What did you do in KSP1 today?

[TK-313]

Today I built myself a nice little LK-700 out of Tantares parts (and a few stock ones).

Here is my take on this ship.

Departing Kerbin...

Arrival

Mun orbit insertion

Deorbiting

Dropping the transfer/deorbit stage

Suicide burn!.. Well, almost.

Aaaand...

- Hey, aren't these legs supposed to auto-level the ship?
- Hey, isn't this ladder a bit too long?
- Shut up, it's a freaking prototype!

The Koviet Union prevails!

Liftoff!

Getting into orbit...

Lining up for a family photo...

Bye, Mun!

Open your heart, I'm coming home.

Cruising above the clouds...

Landing in the middle of a storm...

...and no landed shot. The ship crashed due to pilot's error (opening the main chute too low). The morale of this story? Use smart parts if you aren't sure!

[Klapaucius]

I discovered a bug that allowed me to travel to almost the center of Kerbin at insane speeds. There is a thread about it linked below the photo.

 

[RoboRay]

7 hours ago, kurgut said:

Will be launched in Earth orbit by early Titan LV:

Very nice design for an expanded Mercury!  I also designed a somewhat heavier one-man capsule (using the regular old Mk1 pod this campaign), but not as big as that one. 

I've still been struggling to reach orbital velocity with my Atlas'ish launch vehicle, though, due to the extra mass, and also decided to jump to a Titan'esque launcher.  I'm using basically the LR91 upper stage from Titan (with ullage solids rather than hotstaging), but made a leap in rocket engine design and have put twin H-1 motors on the first stage rather than the LR87.

Here's the first flight of the launcher, also sending my first lunar flyby on it's way...

An AJ10-104 performs the TLI.

I had planned to use the first D-series launch vehicle to lob an empty capsule up to orbital velocity for a reentry test, but realized my R&D labs were about to run out of projects to work on.  I needed science, and I needed it fast!

Pericynthion was just 10 km above the mountain peaks between Mare Tranquillitatis and Mare Crisium.

The gravity assist is sending the probe on out into interplanetary space.

Interestingly, just after leaving the lunar SOI and shortly before getting out of comm range with mission control, I played around with the remaining propellant and managed to set up an encounter with Earth, in 10 months.  A little tweaking, and I even got a second lunar flyby!  We'll see if I manage to pass over any biomes my subsequent missions miss on the second go around.  Alarm clock set!  

[Zosma Procyon]

Over the last 2 days I drove one of my mobile bases down the South Western Canyon of Duna. It was a long, boring, drive.

FINALLY got down to the MIdland Sea.

[Hotel26]

1 hour ago, Zosma Procyon said:

It was a long, boring, drive.

Have you test-driven Bon Voyage?  It's a rover auto-pilot that will plan and execute a route to your chosen destination and does it in the background while you do other things.  You miss the scenery but you miss the tedium.

I wish it worked on water for amphibians but it doesn't.  And I wish I could put it on my Kannonball train, but it only works with rover wheels.  It's worth a look, though.

[Triop]

2 hours ago, Zosma Procyon said:

Over the last 2 days I drove one of my mobile bases down the South Western Canyon of Duna. It was a long, boring, drive.

I know how you feel bro . . .

[klond]

Finished Connect Four 

https://kerbalx.com/klond/Connect4

Edited September 9, 2018 by klond

[CatastrophicFailure]

StratoLaunch Mission 1
An AbsurdlyLong™ Post
Part 2
Brought to you today by Sleep Deprivation

 

So, in the aim of finally putting this thing to bed, and hopefully myself thereafter, here's the rest. Just a simple Mün mission.

When we last left Bartfrid and Hadrie, they were on their way to the Mün. Almost.

Spoiler

 

Why do I get the strangest sense of deja vu about this?
Because you've been reverted multiple times from this point, you dingbat!
Oh.

 

After being hurled skyward by a gigantic airplane and then boosted on the way to the Mün, it's a standard Apollo-style profile from here.

