Alternis Space Program

[Stamp20]

Part 13: Laythe and Another Space Home

Today's update starts with a brief test of a helicopter to be used on Eve.

Spoiler

The helicopter in flight over the KSC.

Eve Explorer 1 includes a small robotic helicopter designed to fly around in Eve's atmosphere. It contains two propellers rotating opposite directions to provide lift, and several science experiments. The explorer will also contain a modified SCANsat to stay in orbit. 

Enough with the future, why not focus on something happening now?

Spoiler

Another ContractSat is launching into a polar orbit around Kerbin.

The V2 (Vector 2, not to be confused with the Human Space Program rocket of the same name), is becoming the new launcher for the space program.

Laythe Expedition 1 has arrived. Because of tight DeltaV margins, the decision was made to aerobrake at Laythe to save fuel.

Spoiler

Attempt 1: Lander first.

Engine exploded.

F9!

Weird graphical glitch.

Attempt 2: Transfer stage first.

Lost control, but survived.

Nothing of value was lost.

"I hope I see that command pod again..." -Jeswell

Entering Laythe's atmosphere.

The parachutes deployed successfully, but someone forgot to take the pictures.

Landed.

The plaque left at the flag.

For now, the kerbals were under strict order to keep their helmets off. Jes checked the atmosphere analysis and found out the atmosphere was breathable, so Mission Control let them take off their helmets.

"It's just like Kerbin, except less green." -Jeb

"I don't know how this works. It just does everything by itself."

"This can't be that hard, right? Just click these buttons and... it did the self setup thing again."

"Someone else once hit one of these to make it work, so it should work when I do it too!"

"I'm expecting the parts Jeb set up to explode at any minute." -Gene

Jeswell wanted to go for a swim in the nearby water for a sample, but was only allows in spacesuit because temperature readings from Laythe Explorer 2 indicated the water was boiling hot.

Spoiler

In reality, Jeswell poofed when I tried to go into the water saying "Jeswell Kerman died without a helmet: Too hot." After quickloading, I had to do the entire landing over again and forgot to replant the flag. 

"How bad can it be?"

"It feels completely fine, but that warning saying "TOO HOT" is getting really annoying.

They couldn't stay forever, so they took off pretty quickly.

"WE'RE GONNA CRASH!!!" -Jes

"I flew this before, we should be COMPLETELY fine." -Jeb

Yet another rendezvous in the dark.

Jeswell went on EVA for a World's First milestone.

Like MEx1, the lander's excess fuel was used in the escape burn.

Laythe Expedition 1 RING RING RING

Can't Pol Explorer 1 ever get enough attention?

LEx1 returning to Kerbin.

1,700 science earned.

In preparation for interplanetary missions, the first of several Deep Space Relays (DSRs) were launched. The design is a modified SCANsat which removes the scanning equipment in favor of more antennas.

Spoiler

DSR launch.

Projected escape path, with Tylo for reference.

A first-of-its-kind Laythe assist is being used to reduce the DeltaV needed to escape, even though it was already overkill.

Mechjeb fell short and the orbit isn't as high as originally planned, but still good.

With new base building parts and the installation of Extraplanetary Launchpads, the decision was made to build a space base. The destination? The Mun.

Spoiler

The base. Several robotic hinges were used to fold up the base for launch after asking for advice in Gameplay Questions.

This has to be the biggest launch from the space center.

Completely unrealistic part clipping.

Brief interruption from DSR 1 while MSB (Mun Surface Base) drifts through space.

Capturing at the Mun.

Every base needs a crew. Virfry, Bill, Admin, and Natabin Kerman are the crew on this mission.

"Wait, this is ONE WAY?" -Virfry.

"Yep." -Bill

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA" -Virfry

Poodles are OP.

Landed at the (partially unfolded) base.

Some of the modules wouldn't dock after being released from the hinges, so Bill was sent out to come up with a solution. He used his head, as Bob did many Rotes earlier.

The fully assembled base has everything you need to use Extraplanetary Launchpads.

Since Natabin was the last to get out and the lander was now unnecessary, she sent it off into space to explode.

"Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee"

Bill broke off the alligator hinges to be sacrificed to the Kraken.

The interior of the base, as seen from Virfry (top) and Bill's (bottom) perspective.

