It's The Wrong Red Moon... Adventures of an Alternate History!

[LordColtonOfGallifrey]

this story is starting to get really interesting keep up the amazing work as always

[Kimera Industries]

16 hours ago, LordColtonOfGallifrey said:

this story is starting to get really interesting keep up the amazing work as always

Thanks! I have a lot planned, don't worry.

Edited December 3, 2023 by Kimera Industries
Page 3, woot woot!

[Kimera Industries]

The name of the landing site for the Minmus base is the Lunara Plains, just east of the Myatnee II rover.

It's technically called Minmus' Lesser Flats, even though from what I can tell it's the largest of the three major ones.

Edited December 5, 2023 by Kimera Industries
Added picture.

[Kimera Industries]

Wrong Red Moon was an honorable mention for TOTM December 2023! I was not expecting this at all, I'm still shaking!

[adsii1970]

25 minutes ago, Kimera Industries said:

Wrong Red Moon was an honorable mention for TOTM December 2023! I was not expecting this at all, I'm still shaking!

Keep doing what you're doing. No one knows what the future holds.  

[Kimera Industries]

2 minutes ago, adsii1970 said:

Keep doing what you're doing. No one knows what the future holds.  

Will do!

[Kimera Industries]

Chapter 2: Exploration

Korolev 7

"Our kerbals have become tired of walking and have asked for a better way of getting around. Well, ask no more! Today, we are proud to announce the Myatnyykhod rover! Compact, lightweight, and durable, this rover will usher in a new age of fun- ahem, research and exploration!"

Scientific knowledge is all the rage these days, and our engineers like to think they're cool, so we let them add a science package to the lander. Korolev 6 gathered a plethora of scientific data, in contrast to Korolev 5, which, while groundbreaking, gathered merely samples and observations. However, there was something Korolev 6 lacked- range.

MISE has heard rumors of NASA potentially affixing a lightweight rover to their LEM for Apollo 15 and figured they could do better. Right off the bat, they would be designing a rover that would be used for the planned surface base. Capable of traveling a kilometer in less than a minute, with a top speed of 22 m/s, the Myatnyykhod or "Mint Walker" rover will revolutionize Minmus surface transportation forever. 

Aw, who are we kidding? It's just a stripped-down car glued to the side of the lander!

February 24, 1971, 8:15 MSK:

Launch:

Spoiler

"LKO confirmed at 75km."

Spoiler

 Bye-bye, Kerbin...

Hello, Minmus.

The journey to Minmus is routine at this point.

Spoiler

The Korolev spacecraft has detached from the main craft and will turn around to dock with it. This procedure takes place around Minmus and not Kerbin, unlike Apollo missions. As soon as it disconnects, Korolev severs its electrical connections with the transfer stage, and these connections are needed for as long as possible. An EVA is no longer needed to enter the lander in the improved model, however.

Docking success. The crew enters the lander and prepares for landing.

"Solar panels are looking good."

"Detach."

Nikolai and Yuri Kerman will go down to the surface while Katrina Kerman remains in the command module. Yuri was the command module pilot on Korolev 5, akin to Michael Kollins of Apollo 11. Nikolai Kerman is a distinguished geological scientist. Katrina is... let's put it this way, she and Val are best friends. Also sisters.

While the lander could do everything on its own, it's nice to get a free kick from the transfer stage.

Spoiler

March 1, 1971, 4:35 MSK: Korolev 7 touches down.

Another addition requested by cosmonauts were floodlights. These will help with surface ops if a mission is ever at night.

"Yuri Kerman on the ladder here, I feel as light as a balloon!"

"Nikolai, following him."

Together, Yuri and Nikolai set up the science package.

Yuri has climbs back into the lander to control rover deployment. Nikolai watches from the outside to supervise.

"All good, Yuri!"

"Roads? On these flats, we don't need roads."

Spoiler

Korolev 7 has landed in the Lunara Plains to gather data for a surface base, and as a result, is neighbors with Myatnee II.

