Suggestions for a good Mun payload lander.

[zukalop]

So I've sent Kerbals to the Mun and back but now I want to start building a modular Mun base.

I have several of my base modules built so far but I'm having trouble thinking of a way to actually land then on the Mun. So far what I've been trying to do is have a "skycrane" type crane that would land the module on the Mun, decouple and fly of to crash somewhere.

Kinda like the curiosity rover landing method: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/593484main_pia14839_full_Curiosity%27s_Sky_Crane_Maneuver%2C_Artist%27s_Concept.jpg/800px-593484main_pia14839_full_Curiosity%27s_Sky_Crane_Maneuver%2C_Artist%27s_Concept.jpg

without the tethers of course.

So what kind of designs have you all come up with? How have you landed base parts on the Mun (or other plants ofc).

Thanks,

Zukalop

[Tank Buddy]

I would use LV-909s or Aerospikes held out to the side by a large girder segment. You could also use radially mounted engines but you may have to tilt them to avoid exhaust damage and other funky things. Place a normal one sided decoupler of your choice upside-down and it will stick to the skycrane when it is decoupled. If you want more specifics just message me and I'll add some photos tomorrow.

[Ravenchant]

For the Mun? I've mostly constructed my base with a reusable skycrane that waits at a LKO fuel depot for the module to arrive, docks with it, delivers it to munar surface, decouples and does a rendezvous for refuelling at said depot after returning. For heavier loads, try four LV-909s on radial supports or so, then put docking ports at both ends, preferably the Sr. version.

...yeah, it's ugly, but it works.

[Tank Buddy]

Here are some designs I've concocted:

I would keep the SAS for larger payloads. I also include a probe so that I can steer it into the ground instead of it escaping the Mun or getting into orbit.

This one is more ideal for rovers, I always add a small stage underneath just for de-orbiting and slowing down before deploying the sky crane.

Be sure to tilt any radial engines so they don't hit the payload.

[Specialist290]

If you're looking to move anything really heavy, a while back I came up with something like this for another user:

It's only a "proof of concept" design, so it's lacking a lot of little things like lander legs, batteries, and power sources. Part of the idea was to give it as wide a footprint as possible to allow larger modules to fit comfortably underneath it. All values listed in the KER display are relative to the Mun, for added convenience.

Here it is with a Big Orange Tank for a simulated payload, showing it can comfortably land one on the Mun with plenty of fuel to spare (with good piloting).

[SpeedDaemon]

This lander is what I was using to land DEMVs, which are fairly large. It has enough dV to pick stuff up and move it around again. I had NERVAs under the aerospikes and it was able to get to Duna and land without further assistance.

[Taki117]

Depending on exactly what your payload is (And how much space there is) you could just slap a couple of radial decouplers on the side with a fuel tank and LV-909.

[Turvok]

Specialist290 what are you using for attachment? Does a large Docking port have the holding power to lower something with that much mass to the mun? Ie. It looks like it's just hanging there.

If that's all it is. Would it survive a parachute opening? Or 4.

Edited November 22, 2013 by Turvok

[linkxsc]

Look up the middle few episodes of Scott Manley's "100% Reusable KSP". Its a long video series about him trying to not waste anything in his designs that he did a while ago.

I know in like episodes 15-20 he demonstrates a spider skycrane. Which in all honesty, no matter how many renditions i go though, I still can't make one that performs better then one that roughly copys his design, or scales it up. (sometimes what you gotta pick up is just too heavy, gotta break out some extra radial engines for the thrust to get off the ground, the nuclears can take over just fine after that.)

[Specialist290]

Specialist290 what are you using for attachment? Does a large Docking port have the holding power to lower something with that much mass to the mun? Ie. It looks like it's just hanging there.

If that's all it is. Would it survive a parachute opening? Or 4.

Again, that particular design is more of a "proof of concept," so it isn't fully functional, but I believe it should work with a Senior Docking Port. I'd have to take a more functional version for a test drive to be certain, of course. (Of note, a larger payload wouldn't hang vertically like that in operation; instead, it's intended to drop one down into a horizontal position. That's why there's so much space between the radial fuel tanks.)

As for parachute woes, one thing I've done to reduce the shock of parachutes opening is to use drogue chutes in conjunction with standard radials. Drogues don't decelerate as quickly as regular parachutes do, so they'll put much less force on the whole vehicle when they open, and they slow the vehicle down enough to make the standards' opening deceleration fairly tame.

[Turvok]

Would something like what speed daemon shows in his pic use a Docking port to hold his Rover? I'm learning a lot from this thread. Didn't even think of some of these concepts . And sorry to the original Op for sort of high jacking his thread

[SpeedDaemon]

Would something like what speed daemon shows in his pic use a Docking port to hold his Rover? I'm learning a lot from this thread. Didn't even think of some of these concepts . And sorry to the original Op for sort of high jacking his thread

Yes, mine uses a docking port in conjunction with quantum struts (I wanted to be able to pick the rover back up if I had to move it a long distance). You could just use a decoupler and regular struts if you don't need to do that. You DO need to strut the payload to the outriggers, though, no matter how you connect it.

Also, use fuel lines from your boost stage to the lander so you can fire those engines during launch. Since they're out that far, they should be clear to fire. If the lander can mostly lift itself, you just need the launcher to lift extra fuel.

[Turvok]

Not exactly sure what quantum struts are. That in a mod pack? Also did you use a pusher stage to get that to Duna or was there enough fuel in it? I'd build something like it and check the delta v. But I won't be home to my computer until Tuesday.

[Dun Kirk]

I built parts that basically all had a poodle engine myself. I had a stab at a nuke sky crane but I didn't like the dodgeyness of pickup. Maybe when resources come out I'll have another go.

[SpeedDaemon]

Not exactly sure what quantum struts are. That in a mod pack? Also did you use a pusher stage to get that to Duna or was there enough fuel in it? I'd build something like it and check the delta v. But I won't be home to my computer until Tuesday.

There might have been a little fuel left in the orbital insertion stage that I burned to start it towards Duna (was a few months ago - can't remember), but mostly it got itself there. I just put decouplers and NERVAs under the aerospikes, with fuel lines running from the clockwise neighbor stack to the NERVA.

The thing was terribly over-engineered dV-wise, but that had more to do with the fact that you can only attach fuel tanks to those girders in the middle of the tank, so I had to use tanks that were 2x as long as I really needed. It ended up working exceptionally well, though. The aerospikes and outrigger tanks are from either KW or NovaPunch, and yes, the Q-struts were from a mod.

Edit: here's a pic from before it left Kerbin, showing the inter-planetary configuration: