JNSQ: The Last Munflight - Chapter 4

[Angelo Kerman]

I’ve seen a few alternate history mission reports lately, and they’re fun to read. Stories like Kānāwai: Ares to Mars and A DIRECT Transition – If DIRECT Took To The Skies. They inspired me to write an alt history report of my own. But rather than tread on alternate Earth history, I wanted to explore an alternate history from my own JNSQ mission reports- and do it in a way that didn’t involve time travel or some other science fiction trope (ok, maybe a little).

Looking through my To the Mün mission reports (To the Mün, Shuttle Launch System, Commercial Space Ventures, Flight of the Endeavor), I found the perfect Point of Departure in my timeline:

At one point, I seriously considered basing my Shuttle Era on a “what if” picture that I found where the vonBraun Ferry Rocket was perched atop a Saturn V. Then @benjee10 released his outstanding Shuttle Orbiter Construction Kit, and @Invaderchaos released SOCK Recolored , and I absolutely had to use it for my Shuttle Launch System mission report. But what if I hadn’t gone that route?

This mission report is an opportunity for me to explore that “what if” scenario while still advancing my main timeline. Since this mission report happens in two saves, I plan to mark the alternate history sections with “ALT” for Alternate Timeline. Hopefully that’ll avoid confusion; this is a new format for me so please bear with me.

Chapters

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

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Mod list

A mapping of months

Listed below are the names of the 12 months in my save, mapped to the Gregorian calendar months:

Acama                  January
Huitzil                    February
Chimal                  March
Itzcoatl                 April
Moctez                 May
Axaya                    June
Jool                        July
Tizoc                      August
Ahuit                     September
Cuitla                     October
Cuahoc                 November
Montezu             December

[Angelo Kerman]

Prologue

To The Mün had been an expression among kerbals to describe something impossible until two nations, the Kerman States and the vonKerman Republic, landed on both of Kerbin’s müns. After that feat, nothing seemed impossible. The Kerman States- via their Kerbal Space Program- set their sights on a kermanned mission to Duna, but they knew it would be expensive, so they created the reusable Shuttle Launch System to replace their expendable rockets. Then they partnered with the mcKerman Kingdom’s Ministry of Space to build Starlab, their Kerbin Orbiting Station. With their reusable infrastructure in place, the two nations began planning for their trip to Duna. Then the Laythe Surveyor sent back some intriguing results about Jool’s innermost mün…

The space agencies immediately pivoted away from Duna and created Project Laythe, seceding cisminmar space to commercial companies such as Orbital Dynamics, who single-handedly created the space tourism industry, built the first fully reusable, single-stage-to-orbit launch vehicle, and became the first company to capture an asteroid, dubbed the “Magic Boulder” for its exotic resource. Meanwhile, KSP and the MoS invited the vonKermans to participate in Project Laythe, and the three agencies collaborated to build the First Jool Fleet.

Among the many vessels in the Fleet, Nautilus, the first Deep Space Exploration Vessel, brought eight astronauts and kerbonauts to Jool’s innermost mün. After assembling Laythe Base from a collection of modules shipped with the Fleet, the crew spent sixty days on the surface conducting experiments- and discovering phytoplankton in Laythe’s oceans! With their exciting discovery making news, the crew returned to the Nautilus to spend another three years in cryostasis traveling home.

As the Nautilus (DSEV-01) coasted back towards Kerbin, the Ministry of Space spearheaded a renewed effort to reach Duna and provided most of the funding for the budget conscious Kopernicus (DSEV-02) and the Third Duna Fleet.

After a disastrous landing that caused the death of Ribler Kerman, seven kerbals explored the Rusty Planet- and made some amazing discoveries along the way. Most importantly, they discovered that ancient Kermantians somehow visited Duna thousands of years before modern kerbals- and seemingly without advanced technology! That discovery inspired the spacefaring nations to form the International Space Consortium and unite under one banner to explore the solar system and look for more signs of Kermantian visitations.

And with their mission complete, the crew boarded the Endeavour- a makeshift rocket that they cobbled together from salvaged parts- and returned to DSEV-02.

When the launch windows opened once more, Discovery (DSEV-03) – a next-generation spacecraft that emerged from the Deep Space Exploration Vessel (Experimental) program- launched towards Jool. Meanwhile, Kopernicus (DSEV-02) coasted towards home and DSEV-04, slated for Duna, neared completion. DSEV-04- as well as DSEV-03 and Newton (DSX-01)- were powered by a revolutionary gravitic propulsion system created by Orbital Dynamics that changed the nature of spaceflight forever. Though the technology was still in its infancy- and rather expensive- gravitic propulsion stood ready to take over from chemical and nuclear rocket technology- if a steady supply of the exotic matter, known as graviolium, could be found beyond the deposit from the Magic Boulder…

Without a doubt, commercial space companies made huge advancements in spaceflight and propelled kerbalkin closer to the stars.

But not all commercial space companies enjoyed fruitful success…

“…And so, with a heavy heart, I must regretfully announce that Phoenix Aerospace will cease operations… and let the staff go…” Phil Kerman, CEO of Phoenix Aerospace somberly said.

His staff smiled but he could see the micro-expressions on their faces. The micro-expressions of his soon to be former employees mirrored his own sadness. Starlab’s retirement also meant the conclusion of their Kerbin Orbital Transportation Services contract, which reduced their revenue significantly.

Worse, KSP declined to buy more Power and Propulsion Element spacecraft or Refueling Modules for Gateway Station.

He’d hoped that Phoenix Lab would serve as the cornerstone of tourist trips to the Mün, but thus far, the only customers were the ISC’s two prototype Deep Space Exploration Vessels. It was, unfortunately, a matter of time before Phoenix Aerospace ran out of money.

And that time was soon.

Phil sighed, letting the news sink in before continuing. “But we’re going out with one last hurrah.” He paused again, and his employees were on the edges of their seats. “We’re going to reenact a Münflight...” The crowd cheered for several minutes. When they settled down, Phil continued.

“Before the Board of Directors made their decision, we were planning to offer a Münflight experience to two paying tourists that captured the nostalgia of the first flights to the müns. We can’t perform an exact reenactment, of course, since today’s technology is much more advanced than what the first astronauts had, and some key hardware no longer exists, and we don’t have a heavy lift rocket, but our Firebirds are the grandchildren of the K-20, and like their grandparents, they can go to the müns and back. Now, here’s what we’re going to do…”

[Angelo Kerman]

Chapter 1

The timeline was tight, but they’d done it. They completed the SCV Endeavour- DSEV-04- in time for the upcoming Duna launch window. Named in honor of the homebuilt rocket that the astronauts on Duna built- out of salvaged parts no less- to replace the flawed and broken Estonian lander that cost them their mission commander, the name “Endeavour” was unanimously chosen by the ISC’s DSEV Naming Committee. Though the crew of the Kopernicus wouldn’t get to see Endeavour launch due their being in cryosleep and still coasting home, the ISC knew that they’d be happy to know that the newest DSEV was named in honor of their homebuilt ship.

