An Affordable Space Program: making the reusable spacecraft pay off.

[Hodo]

After dropping the RO mod because of computer problems, I decided to try this challenge.

Unfortunately my craft had an unexpected failure on re-entry. (read pilot error, I tore the wings off of it due to overpressure)

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Station was only 29.6 tons, could have launched it in my SP-400, but decided to haul it up in the heavy lifter SP-406. But that is just the core section, the SP-406 had over 4000m/s delta/V before I ripped the wings off of it. (Still getting used to the dynamic pressures in FAR 13.)

I am planning on trying again later, or just continuing the mission with another SP-406, and just loading its second module up as if I did not crash it, and just charge me a refuel. Seeing as I would have refueled anyway. Next module is the fuel module, and that is slated to weigh around 100tons.

Edit- Additional mission updates.

Second module loaded and launched on the SP-406. Total station mass 100 tons.

Kersta-1 core module 26 tons.

Fuel Pod, 76 tons.

2 Kerbals loaded on the station.

1 Refueling so far will refuel again after the fuel pod.

Next stage launch the extended crew habitat and docking port for ships. Then an additional fuel pod will me attached. Last two stages will be load final crew load and the Emergency Crew Recovery System, or escape pod.

Edited May 6, 2014 by Hodo

[Hodo]

Updated my album and mission.

[Hodo]

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Fourth module added, and mission complete. Mainly because I don't think another mission with an additional fuel tank matters, even though it is WELL within the abilities of the SP-406 to haul another 70-100 tons of fuel into orbit. I think it would be just showing off at that point.

Total mass of the station is 186 tons. There are 8 Kerbalnaughts stationed on board of it. The SP-406 was refueled 4 times.

Mods used are in my sig.

Total points should be about 190 I think. If I decide to launch an additional module I still haven't unloaded the SP-406... it is parked by the refueling truck, because I find this to be quite interesting a challenge to see how long I can keep it operational for.

[SirJoab]

Very nice Hodo! Very clean and precise. I also like seeing how many mods you are using. RemoteTech2 adds a little challenge too. I give you 2 style points.

Your score breaks down as:

+4 for 4 Modules

+186 for 186mT in Orbit

+8 for Kerbals on board

-4 for refueling 4 times

+2 for style

Total : 196 points!

And you're on the leaderboard.

[gchristopher]

That's a huge mass to have in a payload bay. Pretty awesome, Hodo!

How finicky were those ginormous loading gantries to use?

[Hodo]

That's a huge mass to have in a payload bay. Pretty awesome, Hodo!

How finicky were those ginormous loading gantries to use?

At first they were floppy and weak, but I went through redesigned them about a dozen times and managed to get them pretty strong up to about 80tons of lift. The real limit was honestly getting them to settle in the cargo bay without falling through the back, for that I had to use the KAS struts. The cargo would still shift around a bit but as long as I didn't go all "Maverick" on my flight it was ok.

The cargo hauler, or just Hauler-1 as I called it, is almost 250 parts, most of which are struts. I think I have over 140 struts holding it together.

[Damaske]

I've still working on making a reliable SSTO for this. The ones I have tried so far with Lack Luster Labs (aka LLL) have simply ran out of fuel on its way to orbit, or never left the runway due to how heavy it was with fuel. I've been attempting to make a working SSTO, then adjusting it to carry a payload into orbit.

[LordFjord]

@Hodo:

Your SSTO is beautiful - those parts fit perfectly well together. Building with stock parts always has that edgy look. Especially with bigger designs.

Speaking of which... I have experimented with some bigger SSTOs with a 40-80 tons payload range - got a nice working one for 40 tons, but the part counts of these big SSTOs really kills my machine. Two to three hours for an ingame 15 minute launch just ain't fun.

Might try something new in the cargo range of around 20 tons...

Anyway, this challenge really keeps me building SSTOs, which is fun and pushes my KSP skills to the limits.

[Hodo]

@Hodo:

Your SSTO is beautiful - those parts fit perfectly well together. Building with stock parts always has that edgy look. Especially with bigger designs.

Speaking of which... I have experimented with some bigger SSTOs with a 40-80 tons payload range - got a nice working one for 40 tons, but the part counts of these big SSTOs really kills my machine. Two to three hours for an ingame 15 minute launch just ain't fun.

Might try something new in the cargo range of around 20 tons...

Anyway, this challenge really keeps me building SSTOs, which is fun and pushes my KSP skills to the limits.

