KerbalX

Details

• Type: VAB
• Class: ship
• Part Count: 33
• Mods: 1
• KSP: 1.11.0

Mods

• Bluedog DB

While a moon landing program had been in the works for a number of years it didn’t really take off until JFK’s famous address on May 25th, 1961 and with that there had to be a decision on how such a landing would take place. The original plan was for a single spacecraft to directly ascend to the Moon, land, and takeoff back to Earth which is known as direct ascent. This would require an extremely large and powerful lifter of which in many proposals was commonly known as the Nova rocket. The opposite approach known as earth orbit rendezvous would use numerous launches to assemble, and possibly fuel, the vehicle in low earth orbit. A third approach, initially deemed extremely risky, was lunar orbit rendezvous which separated the ship into two vehicles, a Command/Service Module, and a lunar lander which would be used exclusively for the landing. This plan additionally called for it to be handled with only a single lifter, the Saturn V.

Both earth orbit rendezvous and lunar orbit rendezvous required NASA to develop procedures and astronauts to develop experience with rendezvous and docking between two vehicles operating under orbital mechanics. This would also be a requirement if NASA or the USAF were going to develop any reusable space stations which were already in the works. An important step was a doctoral thesis on manned orbital rendezvous by NASA astronaut and future moon walker, Buzz Aldrin. This led to the first serious rendezvous attempt with Gemini 4 where it attempted to station keep with its own spent upper stage however this failed. The first successful rendezvous eventually occurred on December 15th, 1965 between Gemini 6 and Gemini 7.

The Agena upper stage first flew in 1959 and was primarily used for spy and other reconnaissance satellites until designs were made for the standardized Agena-D meant to reduce costs and improve reliability which first flew in 1962. Several years later it was chosen to serve as the basis for the Gemini Agena Target Vehicle (GATV) which would allow astronauts to develop an array of skills necessary for the Apollo program. The early key goals were for reliable rendezvous and docking with an unmanned vehicle with other goals including using the GATV’s engines to significantly alter the combined vessel’s orbit, conduct a variety of experiments, and provide much needed EVA experience.

Unfortunately the first GATV exploded during its maiden launch on its Atlas rocket but the second GATV, with the historic Gemini 8 mission, became the first successful docking of a manned vessel with an unmanned one in space as commanded by the future first man on the moon, Neil Armstrong. The docking was short-lived because of problems with the Gemini thrusters but there would be three more successful missions with the GATV which closed out the Gemini program.

The Bossart is Bluedog Design Bureau’s second approximation of the Atlas rocket and a replacement for its older Muo design. The Bossart SLV-3 represents the second generation of Bossart rockets meant to handle larger payloads such as the Belle upper stage. It still remains a stage-and-a-half design with a booster skirt which carries two engines assisting the ascent until it is no longer necessary. My recommendation is to jettison the skirt, and its engines, without about 30 to 45 seconds left during the stage burn.

The Leo Belle Target Vehicle (LBTV) is a significant modification of the Belle-D upper stage and approximate the GATV and Agena-D respectively. The most significant addition is that of a docking adapter for a Leo Vinci capsule which has a compatible active docking port. It also has a number of antennae including a long boom antenna used for docking and more passive ones for operating the LBTV from a distance. There is also a materials bay and several on-board experiments mirroring that of the real-life GATV.

The LBTV, much like the GATV, also allows the crewed spacecraft to use the LBTV’s engines to boost itself into a much higher orbit and then lower its combined orbit again without using the manned spacecraft’s fuel supply and placing it in a reliable orbit from which it can re-enter the atmosphere.

A typical mission would involve first launching a LBTV, launching a Leo Vinci spacecraft, rendezvousing with the LBTV, and lastly docking the two vessels. If you want to also be historically accurate you should fit in some EVA practice to collect experiments from the LBTV’s materials bay. Lastly it wouldn’t be completed without using the LBTV’s engines to boost the combined spacecraft into MKO (Medium Kerbin Orbit) and back to LKO (Low Kerbin Orbit). You should take extra care in the return trip to LKO as the Leo Vinci’s retrograde engines probably won’t be enough to successfully deorbit from the higher altitude.

Built in the VAB in KSP version 1.11.0.