UU Space Program (will update with new missions)

[User Unrelated]

I've been trying to write my missions out as small stories. it's quite fun, and I usually have quite a bit go wrong, so here's my first one that I think is worth posting!

Today had a tight launch schedule, with 2 large payloads destined for Minmus orbit.

The first into the air early this morning was a nuclear reactor core for an orbital kethane refinery/refueling outpost.

The press was distracted by the popular boy-band N'Synk that was scheduled for a concert nearby the launch site, so no photos were obtained (Although we have enough money to launch rockets, hiring photographers is expensive!)

It turns out, though, that the launch happened a bit early... Jebadaiah had yet again, snuck his way onto the launch without prior approval. He kicked Raybert out of the captain's seat, and hit the manual launch override. We can't seem to keep this guy on the ground!

Raybert is a new recruit to the program, and didn't know how to say no to an orange-suit.

No punishment was assigned to Raybert, as this sort of thing happens a lot.

Later that afternoon, the tanker and docking complex were loaded up on the same style Minmus heavy-launcher.

After the Jeb incident earlier, the engineers (under direct orders of Jeb's psychiatrist) constructed a 3-man return craft on top of the whole ship.

Bill, Bob, and Raybert were sent up in the return craft, and Sigbert took his originally assigned place in the cupola module on the tanker.

After reaching orbit, just before jettisoning the heavy orbital portion of the craft to begin their burn to Minmus SOI, Sigbert noticed an anomaly on his dash. It appeared that the fuel tank for the next stage was... EMPTY!

He quickly relayed the info up to the return module, which didn't have the same diagnostic instrumentation, as it was bootstrapped on at the last minute.

Bill went out on an EVA to check for leaks, and came back with news for the crew.

It turns out that the engineers had used the new-fangled docking port Sr. technology to couple the tanker to the nuclear tug, and that they had forgotten that docking ports allow for fuel crossfeed!

When on the launchpad, the crew had used 6 radially balanced boosters to drain the storage tank to make launch easier (then jettisoned them to save weight), but due to this oversight, they had also drained the tug's fuel tank!

That tug was their one ticket to Minmus, and Jeb really needed to get back home for his midnight snack (you don't want to see him hungry!)

There was no time to wait around for a refueling craft, and a mission abort wasn't an option, as there weren't enough seats in the one module with a parachute.

So Bob had an idea. He told Sigbert to transfer all of the remaining fuel in the orbital stage into the tug stage.

After the fuel was transfered, and the orbital stage jettisoned via centripetal force, the readout in Sigbert's module displayed more than enough Dv to make the trip to Minmus, and rendezvous with the reactor core. It may not have looked like much in the tank of the orbital stage, but it was enough for almost a full tank on the tug!

The trip to Minmus was short and easy, and the crew mostly took turns counting the bits of debris that passed their windows.

Upon arriving to the small mun, Sigbert skillfully brought the heavy tanker in for a rendezvous in record time! He will be receiving a gold rendezvous ribbon when he returns from his service on the tanker.

Docking went smoothly, although the monopropellant tanks were running a bit low. The normally quiet Raybert spoke up and suggested that maybe the engineers had added too many RCS thrusters. The rest of the crew agreed that 16 thrusters was a bit too many.

The station is ultimately destined for a linear layout, but a slight complication with the reactor core's tug forced an awkward docking procedure.

The reactor's tug is, in fact, just a big hunk of metal. There is no way to control it once it has been disconnected from the main craft. It was originally destined for a centripetal-force style ejection like the orbital stages, but due to the monopropellant shortage and a fear of not being able to complete docking, and there being no way to transfer the monoprop in the tug to the reactor core in case of an emergency, the tug was left in place.

The tanker was almost sent up with the same style tug, but hours before launch, Bodney (an intern at the research and development center) rushed in with exciting news. He had modified the controller from his RC airplane to control a modified probe core!

The new tug was fitted with such a probe core, and Raybert was handed the controller.

This new tug was then used to detatch, and de-orbit the old useless tug (after all the fuel had been transfered to the storage tank, of course)

The tug, however used up the last of the station's monopropellant resources for the maneuver, and the station must stay in an L configuration for the time being.

As all of the hard work was being done by Sigbert and Raybert, Bill and Bob got to work on THEIR mission. They had a little talk with Jeb, and lured him back to the return craft with the prospect of extra snacks (which were brought along solely for this purpose).

As soon as the hatch was closed, the decoupler was fired, and away they went.

Now that the crew has been reorganized into their proper places, the real work could begin for Raybert and Sigbert. This real work consists mainly of sitting around and waiting for the engineers back at home base to design a roving orbital tanker to shuttle kethane from the mining rig on the surface up to their station for processing.

On the more short-term, though, they will be receiving a shipment of monopropellant to put the craft into it's final linear layout, and they will be raising the station's orbit, as it's relatively close orbit now makes docking quite a chore, because the two craft being docked "rotate" around themselves rather quickly, due to their orbit around Minmus being so tight.

I will update with more stories as I fly/write them.

Edited November 28, 2013 by User Unrelated

[User Unrelated]

(I'm going to come back and spiffy this one up later. It's late and I need to get to bed. I just wanted to put it down so I remember.)

Also, this is now a "new space program" for 0.23, so I'm still working on my tech tree. Everything will carry on from this point. (aka: the station above no longer exists)

I got Project Fish Taco rolling today... My goal was to put a science pod on the moon in an interesting spot (right at the mouth of the canyon) to send rovers to at a later date.

I also started messing around with KAS, and I love it so far!

Fish Taco was plagued with issues from the get-go.

First, the craft didn't even want to lift off

And then, Fish Taco I had a catastrophic Lithobraking incident, after I severely miscalculated it's deceleration characteristics, and the main base stage was never even fired.

The command pod survived the incident somehow, but was on a dangerous suborbital trajectory, and was later lost.

Fish Taco II was a bit more thought-out. The launch went without a hitch, and I began the decelration much higher up this time.

The problem now was that the decoupler on the bottom of the main base stage was on backwards, and by the time the deceleration engine had broken the decoupler, it was too late. More aggressive lithobraking ensued. This time, the science module survived the incident, and went tumbling down a crater wall to a firey death below.

10 deaths so far.

Fish Taco III had many improvements. Larger base stage, more retro-rockets for the final horizontal descent, and a properly oriented decoupler.

The launch went smoothly, and the landing was a huge success.

A flag was planted in memory of those lost to make this mission a success. (although strangely, Jonzer Kerman, a victim of the Fish Taco I disaster, somehow made it onto the crew for Fish Taco III)

Jonzer ventured off to retrieve some Fish Taco I debris just over the crater's rim.

Turns out, it was a KAS supply box! Lucky!

It was a long walk back, though, as the box was too heavy for the use of the EVA pack.

After unpacking, the experimentation could begin.

Joncan had a great idea!

Then, he had an even BETTER idea!

No more "dark sides" of the flag!

Goefdon wanted to try something, so he had Jonzer pick up the command seat that was packed away.

Goefdon accidentally pressed the wrong button, and re-named Jonzer Kerman to "Jonzer Kerman Kerman Kerman Kerman", and changed his designation to a "base".

Jonzer no longer responds to the other crew members, and seems perfectly keen on standing right where he is. Mission Control says it might be mad space-cow disease. (I can no longer control him)

Goefdon took the seat back, and had the best idea yet.

But for whatever reason, the RCS boosters do not respond to control inputs.

Edited January 27, 2014 by User Unrelated

[Akinesis]

A fun read! What are those crates around the Kerbals?