Thank you for the compliments.

I have since made a modified version of the design which I am sending Single Stage to the Mun and back, with a lander in it for landing on the Mun.

I am also working on a revision of the original design of the SP-406 to make it easier to get the hauler lined up and loaded.

[Progressm]

PROLOGUE

Kerbal Space Centre pub:

Bob: Hey Jeb! Glad you could make it. Come over here, we need to talk. We have a problem.

Jeb: HUH?

Bob: I just came back from the big shots' office in the Capital. It wasn't pretty. In short, our funding for next year is still dependant on us putting a fully functional space station in LKO. The bad news is, we didn't receive any additional funding to assist us with that and we barely have enough money in this year's budget to build a single spaceship.

Jeb: WHAT??

Bob: That's right. What's worse, I was out all night the night before with the Kerbodyne lads, all expenses paid - I may have been promising them some sweet contracts too. Not going to deliver on those promises now...awkward.

Jeb: AARDVARK? THAT'S MY FAVORITE ANIMAL!

Bob: ...what? Jeb, you okay? You are shouting and not making much sense now.

Jeb: OH - sorry Bob, it was that launch pad incident yesterday, see. My hearing is coming back slowly, but it ain't quite there yet. Did you say we have received more funding?

Bob: No sir, quite the opposite. Basically we have no money and we need to put a space station in orbit in order to get any. A bit of a Catch-22, really.

Jeb: Twenty two cats? Can't see any cats here, not a single one. No aardvarks either, sadly.

Bob: Did you hit your head in that launch pad accident?

Jeb: No. Well. Only a little. It's just a flesh wound.

Bob: Yeah. Anyway. So we're in trouble.

A voice from a nearby table: Excuse me, comrades - I couldn't help overhearink your conversation. It sounds like you are in grave trouble. I think I can help you.

Bob: I don't think we have met, mister...?

The Stranger: Kermlev, Sergei Kermlev. A pleasure. You two do not need introductions, obviously.

Bob: Nice to meet you mister, uh, Kermlev. I must admit, I do not see how you could possibly help us with our situation. Unless you are made of money that is.

Sergei: Alas, that I am not - however, I believe I can help. Please, call me Sergei. Now, I have dabbled in spacecraft engineering in a space program...in another country. My personal...workplace health and safety situation turned rather dire there so I am now looking for work elsewhere. Comrade Bob, am I to understand correctly that there is a number of used aircraft and spacecraft parts in the old warehouse at the back of the space centre?

Bob: Uh, you mean the Vehicle Demolition and Parts Recycling Facility? That's where stuff that's so old, worn or dangerous that even Jeb here won't touch goes.

Sergei: Da, that is the place exactly! Please, can you take us there?

Bob: I guess so - I don't exactly see where this is going but I guess we are short on options here. Jeb, wake up and finish your drink, let's go.

***

One busy night in the junkyard hangar later:

Sergei: It is beautiful! Like a prima ballerina in the Kershoi Ballet! But for Space!

Bob: Uh, isn't it a scrapped turboprop cargo plane with some leftover engines bolted on? And what's with the lander can?

Sergei: You are wrong, combrade Bob! This plane will be your salvation! It is beautiful and you will love it like your mother country!

Bob: Well Sergei, it's not like we have a choice. Say, did you just attach that ceramic tile on with chewing gum?

Sergei: It's fine, what could possibly go wrong!

Bob: Yeah, I guess so. What are your thoughts, Jeb?

Jeb: Well, it's a bit embarrassing but I wanted to ask you something, Bob.

Bob: What?

Jeb: Well, you got me thinking about aardvarks yesterday and I was wondering if we could name this space station building operation Mission Aardvark.

Bob: ...that is the most ******ed name for a mission I have heard in a long time.

Jeb: Pleeease.

Bob: Aahh...fine. But we'll name the next one something more glamorous, ok.

Jeb: Thank you thank you thank you!

***

Archibald: Gosh Darnit, Jeb. I can live with you naming the Mission after your favorite animal, but did you have to name the cargo loader truck Axolotl? What the heck man?

Jeb: It's my second favorite animal!

Archibald: Aah!

Jeb: What?

Archibald: You broke two of Axolotl's wheels! I'm supposed to get to space with this piece of junk put together overnight by some guy who keeps saying 'ochen horosho' to everything...and you can't even use the bloody remote controlled loader vehicle without breaking it!

Jeb: Yeah, sorry...can you fix the wheels, please? I'm all the way in the control room, you know.

