What did you do in KSP1 today?

[septemberWaves]

Medusa 2 has been completed (Medusa 1 was not recorded, and was mainly a test of the Stheno 2 prototype).

Stheno 2 is launched on a Jool 1A with Quartz upper stage. The Jool 1A actually takes it all the way to orbit, and the Quartz upper stage serves as a transfer stage.

Stheno 2 is left in a 20^o 25km Munar orbit. This orbit is chosen because it allows access to many biomes, and a 20^o orbit is approximately the limit of Stheno 1.

With Stheno 2 in Mun orbit, the first of many Stheno 1 launches takes place. Stheno 1 is an Orion-inspired 6-kerbal crew transport. There is also a variant with less delta-v designed for trips to low Kerbin orbit.

Unfortunately the transfer burn took place in the dark, but I did manage to capture the circularization burn.

Once in Munar orbit, Stheno 1 docks with Stheno 2.

Stheno 2 then prepares to land with 2 crew members.

After the successful landing, Stheno 2 returned to orbit and docked with Stheno 1. The landing crew then moved back to Stheno 1, which left Stheno 2 in orbit and returned to Kerbin with a very low delta-v margin (as I said previously, the 20^o orbit is its limit).

Re-entry successful, the Stheno 1 capsule is recovered for refurbishment and reuse, whilst the crew prepare to launch to the IPT Eclipse in 180 days to transfer to Mios.

The next stage of the MEDUSA program, Medusa 2, 3, and 4, will send most of the modules of the Euryale Space Station to Munar orbit.

[CassiniPanini]

Today i continue to make sandwiches at subway, wishing i could send these dumb customers to the cold, harsh vaccum of space lol. When i get home Im trophy hunting on the ps4 version

[ThatHomelessGuy]

I flew my first entirely IVA mission today accept for when I had to run the instruments sins I haven't got action groups in the SPH yet.
The Little Bird 1 on it's maiden flight. Flew first time off the runway.

She flies really well at near mach speeds too.

I couldn't help myself I just had to. I also got a whiff of the new GLOC effect too. Or at least Valentina did anyway.

But she held herself all the way through the loop. And so did the plane.

The cams and displays really make it happen for me.


Valentina Is on the ball crossing the mountains on the way home.

Running low on Boomsauce and the KSP is in sight. Could be coming in for an emergency stop.
Valentina is on the radio asking Bill if he fitted those emergency chutes she asked him to fit.
"Damnit Bill you forgot to fill the main tank and fit the chutes? I swear if I make it Back in one lump you won't make it home in one lump. And you are coming with me on the all the rest of my flights after this." Bill just laughs it off and quietly hopes that this maiden flight goes like most of them do first time in the air.


[Pilot] : "Valentina to the tower, engines minimal for final approach ready to cut thrust. Concentration mode engaged, putting down my Kandroid until I hit the run way no time to think about pictures now"
[KSC1 Tower] : "Roger that, Bill says if you think you wont make it try and break the field next to the Runway strip. They only just laid the the new Runway"
[Pilot] : "No promises Bill, Out!"

Landing pics in the spoiler. Sorry I was too busy concentrating on not exploding or stalling to take pics all the way down but I got some pics of the umm well see for yourself.

Spoiler

 

[KSP1 Tower] : "Well done first try and all"
[Pilot] : "Thank you KSP1. Tell Bill to meet me in the hangar in 5 I have something I want to give him."
[KSP1 Tower] : "Uuuuuhhhh Roger that, he was here two seconds ago I guess he's on his way."
[Pilot] : "I'll bet he's on his way but I don't think it's to the Hangar. Just send a crew down to get this thing off the runway will ya?"
[KSP1 Tower] : "Roger that. Over and out!"

 

That whole thing has me buzzing and Valentina got her 5% fuel or less badge and her 11g for 3 seconds badge. I love this game.

Edited October 16, 2016 by ThatHomelessGuy
accidental extra pic before the post propper.

[CassiniPanini]

On 2013-05-17 at 10:01 PM, Spartwo said:

I was sick so I spent the whole day completing my minmus rover testing facility and then crashing the rovers.

Haha sounds like my play style 

Edited October 17, 2016 by CassiniPanini

[Spartwo]

1 hour ago, CassiniPanini said:

Haha sounds like my play style 

I still remember doing this.

[Bowman]

Mars Expeditions - Nuclear Greenman Style

 

After more than thousand KSP-hours I want you show my current career-gameplay in RSS (1.1.3). Instead of the great RO I decided to join the SMURFF-guys to keep the game in its harsh reality a bit more gamy.

