Copernicus MTV components

[Starwaster]

This will be a parts pack allowing the construction of spacecraft like the Copernicus Mars Transfer Vehicle. (MTV)

Copernicus was part of a proposal that involved the launch of multiple components into LEO where they would be assembled into complete vehicles. First would be four launches to assemble two vehicles (1 propulsion unit / 1 aeroshell re-entry vehicle) which would fly to Mars in advance of the manned mission. One would land on arrival where it would begin producing fuel from Martian resources (in situ). The other would be a habitat lander which would remain in martian orbit awaiting the arrival of the crewed mission later.

The pack will contain the necessary parts to build a similar rocket using either stock components or parts from other mods. (no inflatable habitat is currently planned; there are several that will work with this). In addition to stock compatible parts, Real Solar System sized parts will be available (i.e. 10 meter diameter saddle truss). Other useful mods (required for RSS compatible vehicles) will be Stretchy Tanks and Modular Fuel Tanks. (list not complete)

The Copernicus will require three launches. A propulsion stage using three 111.2kN nuclear thermal rockets (NTR), a saddle truss containing a liquid hydrogen drop tank and an inflatable habitat section. Depicted below is the saddle truss, which is open at the bottom to allow the jettisoning of spent components (such as the drop tank or empty crew consumables module) Attached to the ends of the saddle truss are the docking rings. The propulsion unit and habitat units will be equipped with similar rings allowing them to be docked together. The model is not as yet properly textured.

Currently there are three parts. The saddle truss, a truss adapter ring and the docking rings. The adapter rings will contain control modules to allow adapter equipped stages to be oriented for docking. Another adapter is planned for inflatable module attachment. (basically another ring module with a small adapter in the middle for 2.5m parts)

LINKS REMOVED

License for the developmental version of the parts is no distribution or derivative works. This is only until official release at which time a CC sharealike will be applied.

Exceptions:

Drop tank licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

The NodeResizer plugin is released under a Creative Commons Sharealike Attribution license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Contents:

2.5m, 3.75m, 5m, 10m each of:

Half sized saddletruss

full sized saddle truss with mounting point for drop tank

drop tank

Truss adapter ring

male docking ring

female docking ring

Hab adapter

Truss and adapter ring sizes are inner diameter so a 3.75m adapter ring will snuggly fit over a 3.75m tank.

Copernicus shots. Depicted both with and without the drop tank to show how the saddle truss is used.

Saddle truss with drop tank experiments. That thing on the bottom is a tug that I threw together to move the tank around. I'm experimenting with being able to dock the tank to the truss directly with no other parts in between.

Edited August 21, 2014 by Starwaster
Removed Links.

[DasBananenbrot]

Nice,looking forward to this

[Porkjet]

God dammit! I'm working on pretty much the same right now :S

[Starwaster]

God dammit! I'm working on pretty much the same right now :S

Well, cant say that surprises me, what else are you going to stick that big ass inflatohab on??

I'm not sure how many parts I'll actually end up doing in this pack btw. The signature saddle truss was the main necessity preventing me from making Copernicus. Most other components can be obtained from other packs. (Orion or Sumghai's SDHI)

In the course of researching for the truss, I realized it needed a way to be assembled. The docking rings are vaguely hinted at in a few NASA documents btw. They'll attach to the ends of the truss or the ends of the adapter rings (included in the truss but also available seperately for use on other parts)

Edited January 4, 2014 by Starwaster
wrong smiley used

[DasBananenbrot]

Why not work together that would be awesome (pls, pls, pls xD)

[OrbitalSolutionsLtd]

How about making it Kerbal-style ? (Like naming it Kopernicus and add the KSP logo instead of the NASA logo)

You could cooperate with Porkjet and make it together too. That'd be awesome. Anyways, this sounds great.

[Porkjet]

Actually it's probably not a problem, my parts are more loosely based on the copernicus, like I've made the strut cage go all the way around the tank and it won't be possible to eject the tank. It's just an ordinary static tank. I'm doing this just because I wan't the nuclear engine to work with liquid hydrogen like its supposed to be. You seem to go for full realism. I'm sure there's use for both.

