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What did you do in KSP1 today?

Xeldrak

By Xeldrak
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kotomikun

kotomikun

Posted
Posted
My gigantic argon-powered ship got back from Moho with a load of science, but it lacks a means of atmospheric landing (or any other kind of landing, because I left the lander/rover on Moho to do a bit more exploring) so I decided to finally try making an SSTO to retrieve the crew. After many uninteresting failures (not even any explosions, just boring suborbital flights and landings), the "SSTNO" finally succeeded. All stock except for the adjustable landing gear, I think. The name wasn't intended to mean anything, though its... reentry-esque launch profile may provoke some "NOOOOOO"s from its passengers.


[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/mO86yu3.png[/IMG]


4 RAPIERs and 2 Whiplashes will do that, apparently. This thing gets to orbit faster than any of my rockets...


[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/bSIGA7w.png[/IMG]


Had to maneuver carefully, since I didn't have much fuel and Kerbal Engineer gave nonsensical values, but made it to "El Inductor" pretty easily. EVA'd the two Kerbals and science over (think I forgot one piece of data, actually), and de-orbited.


[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/QUusSSo.png[/IMG]


Made it down mostly intact. The solar panels and RCS blocks exploded, but then, it's "single stage TO orbit," not FROM orbit.


[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/4XjpbZl.jpg[/IMG]


5522 science gained! That should last me a while. And when that runs out, my other interplanetary ship's sitting in Kerbin orbit, slowly processing over 200 experiments... this new 5x science lab mechanic is sort of excessive.
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qromodynmc

qromodynmc

Posted
Posted (edited)

After 1.0.5 patch, I was wondering if I could make an ssto with new vector engine, because it looks pretty impressive, So here is the result;
Im not sure if kerbal engineer redux is giving me wrong stats but this had 4000+ dv in SPH, it went to orbit and left 500ms dv to me. Even though my piloting was reckless, everything went pretty easy.

%7Boption%7Dv8QWZD.jpg

Edited by qromodynmc
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Vermil

Vermil

Posted
Posted (edited)

During all the fuzz with the second Laythe expedition and the Lensman docking research, Jebediah silently took upon himself to help develop a basic Rover, something we haven't had before. The main principles got ironed out and he drove it around recklessly in the hills, to establish the limits of its capabilities.
screenshot2831j.jpg

Mission Control was somewhat uncertain about how a Rover could be transported and deployed. But you gotta start somewhere and honoring the old KISS principle, it was found that a Rover could be attached and released by the means of a common small docking port. While experiments in the VAB started with the trusty old Firebrand, it was soon decided to utilize the Lensman instead, as this has substantially more 'horsepower' and payload capabilities. The question if the Rover will survive a launch in the open, just slung low, under a beam, was asked and answered positively.

Plans for a Mun mission were quickly put together. There is really no need for symmetry, the Lensman_G handles it anyway, but the more the merrier, so it was decided to take two Rovers. This would also provide means to transport Kerbals back to the rocket, if one of the Rovers should break down. It would also provide Rover adventures for everyone, in the six-strong crew (Lensman_F and Lensman_G can take a crew of eight).
screenshot2842j.jpg


The Rover is just dropped down onto the Mun surface, from low height. Here we see the first team enthusiastically board their vehicle for some quality Mun exploration, the kind of we've never been able to before. The Rovers are four seat, but it has been decided to crew them by three and three. This means that a stranded crew can be picked up by a solitary driver and carried back to the rocket in one single trip, if the need arises.
screenshot2851j.jpg


The Rover clearly changes the experience of the Mun, as it's now possible to move around over wide areas and take in the dramatic landscape in a way that was not possible before.
screenshot2882j.jpg


As long as the sun is above the horizon, the primitive Rover has potentially limitless range. It does need to stop to deploy its solar panels though, to reload the battery. The panels will break if deployed while the Rover is moving. "Refueling" is a rather quick event though, on the Mun.
screenshot2869j.jpg


The test experience of the RoverX1 was overwhelmingly positive. The one single disappointment was that it didn't climb mountains. Possibly, this detail will be looked into in the future, but right now the mystery is otherwise what to modify on the Rover? Nothing it seems. It totally works.
screenshot2862j.jpg


A spectacularly joyous and momentous Mun expedition. Everybody is happy. Here the entire gang, Cerly, Eilla, Asdra, Danvey, Lindra and Sigrid (at this time, Lealian had not yet been found and recruited, so the junior team was one short. Sigrid stepped in to fill the void and also provide this expedition with some experience) , with their two Rovers, at the obligatory flag planting ceremony.
screenshot2899j.jpg


The trip home was uneventful and safe. The Rovers were left on Mun. Maybe they'll be used again some day.

