Are there any "new tutorials on docking" ?

[SpacedCowboy]

All the "toots" I can find are like .18 and back. Been playing the game for close to a year now, (technically and math challenged) Have been to the Mun and Minmus in numerous saves, (Yeah, I guess a lot and just eyeball it) But, I'm looking for a good video tutorial on rendevous (Sorry, can't spell it) and docking. I think I understand the basics, but I always end up so frustrated because I just can't make the two ends meet. I do get close, but not close enough.

Edited September 2, 2014 by SpacedCowboy

[Kryxal]

Scott Manley's always popular ... this one's about 6 months old.

[capi3101]

The fundamentals of rendezvous and docking haven't changed since 0.18. There are a few more parts to choose from, but the basics are still the same - launch to an orbit that's roughly the same altitude as your target, zero your planes, go with the apoapsis higher than the target if you're ahead it or put the periapsis lower than the target if you're behind it (with the other apsis at the same altitude as the target), wait until you get a pretty close pass indicated, then burn prograde/retrograde at the next apsis (whichever reduces the distance) - and then do the same thing at the next apsis. Repeat apses burns until you're not doing anything productive, then try a few between the apses. Eventually you'll get an encounter closer than 2.2 kilometers, which is when you can switch over to final docking.

Final docking is where you want fine control maneuvers (hence RCS, which until 0.24 was the only real option available unless you had a really light ship, a 48-7S, and good piloting skills). Switch your speedometer to Target mode and when you get to your closest approach burn retrograde until you've zeroed out your relative velocity. Turn to face the target (pink meatball) and burn slow ahead. At 100 meters distance, zero out, re-aim and thrust slow ahead. Rinse and repeat at 50 meters. Then 20. Zero out your velocity, switch to the other ship, target the first ship and aim at it. Set SAS and switch back. Reaim, set SAS and thrust ahead slow. Relative velocity at that point shouldn't be much more than 1 m/s. Just go slow and you've got it.

Something I find helps if I'm launching a craft to rendezvous with another craft in orbit is to wait until the target is about 500,000 meters uprange of KSC before launching, give or take. And by uprange, I mean the distance to KSC is decreasing. Get to that point, look at the target's altitude, and try for a launch apoapsis at that same altitude.

[SpacedCowboy]

The fundamentals of rendezvous and docking haven't changed since 0.18. There are a few more parts to choose from, but the basics are still the same - launch to an orbit that's roughly the same altitude as your target, zero your planes, go with the apoapsis higher than the target if you're ahead it or put the periapsis lower than the target if you're behind it (with the other apsis at the same altitude as the target), wait until you get a pretty close pass indicated, then burn prograde/retrograde at the next apsis (whichever reduces the distance) - and then do the same thing at the next apsis. Repeat apses burns until you're not doing anything productive, then try a few between the apses. Eventually you'll get an encounter closer than 2.2 kilometers, which is when you can switch over to final docking.

Final docking is where you want fine control maneuvers (hence RCS, which until 0.24 was the only real option available unless you had a really light ship, a 48-7S, and good piloting skills). Switch your speedometer to Target mode and when you get to your closest approach burn retrograde until you've zeroed out your relative velocity. Turn to face the target (pink meatball) and burn slow ahead. At 100 meters distance, zero out, re-aim and thrust slow ahead. Rinse and repeat at 50 meters. Then 20. Zero out your velocity, switch to the other ship, target the first ship and aim at it. Set SAS and switch back. Reaim, set SAS and thrust ahead slow. Relative velocity at that point shouldn't be much more than 1 m/s. Just go slow and you've got it.

Something I find helps if I'm launching a craft to rendezvous with another craft in orbit is to wait until the target is about 500,000 meters uprange of KSC before launching, give or take. And by uprange, I mean the distance to KSC is decreasing. Get to that point, look at the target's altitude, and try for a launch apoapsis at that same altitude.

OK, I'm good right up to the point of "not doing anything productive" part. Then that's the part I need to work on. Appreciate your input.

[Kasuha]

My approach to rendezvous is to keep some inclination difference and raise/lower the orbit till I get a trajectory intersect at the inclination point. That is indicated by the crossing marker pointing at exactly the same place as the inclination marker so I find it easy to set up. That place becomes the place where I will meet the ship, actually in just two more burns. First burn is when the "target position at intersect" marker gets sufficiently close and I can move it to match the intersect marker by a small burn at the meeting point, either prograde or retrograde. And second burn is to brake at the target. That last burn can be prepared by putting a maneuver at the point and matching the two orbits with that maneuver. That tells you not only which direction you need to burn, but also when you need to start if you don't want to overshoot.

[SpacedCowboy]

Scott Manley's always popular ... this one's about 6 months old.

Thanks so much for the link! Watched it, and now I'm going to watch it again. Yeah, it's when I start getting close to the craft I want to dock with, is where I start having problems.

[Kasuha]

What I consider crucial for newbies is orienting docking ports perpendicular to the orbit - i.e. towards north/south in case of equatorial orbit. That gets rid of orbital drift and gives you plenty of time to experiment with maneuvering.

[Laie]

I'm looking for a good video tutorial on rendevous (Sorry, can't spell it) and docking.

As to rendezvous, if you are a mechjeb user, it is "Match Planes / Hohman Transfer / Match Velocities" in the maneuver planner. Just run this set of maneuvers and see what happens. Much better than any video, IMO, as you can watch it from all sides and in your own time.

[Harry Rhodan]

Yeah, it's when I start getting close to the craft I want to dock with, is where I start having problems.

The docking port alignment indicator mod shows you every information you need in that case.

[blizzy78]

FWIW, I have made an in-game docking tutorial. Perhaps you might want to try it out.

[SpacedCowboy]

Thanks to all for the tips and links

[Sleepy_Steve]

Related question... if using mechjeb, do existing modules on craft already in flight get feature updates when they are unlocked in the science tree, or do you have to launch fresh mech-jeb parts to gain that functionality (for example, docking autopilot)

[Pauly]

Related question... if using mechjeb, do existing modules on craft already in flight get feature updates when they are unlocked in the science tree, or do you have to launch fresh mech-jeb parts to gain that functionality (for example, docking autopilot)

They get updated automatically.