Like the SCV Discovery before her, the Space Consortium Vessel Endeavour was a Discovery-class Deep Space Exploration Vessel that incorporated the latest technology; things like a shipyard-configurable modular construction and revolutionary graviolium-fueled gravitic engines. She used the same modules as Discovery, including the hab ring, a liquids container module filled with propellium, and of course the gravitic propulsion system. But her command hull benefited from lessons learned from building Discovery- the “neck” of the hull, to which other spinal modules are attached, had a pair of staterooms mounted above and below the connector for the ship’s captain and executive officer to occupy. Given the tight quarters, the staterooms were a welcome addition.

The ISC also leveraged the Discovery-class’s modular mission system for Endeavour’s maiden flight. While Discovery had an inline hangar dedicated to transporting two Shuttlepods to Laythe along with a Type 1 Cargo Rack to bring two large Drop Pods and a space station, Endeavour had less hardware to haul. As a result, shipwrights fitted a new Inline Spacer Tank instead of a Shuttlepod Hangar and attached two Radial Shuttlepod Hangars to its flanks. They also omitted the Type 1 Cargo Rack. The design gave a more fashionable, proto-battlestar look offered a more compact layout than Discovery and gave the ISC the opportunity to test different configurations for their modular DSEV spacecraft. And for this mission, the Spacer Tank’s dorsal and ventral docking ports sported an expansion to Duna Basecamp.

The crew arrived at Magic Boulder Shipyard two weeks before the Duna launch window opened, checked out their new ship, and thanked the yard workers for all their hard work.

Right on time, they departed the station, performed their “burn” for Duna (gravitic engines don’t throw flame out the back, but traditional terminology dies hard…), and bed down into cryosleep for the long journey to the Rusty Planet. With two Discovery-class ships in flight, the ISC eagerly waited to evaluate their performance before they began to build the next two…

[Angelo Kerman]

Chapter Deux

Major Kelbin Kerman, Kerman Air Force, woke up. It took him several minutes for him to figure out why he was so cold, and where he was- and for that matter, who he was. Kelbin was captain of the Atlantis, DSEV-05. He and his crew had left Kerbin. For the past several years, he'd been in cryosleep while his ship coasted towards Jool. He vaguely recalled that some time ago, the exploration team on Duna discovered a Face that clearly resembled a kerbal, and that it emitted  a powerful radio transmission aimed straight at Jool. That's why KSP built Atlantis- to find out why that signal was sent. But wow, what a dream! It was like the other monolith dreams- very vivid and indistinguishable from realty, like he was living in another Superimposed Alternate Variant Existence. But there was no monolith in deep space for him to communicate with. Still, in his dream, he saw kerbals flying winged spacecraft To the Mun, then they built a space shuttle, and then he saw himself as the CEO of a commercial space company. He couldn't imagine winning the lottery, let alone starting a space company with the winnings...

Kelbin looked around, realizing that there was some kind of noise going on. Apparently, it was an urgent noise. There was a voice speaking. It sounded... metallic, robotic- urgent.

"...imminent," the voice said loudly as the klaxons wailed. It was giving him a headache.

Kelbin wondered what the urgent robot voice meant by imminent.

"Terrain, terrain," the robot voice said insistently, "pull up, pull up! Collision imminent!"

Kelbin listened to the words again, and groggily climbed out of his revere. His head was still foggy though. Apparently, the ship was about to hit some terrain? He wondered how since Atlantis was a space ship, a Deep Space Exploration Vessel.

He made his way to the bridge of the ship to look around and see what "terrain" they were about to run into out in deep space. Kelbin got into the command chair out of habit and checked his displays. "Ha," he said, looking at the displays, "false alarm. There's no terrain! Now, what would set off the alarm?"

Kelbin looked out the window, but only saw the blackness of space. Granted, the ship had a greenish glow about it, but still, just black space out the windows.

He rolled the the ship ninety degrees, and the green glow got brighter.

"Hm, he said simply. Then he looked at the orbit and saw the problem. "Oh... Ok, I just need to fire up the engines and correct the orbit."

There was, unfortunately, a slight problem with that. For some reaosn, flight computer had jettisoned the ship's supply of explodium, the unstable nuclear salt water that powered Atlantis' rockets. He wondered for a few moments what would cause the computer to jettison the explodium. It was, stored in a state that was almost supercritical, maybe that was it? The ship hit Jool's upper atmosphere and screamed in protest as pieces of the ship ripped away.

"Well, this sucks," was the last thing that Major Kelbin Kerman, Kerman Air Force ever said.

Happy April 1st!

[Angelo Kerman]

Chapter 2

Karbal Kerman, space news correspondent for Kerbal News Network, just finished covering Phoenix Aerospace’s Münflight announcement. It was an intriguing idea to capture the nostalgia of the early days of spaceflight! He looked forward to covering it as the announcement became reality.

For now, though, he had to finish editing his exposé on the political corruption that happened over fifteen years ago when KSP was making their Shuttle Decision. His research showed that Drax Aerospace influenced members of Kongress to choose the Drax Shuttle Launch System over the Lindor Shuttle, a competing design.

Correction, make that two competing designs. The Kerman Air Force proposed a smaller orbiter- their first Blackstar proposal- that launched on a piloted and winged version of the Lindor L-1C first-stage booster. The winged booster was supposed to provide almost all the velocity needed to reach orbit and then detach the orbiter. The orbiter would finish attaining orbit while the booster reentered the atmosphere and landed at a convenient airbase. It was one of the first fully reusable shuttle designs- except it didn’t work. The booster wouldn’t survive reentry heating due to the technology of the day, and any kind of additional heat shielding would’ve made the booster infeasible.

But that got Karbal thinking… What if the Lindor Shuttle became SLS instead of Drax’s Shuttle? How would history have played out?

Karbal took some notes, checked some of his old files, took some more notes, drafted an outline, and before he realized it, it was morning already. He realized that he had something that the alternate history buffs would love to read, so Karbal slept a few hours, created a pen name, and began writing…

*

(ALT) Keep Looking Up Part 1: The Shuttle Decision

Jool 31, 1991: The Space Shuttle Mariner was poised on Pad A at the Kerman Space Center, ready to launch for the very first time. Four years ago, Kongress approved the Shuttle Launch System, just as it happened in our timeline. But in this alternate timeline, things are different. After the renowned investigative journalist Karl Kerman published an award-winning article on Drax Aerospace’s efforts to illegally influence Kongress’ decision, they immediately rejected Drax’s Shuttle proposal in favor of the Lindor Shuttle- and the Drax executives landed in jail.

