Year 23, Day 424 (Crew and Lander for DSV-6 Odyssey Tekto Mission Launches To DSV-6 Odyssey!)

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“Alright people.. we are going to Tekto! Get up there to Odyssey and let’s make some history!”
-Gene

While the mission specifics are not quite done beyond a misson to Tekto (one of the more interesting moons of Sarnus), a crew has been chosen for DSV-6 Odyssey’s first mission!

A team of veteran Kerbonauts has been chosen to fly Odyssey’s maiden journey: Mission Commander Jeb, Mission Scientist Shepely, and Mission Engineer, Gillian!

Blast off! The Neidon III booster blasts off, carrying the crew, and a variant of the VINCENT lander, to orbit!

“We are go! Hold on everyone, approaching maximum dynamic pressure!“
-Jeb

The solid rocket boosters detach! Ground crews scramble to their recovery vehicles to start refurbishing the boosters!

The rocket continues its journey to orbit, finally reaching an altitude of 200k meter, where it circularizes!

Crew Vehicle 4 detaches from the booster!

The Crew Vehicle detaches from the lander, and begins the docking and transposition manuever!

Jeb starts manuevers to dock with Odyssey!

“Let’s go check out Odyssey! Starting rendezvouses!”
-Jeb

Only the running lights of Odyssey are visible as the Crew Vehicle approaches Odyssey!

Suddenly, the rising sun illuminates the Deep Space Vehicle!

“I caught a glimpse of Odyssey out the window! She’s big!”
-Bob

“We are at zero relative motion… Mission Control we are going to start docking procedures! Issuing remote commands to Odyssey to open the docking shield!”
-Jeb

The signal is received by Odyssey….

… and the protective cover on the docking port opens!

“Detaching from lander… moving to relative port… RCS systems nominal…”
-Jeb

As the lander stays at a safe distance, the Crew Vehicle begins docking maneuvers!

“OK… we are the pipe, five by five! Connection in 5…4…3…2….”
-Jeb

“…1! I show a good connection!”
-Jeb

“Confirmed! Seals are good – vehicle integrity good!“
-Gillian

“OK switching controls over to the lander! I have a good connection! Starting docking maneuver!“
-Jeb

Jeb remotely pilots the lander so that it’s directly above the landing bay! Then, slowly, uses RCS to “land” in the bay!

“Just about… almost… OK!“
-Jeb

“Another good docking! I show we have the lander firmly docked in the cargo bay! Time to inspect the ship and make sure we are good for departure!
-Gillian

“We better hurry! The transfer window to Sarnus won’t last forever!“
-Bob

Kerbin Space Exploration Administration | Space Program Funding

Current Funds: 147,128Assigned Kerbal Wages: 65,000
Next Funding Period: -14dUnassigned Kerbal Wages: 5,000
Current Reputation: 453Vessel Maintenance: 107,185
Estimated Gross Funding:905,459Launch Costs: 170,866
Space Center Costs: 136,000Estimated Net Funding: 421,408

Year 23, Day 419 (Seeker 1 Investigates Satellite Anomaly!)

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Clean-up crews have the situation at the Space Center under control! In orbit, the Seeker-1 crew gets the all clear from Mission Control!

“Let’s get you underway – good luck Seeker 1!“
-Gene, at Mission Control

Seeker 1 Mission Summary

  • Crew: Mission Commander Malcolm, Mission Scientist Gilian, Mission Engineer, Lobert .
  • Mission: Investigate unknown object in Kerbin orbit thought to be pre-Kerbal States satellite. If possible repair, then return to Kerbin!

“OK everyone, let’s get out there and see what that strange reading is!”
-Malcolm

“All systems are go – we’re ready!”
-Gillian

“Confirmed – I’ve got your repair kits packed too Gillian! Wow I can’t wait to discover something out here! “
-Lobert

Seeker 1 fires its engines, and drifts away – moving closer and closer to the anomaly!