"It's in good shape."

"Yoo-hoo! Anybody home?"

---BEEP BOOP I AM GETTING OUT OF HERE---

---FOUND A COOL ROCK---

It's a silent drive back to the lander, following the tracks they made as they headed out.

"Why did the kerbonaut want to be left alone?"

"Why?"

"Because he needed space!"

Yuri enters the lander, and Nikolai follows him.

The lander jettisons the rover deployment equipment and science storage bays.

"Lift off from the surface of Minmus!"

The lander rendezvouses with Korolev 7.

Korolev 7 returning home.

Spoiler

"Goodbye! See you later!"

"Hello, Kerbin! Good to meet you!"

One of these days we should figure out how to reuse that thing.

I guess the problem is that it has a tendency to explode.

Recovery antenna deployed.

Yuri Kerman promises he didn't go off any jumps with the rover, but we're not sure. The rover data says at one point it was at an altitude of 40 meters above the surface...

Korolev 8 and 9 will be more thorough investigations of other areas of Minmus' extensive flats, but what we're all waiting for is Korolev 10, which will land on the Minmus highlands for the first time. 

Edited September 16 by Kimera Industries
Trimmed down.

[Kimera Industries]

Now what could this be? 

Some sort of... large, long-duration spacecraft? What would you call such a vessel...

[Kimera Industries]

Salyut 1

Before rockets ever flew, kerbalkind dreamed of living in space. Conventional spacecraft, while experiencing leaps and bounds in technology allowing for longer stays in space than ever before, simply won't cut it for true long-duration missions, like an interplanetary journey or a stay at a munar base. A new kind of vessel is needed, a pressurized ship larger than any before it. Something capable of housing kerbals for months, or possibly even years. KSSP's engineers have been working for several years on such a project, and are proud to present...

Salyut 1.

April 19, 1971 4:40 MSK

Spoiler

"Woah, the new Atom K rocket is doing great! I didn't realize how cool it looked until now!" - Pad technician, post-launch.

MECO. The upper stage will reignite and boost the station into orbit, an unusually high one to avoid severe lag from terrain loading upper-atmospheric drag and prolong the station's life.

Spoiler

Salyut 1 is ready and operational. All that is needed now is crew and supplies.

Coming up next: Progress 1 Supply Mission!

Edited September 16 by Kimera Industries
Trimmed down.

[Kimera Industries]

Progress 1

A space station's gotta have snacks, and that's exactly the purpose of the new Progress spacecraft.  The basic Korolev design has been improved upon, to the point where no crew is required at all! Wait...

It's fitted with a larger docking port, so larger individual items can be shipped to the space station, with no assembly required! The disadvantage is that there can't be any direct Korolev-Progress docking, but that's why Salyut has two different docking mechanisms. 

Spoiler

Progress will now rendezvous with the station.

Spoiler

Progress-1 has docked flawlessly with Salyut. The supplies on board will keep the crew fed and with plenty of science experiments to complete when they arrive. The crew mission will be Korolev 11, to be launched several weeks after Korolev 10.

Coming up next: Korolev 10!

Edited October 12 by Kimera Industries
Trimmed down further.

[Kimera Industries]

I hate filling this thread with "Sorry I'll post later really busy rn I promise" but alas, they can feel necessary. Things have been really busy right after Christmas break and I am mainly focused on getting my Jool 5 posted. Have patience, these things will come with time.

[Kerbalsaurus]

Thread of the Month! Nice job, man!

[Kimera Industries]

39 minutes ago, Kerbalsaurus said:

Thread of the Month! Nice job, man!

I must still be in shock. I expect this will all hit me hard sooner or later...

Time to edit the OP again.

Edited January 5 by Kimera Industries
Oops grammar

[Kimera Industries]

Check out the Original Post! It's got an awesome new table of contents so you can easily find your favorite mission, plus shameless self-promoting for WoRM's KerbalX craft.  (All two of them) (So far!)

