Naming your craft

[Agricola]

I think we all know about how existing spacecraft and rockets are named in real life, so i was thinking about right from the start of having a theme for naming everything I build and get away from the generic established names, after all these are Kerbals we are building for, not humans! I hate to think how many craft called "Orbiter" there are and thats kind of boring in a way. Mythology is too obvious and already done.

So I thought, why not pick names from everyone who has played for or managed Portsmouth "Pompey" Football club, starting with Micky Quinn, who also played for Newcastle, use his name for satallites, as he was a little bit short and round himslef, so therefore all my satalites will hence be known as Quinn1 Quinn2 etc.

How do you name yours?

[Tauge]

As I'm lazy and distinctly uncreative, I typically just name based on the mission and the iteration of the design. I used to used godchecker.com (I believe that was the site) to select deities, but...like I said I'm lazy...

[Custard Donut (In Space)]

I call my creations after characters from books i've read, i have a Quijote rover searching for windmills on the Mun and a Sancho satellite sending wise (and not so wise) sayings into deep space every few seconds, my Gimli rocket went to the Mun first and Ishmael took me to Duna, where i began exploring with my Queequeg rover.

It's easy that way, just remember books or films and you'l get plenty of ideas.

[Guest]

How do I name my spacecraft? Inconsistently.

[Warscribe]

Greek Deities for Probe missions (Hermes now orbits the sun, Dyonisos is made for delivering solarpanels to stations), Celtic deities for manned missions(Thor is currently tested for landing on the Mun), Anatomy for undesignated explorer missions(Visceral, my trusty Rover probe, Epiderm, high kerbin orbit probe), Hierachy forms for Space stations (Monarch still explodes on the launchpad.), Insects for remotetech probes (3 WASP's orbit kelvin, but still cant get signal :/), once there is a stock-reason for settlement, the colonies will be named after Stephen King Novels.

maybe they're cliche, but i don't think they're that lazy

[Sol_Rokks_Teddy]

I name my crafts after characters from my favourite movies and tv shows, and the people who make them. Right now the Doc Hammer is stranded in orbit around tylo awaiting rescue from the Jackson Publick.

[TMS]

Mine are all a short combination of initials and numbers... purely so they fit on the tracking station.

[cesarcurado]

I just use acronyms and random numbers.

Like ABC-12

Of course, the letters have a meaning.

[Nobody_1707]

How do I name my spacecraft? Inconsistently.

^ This. Sometimes I use theme names, sometimes I name based on stages and number of engines, and sometimes I just name them based on their operational use and which iteration they are. For example: Kronos, HLV-113, and Lander-1. Kronos is a Titan like rocket*, but with a pair of asparagus staged boosters instead of SRBs, HLV stands for Heavy Lift Vehicle and the numbers mean that it has three stages with one engine on the upper stage, one engine on the second stage, and three engines on the first stage, and Lander-1 is my first iteration lander.

*I thought it was appropriate because Kronos was the leader of the Titans.

[stibbons]

I have model names with numbers indicating sizes. My remote tech relay satellites all have names like RelayBoy 500 for the tiny Mun relays, up to RelayBoy 6000 for the huge satellites in Kerbal orbit. Then there's the MapBoy 1000 mapping satellites, and the rover I'm about to land on Minmus, RoveBoy 750.

[Noticeably FAT]

I start with an interesting (to me) name.

Beagle (Duna system mission)

Draco (Apollo analogue)

Topaz (first crack at an Apollo mission)

Infinity (Kerbal station)

Xerxes (current big-ass mission to the Jool system)

Add Mk. numbers if it's a design I'm testing and want to keep backups.

Olympus Mk. 1.2 (SSTO spaceplane I'm futzing with, first design, second minor redesign)

Add descriptive module names for multi-part ships

Beagle Lander

Draco CM

Topaz Lifter

Infinity Electric

Xerxes MapSat

The name that stays consistent is my Endurance series of long range probes. They all look different and perform somewhat different roles (anything from just sending a probe to a planet to mapping), but they all get called Endurance Mk. X.

