The Mark One Anomaly Investigation Board released it’s report on the flight of the Mark One vehicle today, and reveled that a mis-wiring of the RT-5 “Flea” Solid Rocket Booster ignition system triggered the Mk16 Parachute to deploy immediately, rather than during spacecraft descent as planned.
Today’s historic first launch of the Mark program was marred by a near disaster, with the craft tumbling out of control and failing to achieve a fifth of the intended altitude. Only the quick reflexes and remarkable piloting skills of the Kerbonaut Jebediah Kerman (no relation) prevented his untimely end. Keep Reading
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Kerbal Space Center announced that they will be attempting to launch the Mark Three mission early today, a mission that
Today the Kerbal Space Center announced the move of the Mark Three vehicle to the launch pad, and that the
After several weeks delay, today witnessed the successful launch of a Mark program capsule. The second attempt at launching a
Mark One to Launch Today
It was announced late yesterday that the Mark One Capsule will be launched today. We will bring you the full report as soon as we can publish them!
You can review the Mark Program with our coverage here, or read up on the specific goals for this flight here. Our coverage of the intrepid Kerbonaut who will be making this flight is here.
Mark One Moves to Pad
Yesterday the Kerbal Space Center completed it’s checkouts of the Mark One space vehicle, and completed the complex procedure of moving the assembled vehicle to the launch pad.
The checkout in the Vehicle Assembly Building over the several days found no major faults, although some minor corrections and re-calibrations were made to various systems. Once the craft was cleared, the pad move team took over. Keep Reading
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Kerbal Space Center announced that they will be attempting to launch the Mark Three mission early today, a mission that
Today the Kerbal Space Center announced the move of the Mark Three vehicle to the launch pad, and that the
After several weeks delay, today witnessed the successful launch of a Mark program capsule. The second attempt at launching a
KSC Announces Mark One Kerbonaut
Today the Kerbal Space Center announced that they had selected the Kerbonaut who will fly the first Mark Program flight, the Mark One. After weeks of speculation, we finally know which brave soul will strap themselves into the tiny Mk1 Capsule and allow Mission Control to ignite the ton of rocket propellant beneath them, propelling capsule and passenger skyward at velocities that have hitherto only been imagined. Keep Reading
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Kerbal Space Center announced that they will be attempting to launch the Mark Three mission early today, a mission that
Today the Kerbal Space Center announced the move of the Mark Three vehicle to the launch pad, and that the
After several weeks delay, today witnessed the successful launch of a Mark program capsule. The second attempt at launching a
The Mark One Mission
Soon the Kerbal Space Center will attempt to launch it’s first capsule with a live Kerbal inside. In reference to this historic event, Gene Kerman, Kerbal Space Center’s Flight Director, said:
“Our space program will soon enter a new era, the participation in the exploration of space by our first Kerbonaut. This upcoming mission is a most important step in the program, a step that will lead on to the ultimate conquest of of this new and hostile environment.”
This first flight will be attempted approximately one hour after daybreak after preflight checks. A countdown hold may occur if any issues arise with the spacecraft or pilot.
The spacecraft, weighing 800kg, will be boosted by a RT-5 “Flea” Solid Rocket Booster. The craft will follow a ballistic arc, hoping to reach at least 5,000m altitude. Keep Reading
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It is expected that the Kerbal Space Center will be announcing the next in the Mark program launches, presumably named
Today we present our long awaited tour of the Mark One Capsule, in many ways the most important component of
Kerbal Space Center announced that they will be attempting to launch the Mark Three mission early today, a mission that
The Mark Program
The initial objective for the Kerbal Space Center is determining the feasibility of launching a Kerbal into space, and returning him or her safely to Kerbin, regardless of how many attempts it takes. Concurrently, the KSC will also work on additional objectives, such as scientific studies during all phases of flight, additional flight goals such as orbiting Kerbin, alternative and advanced engine designs, and scheduled disassembly. It is not expected that advancements in all of these areas will progress evenly.
The basic Mark program launch will consist of some sort of capsule to protect the Kerbal and the flight controls, an engine to propel it through the air and eventually space, a recovery system to provide as survivable a landing as reasonable, and any additional systems to enable communication or provide stability.
Additional secondary objectives include testing long duration flight, on-orbit power generation, advanced communication, additional science objectives, and spacecraft automation. Tertiary objectives will be determined by the success or failure of the primary and secondary objectives.
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It is expected that the Kerbal Space Center will be announcing the next in the Mark program launches, presumably named
Today we present our long awaited tour of the Mark One Capsule, in many ways the most important component of
Kerbal Space Center announced that they will be attempting to launch the Mark Three mission early today, a mission that