“We are closing on the reading… orienting craft … firing reverse thrusters. We should be pretty close if the math was right!”
-Malcolm

“Everybody secure? Disconnecting docking clamps!”
-Val

Lobert climbs up and takes a look out the crew cabin window…

“Wow – there it is! We look about 200 meters from it. Nice flying! What a strange design though…”
-Lobert

“No surprise it’s strange! Before KSEA was founded… before the Kerbal States… we were just launching all kinds of crazy stuff into space! I’ve heard rumors of all kinds of stuff launched into space!.”
-Gillian

“We are at station keeping… zero relative velocity. You’re good to get out there Gillian – good luck!
-Malcolm

Gillian suits up, grabs a repair kit, and heads outside the craft!

Gillian lets go of the Crew Vehicle and uses very slight burst of her EVA pack to get closer, and closer the to strange satellite!

“Hmm.. I wonder if this satellite was originally planned to launch to Mun? There’s some water sensors on it… this is the strangest configuration of struts I’ve ever seen! Hmm – no means of propulsion. Maybe it exploded? No obvious damage other wise… I’ll have to do a part by part inspection!”
-Gillian

Gillian floats about the probe, checking each component, until…

“Found it! The communications dish. This will be a while!”
-Gillian

After quite a while, repairs are done!

“Seeker 1 – we are picking up a signal from that satellite! Nice work up there!“
-Gene, at Mission Control

“That’s great! Time to get back to the Crew Vehicle – this was tough work! This would have been easier if we had a ladder or something I could climb out on to do the repairs!
-Gillian

Lobert thinks about Gillian’s comment…

“That shouldn’t be too hard – maybe we can try that in the next Crew Vehicle we make! I’ll start drawing up some plans on the way home…”
-Lobert

With the mission completed, Malcolm fires the engine to take Seeker 1 home!

“Telemetry looks good – let’s get into orbit then head down to Kerbin!”
-Malcolm

Gillian packs up the Crew Vehicle along with Lobert, getting the spacecraft ready for re-entry!

After reaching orbit, Seeker 1 does its de-orbit burn, and separates from its orbital stage!

“Hold on everyone… it’s getting hot!”
-Malcolm

“Readings nominal… temperatures… hot! But within limits!”
-Gillian

“Reactor powering up … radiators are showing full dispersion… full power available!”
-Lobert

“We are in the clear – pull the chutes! Sounds like rain out there!”
-Malcolm

It’s a rainy day at the Space Center – but crews are still on standby to rescue the Seeker-1 crew!

Seeker-1 sets down safely! Crews head out to recover them!

“Welcome home everyone!“
-Gene, at Mission Control

Year 23, Day 417 (Aurora 30 Crew Raffle Winners Announced!)

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Aurora 30 Mission Summary

  • Crew: Mission Commander Malcolm, Tourists: Urberry, Guswin, Siski
  • Mission: Crewed mission to Minmus. Reach orbit, land on surface, return to Kerbin!

KSEA announces the winners of the planet-wide raffle! Urberry, Guswin, and Siski are announced as the winners! Experienced pilot Malcolm will pilot the mission! The Aurora 30 rocket is amost ready and will be rolled out to the launchpad soon!

Year 23, Day 415 (Seeker-1 Crew Launches Crew Vehicle to Investigate Mysterious Satellite!)

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For the past month, Space Center Tracking Stations have been detecting an unknown signal in Kerbin orbit! Engineers have a strong suspicion that it is one of the many spacecrafts or satellites that were launched before KSEA was created by the Kerbal States!

While not technically an Aurora mission (those are missions specifically for Mun and Minmus) the mission still needed a name, and Seeker was chosen!

Seeker-1 will utilize Aurora and Crew Vehicle hardware to discover whatever it is that’s in orbit of Kerbin! Malcolm, Gillian, and Lobert get ready for launch!