Archibald: ...grumblegrumblegrumble

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Edited May 18, 2014 by Progressm

[Kasuha]

http://imgur.com/a/UaPUc#0

How do I do the imgur embedding business?

[noparse]

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[/noparse]

Horizontal album layout (the third one in the list) is recommended.

You can find the rest on the BB code reference page.

[Progressm]

Thank you! I'll sort out the album tomorrow.

[the_bT]

Finally done with this...

I originally planed to do this stock, had a ok-ish SSTO rocket that could lift about 20t into orbit and return with a powered landing. But attaching cargo was not really practical so I the project was scrapped. You can find the pretty ridiculous stock crane a few pages back in this very thread...

I figured that I would need at least KAS to do it. While that kinda worked I thought it would be a bit boring.

Then I got into FAR and the whole challenge was forgotten.

Until about a week or so ago. Messing around with B9 and FAR I created a pretty capable SSTO. That reminded me of this challenge.

I wanted the loading to be as robust and straightforward as possible. After some testing lowering cargo into a bay with KAS proved to be neither. I tried loading via cargo ramp but the B9 ramps are not big enough for my modules.

After a lot of testing and prototyping, the best method seemed to be raising the whole spaceplane, then driving the cargo underneath and lift the cargo into the bay from below (The cargo bay is mounted upside down for this obviously). Cargo is docked inside the bay via Sr. docking port and secured with good ol' quantum struts. I know they bend the laws of physics but what else can you do?

To raise the plane I fitted some IR pistons into the cargo bay. The cargo is lifted by a dedicated Cargo Vehicle.

Because the goal of this challenge is reuseability, I designed the cargo vehicle reuseable too. It can load as many modules as needed.

The Mission:

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The Mission went largely as planned. I spawned all Station modules, the spacecraft and the cargo vehicle and went for it. All in all there are 12 modules, grouped into 9 cargo assemblies. The first 3 or so flights were generally uneventful. But on returning from the fourth I discovered that some of the infernal robotics stuff in my spacecraft was not where it was originally mounted, stuff had moved downward.

After one more flight the problem escalated so I was forced to "repair" my spacecraft. I noted the fuel level after touch down, recovered the vehicle, then launched it without cargo and about the same fuel as it had before. I also fitted a docking port that was forgotten when I first launched the thing. I hope that is no problem, I don't think it's against the spirit of the challenge but your call. Nothing I did prior to fitting the additional docking port would have been in any way different if I had not initially forgotten to put it there.

Flights 6 to 8 went without problem. Disaster struck on flight 9. Undocking from the fuel truck messed up the craft view somehow. It was more or less unusable. IVA and Map view remained functional so I went for it. After all, how hard can it be?

Luckily I had very recently installed rasta prop monitor and stuck a few cameras around the craft. Without those and the infinitely better instrumentation this would have been impossible. However the way things were it was tremendous fun

I spent the whole coast to AP with figuring out how to select targets and and reference parts for docking from IVA. That's what they call learning by doing I guess...

Final notes:

* The Spacecraft is a "TT P235-82 Crane".

* Tedia Station has 12 modules + a Tug used for construction, total mass 255t. There are 16 lab stations, it is crewed with 24 Kerbals (2 Kerbals share one Hitchhiker for habitation)

* I did 9 Flights, so I had to refuel 8 times. I forgot to screencap some refuelings but most I got.

All in all pretty cool challenge.

[Hodo]

the_bT,

I am quite impressed with that SSTO, nice craft there.

The funny thing is my SP-406 is still sitting on the tarmac waiting to go, all I have to do is load another module into it and go.

[the_bT]

Mine was parked just off the runway next to the hangar. Then I tried to launch a rocket horizontally using wheels and a giant quarter pipe like ramp.

Needless to say after hitting the ramp the craft disintegrated and a one of the side mounted boosters went straight into the plane

[SirJoab]

Nice job the_bT! I'm impressed with the scale of this operation.

Your score breaks down as:

+13 for 13 Modules (I am counting the tug as a module, as I have with other participants.)

+255 for 255mT in Orbit

+24 for 24 Kerbals on board

-8 for refueling 5 times

+2 for style

Total : 286 points.

We have a new leader on the leaderboard!

[Hodo]

Mine was parked just off the runway next to the hangar. Then I tried to launch a rocket horizontally using wheels and a giant quarter pipe like ramp.