 

Even managed to cram a rover in there. Hey, look, Bartfrid's actually smiling!

Yeah, I turned down Hadrie's oxygen supply and I think he's about to pass out, finally.
Heeeeee.....

 

Erm... moving on... So, since there's still a silly amount of fuel left in the transfer stage, we'll use it as a crasher stage. Cuz crasher stages rock.

Also, the lander is so underpowered, landing under its own thrust would take forever.

 

And, down safe on the moon!

We all live in a Münar submarine, Münar submarine, Münar submarine...
Shut up, Hadrie.

 

Rover deployed!

 

Then Hadrie finishes the setup.

Wait, he's driving?! He's been hypoxic for hours, he's probably got permanent brain damage!
You reap as you sow, Bartfrid.
Hmph!

 

The two set off to the gentle sound of Bartfrid screaming again.

 

Wow, look, an ancient artifact of alien origin!

That's our engine, you dum-dum!

 

Great, Hadrie, just great, the only other kerb-made object on the entire body and you manage to get in a fender bender with it!

Sorry...

 

Anyways, their fun you call this fun?!? had, the two head back to the lander.

There's a lovely Kerbin out tonight, Bartfrid...
It is aesthetically pleasing in an entirely rational and scientific way.
I think it's kind of roman--
I swear to Kraken, if you finish that sentence I will pop your helmet and slap the green off you.
-esque! Romanesque!

 

And, just like that, it's time to go home. And put this whole thing to bed. Again. Like I should be.

 

Slightly complicated by the fact that there's no one in the return ship, no probe core, and it's the only vessel with RCS for docking.

Looks like we're floating over...
Hey, let's see if I can kick Hadrie out of orbit from here...

 

 

Hadrie was, in point of fact, not kicked out of orbit.

The matter of his greenness remains unresolved at this point.

 

Three days later, the crew is safely back!

And still properly green.

 

Elsewhere...

 

Um, Bill?
Yes, Jeb?
I think Laythe is broke...
What was your first clue?

So, did you bring a book or anything?
No.
Do you wanna play a game?
No!
I spy, with my freakishly large eye...
Water! It's water! You see water! Even tho it's not actually there. And we can't drink it, since it's cold and salty. Gah, I'm so thirsty, I haven't had a drink in almost four years!
Hey, there's a little left in the snack drawer.. We've got crackers, chocolate, and salt and vinegar potato chips.

 

GAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

 

[Jacke]

14 hours ago, TK-313 said:

Today I built myself a nice little LK-700 out of Tantares parts (and a few stock ones).

Cool!

 

14 hours ago, TK-313 said:

Aaaand...

Spoiler

- Hey, aren't these legs supposed to auto-level the ship?
- Hey, isn't this ladder a bit too long?
- Shut up, it's a freaking prototype!

Spoiler

The Koviet Union prevails!

In Koviet Krussia....

Stronk Koviet engineerings makes excellent landing legs!  Even work upside down!

(Kudos for your cool way to pack those landing legs into the lander base. )

[RoboRay]

At last, on August 21st, 1962, Raymond Bowman became the first man to orbit the Earth!

Not without any mishaps, though...  The second stage LR91 failed before completing its burn.

The AJ10 service engine had to perform the orbital insertion.

And this is where I realized I had made an error.  I had built this rocket planning an unmanned reentry test, but the previous lunar flyby on the same launcher went flawlessly so I put a crew in this command pod.  But the service module was still the Block 0, intended only for unmanned tests, rather than the Block 1 that went past the moon.  The Block 1 is equipped with RCS...  The Block 0 isn't.

I had to rely on the command pod's integrated RCS, intended only for use during reentry, for spacecraft orientation.  It uses relative inefficient High Test Peroxide, and there isn't a lot of propellant in the command pod, so I set a stable attitude and turned off RCS to drift.

I stayed up for a full day in orbit, then prepared to come home.  And it finally hit me, just what I was facing without the service module RCS quads.  The AJ10, though pressure fed, still needs the propellant to be settled into the bottom of the tank, at the fuel pickups, to successfully light the engine.  And I had only rotational control from the command pod RCS...  no longitudinal thrust for ullage.

