What did you do in KSP1 today?

[Gargamel]

48 minutes ago, minerbat said:

i dont know exactly what section of the forum i should post this on, so if you're a mod and it is on the wrong section, feel free to move it

oh no it has broken the forum lol

I fixed your post so it doesn't break the forums, and merged it into this thread.    Nice landing!

[septemberWaves]

The second and third sounding rockets worked as intended. To mitigate the aerodynamic issue, acceleration of the rocket engine was lowered by limiting the turbopump during manufacturing. Future rockets will hopefully have the ability to control throttle directly while in flight, but currently this is limited to small and simple reaction control thrusters.

Following cutoff of the rocket stage, the avionics section separates from the booster, and integrated RCS jets spin-stabilize the payload.

A small solid rocket motor integrated into the payload finalizes its trajectory. The axial spin maintains the correct orientation during this burn. This technology will be combined with more powerful rockets to put payloads into orbit.

The payload can house a variety of scientific instruments, and multiple missions will utilize this same payload housing with different arrays of sensors.

[septemberWaves]

314 days after the founding of this spacecraft, Stheno 2 stands ready to launch. After the catastrophic ignition failure of Stheno 1 earlier this year (which was severely damaged, but was able to be held on the pad by launch clamps and recovered mostly intact), Stheno 2 will be our next attempt to orbit Kerbin. The Stheno launch vehicle is a direct development from the earlier Aspen-series sounding rockets, using the same engines, avionics, and tank tooling.

Ignition. All five engines light in parallel, successfully this time. The complexity of liquid-fueled engines mean that engineers are not yet confident that one can be started in flight with current technology - as things currently stand, the ignition procedure involves two major technologies: a carefully-calibrated fuse, and a member of the ground crew with a lighter and a good pair of running shoes.

Liftoff of Stheno 2.

First-stage separation. The second-stage engine has been thrust-limited, to ensure that enough fuel remains after first stage separation.

A bit of control instability following stage separation left the rocket with somewhat less delta-v than was required to reach the intended 150km periapsis, but this was able to be corrected in time, shifting the course to a 140km periapsis (still within acceptable margins for the mission).

Second stage cutoff and separation. Payload antennas deploy.

Adjusting trajectory and spin-stabilizing.

Payload deployment.

The orbital version of this payload uses a somewhat larger solid rocket motor.

Stheno 2 has successfully reached orbit of Kerbin. The final orbit is 140km by 170km. This first artificial satellite will study the sparsely-distributed particles in low Kerbin orbit.

[OnlyLightMatters]

I made a short story of another delivery of Rovemax Industries

 

And I spend some time on my old piano to re compose a variant of the KSP theme, with a bit of melancholia

 

[Caerfinon]

Today's Mission: Recover Transponder from a Crashed UK aircraft in 6 easy steps

Spoiler

 

Step1: Fly halfway around the globe

Step 2: Refuel at Hazard Shallows Naval Air Station

Step 3: Stop again at Nye Island Observatory for more fuel (and Bill had to "go").

Step 4: Land at the crash site (harder than you think).

Step 5: Bill  Recovers the Transponder from the wreck (Using EVA Construction or KIS)

Step 6: Get back on the plane and head for the KSC (with a couple of stops on the way back for fuel)

 

 

[OrdinaryKerman]

Downloaded JNSQ, then ruined it somewhat by resizing moons' normal maps to 2048*1024 (and every other celestial body texture to 4096*2048) so my puny computer can run it

Edited March 21, 2021 by OrdinaryKerman

[jimmymcgoochie]

Designed a space station and tested sending it over to the Moon, which went fine until a combination of MechJeb's ham-fisted overuse of RCS propellant and forgetting to turn the engine gimbals back on put it on a collision course instead of capturing into orbit. Good thing it was just a test run, not the real thing!

[Stormpilot]

Mun Rover to the Neil Armstrong memorial on the Mun.

 

Edited March 21, 2021 by STORMPILOTkerbalkind

[Zeiss Ikon]

I'm sad to say that I spent most of my game time this weekend redoing the test install of RP-1 on 1.8.1 -- I had hopes, since a couple of the mods were updated since my last such install resulted in the game crashing to desktop sporadically.

