What is the best way to get into orbit?

[ian]

What I mean is, how do you get into a good orbit with out spinning out of control in the atmosphere? Also are there any recent guides on interplanetary travel? Thanks.

[ian]

Opprinnelig skrevet av BlazingKittyHawk:

Wait until you reach 10000 and begin to slowly turn to the side, staying somewhere between 45-60 degrees. Raise your apoapsis to about 75000 to be safe and add a maneuver node on the apoapsis to circulize the orbit. Proceed with the maneuver and you should have a pretty nice orbit.

Ok cool, will try!

[Drewskii]

I'm quite new to the game myself, to be honest I learned the 10000 thing from Jackspepticeye and everything else from experience.

[Rage Clown ®™]

There are many ways to get into orbit. There are also mod that wont do it for you but give you info on your work. From what ive read in these forums the low speed below 10k is pretty popular. So there must be some favorable numbers there. Since 1.03 ish sas has had some issues, some intended, others not. If you craft starts spinning ooc after 10 k you do not have enough torque or enough gimble. {proper thrust also helps ;)} all else fails put some fins or controll surfaces on the craft.

My very first method of launch to orbit was the basic:
full speed to 10k
grav turn
burn to 70k
cut power
float to periapsis
full speed again

Then i started useing ssto ish method for launch
blast off with grav turn
burn hard to 10k
burn hard to 50-60k periapsis
pan off to low thrust to periapsis
burn only as needed to orbit

Now i use a mix of both depending on the rocket.
more or less a controlled burn to 10k with grav turn at launch
controlled burn all the way to orbit keeping the periapsis close but highenough to achieve orbit at the end of the burn.

After testing the old methods to the new I have found more fuel at orbit.
ie. start with 100000 units and end up with 400-600 (Old) and 600-1200 with the (new)

[Ogre420]

Hope this helps...

In the newest versions of the game high speeds and hard turns in atmo equals crashes.
NOTE: This applies to re-entry also.

For improved stability from launches in Ver. 1.0.+....

Add fins to BOTTOM centerline of EACH stage of your rocket that you expect to be firing below 45k.
(Make sure that they are NOT AIR BLOCKED by fairings or other stuff above.)
Fins on booster stages or fins that are NOT centerline are OK also, but remember that the fins drop off with the boosters.

Turn OFF all thrust vectoring from any firing engine in each stage that is NOT dead center (can be done in VAB)

If you are seeing MACH EFFECTS (The white speed lines around the rocket) throttle back if you can until they disappear.

The nav ball has a flying "V" with a DOT dead center that shows where the rocket is POINTED.
The PROgrade marker (Circle with 3 lines around the outside in a cross pattern) shows where the craft is GOING.
To be safe make sure that the DOT in the flying "V" does NOT go past the ends of those lines on the outside of the PROgrade marker during your grav turn.

SAS and RCS can help keep the craft stable durring the grav turn, extra SAS units can be added (and dropped) with booster stages. If you add RCS JUST for the stability assist during launch, place the monoprop tanks/RCS thrusters where they can be ditched as you reach orbit.

If you are launching with solid rockets as your main boosters around a liquid engine, add a bit more fuel and have the liquid engine firing at low throttle for the thrust vectoring during the SRB's burn.

All rockets and launches are different but as a rule of thumb...
Get to 150 m/s as fast as possible then a slow throttle up to 200 m/s at 10k.
From 10k to 20k a slow throttle up to 350 m/s.
From 20k to 30k a slow throttle up to 500 m/s.
After 30k it's usually safe to floor it and go max throttle.

As you leave the launch pad you will want to start your gravity turn.
If you DIDN'T rotate your control part in the VAB, then that means pressing the "D" key for a zero degree (Equatorial) orbit.

For beginers I suggest a 5 degree turn per 1k meters of altitude until you get to 45 deg. angle.

0k-1k 90 deg. (Straight up . Get to 150 m/s as fast as possible)
1k-2k 85 deg.
2k-3k 80 deg.
3k-4k 75 deg.
4k-5k 70 deg.
5k-6k 65 deg.
6k-7k 60 deg.
7k-8k 55 deg.
8k-9k 50 deg.
9k-10k 45 deg. (200 m/s accelerating to 350 m/s)

At 30k continue turning until the prograde marker is sitting on the horizon line of the nav ball.

NOTE: most people will say that these speeds/altitudes are off, these numbers are just to get you started in the new version, as you gain experiance with the new versions adjust to your own playing style.

[Hitori]

Some basic tips and guidelines for you.

The craft tilts for these reasons.
1: Unbalanced payload or aerodynamics that are of center, use the visual tool to check while designing (the 3 small toggle buttons left down corner).
2: Loose contruction confusing the SAS, if the ship whobble around the SAS sensor and thrusters it gets confused and eventually whobble out of controll, use the manual or prefferably the new autostruts to make it firmer than a lead/graphite pencil.
3: Mechanical error in the engines (it blew upp, or is obstructed, or wrong setting)

Use fins, SAS, RCS, thrusters with steering, to try controll it, or redo it into a more stable design.

Do not turn more than 10 degree untill the atmosphere becomes lighter.

Some ships do have the quirk that when you fly to fast thru the atmosphere it tilts.
For this i recomend a multistage system with a thrust margin that you controll your self, (don't use only solid boosters, use both).

Also add a disposable fuel container on the side (either seperate or attached to the solid boosters), when you flying slowly you consume more fuel but have less air drag so the added mass almost equals out it self, the only differance is that you are able to dispose of dead weight and retain max fuel level in the main body before entering the thinner atmosphere where you can use full power.