John Kerman, veteran of eight K-20 KerbalSoar flights- including one to each of Kerbin’s müns- was the Kerman States’ most experienced astronaut and was the command pilot of the first Shuttle flight. Joining him was rookie astronaut Roberta Kerman, one of the first of a new class of Shuttle astronauts. John looked out of Mariner’s windows and silently thought about how much the space center had changed. Given how long it took to process a Lindor launch vehicle, KSP added Pad B and Pad C along with another Vehicle Assembly Building to handle the expected workload.

Off in the distance, he could also see Pad Alpha, built to handle Kerman Air Force K-20s that began polar flights to Dolores Air Force Station after Münflight 3. He knew that the KAF Skyhawk, sitting in its VAB, was fully stacked on its Edna booster and ready to fly in case Mariner experienced a malfunction in orbit and her crew needed rescue. But once the Shuttle began flying with its full crew of four, the K-20 could no longer rescue a stranded Shuttle’s astronauts. And once Shuttle became fully operational, the Air Force intended to retire their fleet of K-20s in favor of the larger and more capable vehicle. In fact, by consolidating all missions on the Shuttle, redundant architectures like the K-20 and its Edna launch vehicle, and all their support facilities, could be eliminated to save costs- and to justify the high flight rates needed to keep Shuttle costs low.

Three seconds before launch, the first stage’s Kerbodyne KE-1 Mastodon engines roared into life and quickly built-up full thrust. The Lindor struggled to be free, and right on time, explosive bolts in hold-down posts detonated, granting the giant rocket’s wish. Simultaneously, the three service masts on the launch tower quickly scurried out of the way to ensure that the Lindor could rocket into the sky unopposed.

At nearly 500,000 Funds per flight, it was hard to justify the throwaway Lindor 5. Fortunately, engineers had previously experimented with a solution when KSP launched Skybase into orbit- an experiment that proved to be a success. They built the Lindor L-9R- the official name for the heavily modified Lindor 9 Reusable First Stage Booster. Based on the venerable L-1C first stage that sent a total of six missions to the Mün and Minmus, the L9-R had nine Kerbodyne KE-1 Mastodon engines (The L-1C had five, plus two more that powered expendable boosters) and a stretched fuel tank.

1 minute and 26 seconds after liftoff, at an altitude of 28 km and traveling 948.3 meters per second, the L-9R completed its burn. Mariner’s flight computers then commanded the first stage to separate from the rest of the vehicle, and stack decouplers and separatron solid rocket motors got to work rapidly putting distance between the spent booster and the rest of the rocket. Two seconds later, the five RE-I5 Skipper engines powering the L-2 second stage ignited, and the Lindor Shuttle continued her climb.

As with its L-1C predecessor, the L-9R separated from the stack at a relatively low altitude and speed, and that translated to experiencing less atmospheric heating than other proposed reusable Shuttle designs. As a result, the first stage coasted another 32 km higher before unlocking its propellant reserves and making an engine burn in preparation for its next phase of operations.

Thanks to a technology transfer agreement with the vonKerman Republic, the L-9R was equipped with “grid fins” that helped steer the stage towards its landing zone on Welcome Island. Coupled with four deployable landing legs that were up-sized versions from the vonKerman’s recoverable boosters, the L-9R could land safely, be refurbished, and fly again. For Mariner’s first flight, the Lindor vehicle stack used the same L-9R that launched Skybase into orbit, albeit refurbished and modified to apply lessons learned from its first flight. But once again, the reusable booster proved its worth and landed safely. And given its cost savings, KSP was already in the process of building three more reusable first stage boosters.

7 minutes and 42 seconds after launch, the Lindor Shuttle’s L-2 second stage completed its duties and separated from Mariner, leaving the orbiter to circularize its orbit. The L-2 stage remained unchanged since the days of launching K-20s with their D1B upper stages into orbit. It represented dependability and reliability. Unfortunately, the legacy hardware also represented the greatest expenditure of the Lindor Shuttle.

Unlike the first stage, the second stage, coasting 150 km above the surface and traveling at 3,675.1 meters per second, was traveling too high and too fast to safely reenter the atmosphere. So, while Mariner completed its circularization burn via its single Skipper engine, the L-2 stage burned up eight and a half minutes later. But engineers had to wonder- could it too be recovered?

John and Roberta breathed a sigh of relief and congratulated each other (even though the flight computers did all the work)- they were in orbit! With the launch completed, they got to work transforming the vehicle into on-orbit mode. They started by opening the payload bay doors, turning on the bay lights, and extending the high-gain antenna. Like Pathfinder- the first K-20 KerbalSoar- the Lindor Shuttle had payload bay doors, but unlike its predecessors, which replaced the bay with a crew cabin on subsequent K-20s, Mariner’s payload bay was a permanent addition. The size of the payload bay- and thus, the overall size of the shuttle, was dictated by Kerman Air Force requirements. Simply put, they wanted the ability to launch their large, “classified payloads” (we all know that they’re spy satellites) into orbit and to retrieve them for servicing as needed.

In their competing Blackstar orbiter proposal, the Air Force designed a bay that could handle payloads up to 7.5m long and 1.875m in diameter. Realizing that they needed as many Shuttle flights as possible to keep costs down, KSP’s design met those requirements and even exceeded them. The Lindor Shuttle had a bay that could fit cargo up to 2.5m in diameter and had an airlock and docking equipment while still having plenty of room left over for the Air Force’s classified payloads. The payload bay was more than enough to handle KSP’s payload requirements- especially since the Lindor itself could still launch what they had in mind.

Even on her maiden flight, Mariner was put to work. With a series of carefully timed engine burns, John piloted Mariner over to Skybase for a fly-around to check on the station’s status. A year ago, a trio of his fellow astronauts departed the station on Sojourner, the last operational civilian K-20 that made its final flight. Since the K-20 was designed with the Mk 1 Clamp-O-Tron Junior docking port and Shuttle used the larger Mk2 port- another gift from the vonKermans, and one that ensured that all spacecraft could dock together regardless of origin- Shuttles visiting Skybase needed an adapter. Fortunately, Mariner carried one. After John finished his fly-around, Roberta got to work.

Nestled in Mariner’s payload bay was the Docking Adapter Module, a specialized component that KSP engineers built based on the venerable Mark One Laboratory Module. The DAM had both types of docking ports at each end of the module. But more than just a docking adapter, the DAM was a dedicated prototype greenhouse capable of growing food for the astronauts. KSP hoped to demonstrate that with the right edible plants that could also renew the air supply, spacecraft could carry fewer supplies for long-duration missions.

