Ares - "The Martian" recreated in Kerbal Space Program with Breaking Ground

[jinnantonix]

I am taking up Mopoii's The Martian Challenge - Recreating the film's Ares III mission and logging the mission here.  

Of course this has been done before, but this time Squad has made robotics available in the latest DLC "Breaking Ground", which helps to create cooler and more accurate craft.  Wherever possible I have mirrored real life rockets in the game, like the Constellation Program Ares I and Ares V, the US Delta II and Atlas V, and Chinese Long March 3C.  The fictional craft also mimic the conceptual artwork where possible and are built to a realistic scale.  The use of robotics also allows for inclusion of some of the sequences in gameplay, such as recovery of the Pathfinder and RTG for use in the SEV Rover.

 

As Mopoii says:

Many of you will have seen The Martian (or even read the book!), and you will know it’s got a great storyline which is relatively realistic. That is why I thought it very interesting to recreate it in KSP. Therefore, the point of this challenge is to recreate the Ares III mission displayed in The Martian. You will have to design the vehicles present in the story, and then attempt to save Mark Watney.

 

So here is my recreation of The Martian in KSP...

Edited July 19, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Part 1 - The Duna Pathfinder Mission.

The first part of the mission is like a prequel, requiring a launch of the the Duna Pathfinder mission. 

Here is Pathfinder and its tiny Sojourner rover during testing:

Simulations showed that the robotic craft constantly struggle to communicate with Kerbin due to communications blackouts caused by the rotation of Duna, and so the KASA engineers proposed launching a second probe the Duna Global Surveyor, in the same window, and this is used  to relay signals from the Pathfinder.  The probe includes camera and other science instruments for long term exploration of Duna from orbit.  It is proposed to burn the probe into a highly elliptical polar orbit so Pathfinder located near the equator should be able to get a near constant relay signal.

The mission used the Delta II rocket for both probes. The design includes 3 stages

• Stage 1:  Thor/Delta XLT(-C)  with 1 x Rhino (RS-27) engine and 9 x Kickback ( GEM-26) SRBs
• Stage 2:  Delta-K with 1 x Wolfhound (AJ-10) engine
• Stage 3:  PAM-D with 1 x Terrier (Star-48) engine

 

 

Edited July 8, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

The schedule for the Ares III mission will be as follows:

• Y1 Day 236    Pathfinder and Global Surveyor mission and Duna Ascent Vehicle #1 (Ares III) transit to Duna
• Y2 Day 69      Craft arrival at Duna.  DGS must arrive early in order to setup polar orbit
•                         Space station launch and Hermes assembly in LKO (4 x Ares V launches),
• Y3 Day 310    Duna Ascent Vehicle #2 (for Ares IV mission) and Ares III Habitat/SEV transit to Duna
• Y4 Day 152   DAV #2 arrival at Duna.
•                         Ares III Duna Descent Vehicle and Hermes resupply module launched to the Ares Space Dock.
• Y5 Day 150    Ares III Orion launch (on Ares I) with 6 x crew to Ares Space Dock,
•                         Hermes transit to Duna (250 days)
• Y5 Day 400    Land Ares III (6 crew) on Duna using Duna Descent Vehicle, SEV to Hab, do science
• Y5 Day 406    Launch DAV #1 to orbit (5 crew, minus Mark Watney)
•                         Hermes Transit to Kerbin (250 days) 
•                         Mark Watney in SEV retrieves Pathfinder and RTG to Hab
• Y6 Day 172    Hermes executes Rich Purnell maneuvre
• Y6 Day 225    Hermes Resupply with Chinese Long March -3C during Kerbin hyperbolic fly-by
• Y8 Day 4        Mark Watney leaves Hab, transits to DAV 2 in SEV
• ~Y8 Day 100 Launch of DAV 2, rendezvous with Hermes
•                         Hermes transit to Kerbin.
• ~Y8 Day 350  Hermes rendezvous with Orion, land crew of 6 on Kerbin.

~ Approximate, subject to RP maneuvre

Duna transfer windows, with thanks to @michal.don

 

 

Edited July 10, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Ares - Pathfinder Mission - part 1 of The Martian on Kerbal Space Program.

Launch and transit of the Duna Pathfinder and Duna Global Surveyor probes.

 

 

Edited July 19, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Ares Program Part 2 - Hermes Assembly - The Martian on KSP

This video documents the 5 launches to build the Hermes interplanetary craft in orbit.

 

Edited July 19, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Ares Program Part 3 - Ares III Mission Prep - The Martian on KSP.

The Ares I and Ares II missions are completed successfully, and the Hermes is docked at the Ares Space Dock

The Ares III Duna Ascent Vehicle is launched on the same Hohmann transfer windows as the Ares II mission.  The following transfer window, both the Ares III Hab/SEVs and the Ares IV Duna Ascent Vehicle transit.

The Hab/SEVs land 1400m from the Ares III DAV, and the SEVs robotically control the assembly of the Hab, and prepare for the Ares III crew to arrive.

The Ares IV DAV lands on target 300km to the east of the Ares III site.

 

Edited July 19, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Ares V

Used for all Ares cargo lifting functions, including Ares Space Dock, Hermes Construction, and Hab/SEV and DAV deliveries to Duna.

1st stage 6 x Mastadon ( Rocketdyne F-1) with 2 x radial Kickback boosters (SLS STS 5-segment SRB), 2nd stage 1 x Rhino ( Rocketdyne J-2X ).  Capable of lifting 180t payload to LKO.

 

Ares I with Orion Orbital Vehicle.

Used for delivering the Orion and Hermes crew to the Ares Space Dock.  

Ares 1 and Orion tests:   https://youtu.be/wmO_L7j7hyc

1st stage Kickback , 2nd stage 1 x Rhino ( Aerojet Rocketdyne J-2X ). Capable of lifting 30t payload to LKO

Edited July 13, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Atlas V

Resupply vehicle.  Used for launching Hermes resupply and Duna Descent Vehicle to the Ares Space Dock for each of the Ares missions.

• Stage 1:  2 x Mastadon ( Russian RD-180 ) with 2 x Anvil SRBs: ( Rocketdyne AJ-60A),
• Stage 2: 1 x Skipper ( Rocketdyne  RL-10A ),
• Stage 3: 1 x Wolfhound (Rocketdyne J-2X)

Spoiler

 

 

Long March 3B

Chinese rocket built for launching a scientific probe, but re-purposed for launching the Hermes resupply module.

• Stage 1: 4x Mastadon ( Chinese YF-25 ) with 2 x liquid fuel boosters with single Mastadon: ( YF-25 )
• Stage 2: 1 x Mastadon ( YF-25 )
• Stage 3 1 x Wolfhound (Rocketdyne J-2X)

 

Edited July 18, 2019 by jinnantonix

[Mr. Peabody]

People on this forum don't give users enough credit for putting together quality mission reports. You've done a great job so far. Keep plugging away at it. 

[jinnantonix]

 

Ares - Mission III to Duna - Part 4 of the Martian on KSP
 

The Hermes, with six brave crew, travels to Duna.  After 6 Sols on the Duna surface, the mission is aborted, the crew urgently leave, and accidentally strand one crew member, Mark Watney, on Duna.

 

 

 

Edited July 17, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Ares - Finding Pathfinder and Hermes Resupply - Part 5 of The Martian on KSP
 

Watney finds Pathfinder and let's Kerbin and his crew mates on the Hermes know he is alive.  The Hermes redirects using the RIch Purnell manuevre, and requires resupply from Kerbin.

 

 

Edited July 19, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

The Hermes

Torchship for delivering crew of up to 12 Kerbals over interplanetary distances.  Includes 30 x "Dawn" ion drives (NSTAR) , powered by RTG and solar panels.  Rotating arms provide artificial gravity to 8 seats.  4 seats are available in the command cabin, and 2 inflatable airlocks.  Craft weighs 62.5t in 216 parts.  Capable accelerating at 500 mm/s/s, and travelling Kerbin-Duna-Kerbin in less than 300 Kerbin days without requiring refuelling.  Docks with the Ares Space Dock between missions allowing refuelling with Xenon gas.  Was assembled with 3 launches of the Ares V, using the EMU to position the rotor arms.

This design does not really resemble the Hermes presented in the movie.  The reason is that this design provided all the requirements for completing the missions, with reasonable redundancy of parts.  Additional parts made the craft unstable, and this was difficult to resolve as selective strutting could not be used - the craft is assembled from 3 launches.  Weight is a factor as the ion drives provide little thrust, so game time is a factor.  Orienting the solar panels toward Kerbol is much easier with just the two arms for the solar arrays.  The habitation ring in the movie is absurdly and unrealistically large, creating a full ring would require extra launches and many hours of game time to assemble - and practically speaking, a full ring is not needed.

 

 

Edited July 18, 2019 by jinnantonix

[jinnantonix]

Ares - Bring Him Home - Part 6 of The Martian on KSP
 

Final installment of "The Martian" on KSP.  Mark Watney travels 300km from the Ares III Hab to the Ares IV Duna Ascent Vehicle, and launches to rendezvous with the Hermes which is passing Duna on a hyperbolic path.    

 

 

Edited July 18, 2019 by jinnantonix