Author: sayburstuff

Year 10, Day 220 (Explorer 3 Returns Home From Duna!)

sayburstuff Year 10 , , , , ,

screenshot389.png

Explorer 3’s Aurora Command Pod detaches from the rest of the spacecraft, and begins its reentry into Kerbin’s atmosphere!

screenshot390.png

After the radio blackout from reentry, the chute deploys!

“We came in a little fast, but within the spacecraft’s tolerances… everything’s fine!”

-Edan

screenshot391.png

The crew touches down in the highlands, and quickly hop out to enjoy fresh air again!

“Feels good to be back on solid ground, but standing up in this gravity is hard!”

-Sean

Rescue teams are already en route to rescue the crew (and all the precious scientific data they brought back from Duna!

“I can’t wait to inspect those samples in the lab!”

-Glenica

Explorer3Patch

 

Year 10, Day 202 (Explorer 5 Arrives At Duna Spaceport!)

sayburstuff Year 10 , , , ,

screenshot382.png

Explorer 5 Arrives in Duna Orbit, and the on board systems automatically eject the Kerbin-Orbit docking adapter (The larger “senior” size docking port is required for docking to the Spaceport!)

screenshot383.png

Val thaws from cryogenic stasis first!

Alright – I’m moving Explorer in to dock with the Spaceport!

-Val

screenshot384.png

Bill and Bob thaw next!

The crew reports feeling fine, even after such a long cryo-sleep!  After a week the crew’s health will be evaluated and if all is well, the first landing will commence!

Explorer5Patch

Year 10, Day 90 (Pathfinder 4 and Pathfinder 5 Update!)

sayburstuff Year 10 , , ,

KSEA LogoKSEA regrets to inform the public that Pathfinder 4 and Pathfinder 5 have both overshot their targets, failing to achieve orbit.  It would seem speed is the problem, as those probes were simply traveling too fast to be slowed down by single NERV engine – the future of the Pathfinder program however remains in doubt.

Of even greater concern is Explorer 5, already en route to Duna, built on the Pathfinder frame!  Scientists think that Explorer’s much lower transfer speed will allow the craft to slow down in time – but time will tell.

 

Year 10, Day 7 (Construction Starts on Pathfinder 6 Plock Probe)

sayburstuff Year 10 , ,

pathfinder6.pngConstruction begins on the next Pathfinder probe, Pathfinder 6 – heading to the distant world of Plock.

Plock will be the furthest mission ever attempted! Pathfinder 6 will be virtually identical to Pathfinder 5, with the same lander layout as well.

(Note: The Patch Department notes in the fine print that no one has ever seen Plock before, and as such Moho may have been used in the patch design)

Year 10, Day 2 (Aurora Payload Vehicle Destroyed!)

sayburstuff Year 10 , ,

screenshot340.pngThe Aurora Payload Vehicle separates from Kerbin Spaceport, carrying with it the kuarq experiment payloads!

screenshot341.png

The APV does its descent burn, and begins falling through the atmosphere… faster and faster… until Mission Control notices a critical problem.

“Oh no. I think we forgot to add parachutes to the ACV!”

-Gene

The ACV falls into the mountains west of the Space Center at terminal velocities… the entire vehicle is utterly destroyed!  Thankfully crewed missions are reviewed more carefully!  Construction begins at once on a new APV!

Year 9, Day 422 (Mirphe and Tamre Land on Minmus!)

sayburstuff Year 9 , , ,

screenshot310.pngWhile trying to find a good spot to land the Harmony Station Lander, Tamre makes an interesting discovery… there is not only a Great Flats on Minmus, but there is also an unexplored region known as the Greater Flats – unexplored mostly due to Mission Control not noticing the extra two letters in the name!

MinmusLandingMap.png

“Huh.  Guess that’s our spot then!”

-Mirphe

Indeed!  Mission Control gives the go-ahead, and the crew heads down!

screenshot312.png

The Harmony Station lander heads toward its landing site – HSSL05, the Greater Flats!

screenshot313.png

“That looks like the landing site!  Lives up to its name too!”

-Tamre

screenshot314.png

Mirphe sets the lander down on the surface!

screenshot323.png

Tamre jumps out first and has a few hops around the surface!

screenshot325.png

Mirphe hops out next, and the crew poses for their landing portrait!

We need to do a few quick hops around Minmus before heading back!  I’ve been reviewing the science reports from the previous missions and a few things were missed!

-Tamre

screenshot330.png

The Minmus lander jumps to the highlands, then the Great Flats, as Tamre and Mirphe carefully gather science data that was missed in previous missions (and occasionally stopping for moments of poignant self reflection).

screenshot328.png

Until it’s time to return to Harmony Space Station!

screenshot333.png

We spent so much time hopping around Minmus I’m afraid we ate up most of the snacks… and the water… and the oxygen!

-Tamre

Uh oh.  We’re going to try a very, very fast return to Kerbin. It’s our only chance!

-Mirphe

The ACV expends all of its fuel, and the return to Minmus takes only 2 days!

screenshot334.png

Re-entry heat on the ACV is intense… thankfully these are the same vehicles that are made to survive interplanetary journeys, which approach even faster!

screenshot336.png

The Aurora Command Module gently glides down…

screenshot337.png

… and sets down in the Highlands of Kerbin!

“We made it!”

-Mirphe

“So this is what gravity feels like…. exhausting!”

-Tamre