What did you do in KSP1 today?

[Meltro]

Final assembly of the Jebediah's Manhood. As I now have a proper appreciation of what part count does to my framerate, the engine pods have no stabilization or remote control ability. Thus, I must use the ship that DOES have those things to come to the pods.

Thrusters on!

And half of my monopropellant later...it docked. Ok, it worked but it's not the best idea. Let's try something else. The launcher sucks for maneuverability, so I shall employ one of my tugs:

...and just throw the thing at the ship.

...c'mon....

Boom. Wash, rinse, repeat. Last one....

And presenting...

Onward to shakedown!

There would be half a dozen landers and two tugs attached, but we're just checking out the engines at this point. Simple orbit to Mun, and back to Kerbin. Mission report to follow, but my next ship is already on the drawing board. Here's a sneak peek:

[Dooz]

I made a single launch to eeloo it can land and return to kerbin

she may have horrible Thrust and the best delta v/10 Kilometers per sec

Edited August 23, 2013 by Dooz

[capi3101]

Tried to get a couple of rovers airborne with BACCs. Could've gone better.

Began serious mission planning to get to Duna, Apollo-style. I find the notion of going to another planet without LV-Ns a bit daunting, but appealing at the same time.

Still might get out one of the old probe-landers first to see about finding a suitable target location. Might also have to modify the 'hound skycrane so it can go to Duna too...

[AlternNocturn]

I sent several probes to Minmus in an attempt to "analyze its composition". First mission was an LCROSS-type mission that involved slamming an object into the surface (in this case a small probe) and flying the main vehicle through the plume. Of course none of this is implemented in the game for real (yet?) so I had to use my imagination. Then I landed a sample return mission that took soil samples from various landing sites and returned them to Kerbin.

As none of this is officially in the game yet, I decided to make up a composition using science. Minmus is mostly made of some type of salt, with trace amounts of water and even smaller amounts of other material. My next mission is to send another lander to "determine the origin of the large, smooth plains that exist at 0m sea level" and also take and analyze more samples.

[JMap1]

Docked a habitation module to my space station! ... Ok, it was just three hitchhiker cans. Anywho, it's up there and that's what matters.

[Loerelau]

Visited Moho, wanted to orbit, but.... Did not get closer than this.

[palker]

I did a challenge entry

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/47206-Stock-The-MythBusters-JATO-Car-Challenge

[Wayfare]

Started a final proving mission for the MOdular Mission System (MOMS) by establishing a base on Duna.

[SuperWeegee4000]

Rendezvoused and docked for the first time!

Also, used a Kerbal smiley for the first time!

[annallia]

I completed my Mun base.

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Notice the large satellite dishes on each of the habitat modules... You would think that is so they can call home right? Well that was the intent but the crafty little buggers managed to get TV out there!

[Respawn]

Today i sent a wobbly rocket too eve, with a return (attempt) vehicle.

Funny lessons and stuff one notice when taking on this kind of mission.

#1: Launching the 150t eve-launch stage.

I didn't know rockets could bend almost 90º and still carry on going as if nothing had happened.

They usually tend to break apart with the slightest wobble.

#2: Sending up a transfer stage for the eve launcher.

Just guessing how much dV it would give me, no numbers or anything. (yeh.. that looks right..)

Doing this often turn out not in your favor.

#3: Docking the transfer stage to the launcher in kerbin orbit.

Who would have thought docking without RCS could be this difficult.

#4: Time warp to more or less the right phase angle and fire up the transfer stage.

While looking on the map, I had barely reached escape velocity when my transfer engines shut down.

? huh?? turned out my dV estimate was way off

#5: Quickly build a new better transfer stage with rcs this time.

Launch and head after the eve rocket which by now was on its way out of Kerbins soi.

..Quicksave more often, swapping out a transfer stage in orbit would have been way easier.

#6: Docking in interplanetary space.

