Visions of 2070

[Top8]

Hello KSPers,

We are students at the University of Ottawa working on a non-profit educational materials project. The goal is to describe and depict a possible future circa 2070 based on a hard sci-fi setting created by our lead content developer. Our group is looking for concept art and our thought is that KSPers enjoy building space ship and station models all day and night!

If you are interesting in being a volunteer developer, helping inspire students and designing ships that could one day be reality, then please read the refrence plan:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9qbgEKOAvlpLXhoRFdxY2U4LTQ/edit?usp=sharing

Note that only the Concept Art project is currently available for volunteer developer submissions. We are working on the next few tasks and will announce them here as they develop. Please post here and PM me with standard contact info if you are interested. If you have ships that already work for any of the ship types in the plan the please go ahead and post them!

Cheers,

Chris J. Kent,

Lead Content Developer

Edit: Updated version of VDP on G-drive - V1.07

Edited March 8, 2014 by Top8
File Update

[briansun1]

this seems like a cool idea

[Bengsch85]

I might be able to help out, I definitely enjoy designing ships and stations in KSP. Sent you a PM.

[Top8]

Good to hear - The ship and staion types should provide useful guidance. I am hoping to have a batch of designs ready in 3 weeks or so - I have a few of my own I'll post here but we need more of every type.

EDIT: Design Index by Ship and Station Type:

Descriptions of each category are here: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/67085-2070-Megacorp-Challenge?p=926099#post926099

The following format in this appendix is a management backup of offline updates for the KSP forum thread Visions of 2070 http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/67002-Visions-of-2070:

Common Ship Types: Catalogue entries should use the listed categories in the order below. Categories are presented here with category file tags for use in renaming .craft files for submission. See section B.1 for more on how to use file tags.

• Cycler Tradehull - CtradeX

• Mars (Duna) Shuttle - MShutX

• Lunar (Mun) Shuttle - LShutX

• Discus Cruiser - DCrsX

• Darkship - DarkX

• Deep Trader - DeepX

• Needle Sprinter - NSprX

• Industrial Carrier - ICarX

• Military Carrier - MCarX

• Dronedecker - DdecX

• Magsail Prospector - MProX

• Relay Nodeship - RNodeX

• Beam Nodeship - BNodeX

• Science Cruiser - SCruX

• Ice Hauler - IHalX

• Hospital Ship - HShpX

• Cloud-Skim - CSkmX

• Solar Miner - SMinX

• Fast Liner - FLinX

• Drydocker - DDocX

Common Station Types: Stations are simply large ships with small drives not typically suitable for anything but small orbital adjustments. Stations typically have large solar PV, thermal radiator and magnetic sail arrays.

• M-Station - MStnSX

• Node House - NHosSX

• Grand Cycler - GCycSX

• Research Array - RArySX

• Defense Discus - DDscSX

• Hab-Ring - HRngSX

B.1 - Catalogue Entry Information: The .craft file catalogue is compiled as the stage before we get permission for use from KSP model creators. We have the option of significantly transforming designs into original work but this is not as desirable as finding partial or final draft designs already posted on the KSP forums. When making a catalogue entry, for a design that may end up in the index after we secure permission from the model creator, the following information must be collected in the following order:

• Exact User Name and Profile Link - It is critically important that we are able to contact KSP forum users for each entry in the catalogue. Record the exact KSP user name and a link to their KSP profile next to the name. Make the entry under the appropriate category heading of the index listing format above.

• Forum Page Link - This link must take a user to the forum page where the posted design is most directly found (images, download links).

• Design Description - Include a short note on why the design, or portion of the design, is suitable for the ship or station type category.

• Craft File - Download the .craft file if it is available. Files must be renamed to start with the category tag (see listing format above for tags) and from there be both short and descriptive.

• Forum Topic List - Include a complete list of the forum topics you have reviewed to find these designs. Do not leave a topic thread incompletely reviewed. This is important because multiple Devs will be cataloguing designs and must coordinate efforts to avoid duplication of work. This thread list should have the name of the thread and a link to its first page. Include the list at the bottom of the word document (.docx) containing the entry listings.

• Catalogue Submission - All of the information for each entry listed in this section should be complied into the thread index format listed above. This should be a .docx type word file. File names for the listed entries must exactly match the .craft files in a single zipped folder (no sub folders for submissions please).

