Repurposing a Space Lab?

[Ironwatsas]

This is the Inari-LK1 Orbital Laboratory. The first space station built since the 0.21 update.

Jeb, Bill, and Bob Kerman spent about two weeks aboard it, studying how awesome the interior of the new crew can is, and doing a few mundane experiments, before departing back to kerbin. To date, no further missions have been sent.

The main reason for this is the completion of the Inari-KSS-IV, a much larger station with a far, far more extensive research lab and habitat module. Despite being rather laggy, it is still the future!

The I-KSS-IV is situated at a much higher altitude than the Inari-1 laboratory, however, the current 300km orbit of the I-1 is to be filled by a Fuel Platform, as it is the ideal orbit to avoid orbital debris. Due to a collision risk, this means the Inari-1 must be moved. Thus has brought a dilemma. Normally I would simply demolish the station, but I thought it fun to ask other space experts on the best course of action. I have long-term plans for missions to the Mun and Duna, and that will need some expensive orbital infrastructure.

So! I'm taking suggestions: What to do with the Inari-1 space lab? The I-KSS-IV is too laggy for any more parts really, so my choices are limited to destroying the I-1 or re-purposing it on a new mission.

A few technical notes:

The Station consists of a single Crew Can core, with full ASAS and is controlled via a MechJeb case.

It has a pair of large solar panels and 6 battery modules.

It has 6 roundified monopropellant tanks and a pair of LV-1R engines with a potential Delta-V of about 360m/s, so larger boosts will require a tug vessel.

It has a standard Clamp-o-tron docking port on the aft end, and a single clamp-o-tron Jr on the front end, limiting attachment points.

It is currently orbiting kerbin at about 300km altitude.

[Captain Sierra]

If you wanna re-purpose it, the first thing I'd suggest is a new module with a docking hub on at least one end (maybe 2 for loads of expansion) and a drive stage. Bring it down to a lower construction altitude (it's how I do all my station assembly; below 200km) to reduce delta V required for rendezvous and launch. Then add on whatever else you might want (docking module, fuel tank depot, hab module, kethane stuff . . . even an interplanetary tug to take it to Duna!).

[Geschosskopf]

Leave it at 300km. Add a small, empty Kethane tank, large, empty tanks for LOF and Mono, a medium Kethane converter, about 4 more Gigantor solar panels and/or a Kethane-burning generator, and at least 1 Clamp-o-Tron Sr. Then it could be your fuel station.

What you do is, you drill Kethane on Minmus then bring it back to this station to be refined into LOF and Mono. It's more efficient to make LOF in orbit than on the ground, and you want to get it from the place with the lowest gravity so you use less fuel moving it around. So, then you just build a couple of ships that consist of nothing but a big, empty Kethane tank, a drill or 2, 4-6 Gigantors, and the bare minimum of rockets needed to get it to and from Minmus.

That is, IF you really want a refueling station in the Kerbin system. What with an unlimited supply of fuel at KSC, it's generally easier, although less efficient, just to send tankers to where they're needed rather than make everything go to a filling station. But if you're going to do a filling station, might as well go whole-hog and use Kethane

[19spacepug]

I would add more docking ports and get some sats into near orbit to the station and use it as a refueling station and run refueling missions on the way to your other station and do 2 refuelings at once. plus you have some nice sats in orbit it would be good with the isa map mod still thats my idea you should do what you think and update us on what you decide to do with it.

[King Arthur]

I would launch a nuke tug in a "pull" configuration to the station and then haul it to munar orbit to act as your station there. The monolithic (and thus sturdy) nature of the station makes it ideal for long-distance hauling.

[Ironwatsas]

@Captian Sierra: Any station upgrades will require some sort of docking expander. Though the design will probably still be really small. I was thinking either more crew cans as laborotories or some sort of round spinny-centrifuge-wheel (or something that would pass for one)

@Geschosskopf: Currently I don't have Kethane installed, I only have a few small mods like MechJeb and Visual fixes for the Mk2/Mk3 cockpits, and stuff like Kerbal Alarm clock. The reason being that I'm getting this happening, and excess mods make it worse.

The Yakumo-1 fuel station is already in place (it's actually an old design from 0.20 designed to be chucked wherever I need a supply tank). It's designed to support my fleet of orbital tugs and refuel any orbiters or ships that use up more fuel than they should during launch.

I want it at a ~300km altitude since it's right outside the usual 100-200k parking orbit/debris belt, and also so my lower-orbit ships can orbit faster than it to make hohmann transfers quicker. I also have some long-term infrastructure projects planned and stuff like reusable interplanetary transports.

@King Arthur: I actually have a tug parked at my fuel station, docked and ready to go if I decide to do that. I don't have any mun missions active except the Eirin-LK satellite and Kaguya-L Lander, though I think it might be time to plan one.

[Captain Sierra]

The long loading time issue you referenced is a bug with .21. Most of us get it and none of us can fix it, so we just cope. Cannot wait for .22 and 64 bit support WUT WUT!!

Edited August 21, 2013 by Captain Sierra
spelling

[Ironwatsas]

I am aware of this. So far I've just had to limit my mod use and endure the instability. However, I won't let such things stand in the way of progress!

It looks as though a re-purposing to the Mun is the most popular option. Towing it and adding additional parts shouldn't be a problem, since I have all the resources readily available.

I will need some ideas on mission architecture though: I don't have any specific plans for a mun mission yet. Mostly I've been setting up the I-KSS-IV and researching SSTOs. Any thoughts on that front?

[Fox62]

I would recommend having the Mün set up for use as basically a retirement home. Any astronauts you don't want to use get sent there.

[Ironwatsas]

I actually have crash-test rocket sleds for that. Anything on the mun needs to be a bit more sciencey. Sciencey enough to justify deployment of a space station and the infrastructure to support it.

[King Arthur]

Research on what the Apollo 11 monument is perhaps? It's symbolic to us humans, but to kerbals that thing must look like what we'd feel if we found some alien monoliths.

The Mun is also situated ideally to act as an outpost between LKO and HKO/deep space, Minmus is too far and LKO tends to be too busy for a border outpost.

[Orbiter]

I am surprised that nobody came up with any fun uses for the space station. After all, wouldn't it be great for target practice?