Edited May 9 by Kimera Industries

[TwoCalories]

Anything new?

[Kimera Industries]

On 3/10/2024 at 1:34 PM, TwoCalories said:

Anything new?

I'm sorry that I've been really bad at updating this recently. I probably can't post the next mission today, but I'll work on the process that will let me post it tomorrow.  

Edited April 2 by Kimera Industries

[Kimera Industries]

Hey, look! A poll! Where'd that come from? 

Submit your opinion to influence the KSSP's next mission. Whichever ranks 2nd and 3rd will still come afterward, but let me know what you want first.

P.S. Korolev 10 is still coming. Thanks for your patience.  

[Kerb24]

Uncrewed Eve missions are strangely rare to see in mission reports (in my experience), definitely voting for them.

[TwoCalories]

Venus probes were some of the earliest missions done by the USSR. I think it's only fitting that the KSSP launches a probe to Eve.

[Kimera Industries]

I'm very pleased by the swift and decisive action taken in the poll! I can tell that your favorite mission would be a WoRM adaptation of...

Mars 2!

*crickets*

*Turns paper upside down* 

Venera 8!

I translated 'Eve' into Russian and Google gave me 'Kanun,' then @Kerbalsaurus kindly pointed out that the noun form would be 'Yeva,' so that's what the mission will be called. I picked the mission numbers I did, 2 and 8, because chronologically they come shortly after the current date of WoRM. Korolev 11 was a lucky coincidence, as Soyuz 11 was the first mission to the real-life Salyut 1!

Do some research on Soyuz 11. It'll give you a healthy sense of foreshadowing. Speaking of research, I've been reading up on the Venera program and was pleased to find that the orange fairing of the Molniya-M lends itself particularly well to Restock.

Oh, cool, that's a png. Thanks, Wikipedia.

I'll start working on Yeva 8 right away, and get K10 posted as soon as I can! (It's open in another tab right now... )

Edited April 7 by Kimera Industries

[Kerbalsaurus]

I will say, in Russian Eve the planet would be Yeva, as in the name Eve. Kanun is the noun form of the word, as in New Years Eve or Christmas Eve.

Edited April 7 by Kerbalsaurus

[Kimera Industries]

1 minute ago, Kerbalsaurus said:

I will say, in Russian Eve the planet would be Yeva, as in the name Eve. Kanun is the noun form of the word, as in New Years Eve or Christmas Eve.

Great point. I thought I had checked for that, but apparently, I didn't scroll down far enough to see all the options on Google Translate. Updating now!

[Kimera Industries]

Korolev 10

"You shouldn't be in here, Alexei."

Alexei jumped and turned towards the voice. In the shadowy doorway of the storage room, silhouetted by the hallway's light, stood Alexei's manager, Viktor. 

"I need to know what happened. You know why." Alexei closed the filing cabinet he had been fingering through and walked over to Viktor.

"You could be arrested if you leak those secrets." 

Alexei pleaded with Viktor. "They were my friends. I trained with them. I must know how- how they died." 

Viktor looked thoughtful for a moment, subtle emotions playing across his face. 

"You'll never be the same. Just warning you." He walked over to one of the locked cabinets and pulled a key from a ring on his belt.

Alexei peered over his shoulder and saw him pull a film reel from a rack within the drawer. Viktor deftly threaded the film into a projector hidden by shelves in the deeper areas of the room. As the machine flickered to life, Viktor began to speak.

"This footage was relayed from the surface by Korolev 10 the day after the incident occurred. The lander and rover stopped transmitting only a few hours before Nikolai left."

"That long? With no one to operate them? " 

"No one to turn them off."

The film began playing. Scratchy audio resolved and an unfocused image came into clarity.

Spoiler

KSSP

Warning- Classified Footage

Korolev X

"Clear for cryo loading."