Attached to the Mk2 port was Mariner’s other primary payload: the Teleoperated Maneuvering Vehicle. Tested last year via an Edna launch, engineers designed the TMV to maneuver hardware in space and position it for assembly. The first TMV had issues with receiving ground commands, but a thorough check of its software resolved the bugs, and this time, Roberta piloted the craft from a console in Mariner’s cockpit. After performing pre-flight checks and unlocking the propellant flow valves, Roberta fired the explosive bolts holding the DAM and TMV in Mariner’s payload bay, and the Shuttle’s first cargo took flight.

With practiced precision, Roberta maneuvered the TMV out of Mariner’s payload bay and slowly piloted it over Skybase. She lined up the Mk 1 docking ports and slowly approached the space station. A few meters before docking, she rotated the TMV to line it and the DAM up with Skybase’s orientation. The DAM docked with the windmill-like station with a satisfying clunk.

“Excellent job, Mariner,” Mission Control called out from the radio. “Seals look good. You’re go for TMV undocking and transpositioning.”

“Roger that,” Roberta responded. Her hands played across her console, and the TMV separated from the Docking Adapter Module.  As the constellation of spacecraft approached Kerbin’s nightside, the rookie astronaut piloted the TMV back into Mariner’s payload bay and docked with the aft docking port. She made it look easy.

As she locked the TMV’s propellant tanks, John initiated the next phase of the mission. He expertly oriented Mariner to line up its docking port with the newly vacated port on the DAM. With precision movements and patience, Mariner’s docking port lined up with the DAM, and John nudged the orbiter “up” to dock. And just like that, the airliner-sized Shuttle, longer than Skybase, docked with the station.

The astronauts secured Mariner and then transferred to the DAM’s greenhouse. After turning on the lights and opening the shutters, they took a break. That’s when things started to go wrong. Skybase started to tumble in space! The structure groaned and flexed at the two docked Clamp-O-Tron Jr ports as Mariner and Skybase fought for control over which set of gyros would orient the station in space. The astronauts quickly evacuated back to the shuttle while Mission Control went through their emergency procedures for Skybase. Together, both station and shuttle switched off their gyro systems, allowing the complex to slowly stop oscillating.

A root cause analysis session later determined that both Skybase’s and Mariner’s flight control computers decided that they were responsible for orienting the complex and sent commands to their respective gyro systems. Because of their positions relative to the center of mass, the complex began to flex- almost to the breaking point of the DAM/Skybase docking interface. Disabling both primary gyro systems resolved the issue.

By activating the backup gyros in Skybase’s logistics module- which were not as powerful and were closer to the center of mass- Mission Control stopped the flexing and got the station reoriented properly. But lesson learned; orbiters must relinquish control to the station when they visit, and the station needed to use the gyros closest to center of mass for orientation. And as part of the mitigation efforts, KSP came up with a “Naming Priority” system to help determine which spacecraft should have control at any given time.

With the situation under control, John and Roberta went back to the greenhouse to continue their work. Currently configured as a botany lab, the module had numerous sensors to monitor plant growth in microgravity. The results of the experiments would enable future crews to reconfigure the lab into a greenhouse, but for now, John and Roberta were satisfied that after hooking up all the tubes, power cords, and sensors, there were no issues when the finally turned the whole thing on.

Next, the astronauts double-checked the seals between the DAM and Skybase before entering the station. They noted some buckling in the metal transfer tunnel, but they verified that there were no air leaks. Nonetheless, Mission Control made a note to bring up some struts to reinforce the connection between the DAM and Skybase. John opened the hatch, and the two made their way into Skybase’s logistics and airlock modules. After performing their checks and not noticing anything out of the ordinary, John and Roberta transferred fresh EVA equipment and repair kits to the logistics hub.

The final stop of their tour was the orbital workshop proper- the converted D1B upper stage. Roberta noted an odd smell that turned out to be an out-gassing of various plastic components that were repeatedly exposed to heating and cooling. Mission Control took note to send up more air filters along with fresh supplies of Snacks, fresh air, minerite, and other items. Skybase also needed four Refit Kits to set up the machinery needed for its next phase of operations. But that would have to wait for another flight. For now, John and Roberta were content to complete assessing the state of Skybase and noting what needed updates and repairs.

The astronauts returned to Mariner, and over the next two days, they conducted tests and evaluated its on-orbit performance. They found that the orbiter performed remarkably well thanks to the experiences gained from flying the K-20 KerbalSoar. They particularly liked using the TMV to maneuver payloads in space- no clunky robot arm needed! But their time at the station had to end, so John and Roberta boarded Mariner, undocked, and put some distance between themselves and Skybase for their trip home.

Forty-four minutes later, Mariner performed her deorbit burn and eleven minutes after that, she hit the upper atmosphere. As with the K-20, the Shuttle aimed for an impact point a few hundred kilometers short of KSC, and then pitched upwards enough to both glide to the space center and slow down. It was both an art and a science to slow down right above the space center, but unlike its predecessor, Shuttle had jet engines to ensure a safe return. So, it came as no surprise when Mariner overshot the space center by 37 kilometers, and John had to light the jet engines and turn the ship around.

“We heard some bangs and shimmies on the way down,” John remarked. “It sounded like something went boom,” he said calmly, as if reporting the weather. He set Mariner down on the runway with barely any concern, and then taxied over to the spaceplane hangar and stopped just outside of the structure. Once the pair shut down the orbiter’s systems, they deplaned and stood outside for a publicity photo. The first flight of the new Shuttle was a success!

Well, almost a success. Engineers examined the spacecraft to find out what the “bangs and shimmies” were. As it turns out, they were the result of the wingtip RCS thrusters sheering off from the extreme heat and pressure of atmospheric re-entry. They’d have to be redesigned for the next flight...

[Angelo Kerman]

Chapter 3

Karbal felt the familiar rush of creativity pouring in once more, bolstered by the positive feedback that he got from posting his story on alt.spacehistory.com. “MOAR boosters,” read one comment. That was a common way on the boards to signify that readers wanted more alt history space posts. Another comment read: “How ironic that IOTL-“ IOTL meant In Our Time Line- “the reusable Lindor L-9R was only used once when it launched Skybase.”

Several posts from various forum users posted walls of text discussing technical aspects of the Lindor launch vehicle, the Lindor Shuttle, and so on. Karbal saw them as posters that wanted to appear “in the know” and as attempts to get readers to look to themselves as the experts on all things regarding space technology and history. Karbal just saw them as distractions to the story that he was writing. But a post by one user named “KSP Insider” stood out. It read, “Good technical accuracy. Your story is plausible. We were working on a reusable L-2 stage design before the budget ran out. We also had several applications lined up that would’ve needed Lindor. Keep up the good work.”