Future plans exist for using MSB The Engineer (because trust me, I'm an engineer!) as a new primary launchsite for craft because of its lower gravity making it much easier to launch craft, and the limitless ore from the Mun meaning it doesn't cost the space center a single Kerbuck to launch crafts.

[Stamp20]

Part 14: More Station Shenanigans

KSS Risk, while a great station, was starting to experience some glitches. After some consideration, ASC management made the decision to deorbit it.

Spoiler

First the solar panel glitch from a while ago, now this.

There was still crew, so an STVB was sent up to bring them back and deorbit the station. This will be the last STVB launch, as new manned vehicles are planned.

Remember the R8?

Docked to Risk for the last time.

The crew landed safely...
"Wait, has anyone seen Mitcott?" -Bob

Meanwhile, on the burning station.

"WHERE IS EVERYONE?!" -Mitcott

Mitcott was asleep and everyone forgot about him when the pod left the station.

"The station survived? Well, it won't for long."

"ABANDON SHIP!"

"That was way too close."

"Hey, one piece survived."

Mitcott planted a flag in honor of the space station.

Here, on J1 R13 14:07, the space station KSS Risk deorbited and crashed into the ground. The only part to survive was one of the docking ports.

Pol SCANsat 2 was launched to complete the SCANsat series across the Jool system.

Spoiler

Another liftoff... this isn't the ASC!

Unlike other launches, this took place from the Mun base launched in the last update.

Leaving the Mun.

It will take a while to arrive, and the space program had other plans in that time.

The first interplanetary craft, Eve Explorer 1 lifted off to become the first interplanetary craft. (DSR 1 doesn't count since it doesn't have a destination.

Spoiler

EE1 will use a Laythe gravity assist, similar to DSR 1, to propel itself into interplanetary space.

Like many things, it will take a while.

The crew at MSB The Engineer weren't done yet. Another sat contact was accepted for a satellite around the Mun, so it was built at the Mun to save time and money.

Spoiler

Another day at The Engineer.

Rockets are way smaller when launched from the Mun because of its lower gravity.

Launching rockets from the Mun requires smaller ships, and it's free! (minus the launch costs of the base and crew)

RING RING RING!

Spoiler

The last interruption from PE1 because it has finally returned.

The solar panels somehow survived.

After nearly 7 Rotes, almost half the time the space program has existed, Pol Explorer 1 has finally landed. By this time, the science it earned isn't nearly as much as other missions have gained.

Pol SCANsat 1 has arrived. Additionally, Eve Explorer 1 has reached its ejection burn.

Spoiler

Orbit.

Leaving not just Kerbin, but Jool too.

Next, a base will be launched to Minmus to provide another launchpad for colonization of the Jool system. Other than that, I'm not sure of what to do next. Suggestions are welcome.

[KerballingSmasher]

Is there a map of the changed system?

[Stamp20]

14 hours ago, Kerballing (Got Dunked On) said:

Is there a map of the changed system?

On the Alternis Kerbol release thread, there's a graph of all of the planets and a description of all their changes. I'll get a picture of the Tracking Station view next time I get on KSP. For now, here's the basic changes:

• Moho is closer to the sun.
• Eve is mostly unchanged.
• Jool is where Kerbin was, with 5 moons.
  • Minmus orbits very close
  • Laythe further our
  • Mun even more
  • Kerbin is where Tylo used to be, with Bop in orbit.
  • Pol is very far out, similar to where it is in stock.
• Tylo is past Jool near where Duna was and much bigger than stock.
  • Dres and Duna now orbit Tylo
• There's a large gap between Tylo and Eeloo
  • Vall now orbits Eeloo
• There are two comets, Gillan's comet (Gilly) and Issac's comet (Ike)
  • Gilly has a very inclined orbit that goes very close to the sun
  • Ike has less inclination, but takes much longer to orbit.

All planets have some inclination.

Edited March 28, 2020 by Stamp20

[The Minmus Derp]

Eve is yellow and has rings tho...

[Stamp20]

35 minutes ago, The Minmus Derp said:

Eve is yellow and has rings tho...

I was only talking about the orbits, but yes.

[Space Nerd]

Actually, the rings of eve is removed in a recent version.

[Stamp20]

Part 15: It's Back!

The Minmus Surface Base, unlike its predecessor on the Mun, is split into three parts. The Drill Module, the ISRU Module, and the Crew Module. First to be launched was the ISRU. At the same time, the Drill Module started construction at the MSB.

