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[AAR] The Godspeed Program--Landing on an Asteroid

The Jedi Master

By The Jedi Master
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The Jedi Master

The Jedi Master

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GODSPEED.png

kudos to bwalker1974

As many of you know by now, Squad is working with NASA--yes, THAT NASA--to create a mission pack that will involve a mission to an asteroid--an actual asteroid, not some silly on-rails mini-planet. It wasn't until now that I thought--'Wouldn't that make a great story?' So this is that story, following the tests leading up to the actual mission...

For proper atmosphere, listen to 'Kingdom Hearts-Dearly Beloved' before reading. :)

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Chapter One--The Idea

K1 Observatory--Devanurary 12th, 230 AU (After Union)

The last couple months had been slow.

As it turned out, there was no real plan regarding the fiscal year in late 230. The plans for a Kraken Drive, while exciting, were science fiction as far as the Jedi Space Program was concerned. Wernher's suggestion of a Moho mission was shot down almost as soon as it was brought up, as had Jeb's idea for an SRB SSTO. As for Gene's EAV (Eve Ascent Vehicle), it was regarded with the same amount of seriousness as the Kraken Drive.

That was why Bob was staring at the stars tonight--he wanted to help out. He thought that if he could find something in the sky to visit, the JSP could be great once again. He may have been a wimp, but he helped a friend in need.

A small speck of light caught Bob's eye. He had been at this observatory many, many times, and he had never seen that speck.

He zoomed in the telescope as far as he could.

article-2018477-0D208ED300000578-337_634x598.jpg

It slowly dawned on him what this was. The Kerbol system had no asteroid field, but the scientists had seen such things in other systems, and they always said that a very loose asteroid system might be possible. They had also said that, if they could find one, a landing might also be possible.

Bob got on his cell phone and called the Director. One ring... two... three...

Bob heard a yawn on the other side. The Director.

"Who is it? It better be important, it's almost midnight!"

"Director, I have just made the greatest discovery in the history of kerbalkind."

"This better not involve sandwich making."

"It doesn't..."

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KSC R&D Center, The Next Day

There was a mumble of voices among the crowd as Wernher stepped up to the podium. News spread fast on Kerbin. Nobody knew quite what to make of it. Some said that a giant rock in the sky didn't deserve this kind of attention. Others said that this was more than a giant rock in the sky, that this might hold the key to a Grand Tour.

Wernher was one of those others. He tapped on the mic to get everyone's attention. "Gentlemen, what we have here is the greatest discovery since the planets. As many of you know, Bob Kerman has found the first confirmed asteroid in the Kerbol system. From study of its trajectory, we have determined that it is not on a collision course. It is, however, close enough to put on a close-encounter course with Kerbin through use of powerful rockets."

There was much more talk in the room now. This was insane, it had never been done before. Wernher tapped the microphone again.

"Anyway, Congress has approved a manned mission to this asteroid, which Bob has named Unity. We will have to do many tests of many pieces of equipment, but in the end, we will land a kerbal on Unity."

One reporter raised his hand. "What do you plan to call this program?"

"Well, we'll need some luck, so Bob has named the program Godspeed..."

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Feedback is always appreciated! Also, some pointers on what kind of tests I should do to prepare would be nice. Thanks for reading!

Edited by The Jedi Master
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The Jedi Master

The Jedi Master

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We're back everyone. Have you ever read that post on Hyperbole And A Half about how the writer will never be an adult because she is horrible at responsibility? Yeah, that pretty much sums me up. That's why it takes me so long to update these things. That's the bad news.

The good news is, guilt eventually gets to me, so we have a new chapter! Enjoy!

Chapter Two--The Plan

Mission Control--A Few Hours Later

Wernher strolled in and put several files on the table. "This, my friends, is my brilliant plan."

Gene glanced over to the papers. Werner had always been a bit off-center, but this was just flat-out insanity. For starters, was he really planing to trap it with a net? It was an asteroid, not a fish!

Wernher cleared his throat. "Now, I know you all think this is crazy. Really, it is. But I am not suggesting we do all this in one mission, no no. What I am suggesting is that we test these methods."

The Director threw up his hands. "On what, Minmus?! There aren't many things in the system quite like this."

"Actually..." Wernher pressed a button on the remote he was carrying. "There is."

An image appeared on screen.

270px-Gilly_tracking.png

The Director facepalmed. "Oh boy, what has Bob gotten us into?" He looked at the paper marked Plan.

Godspeed 1: Land a probe on Gilly

Godspeed 2: Land a kerbal on Gilly

Godspeed 3 and 4: Test the net method (launch Godspeed 3 into orbit, then try to bring it back by entrapping it in a net of some sort)

Godspeed 5: Test the push method (land another probe on Gilly and see how much thrust we can get, even if we can't actually move it)

Godspeed 6: Move Unity into Kerbin orbit using whatever method worked better

Godspeed 7: LAND ON UNITY

He took his pen and scrawled his signature on it. "Make it work, Gene."

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The Jedi Master

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Chapter Three--New Times

Kerbin--235 AU

A lot can change in five years.

First, the Gilly project was a complete flop. Despite reaching the orbit of Eve, the main computer on the Godspeed 1 had a serious bug, meaning that the Gilly intercept maneuver could not be completed. The Jedi Space Program cancelled the Gilly landing for the indefinite future, but assured everyone that a kerbal would indeed step on Gilly someday.

