[DEVTHREAD] Deep Space Exploration Vessels

[Kamuchi]

The radBoom loh saiFail

https://www.dropbox.com/s/whpp8wigjl9e17l/radBoom.rar?dl=0

[Kamuchi]

No radiators exploding only the egnine overheating in 3 seconds (3 minutes rl )

https://www.dropbox.com/s/hljyp2us4csc3vy/output_log.rar?dl=0

[Angelo Kerman]

Thank you for the logs, that will definitely help find root cause!

[BuzZBladE]

Bug report:

Build: DSEV_0_3_10E

OS: Debian "Jessie" 64-bit

Supernova Fusion Engine can be Activated without engaging any Reactors. Thus generating Zero heat. The trick is you Activate the engine before you Stage the engine.

Edited March 20, 2015 by BuzZBladE

[Angelo Kerman]

Thanks for all the feedback and help testing the mod last night! It was really great to see how people use the mod, and to see what works and what needs improvement. I especially appreciate the help to play-test the Supernova and the stand-alone heat management.

[Simmo2001]

Build: DSEV_0_3_10F

OS: Win 7 64bit

After some testing I have found out you need 24 radiators to cool a fusion reactor and Supernova on the pad. (around high 1680s K)

Running 32 bit and 32 bit in OpenGL gave slightly different heat numbers.

After re-watching DasValdez stream it looks like his RCS problem was down to having no fuel.

On the pad or in space it worked as he had the lifter stage still on once dropped it had no liquid fuel.

[Angelo Kerman]

Thanks for the feedback! I am working on a bunch of issues today. I've solved the RCS thruster problem. I have tested the engine running in space and 12 radiators is just right for the engine running at full thrust. On the pad it does overheat due to the higher temperatures on the ground. To me that is ok, the engine is designed to work in space.

[Angelo Kerman]

Get the latest release here.

0.3.11: Moar Jungle Gyms

Hex Trusses

- Added the double-sized hex truss.

- Hex trusses have additional cross bracing to prevent eye strain. No more escher trusses!

- Hex trusses can be toggled in the editor to have three types of end caps: Open, Braced, and Vestibule. Open is the default.

- Hex trusses can be toggled in the editor to have 2, 3, 6, and no equipment racks. Two racks is the default.

NOTE: If you have 6 equipment racks then you won't be able to access any equipment installed inside the truss.

- Hex trusses can be hidden if you have Near Future Construction installed (which has a better selection of trusses). simply rename MM_Hex.txt to MM_Hex.cfg.

FLM-1800 Multipurpose Storage Tank

- To prevent accidental dumping of resources during flight, the storage tank now requires a confirmation click to change the stored resource type.

Docking Ports

- The glow-rings on the HexPort and 3.75m Docking Ring can now be toggled in flight or in the editor.

Supernova

- If the Supernova is staged before starting the reactor, then the reactor will be automatically started and the capacitor will begin charging.

- After the capacitor is fully charged, the engine will automatically activate.

- If the Supernova can't get enough electric charge while charging the reactor, then it will switch off the reactor to prevent the ship from becoming E.C. starved.

- The Start Reactor button has been renamed Start Engine.

- The Stop Reactor button has been renamed Shutdown Engine.

- Added engine temperature readout in Celsius.

- Removed the Activate button from the context menu.

- Removed extra Shutdown Engine button from the context menu.

- Removed the automatic mode switching button from the context menu.

Other

- Removed the Nuclear Aerospike. Be sure to retire any spacecraft that use the aerospike before installing this update.

Bug Fixes

- Fixed an issue with the Supernova where staging to activate the engine before starting the reactor would cause the engine to overheat. Thanks for the debug logs, Kamuchi!

- Fixed an issue where the Supernova could be activated without starting the reactor, thus bypassing heat management. Thanks for the playtest, BuzZBladE!

- Synchronized ship-wide heat generation and heat radiation via a centralized heat manager. This might actually improve performance as well.

