A full-size Ali Pad launch vehicle. Uses K.A.L. 1.2.1. (I use that vizzy because it standardises rocket testing.) This is probably more efficient than your rocket. Some of you make $20m smallsat launchers, and mostly all it does it push it's own fuel. The rocket equation is like that. This rocket shows what you can do for under $10m.
*move Slider 1 up all the way before opening the solar panels. Slider 1 controls both the piston and the hinge that the solar panels are attached to.
*once circularised, open the map and swap to the booster. Lock prograde, and arm the parachutes. There's a gyro on the booster that will hold it prograde.
It's 49.6m, so designed to fit on Ali Pad for the best recovery. If you launched from DSC, you'd be further away.
The SRB was calibrated with a 20t payload. Obviously the lighter the payload, the higher the TWR and the worse it'll turn. It's perfect with 10t. Anything smaller than that (I've never flown this empty) and I'd be using another rocket anyway. If you have a 20t payload, a 3rd stage, maybe it had a lander or rover, that's where this shines.
Yes, this is a B version. There is an original version of this which is all liquid fuelled. Meth pixies. It costs $3m more and has more d-v, but not enough to matter in most cases. The catch with this solid fuel first stage is it might not pay you to recover it. The liquid one might be the superior one. These were built for and have been used extensively in career mode for deep space exploration, carrying all sorts of landers.
GENERAL INFO
- Created On: Windows
- Game Version: 1.3.204.1
- Price: $9,585k
- Number of Parts: 35
- Dimensions: 50 m x 5 m x 5 m
PERFORMANCE
- Total Delta V: 12.3km/s
- Total Thrust: 4.3MN
- Engines: 5
- Wet Mass: 2.49E+5kg
- Dry Mass: 16,588kg
STAGES
| Stage | Engines | Delta V | Thrust | Burn | Mass |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 4.2km/s | 3.9MN | 2.0m | 2.49E+5kg |
| 2 | 4 | 8.1km/s | 439kN | 3.6m | 25,124kg |
It's a great flatsat truck. I recently used this rocket (just enlarged the fairing) on a career contract to take 16 flatsats to an apoapsis of 32Mm, and recovered both stages (worth ~$5m). That's an awkward payload I didn't know how to deal with as a new player.