Geosynchronous orbit with Remote Tech

[Crutchlow13]

Hi guys. Recently I've been playing a litle bit with Remote Tech and I have to say that it's awesome, but I can't seem to get an unmanned satellite to a geosynchronous orbit, because when I'd have to burn prograde at apoapsis I am out of sight of the mission control. How would you do it? Mech Jeb's auto pilot doesn't work either.

Thanks!

[sgt_flyer]

You'll need to either :

- Send the satellite attached to a manned spacecraft, release it then return the manned spacecraft which was used as a carrier.

- use remote tech flight computer to prepare the circularisation manoeuver and delay it's execution until the right moment

- fly an ascent path much steeper than usual to push your apoapsis up to geosynch orbit altitude, but where the apoapsis will remain in sight of KSC - then circularise directly at this point, and simply raise or lower your orbit to catch up with KSC if you want to remain directly above it.

Of course, you need antenna's powerful enough to remain in range of KSC once the satellite is placed in orbit

Edited November 27, 2014 by sgt_flyer

[Pecan]

Hmmm, tricky...

I think I'd either:

a) Read all, or at least some of, the stuff that's been written about exactly the same issue already

... redacted because I can't be bothered with another forum warning

c) Drop 'repeat stations' around Kerbin so I can 'see' the whole sky

d) Launch straight up

e) Use KOS

f) Wait until the thing came around on its next orbit, then boost it higher

g) Try to work it out

h) Delete RT because it requires too much thinking

i) Delete RT because the only thing it solves is the problem it creates

j) Use a manned ship, since that's low-tech and doesn't have comms problems

k) Use the flight computer

l) Make sure I understand how the mod works

... but apart from that, off the top of my head, I can't think of anything.

PS: Yes, of course I am being a bit sarcastic but I hope several of those ideas will really help. In addition I want to say that this is rocket science, it's meant to be a bit difficult so don't expect it 'just' to be Lego. One thing doesn't work, try something else. It explodes (do it again!), try something else. If it was easy it wouldn't be fun - and with RT, particularly, if you want it to be easy just delete it!

[Zeenobit]

From experience, I would suggest you to not try to get a Geosynchronous orbit with your first set of communication satellites.

Here's what I do instead:

1. Launch your satellites into a relatively low orbit. 1,500 km is a good approximation.

2. Make the satellite communication links, and make sure they work. A <-> B <-> C ...

3. Get them into a somewhat rough shape of how you'd want them to be in geosynchronous orbit.

At this point, you have a rough, approximate version of your final geosynchronous orbit. If you mess up, at least now you can rely on the window when the satellite passes over KSC to regain control of your satellite and make any needed adjustments.

Once you get that set up:

4. Pick one of your satellites by random, and try to adjust its orbit so that the apoapsis is at 2868 km (geosynchronous), slightly ahead of KSC. You'll have to do some trial/error/math with this to get it right.

5. At apoapsis, circularize. Don't worry about fine-tuning the orbit yet.

6. Repeat 4 and 5 for the other two satellites, or however many you have. But for them, put the apoapsis where you'd want the satellite to be relative to each other.

7. Go back to each satellite and make the final adjustments.

To me, this is MUCH simpler than trying to launch straight into a geosynchronous orbit. The main problem with doing this in one shot is that if you mess up, and your first satellite isn't somehow set up properly prior to losing connection, then it will never move relative to Kerbin's surface. So adjusting it becomes much, much, much more difficult. You also save a lot on fuel.

[The_Rocketeer]

Wow Pecan, I guess some people just have enough friends already, huh?

When I shoot for GSO I use a manned vehicle with a cargo bay to deploy my relay, but it would work just as well with a probe as long as you use an antenna that's safe to low orbit. I fly straight up until I'm already out of the atmosphere, being careful not to get my apoapsis too high. Then I start to circularise quite gently at first being careful to make sure that I keep my craft more-or-less straight above KSC, i.e. not too circular too soon as that will make me orbit faster than Kerbin turns below and I'll leave KSC behind. Once I'm getting closer to GSO altitude, I burn more aggressively, especially if I've been too slow and fallen behind Kerbin's rotation up to this point.

I've never been so far off that KSC was out of line of sight by the time I circularised, but if that did happen, I would stop the circularise burn just short so that after a couple of orbits I'll catch up with KSC again - the same as a docking intercept.

Edited November 27, 2014 by The_Rocketeer

[ExavierMacbeth]

Personally a 3 point geosync is too much of a pain in the butt. Unless you have a very large case of OCD you will always have 1 of the sats drifting out of sync after a game month or so.

Generally what I do is put one into geosync directly above the ground station then fill a lower orbit with antenna relays... for me these are the "Build Orbital Station" contracts from Fine Print, a pair of empty hitchhiker cans, a probe core, a omni anteana, solar panels, and a docking port. Set them as Debris so I don't see them again. Get about a dozen of them up in random orbits at about 150km and your single Geosat can see enough of them to relay around the planet as needed.

For getting the first one into Geo sync, assuming you don't deploy it with a manned mission, your best bed is to get the thing into a stable orbit... any orbit above the atmo with a 0 incline. Then set up burns to increase the apo everytime the KSC has a communication range until you get it out to geosync. Might cost you extra Dv if you don't want to wait for direct alignments but as long as you stay out of the atmo your good. After that its just a matter of waiting for the KSC & Sat to line up at the apo for circulation.

Also if your going to mis a burn, set the node then use remotetech's flight computer to force it to aim properly & fire off the engines. Its actually very effective but it will only do 1 node at a time.

[Pecan]

Wow Pecan, I guess some people just have enough friends already, huh?..

Those willing to read to the end of the post, yes *grin*. Amongst that lot were several good suggestions condensed from really looking at what people have done with RT. Half the fun is in deciding if people want AN answer on a plate or a kick up the *&&^% to find one for themselves. I'm doing Crutchlow the honour of assuming he would like to be nudged towards multiple-options rather than "here is the answer for the learning-impaired".

[RainDreamer]

I started out with a set of cheap relays first in close orbit to make sure connection can be reached all around kerbin before putting things into higher orbits. It makes thing easier.

[theersink]

I started out with a set of cheap relays first in close orbit to make sure connection can be reached all around kerbin before putting things into higher orbits. It makes thing easier.

Try starting here. Provides a pretty good step program for a basic comm sat relay network.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/88879-Beginner-s-Notes-on-Remote-Tech-2-in-Career

[Streetwind]

I launched my first satellite... into orbit. Of course, getting it pushed out as much as I can right away isn't bad, but any ol' orbit will do.

Then I timewarped for the ~30 minutes it took my satellite to loop around the back of Kerbin until KSC was above the horizon again and I regained control.

From that point on I had plenty of time to raise my orbit to geostationary without drifting out of control range again. Tadaa, geostationary commsat without bothering with any LKO relay stations or manned delivery vehicle

My starter constellation, incidentally, is a quartet of sats with nothing but a 5 Mm omni antenna. Spacing them out evenly around geostationary orbit puts them roughly at 4.8 Mm distance from one another, so they can talk to each other (and anything anywhere near or on Kerbin) just fine. Later-on, I'm going to toss dedicated dish antenna satellites up there that point at specific places. They don't even have to be geostationary anymore because they'll just link back to Kerbin via the existing omni network.

Edited November 27, 2014 by Streetwind