Second, the push and net methods were ruled impossible by the Director, and were abandoned. At first, Werner was horrified, but he knew that he had to make something that could grab the asteroid. So, he made a new way to latch onto things: The Claw. The Claw was, as the name suggests, a claw, reminiscent of those found in grabbing games in grocery stores that are impossible to win. It could grab onto anything: Asteroids, ships, even kerbals.

Third, Werner decided on his own that the old parts weren't big enough for the job of moving something so huge, and created a whole new class of big.

1eK2a5f.png

These new parts--which Werner called 'SLS' parts for some reason--were absolutely massive. Even Jeb was a little startled at their sheer size. Bob had simply screamed "WHAT THE FLUFF?!" and fainted. In any case, the Jedi Space Program would never have to worry about space station modules and other payloads being too heavy again.

Fourth, Gene had discovered something amazing: As it turned out, there was a whole asteroid field right between Kerbin and Duna, and no one had noticed before because the things were so darn small and sparse. The Tracking Station was immediately upgraded to track these asteroids and accurately plot their trajectories. A size labeling system was created, ranging from Size A (smallest, no bigger than an average Mun lander) to Size E (largest, bigger than most entire rockets). Unity was a Size E.

Fifth, it turned out that initial calculations were wrong. Unity was, in fact, on an impact course with Kerbin.

dxLyzZM.png

Kerbalkind's first reaction was to scream and run around in circles. Once enough people calmed down, a plan was formed. The Jedi Space Program would lead the effort to redirect the asteroid away from Kerbin. The Godspeed Program gained a new significance, as the last beacon of hope for civilization.

Finally, Bill came back...

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Yes, I ended in a cliffhanger! Tune in next time to see our favorite level-headed kerbal come out of retirement! Friendly criticism is always appreciated! Thanks for reading!

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The Jedi Master

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Mt.Duna, Pyramidian Desert, Three Days Earlier

Jebediah took a deep breath and knocked on the door. Bill's house was shabby and lonely, but Jeb supposed it made sense given what Bill had been through. A voice came from inside.

"Come in, the door is unlocked."

Jeb opened the door and found that he was surrounded by dust. Dust on the table, dust on the walls, dust on the floor. It was like no one had stepped foot in the room in a long, long time. He chocked a bit on the cold, stale air. Not the nicest place to have a heart-to-heart conversation, but it would have to do. It wasn't like Bill would have agreed to meet him anywhere else.

The voice called again. "Mind the dust, I mostly just stay in the living room. It has an attached bathroom and kitchen."

Jeb walked carefully into the living room. There he saw Bill slumped on the couch, watching television with a beer in his hand. On the TV, a news report played, discussing the discovery that Unity was on a collision course. It was mostly panic-ridden hyperbole, as usual.

Bill turned. "Jeb. It's been a while."

"Yeah," the kerbonaut replied, a little shaken by Bill's tone of voice.

"What brings you here?"

"You have to come back."

Bill turned slowly, again looking at the television. "I knew you'd try to make me come back. Sorry, no can do."

"But why? Why turn your back on us, this duty, for this?" Jeb gestured around the room.

"Duty? Look at this." Bill pointed at the TV. "We have four months to live, Jeb. What is the meaning of duty now?"

"So you're going to waste those four months living in this pigpen?"

"It's all I can do. After all my failures."

Jeb sat down on the couch next to Bill. "You still blame yourself for Danke and Roning, don't you?"

"Yeah I do, because it's true. Danke... if I had just landed a little closer we could have save him. Roning... if I had been the first down there, he wouldn't have been attacked. It should have been me, Jeb."

"Don't tell me you're suicidal!"

"No, I'm not. Throwing my life away and jumping into the biggest uncertainty in Kerbal history? That's too much trouble."

Jeb grabbed the televisions remote and threw it into the TV. Both went up in sparks and smoke and glass. Bill didn't even flinch.

"Don't you see what you've become?!" Jeb yelled. "How far you've fallen?! You gave up your passion and moved to a pointless life in the middle of nowhere out of fear. Not even guilt--you did it out of fear. Can't you see how pathetic that is?!"

"Yeah, I can. But why stop now?"

Jeb grabbed Bill by the arm. "I'll show you why!"

He dragged his friend, his comrade, outside and pointed up. When Bill didn't look up, Jeb grabbed his head and pulled it up.

Picture%2B11.png

image courtesy of http://www.sarahfritzlerblog.com

"That's why, Bill. For that place." He pointed at a particularly bright dot in the sky. "See that? That is Minmus. You went there. You said you loved it. Don't you want to go back?"

Bill looked thoughtful. "We need you, Bill."

William 'Bill' Kerman, student of Werner von Kerman, first kerbal on Minmus, head philosopher of the JSP, hero of millions of little kerbals and Jebediah's best friend, looked down. "All right. I'll do it. I'll come back."

“Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of.â€Â

--Benjamin Franklin

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I ended in a quote, yeah. Deal with it.

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Tw1

Tw1

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Thought there would be a bit more enthusiasm...

The fanworks subforum is often slow. Commenters often take their time, and some stories need to be built significantly before they get much attention. This story's not bad, though imho, the switch from event focus to character focus was a little sudden, but that's no problem, it just means there's more story to flesh out in the future.

Also make sure you practice a few times before you go for this story's asteroid. The rendezvous is tricky. Good luck!

Edited by Tw1
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