[Starwaster]

Actually it's probably not a problem, my parts are more loosely based on the copernicus, like I've made the strut cage go all the way around the tank and it won't be possible to eject the tank. It's just an ordinary static tank. I'm doing this just because I wan't the nuclear engine to work with liquid hydrogen like its supposed to be. You seem to go for full realism. I'm sure there's use for both.

So yours isn't open on the bottom you mean?

Also, re: nuclear engines with LH2,

Real Fuels

It's the Modular Fuel Tanks mod with resource definitions for a wide variety of engines. If it's too much realism for you though, you could just use Modular Fuel Tanks, add in the H2 resource and use the NTR engine configuration from Real Fuels. Adds not just H2 support but also methane, ammonia and LANTR (LH2 + LOX afterburner)

[Nertea]

God dammit! I'm working on pretty much the same right now :S

Hilarious, I was also making truss bits from this .

[SargeRho]

How about a sort of extended range version, with the middle section build like the Terra Nova in Race to Mars?

[Starwaster]

How about a sort of extended range version, with the middle section build like the Terra Nova in Race to Mars?

You mean the truss that has the four drop tanks on it? Or the shorter saddle truss just behind the habitat?

I haven't decided about the former as it's currently already possible to do either with stock parts or other mod parts. (even scaled up to 10m)

The latter definitely. Just a matter of slicing the truss I've already made in half.

Today I took a break from doing anything with the truss so I could explore various lifter solutions for getting the damned things into orbit. Stock will be easy, but I wanted to try making an Ares V lifter from Stretchy Tanks and Modular Fuels for Real Solar System (RSS) and it's been nightmarishly difficult on account of running into bugs that I didn't know about because I haven't actually played KSP in almost three weeks, so there's various known issues I didn't know about. So I get those straightened out, make my Ares V (again properly scaled for RSS, not stock) and I can't stop it from coming apart on the launch pad... (it weighs something like 6000mt without a payload!)

[YANFRET]

Whoa this is hot!

[Starwaster]

Updated album. Minimalist texturing. Assembled a ship in orbit to test docking procedures. I always thought the various proposal papers skimped on RCS placement and it definitely didnt work well for me so quad placement all the way.

[Porkjet]

10m diameter?! That's a big ass ship! Dockingrings are in interresting idea. Smaller ships could fly through them and dock inside. Only bad thing is you will be able to attach things to nothing like you demonstrated. There need to be 5m attach nodes that only attach to 5m parts to prevent this.. I guess.

[DasBananenbrot]

10m parts are for RSS I guess...

[YANFRET]

Just my thoughts, what if the diagonal spindle like struts were just a little thicker?

[czokletmuss]

I'm really glad that Copernicus is being developed and not only that but it's being developed by 3 modders at the same time

"Race to Mars" is one of the most faithful and realistic representations of space travel in TV ever - I encourage everyone to watch it on YouTube! And it would be indeed great to see Terra Nova in KSP (btw Canadarm was added because it was Canadian TV-series)

[Starwaster]

10m diameter?! That's a big ass ship! Dockingrings are in interresting idea. Smaller ships could fly through them and dock inside. Only bad thing is you will be able to attach things to nothing like you demonstrated. There need to be 5m attach nodes that only attach to 5m parts to prevent this.. I guess.

If you're referring to the hab attaching to the center of the ring, that always a possibility in KSP if an attachment node is placed in empty space and there's no way to restrict that in the VAB. (the rings themselves will ONLY dock to each other) Sensible placement of the Hab module will be made possible by an adapter that will visually connect to the ring by spokes and will also have tanks for RCS propellant.

10m parts are for RSS I guess...

The ones currently being actively developed are scaled for RSS, but they are easily rescaled and my intention is two concurrent releases, one full scale (i.e. RSS) and one stock scaled. And possibly an intermediate sized set. (such as 3m or 5m for KWR / NP)

Just my thoughts, what if the diagonal spindle like struts were just a little thicker?

