KerbalX

Description

5:Dawn 6:panels 8:drain 9:bay/antenna 0:reverse B:spoilers

Ion Eagle launches atop a Rhino lifter, all of which can be refueled in LKO in prep for interplanetary travel.

The payload is a single Xenon tank with capacity of 182.400 units of precious xenon. (Maybe enough to supply a remote station forever.) But see also my Xenon Converter.

The original goal was actually just to make the utility ion driver, good for other uses. The ion driver can operate at full power continuously at Kerbin’s altitude. The ‘sails’ can be rotated around the roll axis to find 100% direct sunlight at any time the sun is available.

It won’t run long in the dark and is not intended to. Thus will require a level of planning similar to that of a sailboat navigator. Same goes for the outer solar altitudes: patience required. It is, after all, an all-Electric Vehicle… :)

I also started with 4 stacks of 8x 5700 unit xenon tanks mounted on a quad coupler inside a 2.5m fairing with Papa docks capping each end. Same capacity. But decided to render it using just 4 parts (single xenon tank), also making xenon transfer more convenient.

Launch Profile: SAS Hold until reaching 30 m/s; then pitch downrange 5 degrees and use SAS Sfc Prograde; jettison S1 when its tip tank is exhausted; jettison fairing and nose cone shortly before the Kerman line (<70km); circularize.

Built in the VAB in KSP version 1.11.2.