B.2 - Suitable Designs: The design index above needs to collect ships that can be loaded into a standard KSP game install with a standard set of plugins (mods). If the project cannot use the design there is no point in collecting it. Stock designs created with no mods are always useful so even a stock design that is of lo w quality should be catalogued if the .craft file can be downloaded - to reiterate: please download and catalogue all the stock designs you find. Files using any or all of the following plugins (mods) are acceptable:

 Near Future Propulsion (http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/52042-0-23-Near-Future-Propulsion-Pack-0-33-1-(updated-24-01-14-balance-changes))

 KSP Interstellar (http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/43839-0-23-KSP-Interstellar-(Tweakables-New-ISRU-Preecoolers)-Version-0-9-2-(Beta))

 Deep Space Mission Pack (http://kerbalspaceprogram.com/deep-space-mission-pack/)

 Habitat Pack (http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/64442-0-23-Habitat-Pack-v0-2-new-hab%21)

 Large Scale Structural Parts (http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/34664-Large-Structural-Station-Components-20-Compatible-Release-Thread)

 Hyperedit (http://www.KerbaltekAerospace.com)

 Kethane (http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/23979-Kethane-Pack-0-8-4-Find-it-mine-it-burn-it!-Now-w-Toolbar-Critical-bug-fixed)

 Kerbpaint (http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/50008-0-23-KerbPaint-Paint-layering-for-parts-%28September-23rd%29-%28Same-Old-Still-Works%21%29) note: delete old module manager

If there is a very attractive design that uses alternate mods it can be included but must be accompanied with clear, concise indication of the mods it uses. Include this information in the notes section of the catalogue entry.

Edited February 27, 2014 by Top8
Continuing updates

[Top8]

I put up a related challenge - for complete desgin sets: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/67085-2070-Megacorp-Challenge?p=926099#post926099

The prize is that I will write the megacorp and its leaders into a series of short stories I am writing on the setting this spring / summer. They will also show up in the educational material, etc.

[Streetwind]

Unsure if you've heard of it before or not - but there's a japanese manga and animated series named "Planetes" (from the ancient Greek word for "wanderer", from which the word "planet" is derived, as an object wandering across the sky). It features a relatively hard sci-fi scenario set in 2075. Pretty much exactly what you're aiming at. It was critically acclaimed but remains rather obscure due to not being a "typical" anime (you won't find fanservicy magical girls or superpowered fighting tournaments in there).

It starts off with addressing the issue of space debris, but later delves deeper into the sociopolitical climate of the time (large international treaty organizations and massive private megacompanies as the center of space development), as well as philosophical questions as to what the heck humanity is doing up there anyway, and why.

[Top8]

I did like Planetes ... wow, that takes me back a few years too.

Yeah, hard sci-fi is going to share themes as science places certain constraints on things. A fairly different setting ... though from what I remember of the anime those ships, stations and even characters would fit right in.

As long as its original design work you are free to draw inspiration from sources like that.

As to why we are out there - economics and politics - the usual suspects but with a few twists. There is a setting intro in the linked doc.

[Top8]

Here are a few of my earlier efforts that break the 300 part limit:

Cloud-Skim - Equipped with two sleek drones this vessel is designed to harvest Jovian or Venusian atmospheres:

Discus Cruiser - The iconic discus cruiser design makes for capable battlecruisers like this one:

Convoy Trader - Mostly modular this is a cycler tradehulk, designed to bring massive shipments of goods efficiently to and from cycler stations:

Edited January 25, 2014 by Top8

[Boggerm]

Allo top.I see ouve found more.

[Top8]

Allo top.I see ouve found more.

Hello Bog! Indeed, I think that the fine community here at KSP will be of grat help with the vision of 2070.

[Top8]

A NOTE ON SCALE:

Sice we are using these ships for filming, screen caps, staging scenes, etc. scale is something we can play with. If a design is seriously out of scale thats OK - we just have to film around that. Place it in the background, avoid showing parts on nearby vessels that match and break the illusion of a ship that is farther away.

So don't let szie stop you from building what would otherwise be colossal ships!

[Rhyunix]

I am interested, but I don't really know how to contribute, I feel its a task too great for me- ACTIVATE LURK MODE *zum!*

[Top8]

I am interested, but I don't really know how to contribute, I feel its a task too great for me- ACTIVATE LURK MODE *zum!*

Welcome aboard Rhyunix! Well, the first place to start is to pick a ship or station type from the list in the plan document. Then build - 100 to 300 parts is the general range for small to huge craft.

Feel free to draw on whatever inspiration in terms of realistic desgin you like - so long as there are lots of radiators. You may have to "disguise" parts in KSP to look like other things - that OK. For example, I have seen ships that are inteded to look largeer than they really are by choosing larger parts like the aerospace hulls and substituing spotlights for windows - it really works even though its a bit of artisitic trickery. For this project its all about the aesthetic. Your desgins don't have to launch from Kerbin, its perfectly acceptable to get them into space with hyperedit.

