Project Multistage 2015 Apollo Saturn Launchers for AAPO

[1987VCRProductions]

As requested, here's a series of screenshots of a Saturn IB Centaur doing its job.

On the pad at LC-39, waiting to go.

Cleared the tower.

Breaking the sound barrier.

Inboard engines out.

Staging.

S-IVB J2 engine ignition.

Fairing jettison. I used the longer fairing from the Velcro Saturns.

Climbing towards orbit.

Staging and Centaur D RL-10A-3 ignition.

Insertion into a low, 185 km parking orbit. 2 more burns of the Centaur will boost Hubble to its working altitude.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I really want to use payloads like Cassini or Galileo but I'm not sure how to get them to function with Orbiter 2010 P1. I'm probably just going to have to use properly weighted Velcro Probes as a placeholder.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I've created a launch scenario for Apollo 10. I included the AMSO Apollo 11 landing site for visuals during the low level passes that Snoopy made over the site. I'll continue making scenarios for the other Apollo flights when I get around to doing it. I'll stop at 14 since AAPO doesn't yet simulate the LRV.

It's surreal seeing the line, Next Payload: Charlie_Brown. By far, my favorite vehicle that I've simulated is the Saturn IB and the Centaur variant. It's really a versatile and efficient space launcher and I love it a lot. The Saturn V Centaur (to me) feels like overkill but I guess that it could be used if you needed to throw a lot of weight very far out and very fast. A journey to the planet Saturn that took Cassini 7 years would take it a mere 2 or 3 on the Saturn V Centaur.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I just put in a lot of work on this add-on last night. Most of the work concerned reworking the S-IB and S-IC engine contrails to look more realistic. I've also changed the J2 engine and Centaur engine exhausts to the more accurate shock diamonds typical of LOX and Liquid Hydrogen burning engines. Another thing I did was adjust the burn times of the S-IVBs. Pictures to follow when I get the chance.

 

[Marg]

It would make more sense to make it all for Orbiter BETA, because now whole Moon with micro textures is one huge nice landing site. Actually this is what I did... the only problem is that for spacecraft3 vessels Moon is slippery like ice, if I land on even 0,5 degrees slope, LM slides until it "finds" lowest point and only then stops.

 

[boogabooga]

IIRC, the ini files for multistage 2015 should work for both the Orbiter 2010 and Beta versions.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

It would make more sense to make it all for Orbiter BETA, because now whole Moon with micro textures is one huge nice landing site. Actually this is what I did... the only problem is that for spacecraft3 vessels Moon is slippery like ice, if I land on even 0,5 degrees slope, LM slides until it "finds" lowest point and only then stops.

I'm still using 2010 P1 simply because that's what I'm the most comfortable with. It's the latest stable version of Orbiter and as Booga-Booga said, the ini files will work just fine with the Beta. If you plan on using the scenarios that I create, you can always go in and delete the AMSO landing sites so they don't conflict with the new Moon.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

Here's some images:

 

[1987VCRProductions]

Hey, it's been awhile. I'm going to try and finish this project and get it to a condition where I can release it. The reason I stopped work before was because I was having issues concerning the thrust of the S-IC stage. The numbers I was getting for the vacuum thrust of the stage seemed to cause the stage to over perform. Mach 1 was being reached before T+ 1:00 and the upper stages were reaching orbit much sooner than they would have in real life. Scaling back the thrust to what it was in AMSO gave a more accurate flight profile but caused some issues with upper stages under performing. Skylab was reaching orbit with the S-II literally on its last drops of fuel. I'm not sure if that's how it was in real life because I doubt the engineers at NASA would accept margins that thin. I'll have to revisit the issue here tonight.