Spoiler

Welcome to Minmus!

I can't see anything!

I think it's on the surface...

Since the ASC had exited Jool's SOI, there were now gas giant tourism contracts. However, something was off.

"What's moons?"

The first attempt at launching the Main Module took off.

Spoiler

No further pictures were obtained because the rocket didn't have enough DeltaV to reach Minmus. Several more attempts followed, all failing.

The ASC engineers had had it. They were tired of trying to engineer extremely large rockets to lift base modules all the way to Minmus with weak parts.

"Even when we think it works, it just explodes!" -ASC Engineer #184

The engineers went on strike.

A few weeks later, Post-Kerbin Mining Corporation and SpaceY Heavy Lifters magically started existing, and their rocket technology became available. The powerful engines gave the space program the motivation it needed. Instead of trying to do the whole thing single launch, the base would first be launched into LKO, then a transfer stage using the new Rhino engines that Kerbodyne gave the ASC for testing (part test contract) to boost the module to Minmus.

Spoiler

Launch.

Orbit. The lower stage detached shortly after.

Liftoff. The new SpaceY engines made getting heavy payloads into orbit a breeze.

Where's the rocket?

Burning off to Minmus.

The base did a gravity assist off of Laythe to lower its orbit, so the capture burn at Minmus required a lot less DeltaV.

Welcome to Minmus. Now with more than 5% fuel left.

The abnormally large shadows are Minmus ScanSat 1 and the ISRU Module.

Landed.

Group photo! From left to right is Traory, Thompden, Herzon, and Tefen Kerman.

Attached to the transfer stage was a smaller Poodle stage used for the final descent. After landing, it was sent up to crash. All that survived was this decoupler.

The Drill Module had finished construction, too.

Spoiler

It's very dark at the Mun.

However, it took a while to fuel it, so it was day by the time it launched.

There's a lot more Mun dust than normal.

Launching from the Mun is a lot easier than Kerbin.

Night was falling right as the drills went in to land.

After bouncing a few times, it landed.

The Minmus Surface Base was complete. Next morning, the base will be finalized and construction will begin.

[Stamp20]

Part 16: A Grain of Pollen and Station Shenanigans Round 3

Today's update starts with Herzon assembling some KAS pipes.

Spoiler

Herzon connecting the drill and main modules.

"Do we really need pipes connecting all three this way?" -Herzon

Now that the base was operational, the first thing they made was an RCS scooter, as seen in the "What did you do in KSP today?" thread.

"The scooter is escaping!"

Upon getting in, Tefen couldn't keep the craft still because there was no SAS or Mechjeb. Herzon quickly assembled a Mechjeb core and attached it.

"Make sure you're back before dark, or we won't save you any snacks." -Herzon

"I guess you won't be getting that pay raise Gene promised you." -Tefen

"This is by far the best thing we've ever made. 16 Rotes of space program progression led up to this moment."

Tefen's mission was to find an ancient Olivine formation and scan it to find about Minmus' past.

It took a few tries to get aligned, but the arm eventually scanned it.

Tefen returned after dark, plugged in the scooter, and went back in to find her snacks untouched.

The only place in the Jool system the ASP hasn't landed on is Pol, so a mission was sent there.

Spoiler

Pol Expedition 1 lifts off on an E2 rocket. The crew is Valentina and Cercal Kerman, as well as two tourists.

This rocket reminds me of a Saturn V.

Large first stage, second stage as large as the first, smaller third stage with the same engines as the second stage...

...third stage used for orbit and transfer, and even a two-kerbal lander! I wasn't even trying to make a Saturn V!

The Pol maneuver is in about 26 hours, so we'll get back to this later.

Meanwhile on Minmus, they just finished making ContractSat 8 for a low orbit around Minmus. A VERY low orbit. Gene once again negotiated and got the contractor to agree on a higher orbit.

Spoiler

Orbit already.

The ASC staff decided in a meeting that they wanted a new space station. Mortimer had the genius idea of making it a tourist attraction, too. He called some investors, and an investor for a space hotel and one for a space casino arrived outside the Astronaut Complex. They could only do one, so they chose the space hotel. Jeb was sent out in a rover to give the hotel investor a tour.

Spoiler

"Your Uber is here!" -Jeb

Jeb drove around the ASC, giving the investor a tour.

