Testing a Tylo lander

[loch.ness]

My read-out mod is Mech-Jeb and apart from a couple Scan Sat radar dishes everything else on my lander is stock (currently).

I tested a prototype Tylo lander for an upcoming Jool mission by launching it from the Kerbin. It reached an apopsis of 66km with more than a few errors and using Nukes (so burning alot of Delta V through poor atmospheric isp. Mechjeb had rated the lander at about 6.8k delta V for Tylo until I put RCS ports on it at which point it dropped to 5.8k Delta V. Some of the D'v is comming from detachable lv 909 (for that initial push) but their fuel tanks are set up so that the nukes could drink them too (but at a much lower TWR).

Question 1 - do I need to keep my TWR > 1 for Tyloo take off and flight or would dropping to ~0.5 be acceptable? (this isn't about the landing part, its about taking off again - I'm not sure how well I'll do on the landing).

Question 2 - if the lander flies in Kerbin with atmosphere - how much better should I expect it to do on Tylo (No atmo, slight lower gravity).

(Edit: Answered - Thanks!)

Edited May 8, 2014 by loch.ness
answered

[SpenSpaceCorp]

You DEFINITELY need a TWR greater than 1, especially as there is no atmosphere to slow you down. For a land/return, its better to use asparagus poodles/skippers for landing and launch. Tylo is probably the second toughest body to land and return from, and is not to be taken lightly. Secondly, if it flies alright on Kerbin (no wings), then it should be alright for Tylo.

[loch.ness]

Thanks. I'm currently planning my first trip to the Jool system. I've got a boat for Laythe (and almost done with the plane) and am testing my landers for the other moons. I was originally planning to skip Tylo entirely. On testing I found my current MAL (Munar Adventure Lander) was over-engineered with almost 4.8k Delta V and thought, maybe I could adapt that for Tylo. The single manned TAL I worked up should have a high enough TWR with all 6 engines firing, but I'm not sure. I'll test it a bit more later, but I won't be too upset if I have to skip Tylo on my first trip to Jool - I can save it for attempting the Jool 5 challenge sometime in the future.

[Xavven]

Question 1 - do I need to keep my TWR > 1 for Tyloo take off and flight or would dropping to ~0.5 be acceptable? (this isn't about the landing part, its about taking off again - I'm not sure how well I'll do on the landing).

In order for your lander to get off the ground, it needs a TWR higher than 1 for the body it's on. If mechjeb lets you switch the TWR readout to different celestial bodies, make sure you've selected Tylo. Otherwise, you'll have to convert by hand by dividing by 0.8 (Tylo has 80% of the surface gravity compared to Kerbin).

As an aside, I highly recommend an even higher TWR for your landing. On my first Tylo landing, I vastly underestimated its gravitational pull and ended up crashing. I was successful only when I

--- eek - lightning storm and hail IRL. Gotta unplug the electronics. I'll finish this post later

Question 1 - do I need to keep my TWR > 1 for Tyloo take off and flight or would dropping to ~0.5 be acceptable? (this isn't about the landing part, its about taking off again - I'm not sure how well I'll do on the landing).

Question 2 - if the lander flies in Kerbin with atmosphere - how much better should I expect it to do on Tylo (No atmo, slight lower gravity).

(Edit: Answered - Thanks!)