My approach: Kerbalkind should get its hand on every possible body of this solar system. To reach their destinations I think near future technologies are just great. The cryogenic engines mod and near future propulsion allows, combined with ore-mining, relatively handy spaceships and leads to not-monster-launchers. If you want a headline for my crafts: keep it functional, keep it modular.

At this second Mars-transfer-window I launched two 100t-Mars-expedition-crafts (100t in Mars-orbit), driven by nuclear power as EC-charge and lithium as fuel. The crafts propell stations, a mining-facility, an empty Mars-lander for three kerbals and a small orbiter.

Spoiler

Here you see the launch of a mars-transfer-craft:

 

 

Equipped with mining-facility, a new station, nuclear power unit and propulsion-module. Every module is autonomous with probe core, energy-storage, solar panels and RCS and can dock itself to every other part.

 

 

Phobos has a less annoying gravity-field than its brother Deimos. Phobos feels like a Minmus-sized body with Gilly-gravity. My tip if you ever go there: don't equip your lander with legs.

 

 

There is almost a station in Mars orbit. You can see the orange tank floating away which held the fuel to feed the nerva. The now-free 2,5m docking port of the first station got occupied by the station-expansion. In the background waits the Near Future propulsion-module to fly back to Phobos. Running reactors need a lot of cooling, so thermal control penals dictate the craft-aestethics.

Please stand by for my next post. Three Kerbals will put the first green feet on Mars.

[septemberWaves]

A Stheno 1B launches 6 kerbals (Valentina [Lander Pilot], Hilbelle [Equipment Specialist], Lola [Mission Specialist], Leechell [IPT Pilot], Madti [Lab Specialist], Megselle [Flight Engineer]) to the IPT Eclipse for the Minerva 1 mission to Mios.

The Minerva 1 crew (who were also the Medusa 2 crew 180 days previously) approach the IPT Eclipse.

The Stheno 1 command pod returned to Kerbin, testing out a steeper re-entry profile which proved to be safe for the vehicle.

Below is the IPT Eclipse, with each module highlighted.

1. Heat Shield - used for aerobraking into orbit both at Mios and at Kerbin.
2. Propulsion Module - 4 nuclear thermal propulsion modules surrounding a 4-point core containing some extra fuel. The delta-v statistics are misleading because they do not account for this fuel. They also include the potential delta-v if the lander were used to propel the transport.
3. Hub module for the (currently unnamed) Virgo-class station that will be left in Mios orbit.
4. Service module for the station.
5. Habitation module for the station.
6. Lab module for the station.
7. Science module for the station (contains science equipment and basic transmitter).
8. Cargo truss. This is a new addition to the Organa-class series of transport modules. It can potentially transport items of greater volume than an Organa-class cargo bay (like that on the IPT Red Star), at the cost of slightly less stable connections (though the thrust is low enough that this doesn't really matter).
9. Habitation module. Supports up to 8 kerbals for extended periods of time.
10. Science module. Has an airlock and basic orbital science equipment.
11. Service module.
12. Command module. Can potentially also serve as a short-term habitat for 4 kerbals. Also has backup solar panels.
13. Mios Crew Transport. A reusable single-stage landing vehicle that can land anywhere on Mios (including in the ocean) from a 45^o orbit and return to that same orbit.

Fully fuelled and with its current cargo, the IPT Eclipse has 210 parts and a total mass of 390.53 tonnes.

Once the crew are on board and everything is prepared, the IPT Eclipse begins a 9-minute, 1300m/s transfer burn to Mios (which actually ended up being more like 20 minutes in real time and is still going on as of me typing this).

There is one other component of Minerva 1, and that is an uncrewed launch that will deploy several satellites around the Mios system, as well as landing an equipment package on Mios in the target biome.

Below: the IPT Eclipse leaving Kerbin.

Edited October 16, 2016 by eloquentJane

[Tyko]

Two fun things this weekend. I had to "get out and push" for the first time ever. Val was returning from Minmus and wasn't able to slow down enough to aerobrake to Kerbin. Her PE was ~1000Km. It took her 6 refuels of her jetpack, but she was able to bring her pod's PE down to 30Km and safely return home.

Also been playing with setting up CommSat networks using 3 satellites and "bus" to drop them off. Dropped my first sat in it's final orbit, then the bus raised it's orbit to a 1.33 resonance to the final sat orbits (if the target orbit is 3 hours, the bus would be at 4 hours). Worked great. Also discovered I don't even need a rocket engine on the sats. RCS offered enough thrust and was easier to fine tune. 

