space station science

[rav]

Hey im wondering what are you doing with space stations once they are done processing all the science. i mean they still generate science but its so little i wouldnt even bother with it.
So they are basically just sitting there being kind of useless.

[RoofCat]

I have built just one science station in LKO during my career. When I realized how much science there is in KSP universe and the weird processing speed curve (including high skilled scientist which you don't have at start), I gave up on them. Pointless and boring. I did install one on my mothership though - to do kerbal leveling underway.

I'm pretty sure that with my current knowledge of KSP and craft building I would be able to complete whole Tech tree within 1 month ingame time. It took me 18 days of mining to grind all Mun science last time and Minmus is much quicker. Just the flight distance takes roughly the same. Plus some time to reach mining or have enough rockets for every biome.

[Jupiter3927]

You can swap out the mobile processing lab and feed it more science to get even more science out of your science station.

The mobile labs work like the big lab back at KSC but won't share data.
You can take an EVA report from high over Kerbin and send it home.
Take another one and have your lab process it.
Take another one and have another lab process it since the first lab won't take it.
Take another one and give it to another lab.
Take another...
Easy infinite science if you don't mind the occasional planetary expedition.

[rav]

Originally posted by RoofCat:

I have built just one science station in LKO during my career. When I realized how much science there is in KSP universe and the weird processing speed curve (including high skilled scientist which you don't have at start), I gave up on them. Pointless and boring. I did install one on my mothership though - to do kerbal leveling underway.

I'm pretty sure that with my current knowledge of KSP and craft building I would be able to complete whole Tech tree within 1 month ingame time. It took me 18 days of mining to grind all Mun science last time and Minmus is much quicker. Just the glight distance takes roughly the same. Plus some time to reach mining or have enough rockets for every biome.

what do you mean mining the science? tbh ive never mined anything in this game but from my understanding you can process fuel from it but i never heard about mining science?

i have no science station at kerbin btw, i have one at minmus, mun and in orbit of the sun, im also playing on fairly high difficulty and modded so i dont get as much science as normally and need all the science i can get :)

Originally posted by Jupiter3927:

You can swap out the mobile processing lab and feed it more science to get even more science out of your science station.

The mobile labs work like the big lab back at KSC but won't share data.
You can take an EVA report from high over Kerbin and send it home.
Take another one and have your lab process it.
Take another one and have another lab process it since the first lab won't take it.
Take another one and give it to another lab.
Take another...
Easy infinite science if you don't mind the occasional planetary expedition.

oh so you mean switch out the science lab like a empty battery interesting idea maybe i will think of it

[Oiff]

It is more that each lab can process each set of data once.
For example if you have a station in orbit of Kerbin with 5 labs and use the 2hot to check the temperature you will be able to send to lab 5 times and transmit once. Each lab will process the data providing 5 times the science of just processing it once. Of course you will need 5 times the scientists to do it.

And of course you can store science in containers so you can have landers / rovers collecting it for later use.

In theory you could spam science labs on the runway and use time acceleration to complete the tech tree without ever leaving the KSC.

There are also labs from mods that behave differently, for example the OPT ones can hold much more and process a lot faster.
The K&K / Pathfinder ones go at the same speed but also have other abilities like bonus research and experiments.

[andylaugel]

I've got a career mode game that's got 14 years 82 days on the clock. My first space base, M-027 Alpha, parked on the Mun is still processing data and generating science. To be fair some experimental data got shipped in from other worlds. But that it's still going and useful after 14 years is something.

One thing I've noticed is that it's often hard to process data from other worlds quickly. When one experiment takes a third to more than half the data a single lab can contain, it can be hard to keep it filled at 90% plus capacity. (Okay, I have to wait until it's got 200 room of space to spare until I can load the next smallest experiment...)

[RoofCat]

Originally posted by rav:

Originally posted by RoofCat:

I have built just one science station in LKO during my career. When I realized how much science there is in KSP universe and the weird processing speed curve (including high skilled scientist which you don't have at start), I gave up on them. Pointless and boring. I did install one on my mothership though - to do kerbal leveling underway.

I'm pretty sure that with my current knowledge of KSP and craft building I would be able to complete whole Tech tree within 1 month ingame time. It took me 18 days of mining to grind all Mun science last time and Minmus is much quicker. Just the glight distance takes roughly the same. Plus some time to reach mining or have enough rockets for every biome.

what do you mean mining the science? tbh ive never mined anything in this game but from my understanding you can process fuel from it but i never heard about mining science?

you do mining to jump from biome to biome with the same ship. Collect science with kerbals in between. Move with the Sun. I had 170+ different science onboard after that single trip to Mun with total value over 10ooo. Direct delivery to KSC. Grinding that amount through science station would take years.