“There’s only one way to be sure what’s up there – we’ll have to send a crew! This should be a good test of the new Mk3 Crew Vehicle!”
-Gene, at Mission Control

“I’ve got lots of repair kits packed up! Snacks too!”
-Gillian

“Hold on everyone… launch in 3…2…1!”
-Malcolm

“Systems looking good… we are approaching maximum dynamic pressure on the spacecraft… “
-Malcolm

The solid rocket boosters detach…

…and once orbit is achieved the Crew Vehicle detaches!

“Mission Control has good comms with the N-8 booster… sending the landing signal now!”
-Gene, at Mission Control

While the Seeker-1 crew prepares for a mission to the mysterious satellite, the N-8 Booster starts it’s descent!

“Uh oh. Telemetry is off. Emergency everyone! Hold on tight!”
-Gene, at Mission Control

Everyone in the Space Center gets to emergency positions – the booster’s trajectory is off and it’s heading right toward the VAB!

There isn’t enough thrust to slow the craft down! The VAB shakes violently as the booster rockets overhead, just meters away from the Vehicle Assembly Building!

With a mighty explosion, the Nebula III Booster N-8 detonates right next to the path used to move vehicles to the launchpad! Bits of the rocket go flying in every direction!

“Status report people! Get damage control and repair crews out there! Seeker 1 are you stable? Can you standby?”
-Gene, at Mission Control

“Everything on Seeker 1 is nominal – we are good waiting – break out the snacks everyone!”
-Malcolm

As the final bits and parts of the N-8 Booster roll to a stop, teams are dispatched to check out the damage, and pick up the mess!

Year 23, Day 408 (DSV-6 Odyssey Launches to Orbit!)

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After a very long wait, construction and stack integration of DSV-6 Odyssey is complete and the truly massive rocket is rolled out to the launch pad! Nova launches are rare, and large crowds turned up at the space center to watch!

“All right people… this might be the biggest and most expensive rocket ever launched but you’re professionals and you know what to do!”
-Gene supervising the launch at Mission Control

“I can’t wait to fly Odyssey.. I hope the launch goes OK!”
-Malcolm

As the countdown approaches launch the space center gets silent in anticipation. Finally, the count reaches zero and…

The Space Center shakes as the massive Nova Rocket takes off!

“Go Odyssey!  Woohoo!“
-Glenica, watching with the rest of the Spacedock crew in orbit!

As the Nova Rocket carrying Odyssey rises into the sky ground crews carefully track the launch!

In orbit, the fairing ejects and the spacecraft fires its orbital stage engines to circularize the orbit!

“Communications good, telemetry good… Odyssey is right where she is supposed to be! Nice work team!”
-Gene supervising the launch at Mission Control

The enormous cost, complexity, and danger of launching these mega-spacecraft from the space center has been quite a strain!

Besides the fantastic costs, the space center itself was tied up for almost a year building Odyssey.  

“The Nova Rocket itself costs almost a million to launch!  With the cost of each DSV approaching 2 million!”
-Gillian, watching from Spacedock

Serious consideration is now being given to constructing an orbital assembly yard! 

KSEA projects a need for the construction of at least one new DSV every year, which includes possibly retiring some ships in the current fleet! 

“Not sure how to do it, but we need to find a way to get more Kerbals into deep space – the Space Center can’t handle this many super-duper-heavy launches!”
-Gene

DSV-6 Odyssey

  • Vessel Mass: 177.916 t
  • DSV Cost: 1,968,922
  • Nova Rocket Cost: 751,858
  • Total Cost: 2,720,780

Year 23, Day 406  (Crew Vehicle Mk3 Announced!)

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With the construction of the latest Crew Vehicle 8 (CV-8) KSEA engineers took  the opportunity to overhaul and refine the spacecraft!

With the Mk3 Crew Vehicle KSEA is retiring the “Nebula” name to avoid confusion with other similarly named systems.  Going forward the craft will simply be called a “Crew Vehicle” with differentiations indicated with the “mark” number!

“We have some missions coming up that are simply going to need more range – we think the mk3 Crew Vehicle is going to provide that!”
-Gene, speaking at the Space Center

Kerbal States History: Year 2

sayburstuff Kerbal States History

Celebrating two decades of space exploration!

