Valentina's Fan Club at Moho

[jarmonik]

Valentina's Fan Club at Moho

Valentina has decided to take a group of fans to an expedition to Moho. Bill Kerman has designed some hardware for the expedition. A Moho Orbital station with a booster rocket is standing on a Launchpad. Rocket like this has a tendency of easily spinning out of control during ascent, therefore, the launch is unmanned for safety reason. In fact the first launch attempt failed.

 

We have a successful booster separation.

 

Core stage separation and middle stage ignition. Should be noted that upper stage fuel tanks are empty to reduce weight and will be filled in orbit.

 

Valentina is launching to orbit with a rover designed to land on Moho. If something goes wrong, Valentina must escape the rocket with her own personal parachute.

 

Launch was successful and a docking with the booster rocket is underway.

 

It's time for the Fan Club members to launch. This is much safer launch due to a launch abort system.

 

Only a little more and we are on Orbit.

 

Kathtop's piloting skills are a bit rusty and there is a minor miss-alignment during docking but it's within acceptable limits.

 

A Fuel Tug is docking with the rocket/vessel to fill the upper stage tanks and top the booster tanks to a full capacity.

 
By setting up a "dummy" escape trajectory plan, Bob Kerman has estimated the time needed to get to a proper launch window which is in 24 days in the ascending node (AN). And he reminded that always intercept the Moho in its perihelion.

 

After waiting 24 days in Orbit, It's time to setup a transfer trajectory to Moho, The burn also includes a plane change component, so the final orbit will be well aligned with orbit of Moho. There is no need to worry about a transfer angle in this case.

 

Valentina is manually maintaining a prograde and plane change attitude in order to save some fuel. It will be a long 6 minute burn.

 

The maneuver vector is slowly drifting towards the attitude Valentina is already trying to maintaining. During the final minutes Valentina will give the control to SAS-Autopilot.

 

We have a MECO little sooner than indicated since the desired transfer orbit was reached.

 

The next step for Valentina is to setup a deep space maneuver (DSM) to intercept the Moho. The dV magnitude of the DSM will be reduced from the upcoming Moho Orbit Insertion (MOI) almost completely. Total transfer angle around the Kerbol to intercept the Moho is about 540 degrees in this particular case.

 

The DSM in underway and the booster stage has been separated.

 

Moho Orbit Insertion has been set.

 

Engines are at a full throttle.

 

Moho Orbit Insertion is completed and a communication/scanning probes have been separated in the apoapis so that a proper polar orbit alignment can be reached.

 

The Moho Orbital Station is coming to a final orbit insertion.

 

Communication probes are aligned, Of course, two probes are not much but better than zero.

 

Valentina's Fan Club has now officially reached the Moho.

 

Next task for Valentina is to reposition the Kerbin Return Vehicle (KRV) so that the Rover can be undocked.

 

Valentina and Jenfurt Kermans are taking the Rover down to the surface.

 

Deorbit is in progress and Jenfurt is feeling a bit uneasy.

 

Touchdown and it's a time for Jenfurt Kerman to take a giant leap for a Kerbalkind.

 

After rovering hours and hours on the surface Valentina is spotting an anomaly in the horizon. After setting up some scientific equipment and taking some readings. Jenfurt concludes that the Kerbal appears to be petrified somehow. Likely been hit by a magma bolt. Jenfurt is scratching her head while wondering about how long it has been here, since the suit looks ancient.

(note: No petrified Kerbals on Moho in unmodded game)     

 

There's nothing Valentina and Jenfurt can do for her so it's time to head back to the station. Jenfurt Kerman is worried about the fuel quantity, it doesn't look good.

 

After seeing the station from a window, Jenfurt is finally able to exhale a bit and she takes a Bill Kermans engineering check list and checks the box "Fuel quantity sufficient" as "Yes".

 

It's time to undock the KRV for a return journey back to Kerbin.

 

There is a reasonably good transfer window once in a year while the Moho is close to its perihelion and the Moho is roughly about 80 degrees’ behind the Kerbin.

 

We have a main engine ignition.

 

..and MECO. The engine is shut down a bit early to avoid over burning. It's better to apply move velocity later on rather than start reducing it after an over burn.

 

It's time for one final course correction to intercept the Kerbin.

 

While approaching the reentry interface at 5000m/s it's time for Valentina to take a check list and perform the checks that parachutes and heatshields are installed to a vessel along with other vital items. Valentina spots an empty checkbox labelled as "Move scientific data from Rover to KRV before departure !" where the "BEFORE" is extensively highlighted with Bob's hand writing. From this point forward the usually noisy cockpit is completely silent.

 

[Geschosskopf]

Nice mission,  Moho is a challenge by the method you used here is the one I think is best myself. 

Bummer about leaving the Science! behind.  Now you'll have to do a rescue mission for it