Turns out even 5x time warp is a bad idea when far enough away from your current gravity-well center.

Small floating point errors at that distance from the "sun" makes your target craft jump several hundred up to a 1km

when you activate time warp.

#7: Transfer vehicle with drop tanks.

Turns out when docking multi-stage crafts together you might want to check if stages are still correct.

After some way to long trajectory corrections i was about to drop a empty tank,

thankfully noticing that my staging was all jumbled up.

#8: Eve aero-brake.

Note to self: quicksave more often, and watch out for sneaky moons.

#9: Sending eve-launcher down to surface and leaving transfer stage in orbit ready for trip home.

Now with just enough fuel to get back.

#10: Several wet landings later, i managed to find a dry spot.

Needed all the fuel for re-launch so had no control, except for when to release parachutes.

A small tank and a small correction engine would have been nice..

Also 500m from surface some of the launch stages kept falling off.. (More struts.)

#11: Ended up having to use first stage of the launch vehicle to slow down just a bit for the 500m mark.

and also had to slow down a bit for the landing.

150t at 20m/s is a hard landing it turns out.

#12: Finally on the ground, almost full tanks.

Ready to go out and plant a flag to commemorate first eve launch try.

No ladders... doh!

#13: Launch try 1: everything looks great but quickly realize i need to throttle back if i want to make it to orbit. Waaay back..

Launch try 2: wobbly rocket is wobbly.

Launch try 3: apoapsis almost outside the atmosphere

Launch try 4: overcorrection.. no chanse.

Launch try 5: yey! apoapsis outside the atmosphere, no sign of the periapsis.

Launch try 6: perfect launch however periapsis still low inside the atmospere..

#14: Realizing Eve is way to hard.

This rocket is not going to make it from only 400m alt starting point.

#15: Launch 7: Pointing the pointy end of the rocket towards the orange part of the nav-ball and full throttle.

#16: Back to tracking station and clean up the mess..

Realizing that Bob Kerman is now listed as missing in action.

Also realizing that I've had no kerbal deaths after 0.21 until now.

although that might have been more due to quicksaves than anything else.

[Tollazor]

I went to build a Kethane miner, I got distracted:

Does it fly? Why yes:

Using FAR and Taverio's Pizza and Areospace. Plus a few other mods.

[TheMoonatic]

I've done absolutely nothing but plan my flight today!

[Sapphire]

Today I finally finished my interplanetary ships, docked everything to them, and fueled them up, so they're both ready to go! I've planned out the mission and everything:

Odyssey is the scout of the two. It'll be the first into the Jool system, and it'll go straight to Laythe. A heavy aerobrake over Jool, then rendevous with Laythe asap, where it'll hold as it waits for its big sister. Until then, it'll scan the planet and house the Kerbals who pilot it. It has room for 5 Kerbals, it will go to Jool with two Kerbals onboard.

Oblivion is huge. It has room for 32 Kerbals, and will take 26 Kerbals to Jool. This one will do a light aerobrake over Jool, then drop one of its two mini satellites to scan the gas giant. It will then go to Bop, where it'll drop one of its two PX-710 Horizon probe landers. It'll then go to Pol, where it'll drop its other probe lander. Then on to Tylo, where it'll drop its second mini satellite. Then Vall, where it'll send its Dragon capsule down. The crew will run around a bit and collect samples, then return to Oblivion. Then finally off to Laythe. At this point, Odyssey will detach its command pod with the two crew in it, and the main ship will deorbit over Laythe and attempt to land itself to test the atmosphere and attempt to land (it has parachutes). Regardless of what happens to Odyssey, Oblivion will rendevous with the crew module and pick them up. It will then send down its Dragon capsule, and the crew will again run around, collect samples, then return. At this point Oblivion will return to Kerbin and Dragon will ferry them down.

[SRV Ron]

Set up a slingshot maneuver from Mun that gave me an efficient Minmus encounter. Thrusters were used due to the critical nature for the Minmus capture.