The investor was impressed, and gave Gene the contract for the hotel.

The station, dubbed KSS Resort, will be launched in multiple parts.

The station will consist of a core module in the center, a utility module on top with the solar panels, an observation room on the bottom for tourists to look down at Kerbin, and two habitation modules, both with centrifuges.

Resort's core module in orbit.

ContractSat 9 launched, pretty normal.

Spoiler

CS9 in orbit, using some fancy reflectors when an RA-15 would've been stronger.

Over at Minmus, a small return vehicle was made to bring the three tourists home.

Spoiler

RING RING RING!

Pol Expedition 1 also reached its maneuver.

Back to Minmus- RING RING RING

Another burn from PEx 1

Time warping to P- RING RING RING

The tourists landed safely, and PEx 1 is drifting off to Pol.

Next up on the Resort launch list was the utility module, where the station's staff stay.

Spoiler

It's a nice day at the ASC, perfect for launches with good lighting.

The E2 booster was proving very reliable and powerful.

Rhino upper stages were also proving to be very powerful.

Rendezvous in the dark.

Docked.

Pol Expedition 1 has arrived.

Spoiler

Welcome to Pol, aka a ton of space debris clumped together in something vaguely resembling a moon.

Pol has 5 biomes, and given the Gilly-like gravity, it will be easy to visit them all. Having a separate lander was definitely overkill.

The tourists will be left in orbit since they only payed for a flyby.

Valentina becoming the first Kerbal to walk on Pol.

"This place is weird." -Cercal

"I think I did it right."

Easy.

Lumps: Check. Next stop, Lowlands.

"ǝǝǝǝǝǝɥʍ" -Cercal

Val hopped out in midair to grab some science.

Cercal jumped out while Val was flying to the next biome to grab a rock.

"This is my new pet rock."

"Wait for me and Lumpy!" -Cercal

"Lumpy? Is that your pet rock or something?" -Val

"Yes!" -Cercal

With all 5 biomes covered, Val and Cercal went back to orbit.

Back in orbit and docked.

"Val, what are you doing?" -Gene

"Getting an extra World's First" -Val

Val landed the entire craft on Pol for the "land and return" World's First, and proving how unnecessary the lander was.

The CSM left Pol with almost full fuel, thanks to the lander's extra supply.

Drifting home.

Next time, Pol Expedition 1 will return, and Resort will continue construction. The first parts of the Tylo Probe Army will also begin planning.

[HansonKerman]

will you be attempting a Super Tylo Super Challenge

[The Minmus Derp]

2 hours ago, HansonKerman said:

will you be attempting a Super Tylo Super Challenge

@Stamp20 Oh yes please do this

[Stamp20]

2 hours ago, HansonKerman said:

will you be attempting a Super Tylo Super Challenge

That's my end goal for this save file!

[HansonKerman]

39 minutes ago, Stamp20 said:

That's my end goal for this save file!

HAH, that’s the spirit

[Stamp20]

On 3/28/2020 at 8:38 AM, Stamp20 said:

I'll get a picture of the Tracking Station view next time I get on KSP.

Mini update to actually do what I said I would do a month ago.

Spoiler

Outer system.

Inner system.

Jool system. I should've turned off comm lines.

 

[KerballingSmasher]

Wow, Eeloo has a high orbit!

[HansonKerman]

2 hours ago, Kerballing (Got Dunked On) said:

Wow, Eeloo has a high orbit!

well yeah

its Alternis, there are many extremes here. The comets, the planerts, the Klamperture Science super tylo super challen

[Stamp20]

 Part 17: Station Shenanigans Round 4

Today's update starts with the launch of the KSS Resort Observation Deck. Tourists will be able to look down at Kerbin and enjoy snacks in this module.

Spoiler

The V4 rocket has become the standard for LKO launches, with 4 Vectors and 2 boosters on the lower stage, and a Rhino on the upper stage.

Approaching the station.

Docked. The next modules will be two centrifuges, but those will have to wait until PEx1 returns with science.

While the ASC staff were building Resort, MSB The Engineer started work on new modules to boost production rates, starting with a drill module.

Spoiler

The Drill Module is identical to the one on Minmus.

Bill went on EVA the next morning to connect the drill.

After timewarping, the drill went flying into the sky. After reloading, the link mode was set to undocked to prevent future Kraken attacks.