NOTE: radiators will still have different temperatures due to the way the game heats up nearby parts and dissipates heat.

- Fixed an issue preventing the ArcJet RCS Thruster from firing when a ship is equipped with fuel pipes.

- The WB-120 GrapheneRadiator now shows temperature in Celsius instead of Kelvin. It actually already was showing Celsius, but the label said Kelvin. No more temperatures below absolute zero!

- The 3.75m docking ring now shows the correct names for the variant button (Open, Vestibule), and no longer shows the Previous Variant button.

- Fixed an issue where the 3.75m docking ring would show the variant button while in flight.

Special thanks to DasValdez, Kamuchi, BuzZBladE and the viewers of KSPTV for providing vital feedback and testing. It really helped to see the mod in use and to see what worked and what needed improvements.

Known Issues

- Hex trusses aren't showing the proper number of equipment racks while in flight. A fix is in progress.

Edited March 23, 2015 by Angel-125

[Angelo Kerman]

Get the latest version here

I didn't expect to fix the bugs and retexture the spindle and figure out MiniAVC support so quickly, but here you go!

0.3.12: Like A Record Baby

Hex Trusses

- Added a configurable Hex Node. You can toggle the side attachment nodes and switch between open frame (default), bracing, and pressurized crew tubes.

Centrifuge

- Retextured the Spindle. No more primary colors!

Other

- Added MiniAVC support

Bug Fixes

- Fixed an issue preventing the proper number of equipment racks from showing on the hex trusses during flight.

- Fixed an issue allowing the double-hex truss's center vestibule to be toggled during flight.

New promo images:

At this point, you have everything you need to build a kerbalized Discovery II. Barring any major bug fixes, DSEV is in good shape and ready to go on autopilot for a bit- but nowhere near as long as before! My plan going forward is to switch between DSEV and MOLE every couple of weeks so I can make progress on both- and fix bugs in MCM as they crop up. Next up for DSEV will be some revisions to the fuel tanks. Those pesky balloon tanks will be phased out in favor of the new multipurpose storage tanks. I'm also looking into creating LiquidFuel only tanks for those who don't use Near Future Propulsion (which I highly recommend, it is awesome). I think the most expedient method will be to make stock tanks able to switch between LFO and liquid fuel. I think PorkJet's Atomic Rockets does this already, so DSEV's LiquidFuel modifiers will step aside if Atomic Rockets is installed.

[Angelo Kerman]

Get the latest here.

0.3.13: Broken Wings (https://youtu.be/nKhN1t_7PEY)

- Truncated the Large Graphene Radiator to 3 segments instead of 5.

NOTE: With the smaller radiator size, you'll need 14 radiators instead of 10 to cool the Supernova at full thrust. Be sure to build new ships accordingly.

[Commander Zoom]

Great parts! Any images/vids of the spin hub in action yet?

[Threadsinger]

Always good to see more "near-future" tech, like fusion engines and reactors and the like. Keep up the good work!

[Angelo Kerman]

@Commander Zoom: glad you like the mod. Pleade check out the first post, there is a demo video of the centrifuge.

@Threadsinger: Thanks. I have plans for additional updates to work on in a couple of weeks after doing some updates for MOLE, so expect changes..

[just johnny]

Hello possible error with the FLM-100. I assume its to have 100 units of resources. But it says 1,011

[Angelo Kerman]

Hello possible error with the FLM-100. I assume its to have 100 units of resources. But it says 1,011

Thanks for the feedback. It's not officially released yet (Well, I guess it is since it's in the current build), but I've fixed that in the next update.