Needless to say after hitting the ramp the craft disintegrated and a one of the side mounted boosters went straight into the plane

I don't think I have used my rocket pad since I have dropped RO. I just don't use rockets much, I can get far more into orbit using my space planes that I have designed then any rocket I have made.

[O-Doc]

I've decided to have a go at this challenge. I've commissioned a new station called Omega Dock.

This lovely was put together last night with this challenge in mind. It's got a bit of a twist in the design too. The whole thing can be configured into an interplanetary mothership and assembled at its destination. The plan is to park it in the Jool system. This means I'm going to take this challenge to the point of assembling the mothership. I'll still post images of final assembly on arrival for the sake of interest.

There's some technical points which Omega Dock doesn't meet so I'll attach a challenge requirements module to supply the necessary battery capacity and science module before discarding it for the long voyage. Or, I may keep them to set up a base on Laythe.

I'll most likely be using the Airwolf for this and take the core(center vertical section) on the first trip. I'll have to modify the Airwolf I'm using to include docking ports on the shoulder to carry up the booms(4) which are light weight but very long. I'll possibly need to do some re-configuration of the cargo bay with extra docking ports. The scales(52) can be rolled out of the VAB and loaded pre-stacked in the centerline. The other sections are fairly common components which won't present any special consideration.

I've previously had an issue with the Airwolf flat spinning when making an unpowered re-entry. I believe I've solved those issues but need to test more thoroughly to make sure. Other than that, she's as solid as a rock and virtually unbreakable.

The ground logistics will involve a fuel tank, refuel truck, two tiered loading dolley with raise/lower gears, a VTOL loader and various assorted clamping units. The orbital logistics will be the usual cast of characters: a ferry tug, a maneuver tug, torque attachment units and RCS stabilizer droids. There will also additional modules to bring up for the transfer; fuel units, engine units and structural booms.

I expect this project to well exceed 200 docking maneuvers to complete. This might take some time...

[Hodo]

O-Doc I look forward to seeing this mission, it really looks like it will be exciting. And why name it Airwolf when it looks like a Swallow? You should have named it, Laiden Swallow.

[O-Doc]

Thanks. The big sister was called the Flyingfox on account of flyingfoxes eating the autumn berries in the backyard at nights and pooping on my deck. So I skinned it like a flyingfox. The Airwolf was just a corresponding name I thought fit well.

Are you being mischievous with Laiden Swallow?

[LordFjord]

Can't wait to see the Airwolf in action, and the shipyard / convertible mothership also looks very impressive.

Good to see the big birds coming out of hiding.

Teaser of my current tests - still all within the plans to pull off a bigger mission for this challenge:

[Hodo]

Thanks. The big sister was called the Flyingfox on account of flyingfoxes eating the autumn berries in the backyard at nights and pooping on my deck. So I skinned it like a flyingfox. The Airwolf was just a corresponding name I thought fit well.

Are you being mischievous with Laiden Swallow?

It just looks like a bird, a Swallow to be exact, and because it is a cargo hauling bird, it would be a laden swallow.... so the question would be, how fast is a laden swallow?

[O-Doc]

Can't wait to see the Airwolf in action, and the shipyard / convertible mothership also looks very impressive.

Good to see the big birds coming out of hiding.

Teaser of my current tests - still all within the plans to pull off a bigger mission for this challenge:

I love dat front wing.

@Hodo

How fast? I would say at least ten frames per second. She's 600 odd parts from memory and dry weight of 80T? I could be well off on these numbers(I know wet and fully loaded she's over 200T on runway). Either way the Airwolf happily takes two full jumbos to orbit so Omega Dock won't be any real issue, weighing in at a wet weight of approx. 150T. She's built comparable size and dimension stations with dozens of modules in the recent past and is proudly wearing those stripes. You know, for extra speed.

[Hodo]

I love dat front wing.

@Hodo

How fast? I would say at least ten frames per second. She's 600 odd parts from memory and dry weight of 80T? I could be well off on these numbers(I know wet and fully loaded she's over 200T on runway). Either way the Airwolf happily takes two full jumbos to orbit so Omega Dock won't be any real issue, weighing in at a wet weight of approx. 150T. She's built comparable size and dimension stations with dozens of modules in the recent past and is proudly wearing those stripes. You know, for extra speed.

Sorry you missed the reference, Monty Python....

[Progressm]

Heh, my old laptop would die if I tried any of your designs - impressive work guys. I'm still going to finish the Aardwark station even though points and style aren't going to come near these beautiful giants. 30 tons in orbit and counting. :-)