We launch our Phobos-Grunt

... with blackjack and whores! I understand that many people are already fed up with articles that Phobos- grunt drank / sawed / shot down the harmful Americans failed to bring beyond Earth and successfully accomplish its mission. So let's digress from it!





After reading more than one article on this topic, most of you are already versed in space mechanics, the structure and principle of operation of spacecraft and their systems into orbit. So it's time to put your knowledge into practice!



If you have a couple billions of dollars lying around, you can create your own space center, develop a spacecraft and become one of the few private space agencies. Having collected all your savings, did you realize with bitterness that you are a little short of space exploration? No problem! You can invest your savings in the Kerbal space program! And do not give everything that you have, it will be enough $ 15.



“What kind of planet is this and why should it help?” - you ask me. Let me tell you a little about her.

Kerbal planet is small, similar to Earth. But alas, there are not even trees (but local deities promise to create them in the near future), but there is a sea, plains and mountains without snow. There are not even cities! There are only 3 buildings on the entire planet - VAB (Vehicle Assembly Building), Tracking Station and Launch Pad (I wonder if they were created by the deities or the inhabitants of the planet themselves?). What is this building? This is their NASA "KASA" - Kerbal Aeronautics and Space Agency! Residents of a small lonely planet decided to explore the cosmos!



')

The first building allows our brave first movers to create their own spacecraft.





The basis of any rocket will be a command module. It will be our future astronauts.





To ensure a "soft" landing it would be good to put a parachute.





I guess you know perfectly well that not all of the rocket comes back, but only the command module. To separate the command module from the rocket itself, we need a detachment device.





Next, we need a fuel tank.





To give the rocket stability in flight and its control, it is desirable to add winglets.





And the last component will be the engine.





The rocket is ready to fly! We display it on the launch pad. 3 ... 2 ... 1 ... ignition ... start (when you press the magic key Space)! Our brave astronauts begin to feel vibrations and overload. The first flight has begun!





While our rocket is gaining altitude, let's remember the third building. There is a flight control center. It monitors our flights and calculates the trajectory. Also, with the help of it, you can contact our other spacecraft and take control.





Sooner or later (and most likely early, since the rocket has only one small tank of fuel), the engines stop working and astronauts slow down. It's time to undock the excess (again by pressing the magic key Space). Now the command module with astronauts begins to return back to the planet.





As soon as we get closer to the planet, it will be time to release parachutes (guess how?).





The greatest event in the history of the planet Kerbal was completed - the first flight into space!

Having gained new knowledge during the first flight, brilliant engineers and brave astronauts will be able to build more advanced, not always successful, but definitely unique rockets and space ships! And one day, a brave cosmonaut will leave his mark on Mun, the satellite of the planet Kerbal.



I hope you are interested in this project. So far, the game is under development, and the latest version (as of the day of writing this post) is 0.14.3. True, to get the latest version of the game, you will need to “donate” $ 15 (after the donation, all updates and the final version of the game will be available to you). There are already quite a large number of enthusiasts who are developing various mods for the game, since the developers have provided documentation.



I consider the following collections of various modules as one of the best:

Kosmos Spacecraft Design Bureau is an excellent collection of modules. Created most likely by a group of Russian fans.

The Saturn V Parts Pack is also a quality kit with lots of engines / tanks / splitters and so on.

KSP Orbit - a guide to various formulas to optimize the calculation of the orbit.

MechJeb - Autopilot - autopilot with lots of features! Automatically brings to a given orbit, separates the steps, controls the load and not only!



Successful launches!