Transmitting data and data value loss

[Rockyfelle185]

How much does a science task value decrease everytime you collect it? Whats the better

* Sending home data at 20% and lowering the value, and then going home and collect the 100% but lowered

or

* Going home and collect the 100% data not lowered at all

Which gives you more science?

[Scrogdog]

As I understand things (danger Will Robinson!) neither. Because the total amount of science available is unaffected by how you collect it.

Right now, it's easier but more boring to just sit there and transmit over and over.

Even when you return a goo pod 100% back home, there is still some to collect. You can see this with an easy test; put a command pod on the pad and do a crew report. Recover. Now do it again and you'll see that another crew report nets you more science albeit a lesser amount even though you just collected at 100% on the mission before.

[Galileo Kerbonaut]

Up to this point it doesn't really matter what you do. You can keep transmitting your scientific data until it reaches 0 or you can send a craft to collect it for you and take it back home over and over again until it reaches 0. It all boils down to how you want to play the game.

I guess the fastest way to get all the science is to keep transmitting.

[Rockyfelle185]

Well, thats not really an answer, I need to know exactly how much its decreasing per use

[blizzy78]

Perhaps it would help to know why you would need to know that. As the others have stated, the total science available for an experiment does not change regardless of recovering the container or transmitting data.

[KerbMav]

I too will not give you an answer that will help you or is relevant to the question you asked at all.

But I just wanted to let you know, that I understood your question:

Which does give more science,

one return

or

one transmit with one subsequent return

?

---

Still:

Although I do not know the correct answer for sure, digging in my memory I think I read that the amount is not reduced, but you do not get all points every time - was it 80%? Assuming this is correct:

one return

100pts base * 80% = 80pts gained

one transmit with one subsequent return

100 * 80% * 20% = 16

(100- 16 =) 84 * 80% = 67.2

== 83.2

One transmit nets you more science with a subsequent return the higher the transmit-% is.

The lower the base science points the more the one transmit is a waste of energy (at 20 base you will get 0.64 more with one transmission before returning ...)

Depending on transmission efficiency you will reach "99% sucked dry" (by transmission only) at

20% after 27 transmissions (90% dry after 14)

60% after 8 transmissions (90% dry after 4)

80% after 5 transmissions (90% dry after 3)

100% (or return missions) after 3 (90% dry after 2)

Edited December 5, 2013 by KerbMav

[numerobis]

The wiki explains all.

To answer the original question: you always get more science by doing more experiments, so transmit and return is better than just return. The wiki has the precise equations and the data you need to figure out the precise numbers.

[Galileo Kerbonaut]

Well, thats not really an answer, I need to know exactly how much its decreasing per use

How much it decreases per turn, I don't know. But you could find out by using something like the ScienceLog mod. This tells you exactly how much science has been collected and is still left for each and every experiment.

[Rockyfelle185]

KerbMav: Thanks, you got my question right, but what was it you assumed to be 80%? The transmit value from my point is only 20%, which is really want to know what I do, if it is how you say however, gaining 3 points is allways worth some electricity

[KerbMav]

You do never get all available science points (from one biome/area/location-experiment combination) in the first go, even at 100% efficiency for transmitting/returning.

As I wrote, I think I remember we get 80% of the remaining science points every time we log in the results at KSC (by transmitting or returning).

There shouldnt be any difference if the value is instead lowered every time by a percentage though.