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[MarcAFK]

Something that's been bothering me lately, what's the best part to use as ballast? I know engines and pods are heavy, but I can't find anything compact that's heavy enough to use as counterweights.

upward pointing retro-rockets?

Nah they're too light, besides I kinda want non exploding ballast. I guess I could mod something to be heavier I could use part clipping and symmetry to produce weights, or mod something, But I think I'll just stick to using engines.

[WillowLuman]

Something that's been bothering me lately, what's the best part to use as ballast? I know engines and pods are heavy, but I can't find anything compact that's heavy enough to use as counterweights.

upward pointing retro-rockets?

Nah they're too light, besides I kinda want non exploding ballast. I guess I could mod something to be heavier I could use part clipping and symmetry to produce weights, or mod something, But I think I'll just stick to using engines.

Asteroids?

[alway]

As I said before, best part of this patch is the physics upd00t. Your games will now run faster and with less wibbly-wobbly parts.

[MarcAFK]

I noticed that my asteroid weighs 800 tons, A real asteroid that big would weigh 45,000 tons, and since kerbin has 10 times the density of earth perhaps my roids should weigh half a million tonnes?
I'm going to see what it takes to move one that big.. I recall XKCD determined i would need more fuel tanks than the rock itself.

[nogoodnames]

Well it seems like I'll have to migrate to the new version, but first...

Spoiler: Let's have some fun (click to show/hide)

2 Oberon-Class Command Cruisers

Meant to explore the unknown and protect distant colonies, these ships boast some of the most advanced technology available. Unfortunately, they were not designed for direct combat and their weapons systems are almost an afterthought. Still, they have enough firepower to take on pretty much anything that get's thrown at them.

Mass: 69.96 t, with empty fuel tanks (did not plan that)

Part count: 327

Armament: 2x SUNBEAM Lazor arrays, 4x Lazor missile S (the Oberon was forced to ditch these during aerobraking), 8x anti-fighter torpedoes

Crew complement: 7 kerbals

Power Systems: 2.5m Tokamak fusion reactor, 2 auxiliary "KIWI" fission reactors, 2 emergency 1x6 solar panels

Propulsion: Quantum vacuum plasma thruster, Alcubierre drive



VS.





1 Kerov-class Battlecruiser

Although a rushed and unproven design, the Kerov features impressive offensive and defensive weaponry as well as powerful engines which far exceed the Oberon's when it comes to making quick maneuvers. Oddly for a ship this size, it only has room for a single crewman who must control everything, making the one cockpit a tempting target.

Mass: 112.37 t

Part count: 283

Armament: 4x anti-capital torpedoes, 16x anti-fighter torpedoes

Crew complement: 1 kerbal

Power Systems: 2.5m "Aegletes" fission reactor, 4 1x6 solar panels

Propulsion: 3 nuclear-thermal rockets



3 "Midge" fighters

Designed for quick deployment and disposability, the Midge should not be discounted simply because of its small size and cheap construction. Its torpedoes are quite deadly, which was proven when a single midge managed to cripple the Oberon's sister ship, the Arcadia.

Mass: 5.4 t

Part count: 60

Armament: 6x Standard torpedoes

Crew complement: 1 kerbal

Power Systems: 4 1x6 solar panels

Propulsion: Vesta VR-1 chemical rocket

I'll probably get to the actual carnage tomorrow. Also, each ship was manually launched and positioned. You can imagine how hard it was getting the Kerov off the ground with FAR installed.

[Rilder]

Well apparently asteroids can spawn on a impact course with Kerbin.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Unfortunately for Jeb(And let's be honest, probably any Kerbal that was living nearby), the craft sent to try and defeat it was designed for much smaller asteroids. (and he didn't bring along a drill, a nuke and Bruce Willis to blow it up.)

Spoiler: All that's left of Jeb's ship is the claw (click to show/hide)

Rest in peace Jeb. (I have MissingCrewsRespawn turned off so he won't respawn)

[BFEL]

nogoodnames, that is awesome, but I have to say having FAR installed probably helped, because it actually thins out the atmosphere substantially.

Rilder I just think its epic that the claw survived like that, I'm sure the Kerbals will make many movies commemorating Jeb's sacrifice, and the sheer awesome of the way the ship JUST stopped the asteroid from totally annihilating everything.