Speaking of Pol Expedition 1, it's about to return to Kerbin.

Spoiler

Over 3000 science! This will be enough for the centrifuges.

With new parts unlocked, ASC management launched two almost identical centrifuge modules. One has a restaurant with a kale greenhouse, and the other has an interactive science module for tourists to experiment in microgravity, under the supervision of a scientist.

Spoiler

To save time, only pictures of the first launch were taken.

Centrifuge 1 arriving.

Fully docked.

Resort was finished. Immediately after the docking, Walt, the chief of public relations, put up advertisements on TV and online for the station.

Come visit KSS Resort! Our new space hotel has everything you need! It features an observation deck complete with snack dispensers, an endless supply of kale, interactive science activities, and much, much, more! Contact Walt Kerman to buy your ticket today!

Resort had one problem, though. There was no way to get the large amount of kerbals buying tickets up to the station! To fix this, work immediately started on a vehicle that could transport large numbers of kerbals.

Spoiler

Their first attempt was at a space shuttle, and it worked well in the tests. However, the shuttle experienced very unstable roll during ascent, so the flight was reverted and the idea was scrapped.

The next attempt was to make something similar to Starship. At first, they tried vertical landing, but Jeb found it very hard to pitch up during tests.

Some tweaks later, and it was changed to land horizontally, like a plane.

It landed somewhat successfully.

Somewhat successful was enough, so the first StarShuttle was created. It's named StarShuttle because it's a crazy combination of Starship and the Space Shuttle.

It was put on top of a brand new O4 rocket, which looks a lot like the SLS. This launch contains 4 kerbals, but nobody remembered to write down who was on it. The only kerbal that the writer remembers being on the ship is Mitcott.

There's a bug with the Orcas' (from Near Future Launch Vehicles V2) where the smoke from the engines flies off to the side for some reason. It doesn't affect the engine's performance, though.

The first attempt at launching this had no fins on the first stage, and tended to flip over if the gravity turn was done too soon.

The StarShuttle uses the tried and true Rhino engine for propulsion.

\

Arriving at the station.

Someone messed up when building the centrifuge and made the ports normal size, while the StarShuttle uses Sr. size ports. Thankfully, this issue was spotted before launch, so some replacement docking ports were included on the launch.

Mitcott went on EVA to replace the docking port.

Resort is now operational!

Mitcott again went on EVA to inspect the station.

"Kale? Out of all the things you could grow in space, you chose kale?"

After the inspection, Mitcott installed a few more docking ports before leaving.

Undocking and moving to the other side.

Two more ports installed.

Reentry.

Coming in to land.

Landed! Fuel was pretty low, so the next StarShuttle launches will feature more fuel and less monopropellant.

Next time, tourists will be launched to the new space station, and the ASP will have to buy several new wallets.

[Stamp20]

Part 18: Minmus 4 Journey

Today's update starts with tourists.

A lot of them.

Spoiler

Walt, the head of PR, invited several journalists to watch the StarShuttle launch. There was mixed feedback about the design. (I posted the picture of the launch on r/KerbalSpaceProgram)

"...SLS, Starship launch system?" -Anonymous Journalist 1

"Delete this RIGHT NOW" -Anonymous Journalist 2

Angelo Kerman, CEO of Wild Blue Industries, was also on the mission.

By the time the StarShuttle exited the atmosphere, it was almost in orbit because of the flatter gravity turn on this mission.

Going to KSS Resort.

Docked.

That's a lot of money!

When it was time for the tourists to return, Kerbal Space Tourism saw the extra tourists from the LKO and space station visit contracts as hotel guests, meaning extra money.

Kerbin's largest cities can be seen as StarShuttle deorbits.

Safely landed.

Even more tourists wanted to visit, so StarShuttle was immediately launched again. About half of the passengers were aspiring astronauts who will be trained on the station.

Arriving at Resort. StarShuttle also got upgraded with an antenna and solar panel.

This mission will be longer than most other StarShuttle missions because of the training.

A contract appeared on Gene's desk for the "Minmus 4 Journey". The contract was accepted because it paid nearly a million funds.

Spoiler

"Minmus, Bop, Mun, and Laythe? Easy."

Pilot Valentina Kerman, scientist Bob Kerman, and engineer Mitcott Kerman were selected for the grand tour.

Their first stop on the journey is Bop.

