How do YOU launch?

[xcorps]

1) eat a dramamine to counter motion sickness and quesy stomach from last night's drinking episode

2) drink coffee to counter drowsiness

3) drink a beer to counter jitters

4) eat a snack to counter alcohol

5) throttle down

6) stop countdown to go pee

7) strap in, resume countdown

8) drink an energy drink because the cofffee wore off

9) drink another beer cuz jitters

10) drink another beer, cuz buzz just kicked in

11) abort. Head to the bar. Resume with step one in the morning.

[TythosEternal]

0) Accelerate time to opening of launch window

1) Throttle to 100% (holding down shift lets me know when physics have kicked in)

2) Turn on SAS

3) Select resource display for permanence, toggle to current stage

4) Ignite main engines and boosters (stage 0)

5) Release clamps (stage 1)

6) Pitch 10 deg when apoapsis altitude passes 2000 m. If the main engines are fuel-constrained, I will throttle them back at this point.

7) From here, I pitch an additional 10 degrees every time apoapsis altitude doubles: elevation is 70 deg at 4000 m, 60 at 8000, 50 at 16000

8) Usually, boosters will cut out around this point, so main engines are throttled back up to 100%.

7) MECO occurs shortly afterwards. Second stage throttle starts at 100%.

8) By this point, I've continued the heuristic from 7) through an apoapsis of 64000 m (30 deg elevation from the horizontal, but usually less because I can get away with it).

9) Once apoapsis hits 70000, I end the heuristic and am now burning tangentially. I adjust second stage throttle until I have a fixed time-to-apoapsis, usually between 1 and 2 minutes.

10) Adjusting throttle to cruise, maintain time-to-apoapsis within the above range, I converge on my target circular altitude--typically around 100000 m (less if I didn't panic and over-burn with my second stage). If time-to-apoapsis drops below 1 minute, I'm too close and may not be able to circularize in time. If it goes above 2 minutes, I'm burning too hard and will waste energy on a higher-than-necessary apoapsis.

11) While performing circularization in 10), SECO occurs. I've been a fan lately of high-thrust second-stage engine, so I transition to my third stage at this point, typically a multi-engine assembly of high-Isp biprops I also use for departure injection.

[Skyentist]

Press space to go to space

[randomness5555]

Press Z to max throttle, press T for SAS, hit Activate Ascent Guidance on mechjeb making steps 1 and 2 pointless yet still do it every time, open the delta V display on mechjeb then hit space to take off. At this point, realise a critical missing component (A way of generating power, enough SAS/fins to actually steer the craft ect) and revert to VAB. Repeat until I get it right.

[Sanguine]

1: Have a teary eyed farewell with your silent daughter.

2: Hug your son.

3: Drive away in your truck, knowing this is the last time you may see them. (Will see them, if you're a Kerbonaut.)

4: Have incredibly loud music play.

5: Fire the main engines.

6: Let MechTARS do the rest.

But generally, it depends on the rocket. Full throttle always, sometimes wait to launch if the engines take a while to start up (like in KW.)

[BNSF1995]

I always use MechJeb. I'm sorry, but manual launching is too hard for me, unless it's a low-altitude test or I want to crash something 'cause I feel like it.

[Guest]

i add maybe 200 vectors clipped into each other.

[invision]

launch

bring craft to immediate 45 degree climb

wait until ap is 55k

bring craft to 90 degree horizontal burn until 75k

time warp to 74k  and circular orbit

[purpleivan]

Launch pad scene loads.

Wiggle camera round to get a nice view of the craft.

Zoom out a bit... no back in again.

Hmmm... sun's low in the sky and it's over there, so spin camera round to other side of craft.

Wiggle camera round a little more.

Hide the GUI (wiggle camera round a bit more) and take a screenshot.

More camera wiggling, to get a bit of the VAB area in view before taking another screenshot.

Spin camera round so it's back in the default pointing North orientation.

Unhide the GUI.

T, Z, Space Go.

Edited July 3, 2018 by purpleivan

[avengerki]

1. Activate SAS

2. Sticky the resources

3. Throttle down to 0

4. Activate staging to release clamps and activate engines

5. Realize there were no SRB's on this rocket and hit max throttle real fast

6. Realize in the mad rush to max the throttle you released the next stage

7. Revert to launch beginning

8. Repeat steps 1 and 2

9. Throttle up to 100

10. Activate staging to release clamps and activate engines

11. Cringe and hope as the rocket is slowly moving down torwards the launch pad

12. Breathe a sigh of relief as the rocket starts moving in an upward direction just before it would of hit the launchpad.

13. At 30 seconds into the launch time(45 minutes later in RL) notice that you forgot to secure the payload with struts so it is trying it's best impression of a slinky.

14. Watch the rocket explode spectacularly after the payload breaks free and then collides with the rest of the rocket in slow motion.

15. Go back to the drawing board

[RealKerbal3x]

Z, T, Space.

[Kerbital]

I'm surprised so many people use the default Spacebar assignment. It's of the first bindings I had to change: too many accidental stage separations.

But, on the topic:

1) Full throttle

2) Release clamps

[incal1]

-launch at 2g with a 5° inclination untill I reach 7km.

-then I lock the direction on prograde and throttle down, to around 1.5g. Otherwise the ascent is too steep, and circularisation takes more fuel later.

-at 14 to 20km, depending on how aerodynamic the payload is, I switch the navball to orbit mode while still locked on prograde. That does the gravity turn for me.

-then full throttle untill the Ap is at 80km, and circularize there.

[Atkara]

Oh what the hell...

1. Activate SAS
2. Ignite engines
3. Increase throttle to max (with shift)
4. Release clamps

[FinalFan]

Holy necro, batman! 

1.  (50% of the time) Check staging; it's fine. 
2.  Z to max throttle
3.  Space to launch
4.  (50% of the time) Realize that staging is wrong. 

[Laie]

Z, T, Space.

Muscle memory is so good that on the occasional craft where I need another sequence, I often mess up.

[MDZhB]

1. Alt-f12

2. Cheats

3. Set orbit

[avengerki]

25 minutes ago, MDZhB said:

1. Alt-f12

2. Cheats

3. Set orbit

Hey, how are you going to have the fun explosions on the launchpad that way.

[RealKerbal3x]

7 hours ago, FinalFan said:

Holy necro, batman! 

Indeed! This thread has been brought back from its long slumber in the bowels of the forums

[Guest]

[Ho Lam Kerman]

I put clamps and engines onto one stage, or don't use clamps altogether.

I throttle up, then press space, and off we go.

[DeltaDizzy]

I use Z, space, and the black magic contained within GravityTurn Continued.

[Mrcarrot]

Z, T, Space, in that order.

[StarStreak2109]

Up... That's how I launch... Up... And then to the side... But mostly up... And if I'm doing it right, I won't come down...

[RoboRay]

I kind of wish that, maybe once a year, the forum admin would run a script that automatically locked all threads that hadn't received a new post in over a year.