This works well because a half full fuel tank is less efficiant than a full one that has more fuel storaged in relation to the mass of the container, that is why i use paired tanks on opposite sides of the ship that once empty are jettisoned of and then next pair is emptied and so on, yes it causes some extra drag, but the extra fuel you able to save for orbit manuvers is worth it if done correctly.
And as a bonus you only loose empty fuel tanks instead of entire engines that can cost alot when using stacked stage rockets.

A ideal rocket tho, is able to ram right thru the atmosphere at mach speeds, often tho many ships are slower than that as we love to add things to our ships.
I reacently did a under 1 ton satelite, i just strapped it on top of the largest solid booster i could find with a aerodynamic shell and then watched as it rocketed far out into space (dirt cheap construction with exellent performance).

[Troblin]

My basic steps for dumb punks (my friends) are:
1) initial liftoff, first seconds. For speed dynamics it is important to understand that there's a gap between zero at which you start and optimal ascent speed for sea level altitudes. So you need strong but short boost of speed to get to first 200m/s fast - strap a few shorter hard fuel boosters to get it done.
2) Dense atmosphere - up to 15km can be done verticaly or almost that, provided you made first 200m/s very fast, this part of ascent can be done with near zero acceleration at first and faster and faster as fuel is drained. Fins are needed to maintain heading.
3) The fall - from 15 km fall to 45 degrees and check the map at the same time. Unless your rocket is very powerful, your apoapsis still should be below 40ish km, so keep 45 degree inclination till apoapsis is approx 55km and roll further to horizontal.
4)To space - keep burning horizontally or even a couple degreez below horizon till your apoapsis is far away and 70+km high. Make sure you opened whatever solar panels and antenas needed for control and wait for 10 seconds before apoapsis.
5) Burn prograde till orbiting.

[Aragosnat]

Opprinnelig skrevet av RoofCatA:

Opprinnelig skrevet av Ogre420:

Hope this helps...
...
If you are seeing MACH EFFECTS (The white speed lines around the rocket) throttle back if you can until they disappear.
...

why oh why I still read this every once in a while. What's the science behind this advice?
Who has started the boogeyman stories about mach effects beeing generally bad and why they still exist in the age of science and numbers?*

Used to be when KSP had soup-o-sphere. You used to be wasting fuel if you where getting Mach effects. Usually it was very little over all. But, if you where doing a very tight Delta-V mission. Then it mattered. Now it is a bit of another problem. Reason why I would say that is to prevent flipping, easier to keep on course in case of panic and a little less likely to cause frame rate drops do to pc trying to do all the nice little calculations at such a high speed (this and Dwarf Fortress can bring many a pc to its knees). Which can be very easy to do depending what design and the tech/part count of the craft has available.

[Toastie Buns]

>ctrl + f "g meter"
>realise nobody cares about the G meter

>ctrl + f "10000"
>myth still exists

EDIT: Best way to get into orbit? mechjeb, apparently
topkek

[Jhea]

the best way is to keep your speed matched by this table
1000 m = 110 m/s
2000 m = 120 m/s
3000 m = 140 m/s
5000 m = 160 m/s
8000 m = 200 m/s
10000 m = 300 m/s

above - just boost off as fast as you can

also go straight up till you hit the 10000m mark.
you want the atmosphere as thin as possible before doing and orbit injection stunts (helps a lot with the ship not getting out of control)
as soon as you 10 or 12km move your nose to east and about 85 to 80°
till you get the apoapsis above 100 km (see on map)
then adjust to 0° above horizon and play a bit with the course marker till you get a nice orbit :)

works best for me and most of my space ships and is also a pretty fuel saving method

[Vault Crawler]

Seriously, I build insane rockets with interstellar that have over 15 twr and they got up very nice with all the mach, and then all the plasma. Never had a problem with mach. Just getting up faster and you will get out of that soup faster.
Once my AP is past 50k, i turn to horizon and boost the ♥♥♥♥ out of it until i get the AP to 75k. Then its practically a fart to circularize.

[Operation40]

everyone knows the fastest and best way to orbit is straight down through the center of the planet!

[czartraktheprotogen]

In Game tutorials

[maj.solo]

Depends on what body you want to orbit, one with atmosphere or one without.

Circularizing as soon as possible is the goal but not always practical. So a very unpractical approach is to point east and get from 0m/s to I dunno 2500m/s in zero seconds right from the launch pad. Impractical but it shows where your desires should be. Then mother nature is all against you, so you end up doing what is practical. But climbing up and circularizing as soon as possible and going as flat as possible .... I mean practical is the desired goal.

I am a little bit newbie I dont know or feel that you can use the oberth effect if you want to circularize at 100K 200K 500K etc etc. But you can use that if you want to leave Kerbin SOI and never have to worry about raising the PE. But all that is less of a problem since you are in orbit then.

no to answer your question going as fast as possible as flat as possible ... cough ... practical I mean ... and circularize as soon as possible ... cough ... practical ... why do I say possible all the time....sigh.

What you can do all depends on what rocket you have built. They all get different best ascent profiles.

[Drewskii]

Just sayin, I'm pretty sure you shouldn't post on how to do something unless you have done it about 10 times in-game without messing up.

[maj.solo]

Opprinnelig skrevet av BlazingKittyHawk:

Just sayin, I'm pretty sure you shouldn't post on how to do something unless you have done it about 10 times in-game without messing up.

there is some wisdome in that ... you tell us jokers to stay put. :) This optimum trajectory is so super simple and so complex it all depends how well you want to make it. OK I give my old advice over and over a gain like an old chwing gum.

TWR >= 2
aim 60 - 70
never drop nose below 45 degree unless doing 500m/s
never drop nose below 30 degree unless doing 1000m/s.

I gone into orbit so many time now I am starting to HyperEdit things into space just to be able to finnish the career before I physically die on a planet called Earth.