Nope, new install crashes to desktop sporadically, even with KIS/KAS being left out, which also means at least some of my previous non-test save's designs don't import correctly; also some of the engines have reverted to more familiar, but less convenient models, so I can no longer mount three DerWent jet engines close together in the tail, as they're back to the large centrifugal compressor.

Doesn't matter much; the game will only rarely even let me finish editing (I've regained the habit of saving after every change, which is bad because I then can't just revert to what I had an hour ago when i realize I've been on entirely the wrong path -- or, if I save with a new name each change, I wind up with dozens of very similar designs and difficulty recalling, after a crash and waiting ten minutes for the relaunch, which one was closest to working correctly).

I was reminded, however, that no way, no how, can one get 90 units of Sounding Payload and a parachute suborbital with the first gen WAC Corporal engine.  Extended tank to overburn crushes the TWR, as does adding another stage.  That means too much time at too slow a speed, resulting in too much gravity turn.  That's a contract that either has to fly on an RD-100/A-4 (for which starting level avionics take literally years to build), or wait for the XASR-1 (or even the AJ10-27).

[Noah Foloni]

Took a probe to jool for the first time, that’s it.

[Apelsin]

Sent a probe to get scence from low solar orbit:

Powered by the first fusion engine in my career save, the Impulse from FFT.

Spoiler

Toasty.

 

Edited March 22, 2021 by Apelsin

[PTNLemay]

Got a contract to recover a mysterious part from Kerbin orbit.  I was wondering how big the part is, because that's going to affect the kind of recovery craft I need to use.  I could just send up a scout to get a good look at it.  But I have the Mk4 fuselage mod installed.  So why not just put the biggest hangar I have and stick it into orbit?  I'm not sure how/where I'm going to land, but let's find out!  In lieu of a better name, I'll call it the Big Bucket.

 

EDIT:
Jesus Nails, I didn't think I would actually need the hangar, but this thing is actually huge.  How are you meant to do this without modded parts?

 

EDIT2:
Joan shouting over the roar of the engines: "I said, we can't shut them off!  The capsule is physically disconnected from the recovery ship!  Don't worry, it's stopped death-spiraling.  And it'll be out of fuel in... some time.   Do not send the helicopters until then!"

Edited March 22, 2021 by PTNLemay

[Mister Spock]

Returning player, continuing my un-Kerballed start with tiny probes and the Career Evolution contract pack, which focuses on un-Kerballed flight at the start.  I just finished my first flyby of the Mun with another mini probe -- just an Octo, an Oscar tank, a cute little Ant engine, an antenna, a battery, solar panels, and a thermometer, lol.   Total cost with SRB and a second stage of tiny Spider engines: around 6-7000 funds.  I haven't unlocked more science gizmos yet.  The next contract will call for "impact" with the Mun, apparently.  Then more flybys -- Minmus, Duna, Eve, maybe other planets.  I do have a contract for a Kerballed jet flight, but I'm in no hurry to do it, as I'm loving this unmanned story line.  

The only thing that worries me is that I've installed the Outer Planets Mod but don't see them on my patched conics.  I have Tracking Station 2; maybe that's not high enough to see the outer planets?

[flyingshark]

Today I sent a nuclear-powered shuttle to Minmus. I love flying low over celestial bodies at ridiculous speeds. This is only about 2 kilometers above the highlands. You can even see the shadow!

Also, a cool Mun-rise gliding over Kerbin:

[Yukon0009]

 

Started a circumnavigation attempt of Kerbin.

 

[jimmymcgoochie]

My adventures with a Moon base didn’t end the way I’d hoped- first I couldn’t retrieve the surface samples from the base to take them home so I had to head out and get more, then the lander’s ascent module got Kraken-ed and every part started vibrating noticeably, making controlling it very difficult; saving didn’t work, setting its position in the cheats stopped the shaking but only for a few seconds and after cheating it beside the return pod waiting in orbit, vessel switching somehow switched to the base on the surface instead and I couldn’t switch back in map view or go to the space centre/tracking station either. I’ll have to retry that one, there are several very expensive contracts riding on the crew’s safe return as well as a lot of tasty science.

