Lowest Est. Cost to Launch 1 Orange Tank into Stable Kerbin Orbit - Career Mode

[D04S02B04]

What is the most efficient cost in total to launch 1 Orange Tank into Space?

After putting in a few extra functions of propellant, lights (so u can see when u dock), batteries, solar cells... They generally end up being about 87k and may vary from 80k - 90k depending. I can shave it down to 70k by paring it down to purely fuel but I think having the additional functions are better.

EDIT: Hangar Cost is 86,204. After removing Decouplers, Boosters and all Fuel and Oxidizer, it is 44,418 so net transport costs are about 42,000 +/-. I like to decrease that figure as much as possible.

This is purely a ballpark figure estimate in launch hangar, it's not a final net of recovery cost estimate. Please share if you have any designs that save significantly by costing below 80k, providing functions of refueling, battery and recovery after fuel is used. I have attached my current design to date with FAR mod.

Edited July 30, 2014 by D04S02B04
Updating OP with Costs

[95tiger59]

Im going to assume you want a full tank in orbit, your design looks pretty decent. Im going to assume its for refueling a station. I'll tinker around to see what I can come up with, mostly to see if it is going to a station if it is more cost effective to do multiple launches but not filling the tank all the way

[Renegrade]

After putting in a few extra functions of propellant, lights (so u can see when u dock), batteries, solar cells... They generally end up being about 87k and may vary from 80k - 90k depending. I can shave it down to 70k by paring it down to purely fuel but I think having the additional functions are better.

A little tip here - try putting as much on the station end of things as possible. Lights for instance. That means you only have to pay for them once, and you lose less if your re-entry goes badly..

[r_rolo1]

In the lights, I have to agree that you want your dock target to iluminate itself ( you know, light intensity drops with the square of the distance to source ... ) and preferably in red ( just because humans see red better in dim conditions ). That reduces your batteries and solar panels requirements a lot ...

On the OP launcher, it looks pretty sane ( while I would most likely question the usage of the big monopropelant tank in the payload ... do you really want so much of it ? ) and it is probably near the low end of costs. but if you really want to reduce costs further, one of the options is to use jet engines/RAPIER for the atmospheric stages ( with th optional recover option ). I've seen a 40 k example somewhere in the spacecraft exchange ... I'll be back in a second

EDIT: Ok, here it is ...

Edited July 29, 2014 by r_rolo1

[AlexisBV]

( just because humans see red better in dim conditions ).

Actually it's quite the contrary. In fact, red light is used at night precisely to keep the eyes in low-light mode (keeping the pupils wide open and the retinas high sensitivity) and minimize loss of night vision. So that when you look outside in pitch black, you don't have to readjust to the darkness.

Not that it'll make much of a difference playing on a computer screen, unless the room you're in is also pitch black.

[MarvinKitFox]

What is the most efficient cost in total to launch 1 Orange Tank into Space?

There might possibly be better ways, but here is mine:

One orange tank, octo core, some batteries, 4 parachutes.

1 skipper engine on the bottom

8 turbojets, each with 3 ramscoops for airhogging, mounted on cubic struts and fed from the main orange tank.

On top of this can be mounted one FULL orange tank, on a rockomax decoupler and with a couple struts for stability.

I do not consider the cost of the decoupler and struts as part of the launcher, ok?

Yes, it costs 111713 to built this thing.

WHAT!? THAT IS EXPENSIVE!!

But wait.

It launches the payload orange tank to a 72x72 orbit, and has about 320m/s of rocket d/v remaining to assure a return to a soft landing on the runway of KSC. (4500d/v on turbojets)

Runway recycle value is... 100%

Returned cost is... 108902

Total cost expended, not counting the payload itself: 2811

I can live with that

[Wanderfound]

Yes, it costs 111713 to built this thing.

WHAT!? THAT IS EXPENSIVE!!

But wait.

It launches the payload orange tank to a 72x72 orbit, and has about 320m/s of rocket d/v remaining to assure a return to a soft landing on the runway of KSC. (4500d/v on turbojets)

Runway recycle value is... 100%

Returned cost is... 108902

Total cost expended, not counting the payload itself: 2811

I can live with that

Same here; my Rockomax 64 lifter costs nearly √200,000 to build, but as it lands on the runway the delivery cost to orbit is something like √5,000.

[SRV Ron]

Original design before the availability of those big SRBs and contract career;

Last boost stage is recoverable as well as the fuel can.