So I decided to try spinning.  That's a good trick!

I spun the capsule up, tumbling end over end, at a few RPM, and fired the engine.  And it lit!  I gimballed the engine to stabilize in a retrograde orientation, and shut it off a few seconds later with perigee in the upper atmosphere.  I had no good way to fine tune my Pe with the limited control available, so I just let what will be, be. 

The recovery crews were waiting for me in the west Atlantic, south of Bermuda.  I ended up coming down in Baja California.

It looks like I'll be walking to El Rosarito from the landing site.  That's fine...  I hear Mauricio's has excellent quesadillas frijoleas!

Edited September 9, 2018 by RoboRay

[ARS]

"Verify our range to target. One ping only"

"Only way they'll detect us is if you all start singing the Russian national anthem."

 

 

Edited September 9, 2018 by ARS

[anoldtincan]

Major improvements to both my aerial survey  and kerballed-space programs today.

First, A survey mission with the Antelope rover-carrier, but now with turboprops instead of jets:

This variant (1.2) flew one survey mission, but landing in the highlands the props didn't have enough ground clearance with small landing gear and lost both engines. The rover and crew were unhurt, so the mission was completed although I couldn't fly back to the KSC. My newer version (1.3) has medium landing gear, improved outboard fuel droptanks and about 25% better range. Being constructed now for a future survey mission.

I launched the improved drive section for the Valentina a few days back:

Although fairing deployment knocked out the solar panels after reaching orbit. Today's mission was to rescue the drive section, rendezvous with the Val, upgrade the Val's main docking port to 1.25m, demolish and recycle the old drive section, transfer an additional scientist for the crew (Lealong), and offload Supplies and fuel, and configure it all for a trip outside Kerbin's SOI.

A night launch for the crew of the first KR-3 Vaquita, LKO workhorse. Archibald "Archie" Kerman is command pilot, with Bill as flight engineer, and Lealong headed to the Val for science lab duty.

Vaquita 1 in orbit. Configurable containers can be adopted for supplies, fuel, and cargo. For this mission, extra fuel for multiple rendezvous and supplies to replenish the the Valentina.

Approach to the Val after rescuing the M-1. Note the forward docking port at this time is a Jr. The 1.25m port is in the KIS container cargo hold of the M-1.

Docked laterally to allow front port access.

Verlan moved the lander to an auxiliary port.

Bill, post-docking port R&R. I didn't get a pic but he also demolished the existing drive section attached to other end of the ship, and repaired the Val's broken solar panel.

 

Archie moved the drive section in place to dock with the Val, since she has no RCS on her own.

Operation complete! The cupola is now the forward module, and the Vaquita (less Lealong) returned safely to Kerbin. Now just one or two refueling missions and we'll be off to deep space!

Edited September 9, 2018 by anoldtincan

[Cavscout74]

Apparently yesterday was my massive launch day.

A little warm up, only a 3.75m launcher, to put a larger asteroid processor into polar orbit to drag my recent capture down to a more useful orbit:

After capture, dropping down to a 500 km polar orbit from 5000.  The previous capture unit only had about 100 m/s dV at a time when attached to the asteroid, and only had small drills & converter to refuel with.  This one still packs around 2000 m/s with half full tanks.

Didn't get a launch picture, but here is my 5m Goliath reusable launch vehicle on its first use in this career.  I used it to launch a nuclear reactor wing for a Duna surface base.  It actually had nearly 1000 m/s dV remaining in orbit with the payload still attached.  I probably could've gotten closer to the pad, but I lost control late in reentry for reasons I'm not sure of.  I have to look at the grid fins - they were a last minute change to the design in place of standard airbrakes. 

The large Pegasus base destined for Duna on the pad, atop a thrown together 5m launcher with 3.75m radial boosters.  Orbital insertion was done with the payload's nuclear drive - the launcher only had 50 m/s remaining after it cleared the atmosphere.