[Pecan]

Today I said goodbye to 32-bit KSP.  As a matter of course I keep the most recent 2 or 3 versions installed on my machine and now that 1.2 is out the final 32-bit version has just got tidied away.  Even though I've still got it zipped it seemed like a significant step.

[Guest]

Playing a "no labs" career, since they're so OP they ruin the fun for me. This is much more interesting: I'm having to think up more complex missions and to push outward more in order to get the Science I want. I did a biome-hopping trip to Minmus and -- a first for me -- designed a skycrane/rover combo which can also pick up the rover afterward. I really want to use it on a grand tour of the Jool system, but I test-drove it on the Mun: collected three biomes on a single landing without too much trouble, using a pilot/scientist crew. I do want to change some things about the design as it's a bit too fragile and a bit too easy to flip for my taste.

Anyway, this is fun. The Science Can is key to everything, especially that it's possible to pull science out of one can into another. I had one can on my rover, another on the skycrane, and yet another on my return module, and moved the Science from one to the other. So Squad please don't change the Science Can?

Edit: also, there are some bugs still here. There were some things-flying-in-the-air-with-explosions things when trying to dock my rover with the lander on the Mun, and I'm getting the occasional CTD which did not happen during the beta. Hope there's a patch soon...

Edited October 16, 2016 by Guest

[septemberWaves]

This is probably my final update for today. The probe assembly for Minerva 1 was launched on a Jool 1A with Corundum upper stage.

This launch vehicle was somewhat overpowered for the 32 tonne spacecraft, but it took it to a higher orbit than the usual parking orbit.

This assembly actually contains 4 vehicles. The main probe is for long-term surveys of Mios. Inside its cargo bay is a tiny lander for each of Mios's moons (Glac and Serc) as well as a small pod that contains science equipment for use by the Minerva 1 crew on the ground. The equipment pod will be landed first, and the Mios Crew Transport will target it for the landing. Future Minerva missions will make use of a surface base and rover, but this time the IPT Eclipse was at its maximum payload due to station modules and could not transport base components or the rover. Additionally, the rover design is not yet complete, because it will be derived from the Stheno 6 rover used in the MEDUSA program.

Below: the Minerva 1 probe assembly leaves Kerbin.

[Draconiator]

This would be my 3rd "comeback" lol

 

I am currently launching a network of sats while testing my brand new KerbX launch vehicle.  Bonus points if you can identify the imspiration. 

 

[flatbear]

Finally landed a probe on eve.  Need to wait for my relay that I dropped off in orbit to come around again so I can transmit my science D:

 

[CelticCossack51]

I finally landed on Minmus without cheats! By that, I mean I forgot my, uh, superior KSP skills that I for some reason forgot, heh heh. *nervous laughter intensifies*.

Edited October 16, 2016 by CelticCossack51
WOAH 200 POSTS!

[Martian Emigrant]

Spent the better part of the day building and testing (Optimising) small landers for Duna.

 

It will be for the Small Low Mass Duna Challenge.

http://martianarepeopletoo.imgur.com/all/

This one is odd. I couldn't reprodude the bug.....Yet.

The Kerbals feet aren't on the rudders and is EVA jets are working when I select some movements....I checked and Yes. Is EVA propellant is coming down.

 

 

 

Again an odd one. The Kerbal is sideway in the chair.

 

 

ME

Edited October 16, 2016 by Martian Emigrant

[eddiew]

Who's lum?

(Ed: ok, so the observant may have noticed that Numinor is not a rover as I have been traditionally using on extended missions. TLDR, science points aren't doing me much good anymore. Even with KR&D there comes a point where things are 'good enough'. My nervas have 1600 isp. Numinor weighs 22 tons, seats 6, has many science instruments, and has 12km/s in the tanks. The Odyssey with him in tow has 19km/s. That turns out to be excessive by all standards. I thought that the planets in OPM would need a lot of go juice to get to, but it turns out they're only slightly harder than Jool. I've got way too much science coming in, way too much money to ever need to consider the budget, and basically I'm playing sandbox with infinite fuel. The challenge is rather fading now.

Which isn't necessarily bad, because I like the idea of playing KSP in seasons that actually... end. It's easy for this game to run forever and then fizzle and stagnate, but in this case I have a distinct finishing line; boots on everywhere that can be imprinted with a boot, unlock warp drive, and declare kerbals an interplanetary species. My goal now is to go flat out on achieving that goal in the least possible play time so's I can wind this career up, maybe take a couple of weeks off, then review my mod list and planet packs for a fresh start with 1.2. Uh, so yeah, expect the Urlum system to not take a real-time week as Sarnus' moons did. Hopefully I can clear it out next play sesh )

[magnemoe]

Something new. a crooked rocket. Think that is pretty rare. 