 

@Mister Spock eitheryou need to zoom out further to see them, or you’re missing a dependency for OPM; the only reason they’d be working bu hidden in the map is if you were using ResearchBodies. Double check that you have the correct version of Kopernicus for your version of KSP, plus OPM and its dependent mods which should be listed on the OPM page or included with the download, or installed automatically if you use CKAN.

Edited March 22, 2021 by jimmymcgoochie

[camacju]

This wasn't today but: I took a craft to Duna and Laythe, then back to Kerbin, using only one orange tank as fuel.

 

[Francois424]

Today we continued our roving expedition on Duna.

Having just departed from the Western Canyon, we set course South... 

. . . and we drove.

And drove south some more... Jeb at the wheel by now since night had fallen... Are we there yet ?

. . . Oh.  I guess we are.  Scientific instruments did register us entering a new biome, but we already have a "poles" sample?  Let's wait until the morning to figure it out.

 

 

 

After everyone had a good night's rest, KSC was contacted and we pinpointed exactly where we actually stopped at.

We are in a spot called the "Polar Craters"  337km from the Western Canyon.  Apparently we had missed gathering info on one of these when we where at the Northern Pole.

 

On the eve of the 6th day of the roving mission, Bob did the science and could not help to notice how the rover "slipped" about 30 meters from where he planted the flag last night, odd...
While Bob was on his lengthy EVA, the KSC told us that there's something of interest, another depression of sort a few dozen kilometers West.  So we started preparations to head that way.
We'll finish loading up the Ore tanks first (pretty quick with a 21.4% concentration, or thereabouts), then we'll give it a go !

But that's all for today, thanks for reading folks !

Edited March 22, 2021 by Francois424

[Stormpilot]

Added segments to my Space Station in 100km orbit of Kerbin.

[Mister Spock]

@jimmymcgoochieThanks for the advice -- you were absolutely right!  My version of Kopernicus was out of date.  I'd downloaded it bundled with OPM, I think, but apparently the bundled version was an old one.  I updated, and now I see the outer planets.  Rocking on!

So much creative stuff in this thread.  My favorite thread on the forums!

[Caerfinon]

Doing a little work on my Dev instance of KSP.  Modified my cargo plane to Airlift rovers. They landed at the remote Airstrip at night so they will be camping until morning before driving to retrieve the KSIS agent at the extraction point. Accomplished with a little help from Kerbal Attachment System (KAS) and EVA Construction   

Used a Winch, some Fixed Telescopic Joints and some JS-1 Joint sockets.

[Vanamonde]

Today I discovered that Orion is (almost) in KSP. 

[Lewie]

@Vanamonde That's a really neat find!! How'd you notice that?

[loch.ness]

As I continue to re-learn how to play, and to adjust to KSRSS, I've returned to the Moon and I think I've found a decent spot for a future colony too.

Spoiler

 I didn't snap any pictures of my Saturn V yet, but I grabbed this picture of my trans-lunar orbit

 This crew was planned to be my Apollo 8 - they were suppose to be the first Kerbals to orbit the moon and return.  Then I went a made my LEM and put it in the full Saturn V.  I'd then decided to upgrade them to Apollo 10 - they'd orbit the moon, practice docking, piloting things down, and returning.  

I was too impatient to test my LEM with an Apollo 9, and finding myself at the moon with an orbit over Mare Orientale.

 

I did take the time to test the deployment of my Apollo relay satellite though.

 

 

My team found a wonderful spot with a good view of home and a good crater nearby to study.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After their space walk they climbed the hill behind the rover for a selfie before returning the LEM to bunk.  Later on I'll need to bring them home, and then get the right type of satellite back this way to see if there is enough Ore here to warrant turning this location into a base.

 

 

 

[Vanamonde]

48 minutes ago, Lewie said:

@Vanamonde That's a really neat find!! How'd you notice that?

I was flying and I looked around.