Not a large mission, but a nice reentry shot returning from the captured polar asteroid.  These girls brought home a surface sample & DMagic asteroid scan data, not that I need science any more.  The extended range version of my Olympic vehicle had plenty of dV to change the orbit to equatorial before reentry & landing in the ocean near KSC

[Adelaar]

Today was a happy day.

 

Got a message incoming that Samry was drifting in Munar orbit, so I installed a rescue mission, together with a tourist mission to the Munar surface and a Spider engine test.

Here is the Bravo A rocket with the munar lander on top, standing by for launch.

Samry was found drifting in a research lab which ran out of power - and adjacent parts, apparently - so upon rendevous she made it to the lander, took some goodies, headed back for the research lab, installed the goodies... And ran flew away.

Boyan Slat may do his Ocean cleanup, we're doing our part...

Samry's loving it.
Next stop: Mun, just gotto grab the cab first.

Samry's one of the "Happy but stupid kind", so even running dangerously low on dV to do an orbital insertion, landing and take-off, she'll just be going along with it. And she's a happy camper, isn't she.

All things come to an end: Leaving mun after completing all three mission objectives, and arranged an insertion into Kerbins' atmosphere.

Mission accomplished.

[Jacke]

Cool Kerbals don't look at the explosions

Spoiler

10 minutes ago, Adelaar said:

Boyan Slat may do his Ocean cleanup, we're doing our part...

Samry's loving it.

 

[Crocket]

I finally took the Artemis 2-RL to the Mun for some serious sciencination, but I got so burned out from abusing my F9 key to land on some girders with a booster stage I only saved a single screenshot.

And holy crap, is it a good screenshot. Better, more-screenshotted missions soon!

[Triop]

[Geonovast]

Launched a shuttle where two in-payload bay auxiliary fuel tanks were replaced by Mk1 Crew Cabins because I needed a full core of engineers on the flight.

Decided to check out the view from inside after opening up the payload bay doors.

What.

[Norcalplanner]

Over the last few weeks I've been having a lot of fun with RP-1.  Here are a few screenshots, in no particular order.  Enjoy.

First successful Mercury orbital launch.

 

Pretty sunrise ascent of an early satellite launcher.

 

First unmanned lunar landing.

 

A reminder to check where you're coming down when making your reentry burn - the Himalayas make a suboptimal landing zone.  Thankfully we cleared the mountains and came down in Bangladesh.

[Triop]

[ARS]

[djr5899]

I have been fighting a game bug the last few days.  Have two missions to retrieve objects from space and then recover them on Kerbin.  I built a rocket/shuttle hybrid with a cargo bay, to open the cargo bay doors and allow the Pomegranate rentry module to just float into the cargo bay, and close the doors.  This part worked pretty well and as planned.  The first Pomegranate module was in very LKO, with Apoapsis of only 78Km.  The problem became, once I had the module in the cargo bay, ANY type of time acceleration makes the module clip through the cargo bay module and back into space.  I was able to get the LKO module back home and on the ground, but, the other one is in orbit of the Mun, so, I see it as impossible to retrieve without allowing any time warp to take place.  I mean, technically, it is possible, but I'm not leaving the game running for 20 hours just to prevent the module from clipping back into space.  

[ProtoJeb21]

The lack of enjoyable weather outside makes a good excuse to get a lot done in Kerbal Space Program. Today, I was quite successful with three missions: Hermes III, Ausra II, and Hera II.

Hermes III arrived at Moho, and I had to do my capture burn twice because things went a little unexpected with the first try. The maneuver node time was all messed up, and I was so close to the surface - 12 km at my closest approach - that I had to stop burning so my periapsis wouldn't go any lower. After reloading a quicksave, I did a little mid-course correction to raise my Moho periapsis to about 50-60 km (I don't remember what it exactly was) and messed around with my Moho capture maneuver node so that my burn wouldn't be messed up like last time. I did work, but I ended up with too little fuel left to return to Kerbin. Maybe enough for the lander to get down, but unlikely for it to return to orbit and dock with the mothership. Oh well. At the very least, I can get some new science reports from a few new biomes, so this mission wasn't entirely a waste.