More fuel left then would take place from a direct burn.

The 3Pm launched probe is now aligned with Moho. It will take a 27 minute burn from the single LV-N to reach the Moho encounter. With drop tanks, I have enough fuel for the burn plus the orbital capture. Will try for a retrograde capture that will cut the fuel use for orbit.

[Whackjob]

Today, I think I conquered my arch-nemesis.

Now, I like to build big. It goes beyond form or function, even fashion. I suppose it's a sort of predilection towards absurdity. The problem, however, with building really big things, is there's a sort of resonant stress fracture calving thing. You can have sections that are knitted together with struts in a sort of iron web, looking secure as secure can be. But when it launches? Giant clumps of parts unexpectedly calve off. Gone. This is something that has plagued me from the beginning.

But I think I have a new way of securing parts that makes even the largest structures calve-proof. THIS is the lower part of a Munar lander I'm building. It'll eventually (I hope) be 6 or 7 orange tanks high, and sport a landing deck on top for visitors. As of yet to be built, quite apparently, is the residential quarters, the landing gear (I can only imagine how fun that part will be!), as well as an onboard Kethane refining facility. Eventually I will want this to visit other Muns. Some smaller worlds as well, if I can get the TWR where it would have to be.

#EDIT: Added 4th tank row, added more engine to get TWR above 1, launched it. Held like a champ. Adding 5th tier.

#EDIT2: Added 7th tank row. There are now 63 orange tanks in the "lander". Still no legs, refining capability, residential quarters. I've done a couple test launches, and the old spectre of the calving issue has finally reasserted itself. But I think I can beat it, even so.

#EDIT3: The structure appears now to be sound. The only remaining issue is a curious crossfeeding issue where the engines aren't getting the same amount of fuel.

Edited August 24, 2013 by Whackjob

[CheftonUTD]

Started a new save to try playing with RemoteTech.

Launched a manned ship with four coms satellites, returned the first ship to Kerbin then flew up another as a command ship/station to complete the local network.

[Guest]

No maneuver node editor/information screen did exactly what I wanted it to and my suggestions and requests generally fell on deaf or non-committal ears, so I just made what I wanted.

Now I need to decide if it's worth releasing yet another node editor to the KSP userbase and deal with modding for a game again.

Edited August 24, 2013 by regex

[Tollazor]

Good God Whackjob, Does that bring your system to its knees, then make it beg, beg for you to kill it?

[Whackjob]

Good God Whackjob, Does that bring your system to its knees, then make it beg, beg for you to kill it?

I start to slow down after about 1,500 parts. I think it was with Regex up there, that we had a discussion about that. Trying to account for why I do so well. The current idea is that even though I have an old processor, the PhysX card included greatly enhances things.

Or I could be completely wrong. Though I am tempted to build a machine with 10 or 12 physx cards...

[Tollazor]

Well apparently Kerbal doesn't use Physx on graphics cards, not sure about physX dedicated cards. :/

Your processor, what mhz is it?

[ArmchairGravy]

Today I landed and hooked up my Munar mining base. I first landed a survey rover, then the mining rover, then the habitat module. The survey rover acts as the link between the two giant rovers. 431k of kethane is mine! I had a lot of trouble getting the giant rovers up and over to Mun with a lot of reverts while I tinkered with my primary booster and its asparagus. Finally found a killer booster setup that allowed me to put these puppies down with plenty to spare.

Now to work on a ride home for Jeb.

Edited August 24, 2013 by ArmchairGravy

[Whackjob]

Well apparently Kerbal doesn't use Physx on graphics cards, not sure about physX dedicated cards. :/

Your processor, what mhz is it?

A mere 2.53GHz.

[Spyritdragon]

A mere 2.53GHz.

KSP's processor usage and framerate is one of the biggest mysteries in the game to me.

[NGTOne]

Does anyone else with a standalone PhysX card want to test this?