A reusable Lindor second stage? More “applications” for Lindor? Interesting, Karbal thought to himself. He noticed that “KSP Insider” didn’t provide any technical details, almost as if the poster challenged him to find out more.

“Challenge accepted,” Karbal said to himself. He’d do some digging. In the meantime, he began writing…

(ALT) Keep Looking Up Part 2: Skybase Service Life Extension Program (SLEP)

Despite the minor damage suffered during re-entry, Mariner proved capable of launching, orbiting, and landing back at KSC, just like her K-20 ancestor. Now she had to prove her reusability. OV-201 went back into the Orbiter Processing Facility for repairs and extended inspections, and engineers estimated that it would take up to 120 days to complete. Given the time required, Skyhawk stood down from her Shuttle rescue role and geared up for her next Air Force mission.

Just past sunrise on Tizoc 5, 1991, Skyhawk (OV-106) blasted off into polar orbit atop an Edna Heavy rocket for a 30-day mission to Dolores Air Force Station.

Four years ago, Air Force blasted Dolores into polar orbit at about the same time that KSP lofted Skybase. It took four Edna Heavy launches to place the core module, the Habitat Module, the Lab Module, and the DenEye Spy Module into orbit and connect them together 150 km above Kerbin. Over the years, Skyhawk and Corsair (OV-107) delivered 48 kerbals over 16 flights to the station to conduct military experiments and “Watch Kerbin” with their ground-pointing telescope, and the latest flight was no different.

Though technically an Air Force station, the Kerman Navy also used the facility as well. This flight was an all-Navy crew- Captain Jonathan “Archer” Kerman (PLT), Commander Charles “Tripp” Kerman (ENG), and Doctor Phlox Kerman (SCI) rocketed towards the station and docked with it a half-day later. For their first task, “Tripp” performed an EVA to replace the aging struts connecting the three mission modules to the core. The struts ensured that the structures didn’t flex and cause problems like the issues that Mariner and Skybase experienced. The other 28 days of their mission was routine. Dr. Phlox performed experiments including life sciences and monitoring Kerbin’s oceans for evidence of climate change.

After completing their mission, the trio boarded Skyhawk once more for the trip home, timing their departure to just before sunrise at KSC. Several minutes after its deorbit burn, OV-106 jettisoned its service module at let it burn up as the glider hit the atmosphere. A few S-turns later to slow down, Skyhawk went subsonic above KSC, approached the runway, and landed with little fanfare. OV-106 had a 30-day turnaround time, but that was plenty of time before Mariner’s next mission…

At last, 120 days after Mariner landed, she was stacked atop the Lindor L-9R and a new L-2 upper stage and ready for her next mission. For LSS-2 (Lindor Shuttle System, mission 2), Mariner carried a Mini Logistics Module with several Refit Kits, the Unity Node, and the refurbished Teleoperated Maneuvering Vehicle. For this flight, Janet Bragg-Kerman (PLT) and Archimedes “Archy” Kerman (ENG) rode in OV-201’s cockpit. Once again, Mariner launched towards Skybase, arriving 3 hours later.

After parking Mariner next to Skybase, Janet unlocked the TMV’s propellant tanks, switched on the lights, and separated it, Unity Node, and the Mini Logistics Module from OV-201’s payload bay. As the orbiter’s autopilot handled station keeping, Janet maneuvered the payload over to Skybase. She expertly docked Unity Node to the adapter module, and then moved Mariner in to dock. With practiced skill, she docked the orbiter to the MLM’s aft port.

The two astronauts took their time securing the orbiter before transferring over to Skybase. Over the next five days, Archy and Janet worked hard to replace Skybase’s old equipment with the refit kits that they’d brought to the station. They removed the defunct science modules and replaced them with life support systems like a composter, soil dehydrator, and even a prototype OPAL processor that squeezed water out of rocks. With the internal refits completed, Archimedes stepped outside to attach struts between Skybase and the Docking Adapter Module. Once he completed that work, he moved to the DAM to attach struts between it and the Unity Node. With no more work, he went back inside Skybase.

The next day, Mariner undocked from Skybase and headed back to KSC, landing once again with melted wingtip RCS thrusters. LSS-2 was nearly flawless; everything went to plan except for the heat mitigation efforts for the RCS thrusters. The engineers went back to the drawing board.

Meanwhile, leaving the MLM and TMV behind at Skybase was not an oversight. After Mariner landed, Mission Control remotely undocked the TMV from Unity Node, maneuvered it to the free end of the MLM, and docked again. Next, the TMV undocked from Skybase, taking the MLM with it. After putting some distance between it and the station, the TMV’s four LV-1R Spider motors ignited and lowered its orbit to intersect with the atmosphere. The deorbit test worked perfectly…

LSS-3 launched 95 days after Mariner landed from Pad B, and again had repairs for her damaged RCS thrusters. The engineers assured everyone that this time, they wouldn’t burn away. Mariner also lacked the small landing gear on the underside of her tail, which also burned away during the past two flights. Proper training ensured that pilots wouldn’t strike the tails during landing.

Mariner once again carried a Mini Logistics Module and a new Teleoperated Maneuvering Vehicle to replace the one deliberately deorbited for testing. In place of the Unity node, OV-201 carried a docking tunnel. As with the previous two flights, LSS-3 continued to refurbish Skybase as part of its Service Life Extension Program. By adding new modules, replacing old equipment, and resupplying various consumables, KSP intended to double its original five-year expected lifetime.

For this flight, Roberta Kerman- copilot on LSS-1, and rookie astronaut Sally Kerman (ENG), a new graduate of the Shuttle Class. Mariner’s ascent had some trouble as the orbiter skipped off the upper atmosphere during her launch into orbit, but thankfully Roberta was able to take over from the autopilot and correct their orbit. Nonetheless, Mariner rendezvoused with Skybase an hour after launch.

After putting the orbiter into station-keeping mode, Roberta undocked TMV 2 and the Docking Tunnel, and then translated the craft over to the orbiter’s docking port. After that, she undocked TMV-2 and parked on the MLM. Next, she took control of Mariner from the autopilot and docked the shuttle to Skybase.

Finally, she undocked the MLM/TMV-2 and translated it over to Unity Node’s forward docking port. With her work completed for now, she and Sally secured the orbiter and transferred to Skybase.