Here, on J1 R19 24:06, Valentina, Bob, and Mitcott Kerman landed on Bop as part of the Minmus 4 Journey.

Next stop: The Mun.

The pod will use a Laythe assist to reach the Mun. While that's happening, ASC engineers started work on the Laythe lander.

The first stage uses a Lynx engine, and the second uses a Wolfhound.

The lander will be constructed at Minmus, and the pod will transfer onto the new rocket. It'll take about 1 Rote to build, which should be enough time for the pod to arrive.

Mi4 using Laythe to gravity assist to the Mun.

Welcome to the Mun!

Landing at MSB The Engineer. DeltaV was tight.

Landed. Bill was standing outside to greet them, and light up the landing site.

Here, on J1 R20 10:15, Valentina, Bob and Mitcott Kerman landed on the Mun as part of the Minmus 4 Journey. There, they met MSB crew Virfry, Bill, Natabin, and Admin Kerman.

Bill then installed a KAS port, with Mitcott's help, to refuel the craft.

The entire night was spent refueling the craft.

By the time daylight returned, Mi4 was full.

The crew said their goodbyes and took off.

Off to Minmus!

Welcome to Minmus.

Good timing, too.

The Wolfhound stage was detached.

Landed.

The crews came out to greet each other. Unlike at the Mun, there was light this time.

Here, on J1 R20 34:23, Valentina, Bob, and Mitcott Kerman landed on Minmus as part of the Minmus 4 Journey. There, they met MiSB crew Traory, Herzon, Tefen, and Thompden Kerman.

"Tefen, before you go in." -Val

"Yes?" -Tefen

"Can I try the rocket scooter?" -Val

"Of course!" -Tefen

The crew went inside the base to wait for construction to finish.

"Where's Val?" -Mitcott

Meanwhile, outside...

"YAHOO!!!" -Val

"Wait a minute, something's down there."

"I remember this! This is from 7 parts ago when I landed on Minmus. Can't believe it's been so long."

"I'm running low on fuel, so I should head back."

Right after Val returned, the Laythe lander finished construction.

It took all night to fuel it.

Once it was day, the crew climbed back into their capsule and docked to the top of the spacecraft.

They left Minmus and plotted a maneuver for Laythe.

While the first part of the Minmus 4 Journey was happening, the StarShuttle returned.

Spoiler

The landing was sorta successful. Nobody died, though.

Werhner was looking through his telescope when he noticed some new things in the sky. He immediately started the more powerful telescopes and was shocked when he saw some new planets!

Spoiler

 

Spoiler

I tried to install OPM earlier, but the game would always refuse to load. After messing around, I figured out it was becuase of AKR's patch for Eeloo. It's supposed to rename OPM's Eeloo to Encethys and move AKR's Eeloo, but something went wrong, I guess. I manually changed OPM Eeloo's name and disabled the AKR patch, and it worked.

The new outer planets, with Eeloo and Ike for scale. Sarnus is yellow, Urlum is teal, Neidon is purple, and Plock is tan.

Werhner immediately published the news of the new planets' discovery. Some contract providers got confused, though.

The Minmus 4 contract now wants landings on Vall and JOOL? Once the original mission goal is completed, Gene will clear up this misconception.

The contract for the Eve satellite now wanted it around Slate, one of Sarnus' moons? Gene decided to cancel this contract.

Back to Minmus 4.

Spoiler

Burning to Laythe.

Attempt 1 tried re-entry at around 30km. However, the trajectory prediction showed that the craft would immediately go in to land, which Mission Control didn't want.

One quickload later, and the trajectory was altered to aerocapture instead.

One loop later and the craft is now going to a better spot.

An unexpected Kraken attack interrupted the mission, so some pictures are missing.

Spoiler

KSP crashed right after the above picture was taken. When I restarted KSP, all the parachutes broke, even though the shouldn't have. Because this was Kraken-caused, I used infinite fuel to land.

The crew members got out to stretch and breathe some fresh air after constantly breathing the internal life support air for over a Rote.

"Did we land on Kerbin?" -Val "Smells salty, like the beach." -Bob

Here, on J1 R21 1:31, Valentina, Bob, and Mitcott Kerman landed on Laythe as part of the Minmus 4 Journey.

Before taking off again, Mitcott repacked the parachutes for use during Kerbin reentry.

Liftoff from Laythe.

