At the last moment, due to concerns about the fuel budget, a change is made to Explorer’s mission profile.

The atmospheric probe will remain unchanged, but a new vehicle will replace the Low Gravity Lander: the Lander and Return Craft (LARC).

This new design adds a Aurora command module to Explorer, combined with a lander capable of exploring Gilly!  The original Atmospheric Probe for Eve will not be altered.

The mission profile still calls for returning Explorer to Kerbin orbit… But now there is a backup plan if fuel budgets get too tight! In that case the crew will board the LARC as it enters Kerbin’s SOI. Then the LARC will detach, and reenter Kerbin’s atmosphere. Explorer will be remotely piloted to an escape course that will eventually leave it in a solar orbit, safely distant from Kerbin!  Construction begins at once on the updated Explorer rocket!