Evidence of Craters in the Taheirean mountains west of KSC.

[MedwedianPresident]

So...I was doing a practice flight over the mountains west of KSC, flying around the peaks and so. What I noticed is that there are several valleys that are completely enclosed by mountains and look like craters in general. Could this actually mean that the big atoll crater is NOT the only crater on Kerbin and that smaller meteorites can also penetrate Kerbin's atmosphere (which is possible because the atmosphere is only like 60km thick.)

[mythic_fci]

Here's two answers:

Technical: It's like that because the procedural terrain system is used for both the craters and the valleys.

Scientific: It could be a crater, yes.

[KSK]

Here's two answers:

Technical: It's like that because the procedural terrain system is used for both the craters and the valleys.

Scientific: It could be a crater, yes.

Not impossible but I think they're more likely to be caldera. Assuming Kerbin is volcanically active of course.

[Superfluous J]

Not impossible but I think they're more likely to be caldera. Assuming Kerbin is volcanically active of course.

I can't think of a reasonable way a planet can have mountains without plate tectonics, and plate tectonics without vulcanism.

[KSK]

Well, meteorite impacts I guess. If I remember correctly, a lot of the lunar mountains are basically big heaps of ejecta piled up when the larger craters were made.

Plate tectonics seems more likely though.

[Superfluous J]

Well, meteorite impacts I guess. If I remember correctly, a lot of the lunar mountains are basically big heaps of ejecta piled up when the larger craters were made.

Plate tectonics seems more likely though.

Yeah but the Moon doesn't have an (appreciable) atmosphere. Majestic, jutting mountains with lots of visible rock (think the US's Rocky Mountains or Tibet's Himalayas) must be fresh. In a short (geologic) time they'll erode down to something more like the US's Appalachian range unless something keeps shoving them up. On the Moon, once you make a mountain range it's pretty much there for good.

And if there are enough (and big enough) meteorites hitting often enough to create fresh mountains, then you're going to have some issues evolving a species to intelligence

[Whirligig Girl]

Problem with plate tectonics is that Kerbin really only has one continent, and and places that look like they were once separate have the charming problem of not having mountains.

http://www.kerbalmaps.com/

Note that virtually no mountains form along areas that look like they were once separate.

EDIT: I stand corrected. After some closer examination it seems that Kerbin does indeed have mountains along coastlines and rivers and generally seam-like places, characteristic places for tectonic plate boundaries. I can see about five continents.

Edited August 14, 2014 by GregroxMun

[Jesrad]

I can't think of a reasonable way a planet can have mountains without plate tectonics, and plate tectonics without vulcanism.

I can ! But then it's unlikely to fit with Kerbin

[Sylandro]

It's not Taheiran Mountains. It's the RETURIAN Mountains.

Because those mountains belong to South Returia

[The Jedi Master]

Considering that life is impossible without some sort of volcanic activity, then a caldera is possible. Plus, it's interesting to think that they built the KSC next to a dormant volcano.

[Renegrade]

Could this actually mean that the big atoll crater is NOT the only crater on Kerbin and that smaller meteorites can also penetrate Kerbin's atmosphere (which is possible because the atmosphere is only like 60km thick.)

Kerbin's atmosphere more than makes up for it's shortness with soupiness. An asteroid falling through it would land at 80m/sec....

That big huge atoll crater must have occurred prior to Kerbin having an atmosphere. Possibly it's the source of the atmosphere even...

[Sleepy_Steve]

Asteroid made of soup-air?

[Greenfire32]

That big huge atoll crater must have occurred prior to Kerbin having an atmosphere. Possibly it's the source of the atmosphere even...

That's my theory on that as well.

[merendel]

Kerbin's atmosphere more than makes up for it's shortness with soupiness. An asteroid falling through it would land at 80m/sec....

Not if you get them going fast enough. Try slingshoting a D up to jool and then up even higher in a sunskiming orbit that crosses kerbin and align things to impact. Without DRE to burn things up you can impact at prety high speeds from interplanetary trajectories.

That said what is wrong with all of you. Here you are talking about all these scientific ways for those craters to be formed. Asteroids? pft. Volcano? Ha. My explanation is far more kerbal. One day Jeb and Bob had an argument about weather or not it was possible to have too many boosters. Those craters are the impact sites of those tests.

[Renegrade]

Asteroid made of soup-air?

Yep! Soup-air freezes into a solid at 90 Kelvins (90 Kevins flickers between 89.998 and 90.003 on the Kerman scale of absolute temperature due to floating point issues). The soup asteroid originated from the Koort cloud...it probably looked more like a comet as it approached, as soup-air kinda sublimates to a gas-soup (it's half gas, half liquid. It's its own best friend! err wait a minute).. During and after impact, it sublimated completely and became Kerbin's atmosphere.

Or as Ferram puts it, "Souposphere".

Not if you get them going fast enough. Try slingshoting a D up to jool and then up even higher in a sunskiming orbit that crosses kerbin and align things to impact. Without DRE to burn things up you can impact at prety high speeds from interplanetary trajectories.

I've dropped some from orbit or just attached a probe core to follow it in with, and they all slowed down immensely just before impact.. What sort of speed did you have as you approached the atmosphere? FAR wasn't involved was it?

Those craters are the impact sites of those tests.

That I can get behind... It actually makes a lot of Kerbally sense.

[RocketPilot573]

Asteroid made of soup-air?

Soup Air asteroid? I want to grab one with the claw and smash it into the Mun now.

[merendel]

I've dropped some from orbit or just attached a probe core to follow it in with, and they all slowed down immensely just before impact.. What sort of speed did you have as you approached the atmosphere? FAR wasn't involved was it?

No FAR but ya just from orbit isnt enough they slow down to terminal. Think my orbital velocity was somewhere in the 10km range when I slamed into atmo. I also ended up crashing down on a mountainside so I didnt make it all the way to sea level.

[KSK]

Considering that life is impossible without some sort of volcanic activity, then a caldera is possible. Plus, it's interesting to think that they built the KSC next to a dormant volcano.

"Dormant? We needed a live one, Jeb! You see this big metal plate? Yeah, and these shock absorbers. I'd figured if we put them across the top of the 'cano, the eruption should lift a couple of hundred tons to orbit..."

"Dammit, Wernher - I'm a kerbonaut not a vulkanologist!"

[Nathair]

life is impossible without some sort of volcanic activity

Citation needed.