It was finally time to head home.

Welcome back to Kerbin.

Safely landed.

And with a lot of science, too!

Gene cleared things up with Rokea, and they agreed to pay the ASC the promised amount.

Next time, the Tylo Probe Army will take off.

[Stamp20]

Part 19: It's Back Again

Welcome back to Alternis Space Program, home of the most inconsistent update schedule ever! _{except i just received news that this is NOT the most inconsistent mission report, although it is still inconsistent}

Today's update starts with the Tylo Probe Army.

Spoiler

The first of two TPA launches, containing three SCANsats. The public did not respond well to the fact that it was only two launches when they were promised an "army".

Despite the negative feedback, the launch still went well.

Heading to Tylo.

The second launch contained two rovers.

With the Tylo Probe "Army" heading to... well... Tylo, the second DSR was thrown into deep space.

Spoiler

Jeb grabbed a stopwatch while watching the launch to see how fast it can get on an escape trajectory.

Final time: 6 minutes 57 seconds.

DSR 2's trajectory reached all the way up to Plock.

With nothing to do, Gene activated time warp until he had something to do.

Spoiler

Tech has advanced a lot since EE1's launch. The tweakscaled Cheetah is completely overshadowed by better engines.

The next interesting thing was the crew on KSS Resort finishing training.

Another happy landing.

After a few rotes of drifting in space, EE1 is arriving at Eve.

Spoiler

A few reentry attempts later and EE1 captured into an elliptical Eve orbit.

The SCANsat detached at AP and circularized in a polar orbit.

A few hours later, the helicopter went back into Eve's atmosphere.

Eve's large plateau can be seen in the above two pictures.

There were a lot of clouds, making it hard to see anything.

However, EE1 still landed safely.

The terrain was surprisingly green for a planet this toxic. Does Eve have grass?

The helicopter went up onto the plateau. It reaches so high that it's above the clouds.

Next time, Werhner will reveal a project "that will actually be an army." Updates will also be more consistent.

Edited May 25, 2020 by Stamp20

[HansonKerman]

ah dagnabbit, bad wifi. WILL READ! 

“Uh, just gimme a wave when you finish the test, don’t wanna spoil the ending for when I watch it again”

[Stamp20]

Part 20: Thinking with Portals

Today's update starts with some M700 SCANsats.

Spoiler

SCAN wanted ore scans for the Mun and Minmus, so the respective bases constructed the probes. Above is the Minmus one.

A few hours later and the Mun one was ready.

Cryogenic engines such as the one on the lower stage have seen a lot more use due to their high DeltaV and Isp.

At the ASC, the staff were busy planning a Sarnus kolonization mission.

Spoiler

The plan consisted of SCANsats at Ovok and Encethys, with an orbital station at Ovok and surface base on Encethys.

Ovok Orbital Outpost (OOO) in the SPH.

The first part of the plan was the two SCANsats.

"This rocket looks like a Delta 4 Heavy."

"What's that?"

It will take about a Rote for the optimal transfer window to open, so we'll get back to this later.

RING RING RING!

Spoiler

Tylo rovers want attention.

A contract appeared for a SENTINEL telescope to scan asteroids passing near Jool. It was pretty much free money, so the contract was accepted.

Spoiler

The telescope was built at Minmus.

While thinking of ways to get the station to Sarnus, the Extra-Kerbin Space Technology Research Agency's Superluminal Logicstics Division magically started existing and created warp beacons, which the ASC took interest in, and bought several. The new plan was to only launch the already-launched SCANsats and a warp beacon to Sarnus, and teleport the rest from Kerbin orbit. The only problem was the beacons ran on Karborundum, a very expensive and rare resource.

Spoiler

The first beacon is going to Bop. The more powerful beacons require low gravity to work, so Bop was the ideal spot.

Welcome to the space potato.

The beacon is set up, all it needs is Karborundum.

After careful SCANsat analysis, it was found that Pol has significant enough amounts of Karborundum to allow mining.

First, a beacon was sent to Pol so the Karborundum could be shipped to other beacons.

While waiting for the transfer window, the drill vehicle was launched on a Delta 4 Heavy.

While waiting for the Pol transfer window, a janitor got a brilliant idea of building a craft with a lot of RTGs at one of the bases and sending it to Kerbin to sell the RTGs to make millions. A senior scientist in RnD heard the idea and stole all the credit.