Its done for an very good reason as the base I launch don't let me putt fairing around center of mass, 


To have it fit in the fairing I had to put the center higher on the station. 

Used two MK3 adapters to get booster below center of mass again. 

Has to find a better way, if the base works out I will probably use it as an template for future bases. 
 

[septemberWaves]

19 minutes ago, eddiew said:

My nervas have 1600 isp. Numinor weighs 22 tons, seats 6, has many science instruments, and has 12km/s in the tanks. The Odyssey with him in tow has 19km/s. That turns out to be excessive by all standards.

If I'm not mistaken, then with 12km/s the Numinor could get at least one biome on each of Urlum's moons starting and returning in low Kerbin orbit without aerobraking. That is ridiculously powerful. Perhaps KR&D is better suited to that 6.4x scale system (I think there's an addon to that addon for OPM too, as well).

[eddiew]

2 minutes ago, eloquentJane said:

If I'm not mistaken, then with 12km/s the Numinor could get at least one biome on each of Urlum's moons starting and returning in low Kerbin orbit without aerobraking. That is ridiculously powerful. Perhaps KR&D is better suited to that 6.4x scale system (I think there's an addon to that addon for OPM too, as well).

Quite possibly to all points

[Starman4308]

11 minutes ago, eloquentJane said:

If I'm not mistaken, then with 12km/s the Numinor could get at least one biome on each of Urlum's moons starting and returning in low Kerbin orbit without aerobraking. That is ridiculously powerful. Perhaps KR&D is better suited to that 6.4x scale system (I think there's an addon to that addon for OPM too, as well).

OPM does seem to work with the 6.4x system.

Regardless, the conclusion that the outer planets don't take that much more dV to get to is probably pretty correct; as you go outwards into the solar system, you need less and less extra energy to go somewhere. It's not much dV difference between going to, say, the Kuiper belt, and going to the Oort cloud; both require you to very nearly escape the Sun's gravity.

Where it gets interesting is if you have a good life support mod, and there starts to be a significant tradeoff between scrimping on fuel and getting there without needing so much life support supplies. I know that TAC Life Support + Kerbal Planetary Base Systems enforces a situation where you can only be 100% self-sufficient with a lot of effort put into it, and only if you're landed on certain planets with all the necessary resources.

[septemberWaves]

8 minutes ago, Starman4308 said:

Regardless, the conclusion that the outer planets don't take that much more dV to get to is probably pretty correct

I can tell you from experience that they don't need much more delta-v. I've sent probes to all of them, and some kerbals to Sarnus a while ago. It's effectively the same reason why a Minmus encounter doesn't take much more delta-v than a Mun encounter from the same starting orbit.

[Jovus]

I'm writing up a launch window calculator to go with my launch azimuth calculator. I have the basic logic down; now I just need to write it to tie into KRPC and convert the coordinates to the spherical coordinates my code expects.

Part #2 of umpteen for writing a launch and intercept autopilot for an arbitrary rocket.

This is what I get for locating my primary launch site in Zanzibar instead of Cape Canaveral.

[Clipperride]

Spoiler

Today, I returned my first Science Return Capsule from a crewed mission to Minmus, all the way back to Kerbin.  It wasn't without its problems though!  The first attempt (I had four of the return capsules pictured above, fitted to the lander) showed up a major design flaw sub-optimisation.  The solar panels overheated on re-entry, taking out the probe core and parachute along with them.  Hitting the ocean at way above 100m/s is apparently beyond the capsules specifications.

After some scratching of heads, a second capsule was sent off by our brave crew, this time using the engine to slow down high in Kerbins atmosphere.  The engine and tanks were then jettisoned to expose the heat shield and this time it reached the ground and was recovered for some lovely science points.

Sadly, a wiring fault (AKA I messed up the action groups used to launch the capsules) meant that launching the second return pod also jettisoned the third and fourth, which came down to rest on the Minmus flats (as seen above).  The crew decided enough was enough and returned back to KSC in time for tea and medals.  New designs for the project are currently being considered.

[Deaf3279]

4 hours ago, eloquentJane said:

 

What kind of solar you're use? What mod?

[CaelumEtAstra]

I modified a fighter jet into a VTOL testbed based on its high TWR.

http://imgur.com/a/RhmOb

 

Edited October 17, 2016 by Mrsupersonic8
Apparently imgur album embeds don't work anymore. FFFFFFFUUU*ERROR: CRITICAL MALFUNCTION IN EMOTION SUBSYSTEM*