Edited by Vermil
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Alchemist

Alchemist

Posted
Posted
[quote name='eddiew']what is it [I]for[/I]​?[/QUOTE]
To show time?
I don't know, place the clock at a base on another planet so that the crew knows what time it is back home. Or place it near the launch pad so that nobody misses the launch window. (can easily be turned into launch timer, not that anybody really uses it.)
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Norpo

Norpo

Posted
Posted
[quote name='Alchemist']To show time?
I don't know, place the clock at a base on another planet so that the crew knows what time it is back home. Or place it near the launch pad so that nobody misses the launch window. (can easily be turned into launch timer, not that anybody really uses it.)[/QUOTE]

Here's a question; how does it work? Are you manually turning on/off the lights in the video, or does it use some other time keeping mechanism?

I have no idea how the clock works, I'm thinking action groups, or mods, but I could be wrong. :)
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Fearless Son

Fearless Son

Posted
Posted
Excellent rovers! Though one thing my rover experience has taught me is that while deployable solar panels are great for recharging the batteries quickly, the limitations on movement mean they are only useful when you have reason to bring the rover to a complete stop. Might I recommend fixed solar panels? While they do take longer to fully charge, they are constantly active, even while the rover is in motion. The wheels might drain charge faster than those fixed panels can replace them, but the wheels need not be continuously accelerating either: rovers can coast a long way on their momentum, especially when going downhill, and the rover can charge itself up in motion by letting gravity and inertia do most of the work of keeping it going along.
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DunaticFringe

DunaticFringe

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Posted
I had a contract to plant flag on the Mun. Already did it before, but contract came afterwards. No problem with the mission. It was the first time using a two-seat lander on the Mun. Nice compact design with at least 350dV after landing and returning to orbit. Was able to get around 550 science so I was able to unlock more parts.

[img]http://i.imgur.com/vUob2Zb.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/rXrT312.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/fAuGxcO.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/qUOICod.png[/img]
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DunaticFringe

DunaticFringe

Posted
Posted
I had a contract to plant flags on Minmus and the Mun, so I decided to send missions to both places. Did a lot of "science hopping" around a lot of the biomes on Minmus to get a lot of the GravMax science. After that I sent Valentina to land on the Mun. It was her first time so she got extra experience points. Got a lot of science from both missions and was able to unlock more parts.

[img]http://i.imgur.com/LaaVAy0.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/S5yGSDF.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/GaLLGxX.png[/img]
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DunaticFringe

DunaticFringe

Posted
Posted
I had contract to further expand and build-up KSS station around Kerbin. Added another research lab and hitchhiker storage container. Now station has ability to house up to 16 Kerbals. It is starting to look like Mir.

[img]http://i.imgur.com/COxBpV9.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/a16yTel.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/XjPjzKq.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/Yi9Eb1u.png[/img]
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1101

1101

Posted
Posted
"Fly a Vessel Anywhere Near the Sun"

Sounds a bit vague.... and easy, probably doable with a single stage. But that just wouldn't be kerbal enough!

I Hope this has enough Delta-V
[img]http://i.imgur.com/SOsxUya.png[/img]

Yep!
[img]http://i.imgur.com/1z2JPiy.png[/img]

Contact lost with the probe, I hope it got close enough:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/KkzId7F.png[/img]
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Concentric

Concentric

Posted
Posted
JunoBug flights, surveys, and something solidly silly.

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/a1hH7c.png[/img]

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/lwvZw5.png[/img]

I fit a thermometer to the JunoBug, and had Valentina taxi it around to complete a thermal survey contract that was pretty much right at KSC. Then, she took off, to get three survey reports in flight over the mountains. You can see her flying back, here. On the launchpad is the silly thing... but that aside, I also performed a couple of simple parts tests and haul contracts. One was actually a Juno haul contract, which was really simple. Some were taken care of by the other mission, and a couple were just one-off little things that I didn't take any pictures of.

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/WaLzM6.png[/img]

Here it is taking off. This actually happened before the JunoBug mission, but I launched another one after. I had a few tourist contracts for suborbital hops, a haul contract to take a Hammer to 60km with a reasonably low speed, and two landed parts tests - specifically the small heatshield and the Thumper. This rocket has empty tanks, apart from the solid rockets, and can fit all six tourists and a pilot.

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/PnW41Z.png[/img]

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/Dx9NXi.png[/img]

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/5TO4ui.png[/img]

As it approaches Kerbin at high speed, due to its sharp descent, it needed a little something to slow it down - another Hammer. At about 12km, I fire the retrorocket and descend on a pillar of flame, then the four radial parachutes take over the landing.

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/5nUKmv.png[/img]

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/hnHdgY.png[/img]

And here's the end of the second flight, with another six tourists and one pilot, and another heart-stopping braking procedure. Works though. Under 15k funds for a six-tourist suborbital is pretty profitable, really. And it's got no expensive LFO engines. All solids.

Anyway, using the money earned from this and other contracts, I've now upgraded my astronaut complex, runway, and tracking station for the first time this career. Of course, in order to launch this and to have all those contracts at once, I had to upgrade my launchpad and mission control once each, too.
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