So long as we can load the .craft file and edit it to orbit (the base install we are using is stock + B9 + Hyperedit) then its all good.

EDIT: I will likely add the paint job mod to the list - the exact name slips my mind just now. I am told its a small mod but adding a bit of paint can really make for more interesting looks. I just have try it out first.

Edited January 28, 2014 by Top8

[Spartwo]

Kerbpaint is the name.

[Bengsch85]

I also recommend ksp interstellar and kosmos station pack for large solar panels and radiators. Its what I've used in the past for building large stations.

[Top8]

Kerbpaint is the name.

Thats it - thanks.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Also ... a great page on realistic desgins: http://www.projectrho.com/public_html/rocket/realdesigns.php#avatar

Though note that by 2070 we have light enough neutron shelding that nuclear reactors - the main form of powerplant - can easily be inside a ship. No need to use the "shadow shield" geometry mentioned in a number of entires there on your designs.

I based this on a few piecesof science: various types of LFTR reactors (Thorium) are most common in space given that solar is too bulky for many high power applications. LFTRs tend to have thermal neutron flux which we can already shield against pretty well and metamaterials used for radiation shielding make for low mass shielding (likely at the expense of being a bit bulkier, which is no big deal).

Also note that ships outside the military rarely have fusion drives and in 2070 we haven't cracked the problem of cheap antimatter - so antimatter is still far too expensive for anything but research. If someone is ambitious they could model a huge Orion type coupler but it isn't too critical. Huge monster ships like Orion's and Fusion (based on laser pellet fusion) are rare even within the military.

Edited January 28, 2014 by Top8

[Mobius]

Hey top!

I've already asked to help you with drawing and you said yes so... Yey

[Captain Sierra]

So . . . You are basically pitching a sci-fi concept, and asking us to help you come up with designs that look the part, fit with your preface write up, and work under real* physics.

Okay then! I might have to do something along this line.

*Real, being a relative term given the wonkiness of KSP Physics.

[Top8]

I also recommend ksp interstellar and kosmos station pack for large solar panels and radiators. Its what I've used in the past for building large stations.

We have a fellow working on a few custom parts but if you want to use Interstellar give it a shot - those parts do look cool. Kosmos is unfortunately too large (I suspect), I tried it and it breaks my loading.

So the new list is B9, Hyperedit, Kerbpaint and Interstellar.

[Top8]

So . . . You are basically pitching a sci-fi concept, and asking us to help you come up with designs that look the part, fit with your preface write up, and work under real* physics.

Okay then! I might have to do something along this line.

*Real, being a relative term given the wonkiness of KSP Physics.

Welcome aboard! If you can't get something to actually function its OK - the look of the ships is the most important thing. Think of them as movie props. All they really have to be able to do is manuever around in space to make cinematic vids or stage photo shoots.

Edited January 30, 2014 by Top8

[Top8]

Science Interlude - In XM2070 the Benford Sail Network is what makes fast interplanetary travel possible. It relies on two key technologies which are by then very mature. The first is a microwave desorption sail:

http://www.centauri-dreams.org/?p=93

Essentially, with a modest microwave power beam and a lightweight sail a great deal of delta-V can be imparted to a ship. This is used for both acceleratin and deceleration so that Hohman transfer times are a distant memory for most.

The second technology is in flight refueling via linear mass driver:

http://www.nss.org/settlement/ColoniesInSpace/colonies_chap06.html

First (and still) employed in lunar industry the mass driver is how bulk, acceleration hardened cargo is sent round the solar system. Driver pods tend to use either reusable or cheap thrusters for course adjustment but computing and station based sensors have long since reached the level where mass driver loads can be safely coordinated.

The mass drivers also deliver sail-net pods which carry more desorption fluid - more reaction mass - to ships while in flight. There resuable sail-net pods and the network itself make incredibly fast transit times routine. These sail-pods are often stowed fore on a ship in order to provide a little bit of extra transit shielding - at the speeds ships can travel in XM2070 a forward transit impact can wreck a vessel. Pods provide a little extra bit of protection. The shallow cone of the sail in front of the ship also provides a certain amount of deflection for small objects like dust grains and the sails are intended to operate with many punctures - which are mended while the sail is furled and re-layered with desorption fluid.

Ships are still legally required to keep a primary (non-maneuvering) drive with a delta-V budget of 1.5 times the regular Hohman transit rating of the ship (delta-V for the regular route a ship is inteded to fly). This law is enforced at the time of ship desgin by AOAN safety certificatin and also enforced by a culture of spacers who would not fly an uncertified desgin except in the most desperate circumstances.