Sally’s role in the mission took center stage at this point. She opened the transfer valves to shunt fresh air from the MLM while the two astronauts moved snacks and minerite from the MLM into Skybase. Once they finished with that work, they moved extra EVA gear into storage aboard the space station. On Flight Day 2, Sally stepped outside to remove the covers on Node 2 and attach a pair of Clamp-O-Tron Jr. ports to the exterior. Then she reduced part count cleaned up the launch lugs and other hardware that could potentially tear a spacesuit if it got caught on it. Finally, Sally attached a pair of struts to the new Docking Tunnel to provide additional stability.

Flight Day 3 saw Sally assess what systems needed repairs- and quickly realized that she lacked the skills needed repair them. They’d have to be fixed on another flight. Meanwhile, Roberta undocked the MLM/TMV combo and parked the MLM in Mariner’s cargo bay before returning TMV-2 to Unity Node. With their on-orbit tasks completed, the two astronauts had some free time to enjoy the views.

On Flight Day 4, the crew woke up, returned to Mariner, and prepped the orbiter for landing before departing Skybase. The deorbit went as planned, but a navigation error caused Mariner to overshoot KSC by a wide margin and she had to divert to Welcome Island. CNG really needed to refine their deorbit maneuvers! At least this time, her RCS thrusters survived reentry. At any rate, the orbiter landed safely and ferried itself back to KSC after taking on some extra jet fuel…

Space Shuttle Mariner launched into orbit once more after 73 days of refurbishment and stacking with its Lindor launch vehicle. For this flight, John Kerman (PLT) and Archimedes Kerman (ENG) handled the mission’s tasks. On the fourth and final mission of the Skybase Service Life Extension Program, OV-201 brought the station’s new Power Module into orbit. Consisting of several battery sections, an auxiliary monopropellant power unit, two tank clusters of monopropellant, and a dual-axis solar array, the Power Module would significantly increase Skybase’s power supply once installed.

After arriving at the station, over the course of three days, Archy took a spacewalk to perform repairs on Skybase, add some lights to the Docking Tunnel, and to retract two of the station’s “windmill” solar arrays to make room for the Power Module. With those tasks completed, the engineer retreated to the comfort of the station to prepare for the main event. Given the length of the module and the positioning of its docking ports, KSP needed a new way to deploy Mariner’s payload. For this mission, OV-201 carried a Payload Pivot that was designed to pivot the module out of the cargo bay far enough for the Teleoperated Maneuvering Vehicle to grab it.

Once given the go ahead from Mission Control, Archy disconnected the payload struts and unlocked the Payload Pivot’s servomotor. Then, the Power Module majestically rotated up and away from Mariner’s cargo bay. Once fully extended, Archy locked the servomotor again for the next phase of operation.

John took control over TMV-2, undocked it, and translated it over to the Power Module. After docking with the module, Archy undocked it from the Payload Pivot, and John flew the combo over to Unity Node’s dorsal docking port. As the orbiting complex reached orbital sundown, Archy stepped outside to add some struts to the new module and remove launch lugs. And once the complex emerged into sunlight once more, Archy deployed the station’s new solar arrays. At last, Skybase is able to generate electric charge from solar energy in all orientations.

On the fourth day, John took a spacewalk from Mariner’s payload bay airlock- the first time someone did so. John immediately got to work performing an EVA experiment- spinning a wingnut in space and observing the results. It was quite fun! After making his observations, he boarded the Kerbal Maneuvering Unit- KMU- and powered it up. Carried into orbit during LSS-1, the KMU was like a mini spacecraft capable of transporting a single kerbal around in space. With the right connection, it could also be used for construction purposes. For the test flight, John piloted the KMU over to the KMU docking port on the Docking Adapter Module. Once it successfully docked, John left the seat and used his jetpack to return to Mariner. When Mariner left, the KMU would remain docked to Skybase and be exposed to space to test the long-term exposure effects.

On Flight Day 5, John and Archy boarded Mariner for the trip home. It was the first nighttime landing for a Shuttle. After four development missions, KSP declared the Lindor Shuttle System operational. She was cleared to carry a full crew, freeing the last of K-20 KerbalSoars to retire. Her first “working test flights” not only proved the Shuttle design, but they also extended the life of Skybase by at least another five years. But SLEP wouldn’t be the end of Skybase’s expansion.

..

[Angelo Kerman]

Chapter 4

Pathfinder, also known as OV-301, sat on the runway awaiting clearance to take off, and Drax Aerospace had a lot riding on Pathfinder’s next few test flights. In 64 days, Nautilus, the first Deep Space Exploration Vessel, would return to Kerbin. Drax had that much time to figure out the design issues before the International Space Consortium cancelled their contract to transport the crew of Nautilus back to Kerbin. They had a lot more riding on Pathfinder’s success; without a working orbiter, they’d lose the space tourism market to their competitors.

OV-301 accelerated down the runway and into the air, quickly gaining speed as she climbed. Her twin CR-24 Longbow ThermalJet engines, powered by the LV-N209 Prometheum engine’s nuclear reactor, were the most advanced- the only- nuclear thermal scramjet engines ever created. They were among the most advanced engines around, short of Orbital Dynamics’ gravitic propulsion technology. Both engine designs were the brainchild of Jadzia Drax Kerman, Drax Kerman’s daughter.

Jadzia’s mom wouldn’t let her father name his daughter after himself, so he compromised and provided her middle name. Jadzia grew up in her father’s shadow until she became a brilliant engineer in her own right. Then, while her father continued to take her for granted, her peers began to recognize and admire her skill, putting her on projects like the Sunraker. In fact, she designed Sunraker’s revolutionary J-61 “Starwasher” combined cycle scramjet engines, and they worked perfectly. After completing her work on Sunraker, she quietly began working on Pathfinder, the next-generation shuttle that used nuclear-powered engines. When Sunraker suffered a catastrophic failure, Jadzia’s dad gave her the green light to fully develop the new shuttle. And as his last act before being forced to resign as CEO of the company and being sent to prison, Drax convinced KSP to allow the aerospace company to use operate the nuclear engines.

Pathfinder derived its design from the OV-200-series Drax Space Shuttle instead of the newer Sunraker. But unlike the OV-200-series, Pathfinder needed no solid rocket boosters or external tank to achieve orbit thanks to its atomic rockets. The Longbows used nuclear heat from the Promethium to heat the atmosphere to generate thrust and sipped promethium to provide extra oomph.

At 15,000 meters, Pathfinder cleared Mach 3 and kept going. At 20,000 meters, she soared past mach 4.5 and continued accelerating, trailing fiery plasma behind her. At 30,000 meters, Pathfinder lit her LV-N209 Prometheum atomic rocket to provide the boost in the airless void where the Longbows couldn’t operate. Not long after, OV-301 achieved a 155km parking orbit.

