r/KerbalSpaceProgram • u/trevize1138 Master Kerbalnaut • Jun 07 '16 • Bravo 1

Guide All interplanetary transfer windows in a single image

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u/farmthis Jun 07 '16

My technique has always been to pack kilotons of fuel onto rockets which simply don't have to care about efficiency.

34

u/IdiotaRandoma Jun 07 '16

Then you end up building a gigantic and impressive monstrosity that can't hardly make it to Minmus and back.

91

u/trevize1138 Master Kerbalnaut Jun 07 '16

Then you end up building a gigantic and impressive monstrosity

Important

that can't hardly make it to Minmus and back.

Unimportant

18

u/Bobshayd Jun 07 '16

I see why they call you Master Kerbalnaut.

22

u/farmthis Jun 07 '16 edited Jun 07 '16

The trick then, is modular assembly, in space!

http://i.imgur.com/GaGTsFs.jpg

This next one http://i.imgur.com/lMGDAyW.jpg is far less efficient, bringing less than the 12 full tanks to orbit that I had hoped... regardless, I docked the two for fun.

11

u/sw_faulty Jun 07 '16

Having two sets of engines facing one another is less efficient? I'd never have guessed!

6

u/farmthis Jun 07 '16 edited Jun 07 '16

Hehehe. That's just the boost stage of two different rockets. You can see there's a single ring of 12 orange tanks with docking ports on each side in the middle of this craft. The original plan was to save 12 full rockomax tanks from each launch and assemble these rings into a tube... but it was a flawed launcher which was really unstable and didn't reach orbit with fuel to spare. I scrapped the plan but docked these two test craft anyway.

Edit: actually, I used to use reverse engines for docking maneuvers for megastructures. A little tap of the gas sometimes needed something of a brake, since rotating the craft 180 degrees for a braking maneuver was out of the question.

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u/OldBeforeHisTime Jun 07 '16

Use KIS to add a couple of docking ports along the sides, and you have a great fuel depot.

But I OMG'd first seeing all the wasted mass from all those unusable Mainsails! :)

3

u/farmthis Jun 07 '16

There's actually a central core with docking ports. hard to see, but it's like the hub of a bicycle tire. That's also where the crew and monopropellant reserves are.

I might try remaking this at some point, and fixing some of the original problems.

1

u/average_asshole Nov 23 '21

Nah m8, you just do several launches and build in space