DESIGN NOTES - We are still working on a sail mod part for KSP and it will be a bit yet. However, the handy thing about the sail is it tends to be its own radiator (mostly) so sail propulsion doesn't tend to introduce unmanageable thermal loads. You still need to put lots of radiators on your designs ... but in this case the system doesn't need its own. Sails are often furled so even without the mod go ahead and build. Sails tend to drag the ship along - deployed from the bow somewhere.

Edited January 30, 2014 by Top8

[Captain Sierra]

snip

For radiators and sails, I reccomend first Near Future Propulsion, which introduces reactors, radiators, some awesome electric engines (VASIMR, MPDT, PIT, etc.), and giant solar panels.

I'd not recommend KOSMOS as those panels are notorious for lag-hogging.

These are NFP panels on my Grand Tour ship:

What'ya think?

With TweakableEverything, you can lock the sun tracking on them and then they make great sails. There's also the OKEB-250 blanket solar array (bigger than that whole heat shield).

[Top8]

Wow - those are great radiator panels! I will try that near future mod for sure.

Agreed on the KOSMOS parts in general. They tend to look cool but have issues.

For the Benford sail we need a large slightly conical sail. The cone config is important for beam riding and has some other engineering benefits.

P.S. Also a very nice ship. Mind if we use that one? With just a few minor mods it already fits!

Edited January 30, 2014 by Top8

[Captain Sierra]

Wow - those are great radiator panels! I will try that near future mod for sure.

Agreed on the KOSMOS parts in general. They tend to look cool but have issues.

For the Benford sail we need a large slightly conical sail. The cone config is important for beam riding and has some other engineering benefits.

P.S. Also a very nice ship. Mind if we use that one? With just a few minor mods it already fits!

That's a hyperedited-to-orbit mockup of my Nebulon grand tour ship. The actual version is under construction now. Link in sig. That command pod up front doubles as an RCS runabout and has a docking bay at rear to stow in during aerobrake so it isn't torched. Runs on 12 nuclear engines.

Note that the utility section in the rear is far from final. I may add a giant truss-like bay for my landers between the SSTO bay and the kethane refinery.

I'll get you a craft file for that specific version, which I have saved in the VAB.

To launch it, hack gravity before physics loads (so it won't break on pad), hyperedit to orbit, unhack gravity, use hyperedit again (to ensure stable orbit).

EDIT: In that configuration, it needs the following mods: KSPX, Kethane, Near Future, 6S service compartments, 1 custom part (welded heat shield)

I'll include the heat shield part in the DL as a .rar. OR I can modify to not use welded parts or as many mods.

EDIT II: NFP does actually have dedicated radiator parts which even have emmisives when attached to a reactor and deployed. The other option for radiators is to use KSP Interstellar.

As for a sail, mind if I give it a try? I suck at doing textures, so I might not be able to get a good specular texture done, but what the heck. I'll see if I can do something, if purely for visual effect.

Edited January 30, 2014 by Captain Sierra

[Top8]

@Cap Sierra - Just finished work and need some sleep - should be easy to remove a few mod parts from the ship yes? I may not be thinking clearly at the moment however so if no then of course leave in the vital parts. So long as the list of mods I need for a "universal" KSP install does not swell beyond feasability.

Please do give the sail a try. I have a standard Benford Desorption sail extrapolated from Dr. Benford's papers as circular with a 1 km diameter, very slight conical angle (somthing like 5-10 degrees). Furling mechanism and tow-line anchor point in a central donglly gadget bit. No need to specifically simulate the loop of structral ribbon on the outside as it is only slightly thicker than the sail - sail is un-furled and kept expanded by rotation. No need to show animations or anything at this stage ... just giving you an idea of the standard sail engineering.

Color aand texture of the sail should probably indicate reflectvity ... and the sail will likely glow bright-hot under full power. You have as much artistic liscence for this as you like.

There are also hybrid Benford and Magnetic sails .... but they are 10 km in diameter and not used nearly as much.

I have a guy working on a sail mod part, Grove, and it will be good to see the differences in desgin aestthetic. It is a good thing to have a few different part types. If you take a look at the Research Matrix the game includes 3 products for every technology application in the game. These three product each correspond to a Porter busoness strategy (cost, differentiation, segmentation ...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porter's_generic_strategies). This is one example of how we weave a business lesson into the software.

Heat shield - I was thinking that an aerobraking heat / transit shield mod part would be a snap to belnderize for someone with that skill. Certainly some way of avoiding all those parts would be good and again an opportunity for an easy but distinctive new style element. I, however, have very weak blender-fu. Thoughts?

Edited January 30, 2014 by Top8