[ChrisSpace]

Hello, I have had this mod for a few weeks now and I just want to say how brilliant it is, as well as make a few suggestions:

- a second fusion engine with only one epic-efficiency low-thrust mode, like the engine on the discovery II

- something on the fusion generator's stats thing that shows how much electric charge per second it produces, like the fission reactors in near future electric

- larger fusion pellet tanks

- an engine like the D-T vista from the interstellar mod

[Angelo Kerman]

Hello, I have had this mod for a few weeks now and I just want to say how brilliant it is, as well as make a few suggestions:

- a second fusion engine with only one epic-efficiency low-thrust mode, like the engine on the discovery II

- something on the fusion generator's stats thing that shows how much electric charge per second it produces, like the fission reactors in near future electric

- larger fusion pellet tanks

- an engine like the D-T vista from the interstellar mod

Glad you like the mod. I'll add an output readout to the fusion reactor in the next update.

I'll have to think about the engines; each part in the mod needs to add something unique or it just takes up space in the catalog, IMO. I'm not sure what adding a second fusion engine would gain since you could simply not use the pulsed plasma mode. I'm thinking about making pulsed plasma mode a field upgrade, though, which would cost resources and perhaps additional science.

What is it about the D-T vista engine that you like? I'd rather build something that has the desired qualities and offers something unique than copy an existing design.

I can look into larger storage tanks, probably 3.75m inline tanks, or better yet, a generic label of some sort that you slap onto the side of an existing tank and converts it.

[ChrisSpace]

I'll have to think about the engines; each part in the mod needs to add something unique or it just takes up space in the catalog, IMO. I'm not sure what adding a second fusion engine would gain since you could simply not use the pulsed plasma mode.

Good point. If I can think of anything new this engine could also do I will let you know.

What is it about the D-T vista engine that you like?

Mostly the fact it is an inertially confined fusion engine. And what does that mean?

sciencey answer: there are two kinds of fusion engines, magnetic confinement engines and inertial confinement engines. The discovery II engine and the dual-mode engine in this mod both use magnetically confined fusion. inertial confinement fusion has multiple benefits, such as a higher isp, the ability to be scaled up very far, a TWR that can be well above 1, and the ability to exchange thrust for isp like a VASIMR engine. its downside is that it would be much harder to design and build.

translation to gameplay: the inertial confinement fusion engine would have a much higher isp than the magnetic confinement engine, as its isp at full throttle would be similar to the pulsed plasma mode. at full thrust it would have a TWR in the range of 2-10, and would be able to carry very large payloads as the engine itself would be very large and massive. It would have the unique ability that lowering the thrust would increase the isp. for example, if the isp at 100% thrust was 9000s, at 50% thrust it would be 18000s, at 33% thrust it would be 27000s etc etc. however it would cost more science to unlock and it would cost much more than the magnetically confined fusion engine

Also, one more suggestion

- Is there any way to make the radiator systems compatible with near future electric? for example, is there a way I can put NFE radiators on a fusion reactor and vice versa?

[Angelo Kerman]

Good point. If I can think of anything new this engine could also do I will let you know.

Mostly the fact it is an inertially confined fusion engine. And what does that mean?

sciencey answer: there are two kinds of fusion engines, magnetic confinement engines and inertial confinement engines. The discovery II engine and the dual-mode engine in this mod both use magnetically confined fusion. inertial confinement fusion has multiple benefits, such as a higher isp, the ability to be scaled up very far, a TWR that can be well above 1, and the ability to exchange thrust for isp like a VASIMR engine. its downside is that it would be much harder to design and build.

translation to gameplay: the inertial confinement fusion engine would have a much higher isp than the magnetic confinement engine, as its isp at full throttle would be similar to the pulsed plasma mode. at full thrust it would have a TWR in the range of 2-10, and would be able to carry very large payloads as the engine itself would be very large and massive. It would have the unique ability that lowering the thrust would increase the isp. for example, if the isp at 100% thrust was 9000s, at 50% thrust it would be 18000s, at 33% thrust it would be 27000s etc etc. however it would cost more science to unlock and it would cost much more than the magnetically confined fusion engine

Also, one more suggestion

- Is there any way to make the radiator systems compatible with near future electric? for example, is there a way I can put NFE radiators on a fusion reactor and vice versa?