They used to be, but all NASA documentation points at them being slim. That could just have been an artistic thing by the 3D artist responsible for the images but if this is ever built IRL then they will be as slim as possible while still providing the structural support required by the design. (remember, they will want it as light as possible and that sized truss is listed at ~9t)

I'm really glad that Copernicus is being developed and not only that but it's being developed by 3 modders at the same time

"Race to Mars" is one of the most faithful and realistic representations of space travel in TV ever - I encourage everyone to watch it on YouTube! And it would be indeed great to see Terra Nova in KSP (btw Canadarm was added because it was Canadian TV-series)

http://www.racetomars.ca/mars/images/vehicles02.jpg

The pack itself is currently only being developed by myself, unless you're referring to the other parts needed to actually construct it, like Porkjet's Hab. THAT btw is what prompted me to stop thinking about making the truss and actually doing it because I was looking at at it sitting on my launch pad (already rescaled to 2x original size) and thinking it would look nice on the end of one of those trusses. And it's just about the right size rescaled, too. I stuck it on the end of a 10m x 30m StretchyTank with the shiny gold foil texture applied, looked at it some more, then grabbed the big single piece Balka wings from Kosmo and slapped four of those behind the hab and that was all I needed to make my decision.

I'm not sure I'll actually use the Balka in the final craft files as it's a little too long... (when using Real Fuels btw, the LVN is bimodal and produces electricity even while idle so solar panels wont really be necessary)

BTW, Terra Nova's hab is hard shelled, not inflatable so another piece would be required to properly recreate it.....

Edit: And I also encourage everyone to watch Race to Mars btw.

[YANFRET]

I'm having success with the SDHI fairing base scaled up for separating large MTV components.

This is great by the way, it's gonna be fun exploring the engineering of this system.

Do you know I'd never even heard of "Race to Mars" but when I look at the hab on that transfer vehicle and then look at my MTV wip it makes me smile.

Edited January 8, 2014 by YANFRET

[Starwaster]

Some more progress. The half truss is finished. I need to make the adapter that will fit in the truss ring which will let the hab attach in a manner that looks sane instead of free floating in front of the ring. Basically the adapter will have a docking core and will be attached by four arms to the ring. At the base of the arms will be some RCS propellant tanks. Other parts will be able to attach to the back of the adapter, such as docking ports or supply containers. (see some of the photos; the supply container is the drum connected via tunnel)

No shots of the half truss yet but the front page is updated with the drop tank. It's just a preliminary model; I basically used the Unity scene editor's default capsule mesh, slapped some transforms on it and threw it in KSP to play with it.

[Starwaster]

I accidentally the Inflato-Hab. The whole Inflato-Hab. Is this bad?

[YANFRET]

What if the drop tank model were a little less pointy? Like with a sharper curve at each end?

PS I assume from the NASA graphics that it's (the truss) main source of lateral rigidity comes from the double structure down each side, what if that were emphasized in the 3d model to make it look less delicate?

Edited January 11, 2014 by YANFRET

[Starwaster]

What if the drop tank model were a little less pointy? Like with a sharper curve at each end?

PS I assume from the NASA graphics that it's (the truss) main source of lateral rigidity comes from the double structure down each side, what if that were emphasized in the 3d model to make it look less delicate?

I was trying to match it to as close to existing documentation as possible and the beams are fairly thin. The side girders are thicker. I think somewhat close to stock I beam parts.

And yes I know the drop tank ends look crappy, I'll round them more later. I didn't model the tank, it was in Unity as a mesh so I used that as a stand in.

Edited January 11, 2014 by Starwaster

[Starwaster]

Ok, lots of progress here. Prototype hab connection adapter for the truss is finally in-game. Fixed some texturing issues that were vexing me, really just me having to learn how to texture. I model better than I texture, largely because I don't have a lot of experience with current day techniques. I do my modelling in Softimage / XSI ModTool and only just learned that it has better UV mapping abilities than I thought it did.

Possibly visible in some of the shots are a new texture I was working on. The truss is planned to be constructed using composite materials, graphite-epoxy, which I think is basically carbon fiber, and that was sort of the look I was going for but didn't really pull off, and it probably wouldn't REALLY look this way anyway..... but it was just something I wanted to play around with so there it is. You'll have to zoom in on the shots to really see it though.

Also, you can thank Jebediah for the guided tour. Helloooo Jebediah!!!!

The supply cannister is the centrifuge from the Deep Space pack connected to the hab by some Fustek parts. I know that the Copernicus proposal didn't include a cupola but it's just too damned cool not to stick on there.

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[likke_A_boss]

Ohhh..... Pretty. Me like.