I had an issue with the fairing I used on the Saturn IB/Centaur, specifically the longer fairing I used to launch the HST. The fairings, upon release, were jettisoned into each other rather than peeling off on either side of the launch vehicle. I think that was the issue, it's been almost a year and I neglected to document that part of the design process. I fixed the issue but I don't quite remember how I did so. I think I found the meshes in the Velcro folder, made copies of them, and then swapped their names, I think. I'll have to retrace my steps on that one. I'll either have to get permission to distribute the fixed meshes with this add on or put instructions in the read me on how to fix them. This add on will be just the ini files, guidance files, the SOL world file I specifically customized to use with this add on, and the scenarios. It's been awhile since I last explored the internal files of Orbiter 2010 so I might be forgetting a few things. I'm thinking of maybe altering the ini files to use some of the meshes from the NASSP 7 beta, I don't know how far they've progressed in the development since the last time I checked back when I first started this project. The manned Venus fly by mission would be fun to simulate.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I have the thrust where I like it for the S-IC (I went with the AMSO S-IC thrust) and I created a launch scenario for Apollo 11. I altered the J-2 and Centaur engine exhaust to the J-2 exhaust from the NASSP 7 beta. I've also used the interstage rings from NASSP 7 beta for the Saturn V. Apollo 4 and 6 have 8 ullage motors on the ring, Apollo 8 - 14 have 4 motors on the ring, and the INT-21 and Saturn V/Centaur have no ullage motors on the ring.

 

[CurlSnout]

Greetings from Planet 10. Just popping in to let you know that at least one other person is following this thread, and development of this project, with interest and enthusiasm. Keep up the nice work.

Peace,

cs

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I've created launch scenarios for Apollo 12, 13, and 14. I want to look into creating more scenarios for my Saturn IB Centaur and Saturn V Centaur heavy launchers.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I've created a scenario for launching jacquesmomo's Chandra X-Ray Telescope add on with the Saturn IB Centaur. Works great! Pictures will follow once I get home in a few hours.

---------- Post added at 10:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:14 PM ----------

As promised, here are the pictures:

On the launchpad.

Liftoff.

Through the sound barrier.

Staging.

Launch shroud jettison.

Earth orbit. The S-IVB on the Saturn IB did not have the capability to restart, as such it is useless now. We'll discard it with the [J] key.

The Centaur fires to boost the Chandra X-Ray Observatory to an orbital apogee of 134,500 km.

Chandra separation from the Centaur. I'm going off at a weird angle because I used the RCS thrusters to refine my trajectory.

A burn of the thrusters on Chandra will boost the perigee to 14,300 km, thus placing us in our final orbit.

 

[CurlSnout]

Great images! Looking forward to flying the Saturn 1B.

 

[jacquesmomo]

I've created a scenario for launching jacquesmomo's Chandra X-Ray Telescope add on with the Saturn IB Centaur. Works great! .

I'm glad to see my Chandra's add-on in Orbiter 2016 !!! :tiphat:

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I'm glad to see my Chandra's add-on in Orbiter 2016 !!! :tiphat:

I'm actually using Orbiter 2010 P1 so I'm unsure how well this will all work in Orbiter 2016.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

I'm working towards finishing this for release next month or sooner. I'm experimenting with trying to launch Galileo with my SIB-Centaur. I'm using a Centaur-G Prime as opposed to the older and less powerful Centaur-D. I'm having issues with getting Galileo boosted on a direct course to Jupiter, which the Centaur-G is allegedly supposed to be capable of doing. From what I read in the STS-34 Press Kit, Galileo might have put on a little weight since being put in store in 1986 until its eventual launch in 1989. I might try adding something like the second stage of the IUS to give it an extra kick.

I've also implemented the Centaur-G on fictional Saturn IB and Saturn V launches that take place in the 80s and 90s. I doubt that NASA would continue to use the Centaur-D forever. Pictures will probably follow here in a day or two. I didn't sleep last night and I have to work today, yay. :/

 

[barrygolden]

any of the AAP missions would be great to fly and you might try to launch the Magnum sat on the S1b.

 

[1987VCRProductions]

any of the AAP missions would be great to fly and you might try to launch the Magnum sat on the S1b.

Are you referring to the spy satellites launched by Shuttle Discovery on two separate DoD missions? Searching "Magnum" on Orbit Hangar turns up no results. Bear in mind that I have no experience or know how of model making.

 

[Star Voyager]

Yes, from 51C and 33 (and possibly 61N), but it's from the original [ame="http://orbithangar.com/searchid.php?ID=2481"]STS Payloads[/ame] and works in Orbiter 2010. The other payloads in this add-on could be interesting to launch on a IB (multi-HS-376's or 381's, combo, etc.).