ICF fusion sounds pretty cool, and it sounds like the basic desire is to have a high thrust and high specific impulse engine. To make it unique for DSEV, I have a couple of options. First is something like DUMBO, an alternative to NERVA that achieved a high TWR. One thought I had was to make a 2.5m nuclear thermal rocket, a "Nuclear Skipper" if you will, that would have a high thrust mode that burned LFO, and a low thrust mode that burned LiquidFuel. It would be based upon the Triton, so it would also have a built-in reactor. Another possibility would be an orion pulsed plasma rocket. Basically a firecracker in a can approach... with nukes.

My third option is to do something I haven't seen on these forums before: the Nuclear Saltwater Rocket. I'm leaning towards the nuclear saltwater rocket and already have a name: Nuclear Salted Fizzy Water rocket (NSFW ). I haven't decided yet. I do think glowing fuel tanks would be neat though... Downside would be adding new tanks, but maybe that fuel switch part I'm thinking of would help with that...

See Atomic Rockets Engine List for details on the engines.

The radiator system is indeed designed to work with NFE. I have not integrated it into SystemHeat yet since I'm not sure SystemHeat is working (I get security errors when the SystemHeat dll loads), but once SystemHeat is finalized then I will definitely MM patch it in. In fact, the engine and radiators already use the SystemHeat resource. All of DSEV is designed to be compatible with Near Future Technologies, in fact, and will ask if you want to disable certain aspects of DSEV (heat generation, truss assemblies) if various mods from NFT are installed. DSEV is designed to work stand-alone, but if you have other NFT mods installed then there's no need for some of DSEV's functionality.

Edited April 12, 2015 by Angel-125

[ChrisSpace]

First is something like DUMBO, an alternative to NERVA that achieved a high TWR. One thought I had was to make a 2.5m nuclear thermal rocket, a "Nuclear Skipper" if you will, that would have a high thrust mode that burned LFO, and a low thrust mode that burned LiquidFuel. It would be based upon the Triton, so it would also have a built-in reactor. Another possibility would be an orion pulsed plasma rocket. Basically a firecracker in a can approach... with nukes.

A dual-mode high thrust solid-core NTR? So basically a cross between the DUMBO and the LANTR? I like that. Also, I like the orion idea. I remember one of my first mods was the orginial orion mod, but that had multiple problems.

My third option is to do something I haven't seen on these forums before: the Nuclear Saltwater Rocket. I'm leaning towards the nuclear saltwater rocket and already have a name: Nuclear Salted Fizzy Water rocket (NSFW ). I haven't decided yet. I do think glowing fuel tanks would be neat though... Downside would be adding new tanks, but maybe that fuel switch part I'm thinking of would help with that...

Yes. Please. I have always wanted a NSWR mod. An interesting thing about the orion drive and NSWR is their radioactive exhaust products. I have been thinking about how this could translate into gameplay, and these were the two ideas I came up with:

- any attempt to launch from the space center with one of these engines will result in the space center, or at least the launch pad/runway, being irradiated and unusable until it is cleaned up

- the engines simply don't operate below a certain altitude

having some sort of way to deal with radioactive engines also brings up the idea of the open-cycle gas-core nuclear thermal rocket. it is basically a DUMBO with radioactive exhaust and an isp in the 3500-9500 range.

See Atomic Rockets Engine List for details on the engines.

Good to see I am not the only one who often uses that website. I actually used that as a resource for my fusion engine rant.

The radiator system is indeed designed to work with NFE. I have not integrated it into SystemHeat yet since I'm not sure SystemHeat is working (I get security errors when the SystemHeat dll loads), but once SystemHeat is finalized then I will definitely MM patch it in. In fact, the engine and radiators already use the SystemHeat resource. All of DSEV is designed to be compatible with Near Future Technologies, in fact, and will ask if you want to disable certain aspects of DSEV (heat generation, truss assemblies) if various mods from NFT are installed. DSEV is designed to work stand-alone, but if you have other NFT mods installed then there's no need for some of DSEV's functionality.

