Single Stage to Laythe?

[optimusjamie]

I've seen a couple of posts on Reddit about Single Stage to Laythe craft. The specific thing I commonly see is a small spaceplane with turbojets and ion engines. Is this feasible with NEAR and B9 parts?

[WololoW]

I am quite sure* that a SSTO with enough extra fuel will be able to SSTLaythe.

*Have never actually attempted it, but the logic is sound.

[Random Tank]

It's achievable with stock, very easily infact... 2 S3-14400s, 1 S3-7200 tanks, a KR-2L, a probe core, any of the science equipment, solar panels, and the any of the appropriate nosecoses/adaptors to make it aerodynamic, and with a bit of skill it will land on Laythe, single stage...

[cantab]

NEAR/FAR make getting to orbit easier delta-V wise, though I believe they also make jets less lolOP. It should still be very feasible though, whether you choose a plane or a rocket.

[Spatzimaus]

It's not hard. Take a normal SSTO spaceplane, preferably a decent-sized one built around an LV-N or equivalent, and add a couple ion engines; they don't add much to the mass, and give you more than enough delta-V to do the long interplanetary burn without affecting the rest of your performance.

I've shown this before, but here's my older spaceplane, the Sleazy Weasel 6a. (I'm up to the 7th generation now.) 33 tons, using quite a few mod parts (B9, hybrid ion pack, etc.) but nothing really unbalanced, can land on its tail on airless moons, and handles beautifully in general.

The important parts for this discussion are the ion "pods" seen on the ends of the wings, although there are also several large xenon tanks on the fuselage. It's hard to see from this angle, but there are also about a dozen 1x6 solar panels that extend once you're safely in orbit to manage the electricity cost. (The four hybrid ion engines, the paired blue nozzles, are basically equivalent to two LV-Ns. They're what you use for escape/insertion burns. Slightly higher ISP, but require electricity and xenon in addition to the usual LFO, hence the fuselage xenon tanks.)

And yes, I've taken it to Laythe. I was able to get there, land, take off, refuel once in Laythe orbit from one of my fuel depots, and make it back to Kerbin. If I stripped down the design to the absolute essentials (like dumping the landing legs) and added more xenon, I'm sure I could do without the refuel stop, but I LIKE having a design that has all those extras.

[SlyReaper]

I've done single stage to laythe and back just using sabre engines, but it involved refuelling in kerbin orbit.

[mythic_fci]

Someone made a craft named "Astroliner" that could take 8 Kerbals there, I don't remember who. What I DO remember is that that guy is a spaceplane GENIUS. He also made a 400 part craft that could take 25 tons to Duna and back... And it could be recovered for all the funds spent (except fuel and payload expenses).