To celebrate the September Anniversary of Kerbal States KSEA will be highlighting each year of Kerbal States history!

Year 2

Year 2 saw the first Kerbals landed on Mun and Minmus! Probes were launched to explore the reaches of the star system and the first Space Stations were launched and assembled in orbit!

Key Events:

  • Mitster flew the X-4 Jetplane – one of the first crafts used to explore Kerbin!
  • Discovery 2 orbited Mun!
  • The first Mun communications network was established!
  • The first space stations, Spacelab 1 and 2 are launched – ongoing assembly paved the way for more complicated missions!
  • The first Aurora mission launches!
  • Aurora 6 (Mitster, Bob, and Chrisnic) launch to Mun, and Mitster and Bob become the first Kerbals to set foot on Mun!
  • The Explorer 1 probe arrives at Eve!
  • The X-5 jet is developed – paving the way for future spaceplanes!
  • Aurora 7 (Bob, Val and Robart) launch to Minmus! Val and Bob become the first Kerbals to set foot on Minmus!

Kerbal States was originally published in September and October of 2016!

To read Year 2 from the start click: HERE

Year 23, Day 405 (Mobile Resupply Vehicle Arrives at Aurora Base on Mun!)

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The Mobile Resupply Vehicle arrives at Mun, and achieves orbit!

Aurora Base (Mun) Mission Summary

  • Crew: Mission Commander: Orlas. Science Team: Orlas and Luly. Engineering Team: Dunwin, Bill.
  • Mission: Prototype off-world research habitat. Designed to train KSEA crews, test KSEA equipment and procedures for future bases and some day colonies.

The MRV detaches from the transfer stage, and drifts until…

… the engines fire, starting a decent to Aurora crater!

“I think I see the MRV! Its firing its final burn to decent!”
-Dunwin, watching from Aurora Base

The MRV sets down safely, landing on its wheels!

The sun rises over the horizon, illuminating Aurora Crater! After confirming good communications, the MRV maneuvers toward the base!

Getting closer and closer, the supply vehicle lines up for its final docking position…

… and connects to the base!

“Finally – fresh snacks! Let’s get into that supply vehicle!”
-Orlas, at Aurora Base

Year 23, Day 402 (Resupply Mission to Aurora Base on Mun!)

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Oxygen reserves and snacks at Aurora Base on Mun are running low!

“I think we have about a month left of supplies – hopefully there is a rocket ready to deliver something soon!”
-Dunwin

Aurora Base (Mun) Mission Summary

  • Crew: Mission Commander: Orlas. Science Team: Orlas and Luly. Engineering Team: Dunwin, Bill.
  • Mission: Prototype off-world research habitat. Designed to train KSEA crews, test KSEA equipment and procedures for future bases and some day colonies.

Thankfully – there is! With the construction of the Neidon III rockets and their very fast turnaround, multiple Sarnus-class payload capable rockets are ready. The Mobile Resupply Vehicle that was developed (and sat in storage) until now is loaded onto N-4!

“Don’t worry everyone – we’ve been preparing for this and have a rocket on standby!”
-Gene, enjoying a refreshing beverage at Mission Control!

Later in the day, N-4 blasts off from the launch pad!

The re-usable Neidon rockets with their upgraded landing systems are anticipated to overtake the Sarnus-V rocket as record holder for “most launched!” They regularly break records for re-usability!

N-4 continues to rise, reaching an apoapsis of 100k – then continuing on to a near circular orbit!

The protective fairing detaches…

… and the Mobile Resupply Vehicle detaches!

“OK – let’s land that rocket!”
-Gene

N-4 streaks through the atmosphere!

Ground telescopes capture the re-entry heading toward the space center!

Finally the rocket slows down just above the landing site, and slowly descends!

“A little too close to the space center! Landed in one peice though – that’s good!”
-Lobert, watching the landing from the VAB roof!

In orbit, the Munar transfer stage shows full power and communications…

… the engines fire!

“Hold on Aurora Base – your resupply is on the way!”
-Gene