Any virtual 'space-line' around?

[Zruty]

I was Orbiting quite a while ago and I've returned now, so I'm not in posession of the facts.

Back in these days there was a virtual space agency, I don't remember what it was called. You signed up, flew your missions on the 'official' spacecraft and submitted the reports. Does something like this exist in the present?

Actually, I'd like a bit more advanced approach. There's a list of 'missions' available at the moment, like:
* Deliver new crew members to ISS and return back with the retiring crew.
* Fly a LEO tour with a special pop-star guest on board.
* Install a TV satellite on geosynchronous orbit over China
* Urgently transport an important person from X to Y using a sub-orbital flight.
* Deliver a new supply of electronics to the Moon base.
* Install a new space station module.
etc. Each mission has an associated scenario. The pilot signs up for a mission and reports afterwards. I assume some mission may fail and then another mission may appear 'Rescue a dumb pilot stuck on high orbit without fuel' etc.

Well, enough of that dreaming. Is there anything close to it already?

 

[Star explorer]

well im a member of IOSA heres the link.

http://www.ioss.ca/

why don't you look at the forum to see what were doing though let me say before hand that IOSA is a brand new virtual space agency were working on our first mission right now

 

[Woo482]

if you want to view other peoples flights or post your own this web site is good http://tekdino.proboards98.com/index.cgi my name over there is Dog

 

[Arrowstar]

SimNASA is also a decent agency from what I hear. Never worked with them, but they seem to have a decent reputation and whatnot.

What I wouldn't mind seeing is something along the lines of a virtual airline for Orbiter. Get past all the past and present day stuff and actually run things like an airline. Orbinomics would be great for this, as would OMP (given the nature of spaceflight, probably the former more than the later). I know many people enjoy flying the shuttle or Apollo spacecraft, but I'd much rather be in a DGIV or XR1, truth be told.

 

[MJR]

SimNasa is pretty good. I am in UASO, and we are begining to recover after a lot of troubles. But we are pretty much situated.

 

[RangerPL]

I came up with this today:

After a space race between US and China in the 2020s, the United Nations decided that such a space race is a dangerous threat to the power balance between the major superpowers of the world. So, a new space agency, the UN Space Agency (UNSA), had been founded in 2031 to allow the countries of the world to peacefully co-operate in space. Signed by most of the UN countries, the UNSA treaty stated that any UN nation may contribute to the UNSA, in return for services such as satellite launches, astronaut training, etc.

This is where we fit into the story. We are the UNSA, and we receive missions that can range from launching some country's first satellite to exploring Mars.

A mission would be given to a member, who would then complete it in Orbiter, and report back. Completed missions would have their rewards, while failed ones would require a rescue.

2030s technologies would be used, which would probably be the Delta Glider, XR5, DGIV, DG-XR1, Tx, etc. I also think that the Energia HLLV would fit in, though it is present tech.

To make things interesting, we could add a budget. That would mean that the right craft should be used for the right job (launching an XR5 would be more costly than launching a DGIV)

This would be a bit like a RPG, and the time would progress. Every now and then, a new discovery could be made, a new craft could be developed, or a government could contribute some money in exchange for services.

This all could be set up as a forum-based RPG game.

UNSA tasks could include:

-Space Station Building
-Satellite launches
-Exploration of planets and moons
-Cargo ferrying
-And others

So each player could find something to match their skill level.

 

[Zruty]

That's right what I was thinking about. Let's move it further in time so that a mission doesn't require months of planning and precise calculations.

Even in this case, the main reality problem remains: why would a space agency employ us - hobbyists instead of specially trained and experienced astronauts?

Well, we can pretend to be skilled astronauts, but, as for me, it's too much of a burden, since I know for sure that my Orbiting techniques are far from perfect and therefore I don't perform time- and fuel-efficient maneuvers.

Even more to it, since I get the hang on the orbit mechanics I don't care much about the figures I get on, say, Orbit MFD. For examlple, when I need a circular orbit I make a burn at a (peri | apo) apsis until the small circle moves ~90 degrees away from me - no messing with all these ApD, Ecc figures.

I think we could invent some 'specialness', some innate property of a very very few persons indeed, so that each 'chosen one' is bound to become an astronaut regardless of his actual skill.

 

[RangerPL]

Well, it's role-playing, so we can basically play the roles of all these UNSA personel. UNSA is of course a fictional agency, but it could be good in that it allows some flexibility.

There could be flights available for people with different skill levels. We could even have some sub-orbital flights.

And basically, the UNSA "staff" would come up with some missions and run the game. Then the members of UNSA would do the missions and report back.

 

[Joss]

Well well well.. I'm liking this! :speakcool:

I'm developing an autopilot for reusable boosters.. As a first step to achieve just this!

My scenario is pretty much the same.. Some astounding technologichal breakthrough is discovered in the moon like a new material or industrial process.. And the posibility of its use in military applications would give the first nation to get its hand on it such an advantage that a third world war becomes an inmedaite reality.

US says it will intercept any incomming lunar mission from any foreign country with the same missiles they used to down their military sattelite on recent dates. China then declares war on US on the grounds that they will not become slaves to US neither would allow their position as a major would power to be taken from them.

Europe, Asia and Africa do not trust UN since it is considered to be a puppet and US its master.. On the other hand they know very well that working togheter they can compete with the US space program in technology and resources.

The Oil-Industry dependent nations threaten to stop inmediatly all production if a single ship is landed with materials from the Moon, they fear the prospect of massive investment on techonologichal development will foster alternatives to oil and they'll lose their status.

Then war is served.. The need to secure oil sources is so serious even nuclear weapons are ready for inmediate action.

Therefore a new entity is created: The World Space System with the mission to provide space transportation to all nations. Initially a simple set of rules is applied:

- No military personnel from any nation is allowed to participate nor any of its missions is allowed to support military objectives at all.
- People working for it will have to give away their current nationality and will be provided with a International Space Transport, therefore they will only answer to this organization and no individual or national purposes will be sought for.
- The sites both airborne and on the ground operated by this organization
will be owned and controlled by this organization and the countries will redraw its boundaries around them so no national control is exercised over any of them.
- Launch sites and launch schedules will have to accomodate the needs of all nations for the same price regardless its situation on the planet.
- All nations will pay an initial fee based on its gross income and then will pay by the tonne of transported material to or from the Moon.

In my scenario the product that provokes all this is pure glass.. NASA says that glass made in the moon would be so pure that its molecular strengh will make it 100 times stronger than steel.

Once presented this scenario the demand for people even with basic abilities is so big that anyone is welcome. An initial budget of 10.000 Million Dollars or Euros or Credits (Whatever.. ) is provided and a cost stablished for each individual part.. From there on is up to you to develop a global size space transport program.

But all this presents a new need.. What about a Space University for Orbiter?

 

[RangerPL]

That's a good Idea, but it limits us to doing just moon-earth missions. I'd like to have an agency that deals with all kinds of missions, such as anthing from deep space probes to satellites.

It would also be useful to have an addon developer on our team.