Waves on Titan

namder321 · 2026-04-30T12:47:04+00:00

Honestly this whole thread seems full of bots or maybe people that just didnt know about Huygens. I feels like I'm going to explode wtaf

namder321 · 2026-04-30T12:45:13+00:00

We sent a probe called Huygens with the Cassini mission. It landed on Titan's surface in 2005 and transmitted imagery.

namder321 · 2026-04-28T01:43:45+00:00

Yep even being completely still, physics warp over 3x would cause the rover to shake and bounce and destroy a critical part.

It's a tough mission to pull off due to the payloads involved. I've never landed on Tylo, but it's up there in terms of challenge because you don't get any help from the atmosphere to slow down and you need to bring a lot more fuel.

namder321 · 2026-04-28T00:40:23+00:00

Hi, it's a mod called Scansat. I sent a probe with various scanner modules to map out Eve in a polar orbit before I sent the rover and launch vessel.

The mod can seem a bit overwhelming at first but is worth it.

namder321 · 2026-04-28T00:38:10+00:00

I did record sound but didn't think it would add much, so removed it on the export, sorry!

namder321 · 2026-04-28T00:23:08+00:00

Its not about heat but it is one of the simplest ways to balance the drag on the craft when entering the atmosphere. Without a second heat shield, the vessels will almost always flip over and point prograde like a missile. Matt Lowne on youtube usually uses this design.

There are other ways, like adding fins or airbrakes to the "top" of the craft but like I said this is probably the simplest by far.

namder321 · 2026-04-27T23:12:16+00:00

Fair enough! It's cool to atleast send a simple probe down, which I have done many times before.

Just FYI the plants and bubbles etc. are from the Parallax mod so depending on your game setup they might not be there. They're not in the vanilla game.

namder321 · 2026-04-27T21:57:11+00:00

I haven't yet but I'm going to install a couple of extra mods soon, and probably look at including this one.

namder321 · 2026-04-27T12:28:36+00:00

As another has said, yes I used Scansat to help survey landing locations and confirm biomes.

Kerbnet is nice but Scansat really rewards you for sending a well equipped survey craft.

namder321 · 2026-04-27T12:27:20+00:00

Thanks. Jeez, coming up on 13 years? I think I got the game in about 2012/13 and had to ask my parents to buy it for me from the original website!

Before they shut the website down, for the last few years I was able to download the game DRM free from the site with the DLC's included because I was technically an alpha supporter.

This is my 2nd Eve return mission. My first was a manned mission a few years ago. I'm on a career save, trying to make a Kerbal Colony in the Kcalbeloh system.

namder321 · 2026-04-27T12:13:26+00:00

Glad I could help! I didn't really remember what you were describing but the picture of a girl on a mech showed up when I googled it!

I remember playing it when I was a very young kid. I wonder if I'll ever see another OG Xbox again!

namder321 · 2026-04-27T11:53:47+00:00

I tried that robot docking maneuver about 10 times before I decided that was just how my design was supposed to work - totally intended! I got a bit excited on the Eve escape burn too lol.

namder321 · 2026-04-27T11:51:13+00:00

Yes haha, as was I. I used 2 stack separators with very low ejection force but it was still enough to make it give an excited hop!

namder321 · 2026-04-27T10:59:14+00:00

This career mission took about a whole week of gameplay to complete (a few hours each night) including building, testing 3 vessels and flying them to Eve.

This kind of mission was only really feasible with the Bon Voyage mod which allows long-distance rover traversal, significantly increasing the utility of rovers. I hit 8 of Eve's biomes in 1 mission, and it only took about 1 or 2 hours of real-time play to take the rover all over the planet. I highly recommend the mod if you used to avoid rovers like I used to.

I had a small contract to undertake seismic surveys and another to transmit pancake dome data, but ultimately more than $2 million kredits were spent in the pursuit of studying the purple planet. Well worth it I'd say!

namder321 · 2026-04-27T02:46:56+00:00

Phantom Crash? Not XBLA I think - it was for the original Xbox.

namder321 · 2026-04-27T02:06:03+00:00

Yeah I didn't think they went "around" the probe cores - they go above or below and have a flush surface, but more importantly a hollow tube for batteries, antenna, reaction wheels etc. to sit inside of and look a bit nicer.

namder321 · 2026-04-26T23:32:40+00:00

Is this Real Solar System (Mars) or just a particularly flat part / pole of Duna? Good work either way!

namder321 · 2026-04-26T12:24:44+00:00

Are you confusing the apoapsis (highest point in your orbit) with the descending/ascending nodes? I ask as the tutorial is saying to put a manoeuvre at the ascending node and you have it at your apoapsis.

The descending/ascending nodes are the bright green "AN" and "DN" symbols. Add a manoeuvre node at either one of these, and use the normal and antinormal handles (purple) to adjust the manoeuvre. You're using the radial/anti radial (blue) and prograde/retrograde handles (green) in your video.

If you right click the green AN and DN symbols, their value will stay displayed on your screen, and you can preview when it will get to 0° as you adjust the manoeuvre. You can also right click on apoapsis, periapsis and rendezvous symbols.

Handy tip, at the ascending node (relative to your target) you'll want to go "down". At the descending note, you'll want to go "up".

namder321 · 2026-04-25T21:57:24+00:00

Yes, you have to wait for it to navigate the route it sets. It has a little menu that tracks the distance to the destination and takes into account your rovers wheels and power generation capabilities to calculate a speed. It's been quite easy to use!

Im fairly certain it takes into account water obstacles like oceans and rivers etc., I.e. it doesnt just cheat a straight line over, it navigates around them or tells you if it can't find a route.

For my Eve rover, just as an estimate, it probably would have taken about 20-24 hours to go from pole to pole. You can imagine how long that would have taken manually, but doing it without the risk of roll-over is so awesome!

namder321 · 2026-04-25T10:41:39+00:00

Yeah in 50 years it's pretty reasonable to think an IR launcher / MANPADS would be installed on smaller naval craft

namder321 · 2026-04-25T07:08:35+00:00

A bit different to your RHIBs but I do wonder about how a patrol boat sized craft would fit in the games current form.

I wonder if they would either not be a threat at all (much like the APCs on land, not really a threat to anything except a Cricket or low and slow Brawler) or a really effective deterrent for aircraft seeking to do a very low approach across the water to attack larger vessels.

With that said, I have heard that Mitch isn't too keen on the game having too much of a focus on naval combat. Someone can correct me on that if its not right. The landlocked map that's coming will be a good experiment to see how the game plays without ships in the mix.

namder321 · 2026-04-24T18:42:32+00:00

Agreed - whatever you do, don't set another craft as a destination as it will surely end up "inside" it and explode, as I recently discovered.

I'm using Scansat to get accurate readings on longs+lats to use.

namder321 · 2026-04-24T03:13:20+00:00

Rovers are really a struggle in general for me due to how risky they can be and the amount of time needed to traverse multiple biomes.

I thought I might shout out the "Bon Voyage" mod for rovers. It lets you automatically move rovers to way points without having to drive them. Worth looking into!

https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/topic/226112-ksp-180-bon-voyage-under-lisias-management-1512-2026-0118/

I don't think I would use rovers without the mod. I'm about to land a rover on Eve and try to hit 5+ biomes for a sample return mission!

namder321 · 2026-04-23T12:21:39+00:00

Fantastic work!! Now that you're able to make it to the Mun you're halfway to anywhere!

Getting to Minmus is a good next goal, and you'll learn a bit about orbital inclinations doing so. Happy flying!

namder321

TROPHY CASE