(Okay why is it that all of a sudden some of my screenshots now have terrible resolution but others are fine?)

About three in-game weeks after Hermes III entered Moho orbit, Duna was in position for me to send my first Kerballed craft to it in this save. I had already been working on it over the last few real life days. It's Ausra II, a successor to the extremely efficient, reusable interplanetary vehicle I developed for an Eve and back challenge earlier this year. Now that all of the 2.5m parts have been revamped, I decided it was time to create a second Ausra with the same basic features - replaceable crew capsule, ability to transport large modules, etc - while improving on its fuel efficiency and range. Without the Apollo-style Duna lander, Ausra II has over 4 km/s of dV, definitely enough for a Duna and back mission. Launch and Kerbin orbital insertion were straightforward enough, but for my Duna transfer trajectory, I decided to split it up into two burns just to conserve as much fuel as possible. I ended up saving a few hundred m/s of dV this way and made a mid-course correction maneuver three weeks out to get myself on a nice Duna aerobrake path (which will continued to be tweaked). However, I didn't timewarp to it because a Jool transfer window was going to open up in a week, and I needed to take advantage of it.

For my Jool mission, I decided to make a much larger probe with four little landers to be deployed on Laythe, Vall, Bop, and Pol. The landers for the latter three moons are all identical with over 1.5 km/s of dV, while the Laythe lander has a heat shield and a parachute. The main probe has three Mystery Goos and four Science Jr's, along with a few other instruments and a massive relay dish. It should be able to connect with the relay I landed on Dres last week, but I'm not taking any chances. I don't want to be too reliant on Dres and then it's on the other side of the Sun from Jool and I have no connection with Kerbin. Like Ausra II, I did two burns at Kerbin periapsis to save several hundred m/s of dV to get my Jool encounter. I will continue to fine-tune my trajectory as Hera II gets closer, likely after Ausra II reaches Duna.

(By the way, if anybody knows how to fix the unexplained reduction in the resolution of most of my KSP screenshots, that will be a great help)

[Zosma Procyon]

On 9/8/2018 at 7:48 PM, Hotel26 said:

Have you test-driven Bon Voyage?  It's a rover auto-pilot that will plan and execute a route to your chosen destination and does it in the background while you do other things.  You miss the scenery but you miss the tedium.

I wish it worked on water for amphibians but it doesn't.  And I wish I could put it on my Kannonball train, but it only works with rover wheels.  It's worth a look, though.

I'll try it. You know what's more boring than driving on Duna? Driving on Tylo! At least Duna has a nice color scheme.

One of my favorite creations just arrived at Eeloo. It's a rescue craft picking up two castaways and a shipwreck.

NERVs look so much more impressive than they actually are.

[Cavscout74]

The Jool system is back to being temporary home to kerbals again with the arrival of PCC-05B Everstar Grove.  Of course my replacement spaceplanes are well over a year away, so not much I can do at Laythe right now.  My Bop lander is arriving in a few days, so after relaxing at Hadke Kerman station for a few days, the crew can head to Bop to do something useful.   I also had a fresh crew launch from Kerbin, headed for Jool.  This actually leaves my entire kerbonaut staff in space right now, which is a first for late career for me.  I may need to perform a rescue or three to build up my numbers.

It's a shame, because the replacement floating base arrived as well.  This one landed far enough out to be in the Sagan Sea biome instead of still in shallows.

I also had my ore boat arrive on Laythe.  It's not for heavy mining operations, but rather to resupply the floating base snack converter to keep it stocked.  The drill just barely makes contact, but it works.  Happily I have reversing motors to back off the shore once it's done.

Since the new base was in position, I thought I'd try to sink the old one.  Fully flooding the ballast tanks didn't accomplish much - just the platform is barely under water.  I guess whenever I get a crew down here again, they'll have to resort to explosives.  I should probably strip off the RTG's for other uses first though.