"Roger. Initi-"

*kssshhh*

"-ternal. Flight computers online." 

"Confirmed, electrical power at-"

*kssshhh*

"T-Minus 10, 9, 8,-"

*kssshhh*

"Liftoff."

"All systems look good, beginning roll program."

"Korolev 10 here, orbit confirmed! Dmitri and I are feeling good, but Nikolai is reporting a bit of queasiness."

*loud sound, unidentifiable.*

"Make that a lot of queasiness."

"Trans-Minmus Insertion underway. We see a partial eclipse here."

"Bye-bye Kerbin..."

"Hello, Minmus."

"Korolev 10 detach in 3, 2, 1-"

Spoiler

"Keep it steady, Val."

"Lined up. Closing in on port."

"And... contact!"

*shuffling sounds as crew and supplies bounce off microphone*

"Not so hard, Val!"

"See you back in orbit, Nikolai!"

"Activating descent program."

Spoiler

 

"Touchdown! My best one yet!"

"You've only had two, Val. That's not saying much."

"Coming, Dmitri?"

"I think I knocked over a work lamp on my way here..."

"Who cares? This place will never be touched by kerbals again."

"Dmitri? You've been awfully quiet the last few minutes. Are you-"

The image fuzzed with static. Audio cut out.

"-at!? Some kind of EMP? And what was that light?"

"Val..."

"Do you...?"

"Yes. I hear it. Them."

"Do you still want to continue?"

Dmitri was silent for many seconds.

"Yes. No matter what, we must continue."

Alexei was shocked. "So they are real."

Viktor gave him a slow nod. "The true purpose of this mission was to prove that. NASA has kept silent about their discovery of identical structures on the Mun."

They kept watching in cold silence.

"What do we do now?"

"Touch it?"

"Why not."

The audio went wild. Garbled images flashed across the screen. 

"-ck to the rov-"

"-out of here-"

The image suddenly jumped to the external camera on Korolev 10. Nikolai's voice cut in.

"Nightingale 6, do you read me? Nightingale 6, do you read?"

"Nothing on the transmission, and you've been searching for as long as supplies permit. They're dead, Nik. And you can't stay any longer."

There was nothing on the audio now but Nikolai's silent weeping. Alexei was close to joining him. After several jumps in the footage from whoever had edited the clips together, he recognized the procedures for reentry. 

"Korolev 10 here, I've picked up a violent spin."

"The chutes are having trouble. I am prepared to bail out."

Thankfully, the reentry trajectory held steady and the capsule landed near the space center. Recovery teams found that a panel on the reentry capsule had blown off during the service module separation.

Viktor left Alexei to contemplate his thoughts. Before he left, he said: "Make sure you lock this place up before you leave. I'll come by in an hour to make sure everything's secure."

Alexei did indeed contemplate, for many minutes. He began rewinding the tape. Again. And again. Soon, he picked up a piece of graph paper and began to write.

Edited September 16 by Kimera Industries
Trimmed down.

[Kimera Industries]

Hello, all! I got to my laptop again after a month, and after catching up on my 30+ notifications, I figured it would be good to reassure you, with the uncertainty surrounding this forum's future. 

I will keep working on Wrong Red Moon. I love making these missions as much as I'm sure you love reading them. Whatever site everyone migrates to if the forums do go down, I will continue there instead. I will work on backing up the missions to a Google Doc.

My personal opinion is that the forums will sail along relatively unaffected, but there is a chance the unthinkable becomes the thinkable, so it's wise to be prepared.

I may not be active for the next few days. Fear not, I'm just taking that time to catch up on all the YouTube I missed too.

Edited July 14 by Kimera Industries

[Kimera Industries]

An update for the next mission: The next project will be a redo of the first Myatnee mission. Since I first started this thread, I've gotten a new monitor (two, actually), new mods, and fiddled with my graphics settings. Since the UI in that first mission in particular looks garish and omnipresent, it's the only redo on my agenda so far.