Radar Altimeter Part Please

[SeattleKCD]

What's the possibility of getting a radar altimeter part? Something that is in the tech tree, uses power, and will give you a read out of distance to actual surface (not mean surface) when you are say under 10-5K meters.

I hate it when a lander mission fails because I can't tell how far up I am and I misjudge and decelerate too late. My kludge solution is to carry a throw away jettison-able part that I detach around 5-10km off the ground. I watch it fall and note it's distance when it impacts.

[technicalfool]

Hi.

There's already a radar altimeter in the IVA view. It's a challenge to do an IVA landing in some of the pods because the altimeter, navball and ascent/descent indicators can be situated so you have to look at them OR the window. It is very possible though!

As for having an overlay on the external view, there's some mods like NanoGuages and SteamGuages. As for whether something like that will end up in stock, I couldn't tell you!

[Pds314]

There is already an alt:radar gauge in every(or at least, almost every) manned cockpit. It tells you at 3000 meters. There is also an alt:radar gauge UI overlay in KER, and an alt:radar variable in KOS.

[Diazo]

And if you want to show your radar altitude on the main display at the top center of the screen, my Landing Height mod does that. (Link in my sig.)

D.

[EndOfTheEarth]

The landing lights can act as a short range altitude indicator. I always put at least one red Illuminator MK1 on my landers, as you can begin to see light from it reflected off the land at a distance of 100m.

[Wanderfound]

Not to forget the old standby of watching your shadow.

Personally, I use Kerbal Flight Data:

Which, of course, should already be stock, but isn't due to Squad's bizarre number-phobia.

[prophet_01]

Yep the shadow works pretty decently (I hate landings during the night though ). Height info is nice for landers, especially in places without atmosphere. For spaceplanes and shuttles it does more harm than use for me. It distracts me and I screw up my approach or velocity. It takes a little practice to eyeball the height but it's actually safer without numbers as you can focus on other stuff. And for approaching KSC the stock height display and navball are enough to get me close and in the right angle.

My nemesis is laythe. I admit defeat for now as I'm just not able to land fully fueled SSTO's horizontal on those dunes It took me literally about 50 very explosive failures to accept that I am simply not able to do that, regardless of altitude info offered by mods...

[ratchet freak]

Yep the shadow works pretty decently (I hate landings during the night though ). Height info is nice for landers, especially in places without atmosphere. For spaceplanes and shuttles it does more harm than use for me. It distracts me and I screw up my approach or velocity. It takes a little practice to eyeball the height but it's actually safer without numbers as you can focus on other stuff. And for approaching KSC the stock height display and navball are enough to get me close and in the right angle.

My nemesis is laythe. I admit defeat for now as I'm just not able to land fully fueled SSTO's horizontal on those dunes It took me literally about 50 very explosive failures to accept that I am simply not able to do that, regardless of altitude info offered by mods...

use lights in the dark

[Starwaster]

Someone already made something like this. Can't find the thread. You'll have to search it out on your own.

[Red Iron Crown]

I think the simplest solution would be to show altitude from the lowest part on the vessel (not the root part, please) when the velocity gauge is set to surface mode. No additional UI would be required.

[CaptainKipard]

I think the simplest solution would be to show altitude from the lowest part on the vessel (not the root part, please) when the velocity gauge is set to surface mode. No additional UI would be required.

This mod does it.

[Red Iron Crown]

This mod does it.

Use it, love it, suggesting it should be stock behavior.

[bv1]

Use it, love it, suggesting it should be stock behavior.

I don't see any reason why it shouldn't be stock behavior.

It also seems like it would be extremely quick and easy for Squad to implement.

[LethalDose]

Which, of course, should already be stock, but isn't due to Squad's bizarre number-phobia.

Yeah, this really is weird. They tell you how much you need to change your velocity for a maneuver, but not the total amount you can change your vessel's velocity.

It's like playing a game that tells you how much an item costs, but not how much money you have to spend.

[Red Iron Crown]

It's weirder still with the radar altimeter, because that info is already provided in-game but is oddly restricted to IVA view only.

[nli2work]

It's weirder still with the radar altimeter, because that info is already provided in-game but is oddly restricted to IVA view only.

probably something to do with the way IVA is oriented. I do wish Internal and Part modules worked across the board. IVA props could would be much more interesting of some part modules also worked in IVA.

[CaptRobau]

This mod does it.

That is my favorite implementation.