Burn time grows instead of shrinks ... What I learned today

[ioexcept]

If this is a little simple - it just shows you how easily the little things can trip you up, to the point:

I finally make it to Duna with Jeb and Bill, we land, gather our science (trying to get that 1000 sci for the electromagnet), and jump back into space. We meet up with the recon engine, dock (OMG - without RSC engines ... #ksppain), and head back to Kerbin. After breaking Duna gravity I start to match planes with Kerbin - my burn time grows 21, 22, 23, 24 ... totally confused. I try to circularize ... 1m 20, 1m 21, 1m 22 ... Now I'm thinking the Kraken is coming up behind me. Quicksave and exit ... restart the engine and the exact same thing happens again.

Finally I zoom in on my craft and noticed that after I docked, I was still controlling the unified craft from my lander ... WHICH WAS UPSIDE DOWN I added a quick screenshot so peeps can see my mistake. The thin red lines show two craft control points (Sr decoupler and 2 man can) and which way "North/Up" is considered by the game engine - so if you try to thrust in a given direction, your burn time will go up - not down. Secondly in the diagram, the little green arrow show control point (Sr decoupler) and the big green shows engine "North/Up" ... which is where you always want to control your craft.

TO THE MUN!

[Sirrobert]

Lol

Yea I've had this a few times to.

It's extra fun if you let Mechjeb's autopilot try to take off from Kerbin with an upside down control point. And than try to figure out why the hell Mechjeb is flipping your rocket

[Duke23]

Haha, done that a time or two. For me it's usually sideways instead of upside down though because of the way I sometimes mount probe cores...

Last night I was attempting to build an ssto and when I checked my delta v with Mechjeb it was in the negative. Hm, must be something to do with the engines I'm using. Or possibly the fact that I had built everything in front of the in-line cockpit instead of behind it without paying attention. Luckily I caught that one before it left the ground.

[XOIIO]

Lol

Yea I've had this a few times to.

It's extra fun if you let Mechjeb's autopilot try to take off from Kerbin with an upside down control point. And than try to figure out why the hell Mechjeb is flipping your rocket

Lol, no kidding, for some reason it works now though, I had an upside down ship and it took off no probelm, then a realised in orbit that I was controlling from the wrong pod.

[cantab]

Done this mistake so many times. Controlling from a point reversed 180 usually gives itself away by the rapidly increasing burn time, but when I had control from a point 90 degrees out I first thought my engines were faulty. Nearly messed up a mission because of that, wasted a load of fuel.

[technicalfool]

Even the professionals have gotten their up and down (or in this case, left and right) confused sometimes.

A very successful failure, I would say.

[Sirrobert]

Even the professionals have gotten their up and down (or in this case, left and right) confused sometimes.

A very successful failure, I would say.

Talk about a Kerbal moment