Spoiler

The craft was fittingly named "stonks".

As is usual with Minmus, escape velocity was extremely easy.

RING RING RING!

The Karbo miner reached its maneuver.

Maybe now we can go to Ke- RING RING RING!

And the beacon.

Kerbin orbit looks very cluttered from all the satellites in crazy orbits.

But it doesn't look like that in normal view.

The RTGs were very tightly packed, which means lots of money.

Final profit: 4 million funds!

Kerbal Alarm Clock is a life saver when you have a lot of maneuvers and craft.

Spoiler

First: Sarnus SCANsats.

Next: Sarnus Beacon.

Next: Karborundum miner arriving at Pol.

Finally: Beacon corrections.

Oh wait, still have to the Sarnus beacon escape burn.

Now we're done- RING RING RING!

Even the Tylo SCANsats had to get some attention.

Now that that's done, we can start mining Karborundum.

Spoiler

It isn't that much, but it's Karborundum.

After several hours of mining, the drill took off, but not before investigating a nearby anomaly.

Navigating in low gravity on a steep slope is extremely annoying.

At least we got a tech node out of it.

A Randolith, similar to the one discovered on Bop several updates ago.

After that, the miner went to orbit and filled the beacon's tanks, but leaving some in the miner to fill the tanks at the Bop beacon.

Oh, we're at Bop now.

Bop tanks filled, it was time to head back and get more Karbo.

The extreme spacetime distortions caused by the beacon travel was captured on camera.

Back at Pol.

Next time, time will start moving much faster to get to the interesting stuff, like TPA shenanigans and Sarnus launches.

[HansonKerman]

16 minutes ago, Stamp20 said:

Extra-Kerbin Space Technology Research Agency's Superluminal Logicstics Division magically started existing and created warp beacons

ooo what mod is this 

[Stamp20]

1 minute ago, HansonKerman said:

ooo what mod is this 

ESLD Jump Beacons

[HansonKerman]

4 minutes ago, Stamp20 said:

ESLD Jump Beacons

oooo! I read it and read the update (without pics bc bad WiFi on phone). *downloads*

[Stamp20]

Part 21: Superkerbin

Today's update starts with a mission to Pol. Frorim Kerman got stranded in orbit of Pol, so a rescue mission was created. There was also a contract to plant a flag on Pol.

Spoiler

You may be thinking "This rocket doesn't have enough fuel to go to Pol!".

But this is only going to Bop, thanks to the beacons set up last update.

Shertop and Meltop are in the command pod.

The views are still great, even 21 updates later.

Capture straight into a rendezvous, perfect.

Who turned off the lights?

Let me warp!

Finally. Nothing like distorting spacetime to get to where you need to be.

Hold up, where's Frorim? His craft should be in orbit of Pol...

Spoiler

Similar to a Bop satellite several updates ago, the orbit was spawned inside the ground. To make up for this, I used the debug menu and Vessel Mover to place Frorim on the surface of Pol.

Frorim's pod actually crashed into the surface, leaving him on the ground instead.

Here, on J1 R39, Shertop and Meltop Kerman landed on the surface of Pol to rescue Frorim Kerman.

"Finally, some snacks!" -Frorim

One warp later and the craft is back at Bop.

The pod landed in a Windows XP background.

After the Pol rescue, ASC activity declined for several rotes, until the TPA SCANsats reached Tylo.

Time seemed to move much quicker on Kerbin for a few rotes.

Spoiler

It may be hard to see, but Tylo is above the craft.

Capturing.

First, Mission Control attempted to release the Dres sat first, but after seeing the insane DeltaV requirements to capture at Dres, spacetime was warped back a few hours and Duna was the first destination instead.

The Duna encounter will result in a high inclination Tylo orbit, so the Tylo sat was released too. The main craft and Dres sat then burned to avoid the encounter.

Not quite the Jool system, but still some nice views.

RING RING RING!

The asteroid watcher reached its maneuver.

The Tylo sat adjusted its inclination at AP before going into a lower orbit at PE.

Said PE burn.

Duna was already mostly covered by the time of this photo.

Lastly, the Dres sat used the transfer stage to capture in orbit. Shortly after, the game froze when attempting to transmit science.

Next time, the TPA rovers will arrive and look for good ore spots. At the next transfer window, a Tylo beacon will be launched too.