I really like the "rescue a kerbal" missions

[samstarman5]

I get the "rescue ______ from orbit" missions so often that I have a dedicated ship design for it. Can't really complain, I've gotten like 600k funds from doing it so much.

That gives you the opportunity to experiment, such as trying a rushed mission that doesn't have all the resources in play. Take some fuel out of a tank or two, change out the manned pod to something smaller, or disable an engine. It will add a bigger sense of urgency to the situation, and up the challenge for you. You may have to leave a kerbal behind in orbit to save the one in distress because he may possess the critical formula for the next generation of engine. And, of course, KSC just happens to be out of pen and paper...

Give us "rescue this ship before it falls into Jool, and BTW you won't get there in time if you wait for a decent transfer window". They've done a good job on the simple contracts, but there's not much to test folks who've already been to all the planets.

How hard would it be to time a contract to only appear when Jool and Kerbin are in certain positions? I am going to say it wouldn't be too hard at all. I like this one. '2010: The Year We Make Contact' had a rush on the mission to Jupiter because Odyssey was set to crash on Io. It would be dang cool to have something like this in the game.

Edited August 18, 2014 by samstarman5

[samstarman5]

Likewise.

Most of the kerbonauts in my program have been recruited from orbit.

That just about gives a feel that kerbonauts may not be native to Kerbin, but instead randomly appear in orbit from beyond. Heck of a way to commute to work!

[Wanderfound]

Lets be honest. That's very much keeping with the mood of the game, but more interesting things could be done.

Not to mention the fact that it's physically impossible for a single ground-based point-sourced thrust to create a circular orbit.

[Renegrade]

Not to mention the fact that it's physically impossible for a single ground-based point-sourced thrust to create a circular orbit.

...with it's periapsis above the current altitude, indeed.

I'd thought of that myself when the contract was introduced... However, if the Kerbal in question had some self-oxidizing flame (or some other type of ad hoc reaction-propulsion) on them as a result of whatever horrible accident befell them (perhaps from hypergolic fuel), they may very well have a (painful) net thrust. Or the accident may have involved them being attached to an actual motor of some kind. Not likely but uh, kerbals-strapped-to-rockets would fit the KSP theme fairly well.

That's what I tell myself when I'm doing that contract, in any case. I dislike the 'other space agencies' explanation that comes up from time to time...

[Wanderfound]

...with it's periapsis above the current altitude, indeed.

I'd thought of that myself when the contract was introduced... However, if the Kerbal in question had some self-oxidizing flame (or some other type of ad hoc reaction-propulsion) on them as a result of whatever horrible accident befell them (perhaps from hypergolic fuel), they may very well have a (painful) net thrust. Or the accident may have involved them being attached to an actual motor of some kind. Not likely but uh, kerbals-strapped-to-rockets would fit the KSP theme fairly well.

That's what I tell myself when I'm doing that contract, in any case. I dislike the 'other space agencies' explanation that comes up from time to time...

Actually...would it be possible with a lifting body and some extremely precise aerobraking?

Not that this would alter the daftness of the scenario, however.

[Renegrade]

Actually...would it be possible with a lifting body and some extremely precise aerobraking?

Umm.. hmm.. well, you can definitely raise your PE in the atmosphere using lift, but I don't think you can get it out of the atmosphere (without some sort of reaction-based thrust anyhow)....?

I can't think of any evolution of aerobraking that doesn't involve a PE in the atmosphere (assuming there aren't blobs of atmosphere floating around in space conveniently heh).. that's sort of the key there.. you can easily have a point source instant reaction put your AP way up in space (most likely blowing you into very small pieces however), but bringing the PE anywhere above your starting altitude is tricky without thrust of some sort.

Oh! a solid body collision from something in orbit could result in a stable, above-the-atmosphere/lithosphere orbit..

If the AP reached high enough, a gravity assist from a mun could help establish an orbit too. I think that orbit though would not be able to escape the area that the other body's SOI sweeps (I had an asteroid that captured itself for a while somehow, and I theorize it got a brake from the Mun, but it eventually re-entered the Mun's SOI and was catapulted out of Kerbin's SOI again).

Not that this would alter the daftness of the scenario, however.

Agreed

Especially when you find them in orbit again and again, in orbits that are better than most people's first orbit..

Recovering them is fun though.

[Mesons]

Actually...would it be possible with a lifting body and some extremely precise aerobraking?

Not that this would alter the daftness of the scenario, however.

I agree about the daftness, but the wording could easily be changed to specify that it was an explosion at an orbiting station or other vessel that stranded the kerbal. Because of the inverse-square relationship of gravitational strength with distance, every orbit comes back to the same position with the same velocity (the orbits are "closed"). This means that attaining a stable orbit is impossible without some dV outside of atmosphere, no matter how precise the aerial maneuvers.

A kerbal could achieve escape velocity from Kerbin and have a stable orbit around Kerbol, though...that is, at least until Kerbin's SOI intercepts the orbit again. That would be one hell of a blast to send bomb-proof Mittop Kerman on his wild ride.

Perhaps the best strategy is just suspension of disbelief. I do enjoy rescuing the kerbals even if the orbits are boring and the lead-up is far-fetched.

[Renegrade]

Perhaps the best strategy is just suspension of disbelief. I do enjoy rescuing the kerbals even if the orbits are boring and the lead-up is far-fetched.

^ That pretty much sums up how I feel about it too.

Nerf the payment on the 0-inclination / low eccentricity missions, and give us some in trickier orbits with better rewards, and I'll be boarding the hype train joyfully.

[KandoKris]

Really loving the rescue missions. I setup a station just for them

I like it seems everyone else just wish there was more challenge to them. I hope one day perhaps the next update it will have expanded to all sorts of orbits and locations maybe even to asteroids that would be cool