[ComradeGoat]

My main workhorse interplanetary rocket platform is called VIPR, for Versatile InterPlanetary Roccket. Spaceplane system I'm working on is called Minerva, because it has minimal fuel use as a goal (SSTO) and uses NERVAs.

Called a very early generation of rockets Chronos, which is the Greek equivalent of Saturn, but they were rubbishy.

I have a few other series of rockets which I petty much don't use any more. Mostly they were named after birds. Stuff that's purely functional gets named after its function, such as "Fueller 128" (a fuel rocket that takes 2 full orange tanks to orbit), "Orbital Depot" which is a fuel depot/space station that I can launch on a single heavy lifter, "Air Breathing Lander" which is an SSTO VTOL lander for Kerbin and Laythe and "Taxi", which launches empty and can return 3 Kerbals to the surface.

[Spartwo]

greek mytology for permanent stations,the planet their orbiting for satellites,mechanical words for probes and animals for landers and manned rovers (it always leaves space to avoid repetition).eg:medusa station,kerbsat 1,tangent and pendulum rovers,shrew lander.

Edited April 27, 2013 by Spartwo

[Antaxus]

I generally use greek and roman gods names.

Examples: Atlas MK4 (the first probe that orbited kerbin)

Artemis MK2 (first mun base that landed on the mun without failing horribly)

Fates MK6 (first lander)

and Eros MK2 (First rover)

I'm building a base around kerbin orbit, it's going to be called Gaia Kerb1 (Kerb = Kerbin) i'm going to name my ships with a greek or roman god name and with the place where it's going to land or orbit. Kerb = Kerbin, Ker = Kerbol,Mun = Mun (lol), etc, etc

[CalculusWarrior]

I generally give all my first generation rockets very bland titles, like "Interplanetary Transfer Vehicle". Its only after they're on their intended mission do I give them proper names, usually after Greek gods, or virtues.

[SGT_RIZZO300]

I do things with a standard number/letter system. for example something named KS-10 would tell me that it was orbiting kerbin (K), is a sattalite (S), and stays at 10KM (10). I dont do this for specific ships. ie I made a large ship that brings rovers to Duna and I named it the Olympus Class Carrier. Usualy I wait to see if something actualy works BEFORE naming it. If it doesnt work I simply name it Fail-(number of failed ship) so I know it still doesnt work. Other than that I just name things after what they do, such as transport ship or refuelling ship.

[MorphiusFaydal]

I just name them whatever sounds good to me at the time. No real naming schemes...

[LongbowEOD]

I named my original series of manned rockets (back in .13) after my fiancee's (then girlfriend's) pet name: Ladybug. So the Ladybug I was my first manned rocket, Ladybug II was a refinement that made it to orbit, yada yada yada, I think Ladybug VII was my first successful Mun landing.

Then whatever version came out with the 2m parts, and I made the 2m series my "Longbow" (my longtime gamer tag) rockets. Longbow I took 3 kerbals to LKO, Longbow II made it to the Mun and back (yay learning from your mistakes!), Longbow III is currently slated for a Duna trip here just as soon as I get it checked out.

I named my expendable launch vehicles after one of my buddies (his gamer tag, anyway). We played a lot of KSP together (same room, shouting achievements and disasters back and forth), but then he had to go away (don't worry, he's not dead, he just moved), so I dedicated my ELVs to his memory. The Bulldog III is the (mostly reusable!) workhorse of my space program.

Individual manned missions, however, generally just get a serial number (Longbow II-1, II-2, II-3, etc.). I did start giving landers unique names. Longbow II-8's lander was named Pioneer, and it oversaw construction of my first munbase. Most of my unmanned satellites just have mission descriptive names: Kerbin/Mun/Duna Omni Surveyor for my ISA/Kethane mapping satellites, for example. Landers get slightly more creative names: Ice Skater for my Minmus rover, Kuriosity for my Duna rover. I can't even say I made a real effort for my bases: Pioneer Base on the Mun, and Icecube base on Minmus.

[Tw1]

My names are not that imaginative mostly, but are intended to sound cool, and descriptive, Like "Distant planets, Jool Mission."

