Kerbal Space Program

[Tyyr]

How do I set up an abort sequence? I've got a working escape tower set up but activating it is a pain. I want to have jettisoning it as part of my launch squence but I want to also be able to use the abort button to have it decouple the capsule and ignite the escape rockets before cutting the escape tower and letting me use my parachutes.

[stitch626]

How do I set up an abort sequence? I've got a working escape tower set up but activating it is a pain. I want to have jettisoning it as part of my launch squence but I want to also be able to use the abort button to have it decouple the capsule and ignite the escape rockets before cutting the escape tower and letting me use my parachutes.

I think that uses the commands (the tab next to rocket parts, next to the name of the rocket). However I don't really understand that yet as I haven't looked much.

[Tsukiyumi]

You might be throttled up. Check to see if you are. I know the game doesn't like to let you time warp if you're currently burning and it doesn't check if you've actually got fuel to burn or not.

Shit. Okay, thanks.

[Tyyr]

I think that uses the commands (the tab next to rocket parts, next to the name of the rocket). However I don't really understand that yet as I haven't looked much.

Yeah, I saw it in the commands list but I have no idea how to set it up. I prefer to have some escape system for my kerbals and not just write them off if things go pear shaped. I'll poke around. I'm doing my usual thing spending more time playing with parts and tweaking than I am just going for it.

Shit. Okay, thanks.

No problem. I do that a lot when I go to time warp. I wish the game would realize if you're under thrust or not
and not just look at the throttle.

And because I'm just pedantic that way I went and made a chart for how I'll name my rockets from here on out.



For instance last night I launched the XS1O-R1-2L2.5-B2S2.5LC

The rocket I used to get to orbit a few posts ago would be the M2O-R2-1L1.25-B2S1.25LC

The Hera would be the M3O-R3-2L2.5-B6M1.25S

That said I'm not going to continue the save with those in it instead starting over fresh with the Imperial Kerbin Spaceforce.

[Tyyr]

Just wondering, does anyone else keep a mission log?

[Tyyr]

This is what I'm talking about.

[stitch626]

I'm still trying to get a decent equatorial orbit...

Would probably help if my rockets weren't so ridiculous (for example my 1 stage rocket that made it into a rather elliptical orbit, and was successfullish on getting back down was not practical at all with its 50 or so rockets).

However, I did get a successful polar orbit. I have also made many successful manned missiles...

[Tyyr]

I need to get one of my mapping satellites into a polar orbit, then I need to send one for a polar orbit of the Mun.

[Tsukiyumi]

...mapping satellites...

How do you get that to happen?

[Tyyr]

ISA Mapping mod. Gives you parts that you can add to any spacecraft that will generate a height map as it orbits.

[Tsukiyumi]

Ah, cool. Thanks.

[Griffin]

This is what I'm talking about.

I haven't, but I will now, seems like the sort of thing I'll enjoy.

. ... I have also made many successful manned missiles...

Ahh, now that's my speciality.

[stitch626]

A while back, I did reach the moon... didn't have enough fuel left to land... nor the angling to orbit... I went straight in at over 1000m/s. Suffice to say I'm sticking with unmanned for now.

Also... I'm currently unmodded though I plan on getting several... might take a while to decide what.
Are the mods easy to implement with Steam Kerbal, or is it a horror like some games were?

[Tyyr]

It's easy, just have to hunt down the install folder. Mods with Kerbal are just dragging and dropping things into the right folder.

My biggest issue is my fucking rocket won't stop spinning. It's a heavy lifter, central core of an orange tank with a mainsail, second stage with the intermediate sized large tank with a mainsail, then a small third stage using the short 2.5m tank. It uses six orange boosters each with a mainsail set up to asparagus stage. I've got an ASAS on the third stage just below the command module and a regular SAS on the last four boosters (the first to drop get no SAS since the rocket flies straight while I've got six).

Lift off is fine. It'll fly straight as an arrow. However once I drop the first pair of boosters the rocket starts to roll. The ASAS doesn't even start to slow it down and when I go to manual control I can't slow it down either. The damn thing just death rolls. I can't make my grav turn because it's spinning so hard I'll go into a flat spin if I do anything but go straight up. After I drop the second pair of boosters the roll will start to slow but it's still almost impossible to control. It's only after I dump the last boosters that I even remotely begin to be able to get control over the thing.

I managed to solve the weak decoupler issue but the rocket is still fucking uncontrollable. I managed to not let the thing get out of control and wrestle it into orbit last night. It was the ugliest ascent since my first since it wound up being a square flight profile, fly straight up, more or less then once you get sufficient apoapsis lay over 90 degrees and burn hard for orbit. Even after spending the last half of the second set of boosters flight and most of the third just trying to keep the thing from going out of control and pointing remotely upwards I still managed to make it almost to circularization on the first stage. I only had to burn my second stage for about fifteen seconds to get circularized.

The problem? I was circularized in a polar orbit with an inclination of about 85 degrees. That rocket had enough ass on it that even squandering quite a bit of my ascent nearly out of control, flying a square flight path, and going into a polar orbit, it still had enough delta V to put the equivalent of a nearly full orange tank's worth of gas in orbit with one of my fat overbuilt command modules on top. So this thing will be a beast, if I can ever get it under control.

Instead I spent the night building a rover with some floodlights on it's back so I can illuminate my rockets on the pad at night. Seriously, got three of them spaced around my launch pad now and it looks awesome when I go for a night launch.

[Tyyr]

Some more progress.

In order to set myself up for further exploration I decided to try my hand at docking. After some initial snafu's, namely flying my ship THROUGH the big orange fuel tank on my first approach, and then learning about how you really do need balanced RCS for proper translation on my second, I fixed my orbiter design and...

Docked


So I decided to go for broke and put up my first permanent space station.

Pike Station


So for shits and giggles I decided to take a Mun shot. I was on a roll so why stop? I managed to get my Argus 2 mapping satellite there and into a good mapping orbit in spite of a staging screw up.

Mapping


And finally got a beautiful shot of Kerbin, the Sun, and the Mun.

Family Photo


Right now I've got the Argus 3 in route to Minmus and once it's captured and mapping away I'll start work on a rover to practice Munar landings.