default.

Please note that for orbits with inclinations other than 0° the payload capacity is likely to be lower than that which is stated.

 

Quicksilver 1A

Quicksilver 1A is the smallest rocket in the Quicksilver series. It is designed for payloads of 0.5 tonnes or less. It is a three-stage rocket with one engine on each stage.

Spoiler

Ignition. The first stage engine is a Hornet engine. It provides a maximum thrust of 350kN and is optimized for sea level.

Liftoff of QTF1 (Quicksilver Test Flight 1).

Commencing gravity turn.

First stage cutoff and separation.

Second stage ignition. The second stage engine is a Swivel engine, which provides a maximum thrust of 215kN and is optimized for the upper atmosphere.

Second stage cutoff and separation.

Third stage ignition. The third stage engine is a Sparkler engine, which provides a maximum thrust of 30kN and is optimized for vacuum.

Fairing separation occurs shortly after third stage ignition.

Third stage cutoff. Coasting to apoapsis.

Circularizing.

Payload deployment once 115km orbit is reached.

 

Quicksilver 1B

Quicksilver 1B is identical to Quicksilver 1A, but with two additional solid rocket boosters. The addition of the boosters increases payload capacity to 0.75 tonnes.

Spoiler

Central engine ignition.

SRB ignition, and liftoff of QTF2.

Commencing gravity turn. Acceleration is very high during this stage of flight.

Booster cutoff and separation.

After the boosters separate, the flight profile is essentially identical to the flight profile of Quicksilver 1A.

The test payload is successfully deployed in a 115km Kerbin orbit.

The upper stage has been augmented with a pair of de-orbit motors to reduce debris. The upper stage of the 1A variant has also been updated to include these.

 

Quicksilver 2A

The Quicksilver 2 rockets use a different design to the Quicksilver 1 rockets. They have a longer final stage with a more powerful engine, a slightly shorter penultimate stage, and a shorter lower stage but with added liquid boosters. The boosters are copies of the lower stage itself, with added nosecones. The payload capacity of Quicksilver 2A is 1.2 tonnes.

Spoiler

Ignition. Like the Quicksilver 1 rockets, the first stage engines of all Quicksilver 2 variants are Hornet engines. On Quicksilver 2A, the central engine is throttled down while the booster engines are at full throttle.

Liftoff of QTF3.

Commencing gravity turn.

Booster cutoff. Separation closely follows but is not pictured.

First stage cutoff and separation, second stage ignition. The second stage engine is a Swivel engine.

Second stage cutoff and separation, third stage ignition. The third stage engine is a Terrier engine, which produces a maximum thrust of 60kN and is optimized for vacuum.

Fairing separation occurs shortly after third stage ignition.

After the payload is deployed in orbit, the upper stage is once again de-orbited with integrated de-orbit motors.

 

Quicksilver 2B

The B and C variants of the Quicksilver 2 rocket have different staging sequences to the A variant. Due to the heavier payloads and therefore the additional thrust required, it is not possible to have the central lower stage engine set to a lower throttle than the boosters. Instead, the boosters are ignited first, and the central engine is only ignited after the boosters separate. The boosters are now considered the first stage, and the core considered the second stage, meaning the 2B and 2C Quicksilver rockets are now four-stage vehicles. The Quicksilver 2B rocket has a payload capacity of 2 tonnes.

Spoiler

Ignition.

Liftoff of QTF4.

Commencing gravity turn.

First stage cutoff and separation, second stage ignition.

From this point the flight profile is essentially identical to that of the 2A variant.

The test payload is successfully deployed in a 115km Kerbin orbit.

 

Quicksilver 2C

The 2C variant has 6 first stage boosters, and a payload capacity of 2.5 tonnes.

Spoiler

Liftoff of QTF5.

Commencing gravity turn.

First stage separation, second stage ignition.

From this point, the flight profile is essentially identical to that of the 2A and 2B variants.

It is worth noting that the third stage engine of the 2C variant is not a Swivel like the other variants have. It is instead a Reliant engine, which produces a maximum thrust of 240kN. It is not able to gimbal, so it is assisted by a couple of vernier engines.

The test payload is successfully deployed in a 115km Kerbin orbit.

 

Quicksilver 3

Quicksilver 3 is a rocket with a large number of variants. The variants are systematically named using three digits following the name of the vehicle. The first digit indicates whether the rocket is the 2-stage or 3-stage variant. The second digit indicates whether the rocket is using the Type 1 or Type 2 final stage. The third digit represents the number of additional solid rocket boosters. For example, Quicksilver 3 212 is the 2-stage variant of the rocket, with the Type 1 final stage, and two solid rocket boosters.

Quicksilver 3 210 flight profile:

Spoiler

The simplest possible Quicksilver 3 variant is the 210 variant. This is a 2-stage variant, meaning that its first stage uses a Constellation engine, and its upper stage is the Type 1 variant as indicated by the second digit of the variant number. This variant has no solid rocket boosters. The payload capacity of the 210 variant is 3 tonnes.

Ignition. The first stage of any 2-stage variant uses a Constellation engine, which produces a maximum thrust of 1050kN and is optimized for the lower atmosphere.

Liftoff of QTF6.

Commencing gravity turn.

First stage cutoff and separation.

Second stage ignition. The Type 2 final stage uses a Sigma engine, which produces a maximum thrust of 340kN and is optimized for vacuum.

