Biggest Orbit with Return?

[Wait- Was That Important?]

Hey everyone.

Using a Munar slingshot the other day made me think about this. Some shenanigans happened with the orbits and despite getting a good slingshot, I had a tenuous Kerbin orbit... with a period of 1.02 years. I didn't even think this was possible. I didn't screenshot it, but I swear my word is true. Is this an error or is this really possible?

For that matter, I'd love to see what your largest orbits are of any kind, with the highest apoapsis value that aren't escaping Kerbol. I'll post screenies of mine:

This is the ship that did it. You can see the four Joolian probes that never were deployed: this was back with the rotating reference frame PE bug in 0.18.4, so I gave up and let the slingshot do what it would. Three years in and we still had a long way to go:

We're a VERY long way out. Poor little guys lost all power a few years back- I'm sure the cold will preserve them though.

So can you beat 288.5 billion meters?

[Spartwo]

20 trillion meters

don't worry its a probe

1/3 xenon left

Edited May 7, 2013 by Spartwo

[Dr. Muttonstache]

20 trillion meters

I hope that thing isn't manned...

Oh jeez, 7088 days later.....Or is that years? 68 years till AP, glhf. Maybe when you reach that, HL3 will be released! We're waiting on you, buddy!

[TooManyErrors]

Great, you hit the maximum time that KSP can display.

[deadshot462]

Can only imagine the reentry effects from a Kerbin return from this orbit

[leopardenthusiast]

Can only imagine the reentry effects from a Kerbin return from this orbit

It'd be a single frame of all red, and then the camera hovering above a patch of ocean or land that your craft just hit. Not all that interesting to be honest.

[Specialist290]

Or he could end up going so quickly that he flies straight through the planet with no ill effects, if he times it just right.

Not speaking from personal experience, so I very well might be wrong.

[LawsOfFire]

it is possible to escape kerbol orbit. i have done it with a Nuclear/Ion hybrid

[skykooler]

it is possible to escape kerbol orbit. i have done it with a Nuclear/Ion hybrid

You can in fact do so without either, as long as you have enough fuel; you only need around 6000 m/s delta-v to do so. I think the challenge is to have the largest orbit that still returns.

Haven't tried it, but if you are willing to warp all the way to apoapsis of one of these orbits, and circularize, you should be able to get an orbit with periods in the millenia easily.

[Deadpangod3]

*tells the engineers to put the Death Star with launcher on the launchpad*

*and to remember to turn on the artificial gravity*

Fun times ahead XD