This is all very good to hear.

[Fattek23]

Great work!

[Angelo Kerman]

Great work!

Glad you like it. I am currently working on the MOLE but plan to be back on DSEV next week-ish. Meanwhile, I have given some thought to what engine to add, and here is what I am toying with...

NSW-1 Trinity Atomic Rocket

thrust 1800 vac

isp 3000 vac

destroys launchpads upon ignition

destroys vessels within 2km of the exhaust plume

lethal to kerbals within physics range of the plume

if it overheats then vessel is destroyed

fuel tanks glow blue

might randomly go supercritical and blow up the engine

fueled by Firewater (blutonium saltwater)

Edited April 14, 2015 by Angel-125

[ChrisSpace]

destroys launchpads upon ignition

destroys vessels within 2km of the exhaust plume

lethal to kerbals within physics range of the plume

if it overheats then vessel is destroyed

fuel tanks glow blue

might randomly go supercritical and blow up the engine

fueled by Firewater (blutonium saltwater)

This has gone above and beyond my expectations:D

isp 3000 vac

Okay, this is the only part I am a little unhappy with. If the NSWR's isp is this low, then it will not be worth the trouble of using it, gameplay-wise. The ideal isp should be somewhere between 6000 and 20,000.

I'll have to think about the engines; each part in the mod needs to add something unique or it just takes up space in the catalog, IMO. I'm not sure what adding a second fusion engine would gain since you could simply not use the pulsed plasma mode.

Good point. If I can think of anything new this engine could also do I will let you know.

I have been thinking about this, and if we are trying to make an all-in-one magnetically confined fusion engine, how about we add two separate pulsed plasma 'gears'? One would have a moderate thrust and a moderate isp (like the current pulsed plasma mode), and the other would have, perhaps, one quarter the thrust and 4x isp? Since both modes would have the same 'thrust power', gameplay would stay balanced. This also removes the need for a second magnetically confined fusion engine.

Anyway, I don't want to monopolise this thread too much, so now I'm probably just going to sit back and see what happens...

Edited April 15, 2015 by ChrisSpace

[RedParadize]

I was looking for something like that centrifuge. Did you concider making arms part for it? Something like retractable arms that have passage for kerbals.

[Angelo Kerman]

This has gone above and beyond my expectations:D

Okay, this is the only part I am a little unhappy with. If the NSWR's isp is this low, then it will not be worth the trouble of using it, gameplay-wise. The ideal isp should be somewhere between 6000 and 20,000.

I have been thinking about this, and if we are trying to make an all-in-one magnetically confined fusion engine, how about we add two separate pulsed plasma 'gears'? One would have a moderate thrust and a moderate isp (like the current pulsed plasma mode), and the other would have, perhaps, one quarter the thrust and 4x isp? Since both modes would have the same 'thrust power', gameplay would stay balanced. This also removes the need for a second magnetically confined fusion engine.

Anyway, I don't want to monopolise this thread too much, so now I'm probably just going to sit back and see what happens...

The reason for the stats is that the Supernova is intended to be the top end engine for DSEV, and the NSWR would overshadow that. It might actually be too overpowered for my purposes... The other engine I'm looking at looks like this:

DMB0 Tritrium Atomic Rocket

2.5m by 3.75m

LANTR Mode: Thrust 1200 vac, ISP 600 vac

NTR Mode: Thrust 400 vac, ISP 1800 vac

Power Mode: 100ec/sec

TWR: >1

It would allow you to lift off of Kerbin's surface and might be good enough for places like Eve and Tylo.

I was looking for something like that centrifuge. Did you concider making arms part for it? Something like retractable arms that have passage for kerbals.

I had not considered arms for the centrifuge. I left it up to the player to attach whatever is desired.