The engines weren’t the source of Pathfinder’s troubles, the wings were. To achieve SSTO, Drax’s engineers ballooned out the orbiter’s wings to hold propellium. That created a more rounded shape on the underside of the orbiter. Between that and the canted stabilizers on the wingtips, the orbiter tended to roll during ascent. It took a lot of config file editing redesign of the actuators and flight control software updates to stop the rolling. It still had pitch issues that would require more config file editing software redesign as well. Unfortunately, it took real flight experience to figure that out, and the test pilots had a rough ride home.

Unlike Sunraker though, Pathfinder had a proven heat shield that was a step beyond the OV-200 series. She’d have no trouble handling the heat. So, after three orbits, OV-301 performed a deorbit maneuver and caressed the upper atmosphere seven minutes later. On the way down, Pathfinder bucked in the airstream and the test pilots complained about it loudly. Secretly, though, they loved every minute of it. Despite the difficulties, Pathfinder landed safely back at KSC…

*

Watching Pathfinder’s flight on the news gave Karbal an idea. In his alternate history, the Kerman States centered their activities on the Lindor rocket and Lindor Shuttle while rejecting the Drax shuttle orbiter. But what if somebody else adopted the design? Karbal sipped his Starfunds koffee once again began to write…

(ALT) Keep Looking Up Part 3: Skybase International

During the development flights, a K-20 remained on standby to rescue the Mariner’s crew and bring them home safely. With the Shuttle declared operational, the K-20s were freed up from that task. But rather than retire the last two civilian K-20s, KSP repurposed the KerbalSoars for a new role: interim lifeboat. The space agency wanted to move to a permanent presence in orbit but didn’t want to keep a Shuttle at the complex, so that required an alternate means to get home.

KSP decided that the K-20 technology was too old to handle long-term exposure to space so they needed a new design to serve as a lifeboat. That would take time to develop, however. In the meantime, the space agency modified Sojourner and Viking, the two most recent K-20s, to serve as interim lifeboats. One K-20 would stay at Skybase while the other underwent refurbishment for its next stay at the station. KSP had to rotate the lifeboat every 120 days, but it enabled the space agency to keep a crew at Skybase without a Shuttle.

So, once again Sojourner rocketed into orbit - though for the first time, without a crew aboard. For their role as interim lifeboats, KSP added automated autopilot systems that could handle the K-20 without a pilot. An earlier version of the autopilot operated the prototype K-20, Pathfinder, out to münar orbit and back, so the updated version only needed additional functions to dock with Skybase. A day after launch, Sojourner arrived at Skybase and docked with Unity node. After docking, Mission Control commanded Sojourner’s propellant and resource tanks to lock their transfer valves and directed its systems to hibernate until it was time to depart the station- ideally only when it was time to rotate back home…

LSS-5 launched soon after, carrying Skybase’s new Lab Module, a Payload Pivot, and a Pressurized Mating Adapter. The PMA enabled the Lab Module to reside at its temporary location on Unity Node’s starboard docking port. Mariner also carried a crew of four; Roberta Kerman (PLT), Gertrude Kerman (ENG), Samantha Kerman (SCI), and Leon vonKerman (SCI). Leon was the first vonKerman astronaut to fly on a Kerman States’ spacecraft and represented the next phase of cooperation between the Kerman States and the vonKerman Republic that started with the joint Kerman States/vonKerman Republic Münflight 6 mission.

Mariner lifted off thanks to the new Lindor first stage, L-9R-2, the second reusable Lindor first stage, while L-9R-1 enjoyed additional downtime for maintenance. The new reusable first stage performed flawlessly and landed at Welcome Island without incident. Meanwhile, Mariner arrived at Skybase half a day later. After she docked, Gertrude, Samantha, and Leon boarded the station while Roberta unlatched the Lab Module from its tiedown struts and pivoted it in the payload bay. Then she undocked the TMV, maneuvered it into place, and released the Lab Module from the Payload Pivot. Finally, she used the TMV to dock the lab to Unity Node’s starboard docking port. Gertrude then stepped outside to attach some struts to the new module.

Once they finished their tasks, Roberta said goodbye to the new station crew and departed Skybase in Mariner. Once again, the orbiter landed at night…

As OV-201 underwent refurbishment for her next flight, KSC rolled out a new prototype: The L-2R reusable second stage. Based on the venerable L-2, the L-2R sported a new set of landing legs, parachutes, grid fins and RCS thrusters for steering, and most importantly, a prototype KR-2200C Tyrannosaurus aerospike engine. Unlike traditional bell nozzle rocket motors, the KR-2200C used a conic shape that was ringed by four dozen thruster nozzles. The atmosphere itself held the rocket exhaust to the conic walls of the engine, and it significantly improved fuel consumption. But more importantly, the conic design doubled as a heat shield.

KSP hoped to recover the second stage after a single orbit, but for this test, they simply wanted to test its maneuvering and navigation. The L-2R “Hopper” prototype had a simple mission: launch, reach a height of 2,000 meters, translate over to the landing pad, and then land safely. KSP would then analyze the flight results and apply lessons learned for the next Lindor Shuttle flight. Everything went as planned until the unexpected- Hopper ran out of electricity! With the throttle stuck, the engine continued to burn as the stage flew out of control. It easily missed the designated landing area, bounced on its landing gear a couple of times, and finally smashed into the ground and destroyed itself. KSC engineers quickly realized that the L-2R needed more batteries and electrical generators, so they added batteries, small solar panels, and some fuel cells to the next prototype- and the L-2R stacked atop L-9R-1 that awaited flight.

Thirty-five days later, KSC tried again. This time, L-2R-2 worked perfectly. That success paved the way for LSS-6 to proceed with its mission…

For this flight, Curiosity (OV-202) stood atop the L-2R-3 second stage along with the L-9R-1 reusable first stage. Both Curiosity and L-2R-3 were ready to make their maiden flights. The Lindor Shuttle launched without issues; the first stage dropped off on time and landed at Welcome Island, while the new L-2R continued to boost Curiosity into orbit. But unlike previous flights, where the second stage stopped just short of interesting with Kerbin, OV-202 separated from L-2R when the second stage would just barely skim the upper atmosphere. Just in case things went wrong, L-2R-3 would still eventually deorbit.

As on-orbit tests of the second stage commenced, Curiosity made her way to Skybase while carrying the station’s new airlock module in her cargo bay. It didn’t take long for the crew to pivot the airlock module out of the bay, attach the TMV, and pilot it over to the end of the Lab Module for temporary storage. Curiosity returned home the next day…

Then, after a day of testing in space, it was time to bring L-2R-3 home. KSC wasn’t sure if it would work or not, but that’s the point of flight testing. Right on time, the reusable second stage of Lindor unlocked its reserve propellant tanks and performed its deorbit burn. 13 minutes later, it entered Kerbin’s upper atmosphere. For this test, KSP decided to land the prototype at Welcome Island- just in case something went wrong. Thankfully, things went right.