[Astronaut]

be careful when asking these questions, you'll always get a long reply from me.
Space stations can be built for fun. There is a lot of funds involved, and space stations really have no purpose. So why should you put them up in the first place? Maybe you got ___ (a) a contract (b) bored. Put them up and you might as well use them. If you got a contract, don't launch a station that will cost you more than advance money and completion money, unless you actually need the station. Stations can either serve as command stations, research stations, fuel stations, or absolutely nothing. If you have final fontier and kerbal alarm clock, you can have rotations that each are 200 days or so, and your kerbals get ribbons for mission time. They can be refueling stations for spaceplanes and stuff, or you can simply put up a command center. Even if the command center doesn't have connection to the space center, it will act like one by being able to control all craft within comms range. Relays are different, they just strengthen or weaken the signal from the space center. Also you might want some mods, they make space stations much better.
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/22809-13x-kerbal-alarm-clock-v3850-may-30/
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/96851-11-texturereplacer-2413-442016/ (some diversity)
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/143828-131-stock-visual-terrain-v208/ (nicer terrain from the surface and from orbit, makes terrain scatters solid. there is an issue with kopernicus and terrain scatters, it will be fixed but you can still try)
https://spacedock.info/mod/141/scatterer
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/61065-131-final-frontier-kerbal-individual-merits-133-3172/
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/78778-raredens-real-8k-skybox-for-texture-replacer/
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/90530-131-community-tech-tree-july-26th-new-techs/ (might ruin saves, you'll need a lot of science to unlock this)
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/102390-122-contract-pack-bases-and-stations-361-30042017-formerly-kerbin-space-station/ (space stations really have a purpose)
There is also a mod called Career Lite, found it on spacedock but it seems to have disappeared now, it allows you to reverse science, funds, etc.
Also there's dmagic orbital science, help you unlock tech trees faster

[Firewolf]

break it up in parts and let them fly into the atmosphere. they will likely burn up and no rubble is left behind. this is what ESA does with satelites which are not being used anymore or whatever

[Chibbity]

Originally posted by Killer2002been:

break it up in parts and let them fly into the atmosphere. they will likely burn up and no rubble is left behind. this is what ESA does with satelites which are not being used anymore or whatever

Or y'know, you could just delete it in the tracking station.

Since this is a video game.

[Astronaut]

Originally posted by Chibbity:

Originally posted by Killer2002been:

break it up in parts and let them fly into the atmosphere. they will likely burn up and no rubble is left behind. this is what ESA does with satelites which are not being used anymore or whatever

Or y'know, you could just delete it in the tracking station.

Since this is a video game.

kerbal inventory system also has some bombs that detonate stuff up to 10m away but I don't know if they can activate themselves, i think you might need a kerbal so never mind

Originally posted by rav:

Hey im wondering what are you doing with space stations once they are done processing all the science. i mean they still generate science but its so little i wouldnt even bother with it.
So they are basically just sitting there being kind of useless.

oh, I see. You can just re-process science expierments, if they're not already in the lab.

[Capt Turkey Lips]

I have a question and I have been struggling to find the answer. I realize this may not be the exact thread to ask this, but it is somewhat related. After a contract to build a science station, once the mission has been completed. Should I bring my Kerbals home? I am out of Kerbals because they are on stations all over the place and they are expensive now. I started bringing them home just tonight by building a space taxi. Kinda fun. Not sure if the game will get mad at me for removing the stations though?

Thanks!

[Chibbity]

Originally posted by Capt Turkey Lips:

I have a question and I have been struggling to find the answer. I realize this may not be the exact thread to ask this, but it is somewhat related. After a contract to build a science station, once the mission has been completed. Should I bring my Kerbals home? I am out of Kerbals because they are on stations all over the place and they are expensive now. I started bringing them home just tonight by building a space taxi. Kinda fun. Not sure if the game will get mad at me for removing the stations though?

Thanks!

You likely never needed to send them there in the first place.

Most contracts just require space for Kerbals on stations, not actual Kerbals in seats.

Once the contract is completed you can definitely bring them home unless you want them/need them there for some other reason.

[Grumpy Old Gamer]

Originally posted by rav:

Hey im wondering what are you doing with space stations once they are done processing all the science. i mean they still generate science but its so little i wouldnt even bother with it.
So they are basically just sitting there being kind of useless.

End game the science stations are used ot generate cash by selecting the science to cash admin choice thingy. Not sure what it is. I personally make quite a few of them as they pay for themselves and the rocket thatt launched them rather quickly. I no longer do kerbin orbits as the delta V is not much less than a direct Mun or Minmus shot. But I also use (and wrote) the For Science and Tacos branch of FS which automatically collects all science you pass through as long as there is a scientist on board, even low/zero value science because the data is what is important for a lab. So from launch to minmus orbit there is generally about 1000 science. If you place it in minumus polar orbit you get more. If you make the stations or th ships they are on able to refuel they can then travel to solar orbit, more science, duna, etc. as your refueling infrastructure expands. I like to put one refuelign station on minmus, another around each planetary systems smallest moon. You can also build insanely expensive probes with lots of xenon to gather the science for you.

[VerbenaIDK]

make space station on a jool moon, idk if this work but it is on other planet, so mount it on orbit put some motors and fuel and move all space station to jool