Otherwise, I just do whatever comes to mind. My big rescue rocket was the Z4, so when I made a one man rescuer, I called it "Little Zed"

If it's a vessel I'm using repeatedly, I give each one a nickname.

Like 'Little Zed "Fred collector"'

They only earn the name when they achieve orbit.

Oh, and if it's similar to another vessel, (in appearance or concept) it may get a similar name.

I have a Duna Explore-o-pod, a Kerbin Explore-o-pod, Aeropod, Single-o-pod..

Edited April 27, 2013 by Tw1

[Peenvogel]

I create mission clusters and give every vehicle tied to the missions it's own ID.

The station I'm currently building:

KSA Skylab Core

KSA Skylab Habitat

KSA Skylab Solar array

KSA Skylab Excape pod

KSA Skylab Laser

KSA Skylab Fuel dock

KSA Skylab Transport pod

KSA Skylab Science lab

[OdinYggd]

Depends on the type of vessel.

Stuff like remotetech satellites I usually name with a shorthand for their location and capabilities- such as GEO-MR1 for a midrange satellite in geosync orbit, unit 1 in that orbit area. Kethane as well, the landers and scanners are usually designated by design iteration and intended destination.

My only rovers to have actually landed are all numbered members of the Leafa family- Lander Expedition Artifact Finding Attempt.

Most of my 'durable' vessels like stations and exploration missions are given real names. Most of them are just mythical forms that I am familiar with or significant historic figures (such as the Gallileo mapsat around the mun). I also sometimes use Anime names when one would fit.

[Hovis]

Whatever my first successful orbiter is called, the follow-ups are usually called 'Rescue'. I am not good at this game (yet).

[M5000]

I don't know.. Here's some stuff I made, you tell me what you think I do... Actually, here, let's play a game. I'll list a bunch of craft I have, as they are/were named, and you try to identify what a few of them are, are they rovers? Satellites? Launch vehicles? Stations? Planes? AIRSHIPS? You try to figure it out:

Embarker I

Embarker II

Embarker III

Calla I

Scius Mapping Probe

Denebola-1 Medium

Denebola-2 HeavyMed

Betelgeuse-1 Heavy

Alphard-1 UltraLight

Canopus-X UltraHeavy

Pollux-5 Special

Stability-9 Hab Station

KerbLab One

KerbLab Two

Budget Systems General Purpose Lifter

Usable Launch Vehicle 1

X-10 Jolly Rancher

ADFX Damselfly Mk I

Brightstar-1

Knievel-1 ULOP

Mun Base Prodigy-II Core

Archernar-II

Pegasus-15 Shuttle

Alphard-1

Alphard-2

Alphard-3

Alphard-4

Tortuga-II/R

Arcturus-I

Burnstar-I

Setter-I

HEV-HAB

MEG-HAB

BAR-MEGHAB Mk III

HEV-STRUCT

Kitten Mk I

Kitten Mk II

Pioneer-1/M

Pioneer-1

Pioneer-2

Pioneer-3

Pioneer-4

Polark/A

NVMSS Tuxaedo

IVA_Landertest

Kerbuz-1 RRV

Kerbuz-1 SRV

Munox-II Spacebus

Fetcher Unmanned Tug

Drifter A-Type Rigid Zeppelin

DX4 Casper

MunR Construction Rover

MunR Light All Purpose Rover

Don't feel bad if that looks like a lot of really cool craft. About 70% of those never left the surface of Kerbin.

[llamatoes]

I name the ships in the VAB after what they do and rename those particular ships on the launchpad.

[Frankiebolo]

I usually deal with mithology themed names, as in RL, using names such Argo, Zephyr, Zeus, Seraph, Perseus. During engineer phase I come out with some of those names, but I always add a general description in brackets on the side. Something like (interplanetary Explorer) or (munar Lander) fit perfectly to me to catch the utility of some old and forgot design. Also my habit is to rename the vehicles on the pad, maybe giving a name like "Juno X-1" to the first test flight, and adding a mere numerical in progressive order, apart from flyby missions that are named like "argo Eve 1".