The engine withstood reentry despite some overheating warnings, and the stage was on course for landing. The only problem was that it descended too fast for the chutes to deploy, and the engine failed to ignite to slow it down. L-2R-3 slammed into the ground with no hope of recovery. But engineers gained a lot from the attempt, and next time they’d stick the landing for sure…

The Kerman States were well on their way to achieving a fully reusable shuttle launch system, but they weren’t the only ones with such a lofty dream. A continent away, the vonKerman Republic had their own ambitions. While most wanted to cooperate with the Kerman States to explore space, some weren’t as trusting. They saw the Lindor Shuttle as a military craft capable of stealing satellites or dropping munitions from orbit, and they needed to achieve parity. Fortunately, Drax Aerospace provided the answer.

When they lost the Shuttle Launch System contract, Drax Aerospace published the plans for their shuttle orbiter out of spite. vonKerman engineers knew a good opportunity when they saw one, so they quickly copied the plans. After analyzing the schematics, they realized that they could improve upon the design by moving the main engines to the external tank. That required a redesign of the orbiter, but it also meant that the vonKermans could build a super-heavy lift rocket of their own. The resulting Koloss (“Colossus” in Kerman) booster core was powered by four Vektor engines- vonKerman copies of the KS-25 Rainbird engines proposed for SLS- while the twin side boosters each had a pair of KS-160 Orca motors. By moving the engines to the core, Koloss could lift heavy payloads other than the orbiter. Better yet, even with the orbiter, Koloss could lift payloads too wide to fit the orbiter’s cargo bay thanks to its hollow nosecone.

Today though, Koloss carried Schneestrum (“Blizzard”) on its back. Though very similar to the Drax orbiter, the vonKerman orbiter had significant differences. Schneestrum moved its orbital maneuvering system engines and a single jet engine into the space that the main engines were on the Drax design. Additionally, they added air intakes where the jet engines were, and they added additional propellants in the orbiter’s wings. Plus, they shifted the nose gear further back. Finally, due to a lack of thermal blanket technology, the vonKerman engineers covered the entire orbiter in heat resistant tiles.

Two astronauts, Hanse vonKerman and Sofia vonKerman, sat in Schneestrum’s cockpit, leaving eight other seats unoccupied. When the countdown reached zero, the engines on Koloss ignited and the launch vehicle leaped into the sky. Two minutes later, the side boosters dropped away and prepared for landing while the booster core and orbiter continued their climb into orbit.

Once above the atmosphere, Koloss jettisoned its fairing to reduce mass. Six and a half minutes after liftoff, Schneestrum attained a 143km by 150km orbit.

The crew pointed retrograde and discarded the core booster before pointing prograde and opening their payload doors. The two pilots extended the orbiter’s test instruments in the back of the payload bay, and then put some distance between themselves and the core booster.

Next, the booster performed a deorbit burn, and then the propulsion module separated from the core tank. As the propulsion module deorbited safely, the core tank burned up upon reentry.

Meanwhile, Schneestrum conducted several on-orbit tests including checking the maneuvering system, testing flight controls, and the like, before performing a plane-change maneuver. Next, the pilots steadied the orbiter before releasing their payload: Drakken Palast. Flying free of the orbiter’s payload bay, Drakken Palast deployed its antennae and began its automated systems checks.

Once it delivered its payload, Schneestrum immediately began preparing to land by closing its payload bay doors and plotting its maneuvering burn. Half an hour later, the vonKerman orbiter landed safely back at Darude...

Finally, after Schnesstrum landed, the vonKermans once again focused their efforts on Drakken Palast. A series of engine burns placed it on course with its desired destination: Skybase! Originally intended as the core of a new vonKerman space station, the goodwill created with Münflight 6 convinced the upper management of the vonKerman Space Agency to instead bring Drakken Palast to Skybase to form an international space station. Thus, on Montezu 31, 1992, Skybase International was born when Drakken Palast docked with Skybase.

The station crew immediately got to work. Gertrude used the TMV to reposition the Docking Tunnel brought up on LSS-3 onto Drakken Palast’s forward docking port, and then repositioned the Airlock Module on Unity Node’s ventral docking port. Finally, she added some support struts to the airlock and Drakken Palast. The rest would have to wait a bit longer…

The next day, Sofia vonKerman (PLT), Karl vonKerman (ENG), and Sara vonKerman (SCI) boarded an upgraded Drakken rocket for their trip to Skybase International. The vonKermans hedged their bets against their shuttle failing and made sure that they had an alternative access to space. By upgrading the venerable Drakken, they improved its performance while keeping its basic design. Instead of the older RK-7 Kodiak and RV-1 Cub motors used in the boosters as well as the first and second stages, the vonKermans upgraded the booster and first stage engines with more advanced KS-10J Walrus motors. For the second stage, they used a RE-L10 Poodle engine, and the Drakken service module replaced its four 48-8s Spark engines with a single LV-909 Terrier that the Kermans provided as part of the technology exchange. And though Drakken was still an expendable launch vehicle, the cost was less than recovery would be- and far less than a shuttle launch!

The Drakken lifted off in pre-dawn hours, and everything went as planned. The boosters dropped away, followed by the first stage, and the second stage had plenty of delta-v to finish orbital insertion, match planes with Skybase, and even increase Drakken’s altitude for a more favorable phasing orbit before deorbiting- or it would have, had the second stage added a probe core! The vonKermans took note of the new space trash, and continued with their adventures…

A few hours later, the Drakken spacecraft arrived at Skybase International, where Sofia, Karl, and Sara disembarked their capsule and entered Drakken Palast. As Karl and Sara began turning on the lights, Sofia met with Gertrude in the Docking Adapter Module. The kerbals celebrated the momentous occasion by sharing a salad made from vegetables grown in the DAM greenhouse.

After sharing a meal, the astronauts got to work. After turning on Drakken Palast’s interior and exterior lights and deploying the solar arrays, Karl stepped outside to attach struts between the vonKerman station module and the Docking Tunnel. Next, Gertrude stepped out to attach struts to the solar observatory to stabilize it. Next, Sofia took remote control over the TMV, piloted it over to the Lab Module, and moved the Lab Module to its permanent location atop Drakken Palast’s dorsal docking port. Finally, she moved the Pressurized Mating Adapter to the Lab Module’s storage port, and Karl attached struts to the Lab. At last, Drakken International was open for business.