Fairing separation.

The test payload is deployed in a 115km Kerbin orbit, and as usual the rocket's final stage is de-orbited with built-in de-orbit motors.

Quicksilver 3 212 flight profile (includes SRBs):

Spoiler

The Quicksilver 3 212 is the simplest Quicksilver 3 variant to include boosters. It is otherwise identical to the 210 variant, though with different throttle limits on the engines. The boosters are Thumper SRMs, which produce a maximum thrust of 300kN each. They also have separation motors in the nosecones. The payload capacity of the 212 variant is 3.5 tonnes.

First stage main engine ignition, SRB ignition.

Liftoff of QTF7.

Commencing gravity turn.

Booster cutoff.

Booster separation. From this point onward, the flight profile is essentially identical to that of the 210 variant.

Notes on other variants:

Spoiler

The second stage of every 3-stage Quicksilver 3 variant uses a Moa engine, which produces a maximum thrust of 965kN.

The Type 2 final stage has 4 de-orbit motors instead of 2.

Some variant numbers may have "-E" at the end. This means that, instead of a Sigma engine, the upper stage uses an Eaglet engine, which produces a maximum thrust of 400kN at the cost of some efficiency.

Other Quicksilver 3 variants & payload capacities:

Spoiler

213 variant. 4 tonne payload capacity.

222 variant. 5 tonne payload capacity.

313 variant. 5.5 tonne payload capacity. The first stage engine of every 3-stage variant uses a Pulsar engine, which is essentially two Constellation engines sharing an engine mount.

314 variant. 6 tonne payload capacity.

322-E variant. 6.5 tonne payload capacity.

323-E variant. 7 tonne payload capacity.

 

Quicksilver 4

Quicksilver 4 is the largest and final rocket in the Quicksilver series. It has a payload capacity of 11 tonnes.

Spoiler

Ignition. The first stage uses a central core plus two copies of itself as boosters. The central engine is throttled down. All three engines are Constellation engines.

Liftoff of QTF8.

Commencing gravity turn.

Booster cutoff and separation. The explosion was an antenna, which was damaged by a separation motor. Nothing else was damaged, and the separation motors will be moved in future versions of the rocket. It is worth noting that if you are flying this rocket using MechJeb, a bug with the mod means that you will have to stage the separation of the boosters manually. It also makes the delta-v reading incorrect prior to booster separation.

First stage cutoff and separation.

Second stage ignition and fairing separation. The second stage uses an Eaglet engine.

The test payload is successfully deployed in a 115km Kerbin orbit. Ignore the floating MechJeb core, it's attached to the test weight and is appearing several meters away due to a bug with the test weight mod.

 

Zephyr 1

Zephyr 1 is the earliest and simplest crewed spacecraft. It cannot dock, it has no way of generating power, it is simply designed to take a kerbal to orbit Kerbin a few times and then return them to the ground. For this launch, the kerbal in question is Valentina Kerman. Zephyr 1 is launched on a Quicksilver 2B rocket.

Spoiler

Liftoff of Zephyr 1.

Launch proceeding nominally.

The launch escape system is jettisoned when the fourth stage engine ignites.

Zephyr 1 has reached orbit of Kerbin.

After orbiting a few times, the spacecraft executes a de-orbit maneuver and the capsule separates from the Quicksilver upper stage.

Re-entry and splashdown go mostly well, though the capsule was predicted to land east of the KSC instead of a huge distance west of it. Still, this qualifies as a successful test.

 

Zephyr 2

Zephyr 2 is a 2-kerbal spacecraft. It has its own propulsion system, and includes docking capabilities, antennas, and solar power, allowing for far longer excursions in space than Zephyr 1. It also has an orbital module for extra habitation room when the crew are in orbit. Zephyr 2 is launched on a Quicksilver 3 314.

The crew of this launch are Gemfal Kerman and Franlan Kerman.

Spoiler

Liftoff.

Commencing gravity turn.

Booster cutoff and separation.

First stage cutoff and separation.

Second stage ignition.

Second stage cutoff and separation.

Third stage ignition, fairing and LES separation.

Once in space, antennae and solar panels are deployed.

Zephyr 2 spacecraft is deployed in a 115km Kerbin orbit.

The spacecraft has around 1400m/s of delta-v once in orbit. This is plenty for early orbital maneuvering.

Raising apoapsis to 4800km. This is so that I can re-enter with a very low periapsis and rate the heat shield for a Munar re-entry, as the re-entry speed from 4800km with a low periapsis will be comparable to the re-entry speed from a Mun or Minmus return with a higher periapis.

The periapsis is lowered once the spacecraft is high above Kerbin.

Separation of orbital module and service module before re-entry.

Re-orienting spacecraft for re-entry.

Re-entering Kerbin's atmosphere.

Re-entry successful.

Parachute deployed.

Although the spacecraft can survive a water landing with only the parachute, there is another safeguard in case of landing at a higher altitude.

Immediately before landing, the heat shield is jettisoned and 3 concealed solid rocket motors slow the capsule to a halt. The exact timing required for igniting the landing motors will depend on the altitude the capsule is landing at.

Splashdown successful.

 

Edited August 10, 2017 by eloquentJane

[septemberWaves]

Updated the Project Quicksilver post with the rest of the Quicksilver rockets and the Zephyr 2 spacecraft.