[nogoodnames]

but I have to say having FAR installed probably helped, because it actually thins out the atmosphere substantially.

Heh, no. No it does not. Maybe it seems that way when you're using reasonably aerodynamic rockets, but when you've got an absurd amount of drag perched on top of a rocket (granted that was my fault, I should have been smart enough to put the ship in the middle of some boosters, instead of on top of them) things become impossible.

To be clear, the thrust needed to lift the ship was never an issue, it was the immense amount of drag those wings caused which made the whole thing uncontrollable. Doing anything but flying straight up, with SAS and RCS on and with perfectly controlled thrust would result in the rocket flipping over. Literally tapping the pitch or yaw controls would make the launch unsalvageable.

[GreatWyrmGold]

Hugo, is that Jeb?

Could it be anyone else?

Yes.

I noticed that my asteroid weighs 800 tons, A real asteroid that big would weigh 45,000 tons, and since kerbin has 10 times the density of earth perhaps my roids should weigh half a million tonnes?

Probably for roughly the same reason why Kerbin is a fraction of the size of Earth but has several times the density.

I'm going to see what it takes to move one that big.. I recall XKCD determined i would need more fuel tanks than the rock itself.

I think that was Scott Manley, referring to de-orbiting Gilly and Minmus.

Rilder I just think its epic that the claw survived like that, I'm sure the Kerbals will make many movies commemorating Jeb's sacrifice, and the sheer awesome of the way the ship JUST stopped the asteroid from totally annihilating everything.

Shame that proper asteroid impacts don't do anything. An asteroid landing from extraKerbin orbit right on top of the VAB would just bounce off.

[GreatWyrmGold]

I've decided to experiment with the asteroids, despite having never successfully made a rendezvous with anything lacking gravitational pull. Including kerbonauts on EVA who let go of the ladder in freefall.

So. New game, to get asteroids. Lots keep popping up. Here's the first, and not a bad one.



More keep popping up; I have my eye on one JAL-968, which comes within forty megameters. HSJ-227 is the first encounter, though, and I'll see what I can do with that.

1. Design a craft for rendezvous and moving of an asteroid.

One thing I noticed what that everyone was complaining about how they couldn't turn asteroids easily. The solution?



That's a reaction wheel, with a probe body, some RTGs, and a hook attached. It is intended to be gently tossed at an asteroid (via stack separator or something) to help maneuver it. Presumably, all craft stuck on the same asteroid will be controlled as one...at least, I hope that's how it works, because if not some future plans with asteroids¹ are going to be tricky.
P.S. I had to rebuild it, but I made subassemblies work!


Now with stack separator!

Alright. Maybe I didn't have to build it, but...eh.
I try to add a humorous, pretty description like the stock parts have, but I don't have enough room for the first sentence. I am sad.

The trick is to build a craft that can take a bunch of these (six sounds good) up to the asteroid, and also have enough Δv to move it.



That should do it! Probably.
I'm thinking maybe I should have put RCS on it, so it could maneuver itself into just the right position, but...eh, not really needed methinks. And mehopes.

I'll work on this more later, when I have time. For now...this will do, pig. This will do.

Footnotes:
1. Like space station cores.

[BigD145]

You'll have lower part counts if you make one big set of reaction wheels. All those klaws are extra parts.

[GreatWyrmGold]

But then I only have torque from one location. I might as well not even have the things.

[Sean Mirrsen]

In space, it doesn't matter how many points your torque comes from. The turning will always happen around the center of mass.

[WillowLuman]

I noticed that my asteroid weighs 800 tons, A real asteroid that big would weigh 45,000 tons, and since kerbin has 10 times the density of earth perhaps my roids should weigh half a million tonnes?
I'm going to see what it takes to move one that big.. I recall XKCD determined i would need more fuel tanks than the rock itself.

The gravity of a planet is directly proportional to it's mass. Radius and density are only indirect measures, multiplying them gets the mass (well, m=(radius cubed) * 4 * pi * density / 3, anyway). Kerbin has smaller radius but a much greater density in order to create Earth-like conditions.

[BigD145]

But then I only have torque from one location. I might as well not even have the things.

SAS is magical. It just has to be on the vehicle somewhere.