Just how ridiculously specific do I have to be here?

[Ilya]

So, I'm doing a standard "orbit" mission around Minmus, in the career mode. I've already successfully done 2 or 3 of these before, but now it's not working, for whatever reason. This is probably the closest I've ever been to the blue line, too. In fact, I'm so close, that both lines just keep glitching together and jumping around. What should I do?

Edited February 16, 2015 by Ilya

[Superfluous J]

Hover your mouse over the AN or DN marker. If it says 180 degrees (or close) your orbit is backwards.

[Ilya]

It says that the ascending node is at 179.8 degrees. According to you, I would be backwards, but in my mission's notes, it says this: . I assumed it meant that my orbit was fine. Should I try reversing it?

[AlexinTokyo]

Yes.

The note gives the inclination relative to the orbited body (Minmus in this case), with 0° being a prograde equatorial orbit, 90° being a polar orbit, and 180° being a retrograde equatorial orbit.

The ascending and descending nodes give your inclination relative to the target or target orbit, with 0° meaning precisely aligned in the same plane, and 180° meaning orbiting backwards in the same plane.

Note that in the stock game (IIRC) there's no way to display your inclination relative to the body, so you have to rely on the relative inclination (AN and DN displays), and the little dots that move around the target orbit showing the correct direction of travel.

[Sonny_Jim]

I might be wrong, but I think the AN is in reference to the target orbit, not the planet orbit. So yeah, you are going backwards :-p

180 degrees would be clockwise, does your ship orbit clockwise?

[Ilya]

You guys were right. I changed it, and it was an immediate fix. In fact, you have to be much less specific with the orbit than I previously thought; I wasn't even aligned properly this time and it worked anyway.

Thank you very much for those really quick and informative replies.

[nekogod]

Tip: The direction of the light pulses travelling around the orbit shows which direction you need to orbit in.

[DrD]

We have all done that. Luckily minimus is easy, the only time I had a backwards orbit there I only needed 160 delta-V to completely reverse.

[Superfluous J]

One more quick tip, IGNORE THOSE NUMBERS. Except the ap/pe numbers IN THE MAP while you're trying to make your orbit, ignore them all. Just make your circle roughly like their circle and going in the direction of their dots.

Seriously I wish that info was hidden, it's caused far more trouble than help.

[Duxwing]

One more quick tip, IGNORE THOSE NUMBERS. Except the ap/pe numbers IN THE MAP while you're trying to make your orbit, ignore them all. Just make your circle roughly like their circle and going in the direction of their dots.

Seriously I wish that info was hidden, it's caused far more trouble than help.

I disagree that the numbers are always wrong: I have flown by the numbers for months without hindrance.

-Duxwing

[Superfluous J]

I disagree that the numbers are always wrong: I have flown by the numbers for months without hindrance.

-Duxwing

I never said they were wrong. I said they have caused more problems than they're worth. You don't need to know the argument of your periapsis and thinking you need to get your actual periapsis argument to equal that of the contract makes one of the simplest and most profitable contracts in the game into something esoteric and unfathomable. To start. As with all things, if you do it this way long enough you'll learn how to get the numbers to move in the way you want them, and slowly get an intuitive sense of them the way you'd have been able to intuitively eyeball it on your very first try if those numbers hadn't led you down the wrong path in the first place.

[Arsonide]

Back when they were first implemented, there were no numbers. I preferred the simplicity of an orbit with animated direction as well, but there was a high demand for numbers, so I added them into a minimizable note.

[tsotha]

Back when they were first implemented, there were no numbers. I preferred the simplicity of an orbit with animated direction as well, but there was a high demand for numbers, so I added them into a minimizable note.

That's just perfect. The numbers are there if you want to geek out, but you don't need them.

Judging from the reddit and the KSP forum, though, what it could really use is 50 pt red flashing text that says "You're going the wrong way!" when they have the right orbit but the wrong direction

[GoatRider]

Another mistake I've made with orbit missions is to not have the right piece of science equipment. I had one where I was sure I had the orbit lined up exactly, and going the right direction, and noticed I was supposed to have a goo pod, not a materials bay. Doh!

[thereaverofdarkness]

KSP 0.9 adds a new feature in which when launching for a specific orbit contract, your chance to accidentally put it backward skyrockets.