Use science modules to populate information in knowledge base

[Nachbar]

My suggestion is that you have to use science modules to learn specific characteristics about the other planets/moons. For example if you set your focus to Duna in the orbit view you can click the info and parameter button on the right to learn about the celestial body. I think it would be neat if specific information like gravity, atmosphere, temperature, escape velocity, etc. had to be learned by sending a probe with the required modules to the planet and report its findings back to Kerbin. Basically things that Kerbals couldn't figure out from observations at Kerbin had to be learned this way.

This could be tied into the career mode/contracts as well.

I hope this hasn't been suggested before and if it was I apologize. I did a basic search and checked the stickies but couldn't find anything similar.

[RSwordsman]

Sounds really cool, almost like *gasp!* actual science. I think KSP would benefit a lot from that, so long as it was a career-mode only thing. All the information would be readily available in sandbox mode.

[Nachbar]

Yeah definitely Career mode only. I think you could even expand on it and have Planets appear as question marks until you have visited. Once you have entered a sphere of influence make the planet and its moons visible.

[Atoning Unifex]

This has actually been suggested before, but not seen it mentioned recently. I personally like the idea of discovering details about the planets this way, although I recall that there were quite a lot of people really anti this idea. I'm not quite sure why though. Anyway, i'd like to see it!