Spacecraft Lastotjka

[nidhugg]

This is a continuation from the thread
http://orbiter-forum.com/showthread.php?t=4539

"Lastotjka (Ласточка) class strategical bomber Soviet thermonuclear space bomber from 1991."

Yea, those are very sweet scenarios indeed! By the way, that Black Dart ship is very well done. Awesome animations and modeling! :speakcool:

So, no, this kind of ship is entirely fictional and just a product of my imagination (and my need of having a personalized spacecraft).

Some good news are that I have taken some time to continue working on the craft. Hope to release a new version in a couple of days. Before I can do that I need to solve some problems with UVW-mapping and texture mapping i general.
I use 3DS-max9 to model and the conversion-script MAXtoMSH. However the script cant handle a plain conversion directly from the viewport without corrupting some geometries (the normals become inverted). This is manageable however, by first converting tBJ and then importing and using the script.
The real problem is that when I do exactly that, the information about how the textures are moved is lost (tiling is okay, but I want to shift the texture sideways and up/down).
I know it's possible since I saw that there are painting-kits where only one big image is used for texturing - that is there must be possible to code texture positioning somehow in the .msh.

 

[Woo482]

I think you might need to UVW map the Texture to fix the Problem with the Textures.
EDIT1: sorry I just noticed you all ready said that

 

[nidhugg]

Yes Did a thread in Addon development also. Someone here must know.

 

[nidhugg]

Lastotjka 0.5 is released on Orbithangar with some new features and improved visuals. Enjoy!

 

[Marcel]

The mesh is looking really good, and the textures look great, especially the engines! I zoomed in to look at the rivets and access panels. Is that a hint of a ladder and hatch in the front wheel well? I was wondering how one gets into this thing. With the docking ports being so high off the ground, a ladder there seems like a good idea, perhaps UMMU compatible. The engines look too exposed to survive reentry, however. You might consider extending the heat shield under them, similar to the space shuttle's design for protecting its main engines. The wings also look vulnerable. I assume that wings extended is for subsonic flight, and retracted is for supersonic flight. For hypersonic flight I think it would look better if there was a third position for the wings that would rotate them further forward until the wingtips toughed the body near the nose. It would give the spacecraft a more compact delta shape for that stage of the flight.
As for the performance of the craft, the turning nose wheel looks nice, but when I attempt to taxi it acts like there is no friction with the ground. It slides sideways, and a sharp turn puts it into a spin. It actually leaves the ground sometimes, floating a meter or so high then settling back down. It also used prodigious amounts of fuel. I managed, at Habana where I have it parked, to more or less taxi from the landing pad to the end of the runway, and had 20.9% fuel left. I refueled using those cool atmospheric collectors and took off, but had only about 40% left by the time it was airborne. I quickly ran out of fuel and glided in for a landing near the Cuban coast. Unless I'm doing something very wrong, I have to pronounce the current version unflyable.
I haven't yet tried to make a spacecraft, but I'm doing some buildings and studying the subject, so I have a rough idea of how difficult this project is. Please keep up the good work. I still want to fly this thing to Mir!
In the meantime I thought I'd give a little gift of appreciation to you (and anyone else who may be reading this thread). The VASI lights at KSC runway 33 have always bothered me, just floating there in mid-air, so I made housings for them. They're not authentic, but hopefully they're better than nothing. It's part of a general SLF enhancement that I'm working on. Copy the text below into your canaveral.cfg file below BEGIN_OBJECTLIST

; VASI white lightposts 33-------------
tank
pos -8179.5 0 -1211.9
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .1 6.5 .1
end
tank
pos -8179.5 0 -1211.9
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .149 2.6 .149
end
block
pos -8179.5 6.4 -1211.9
scale .5 .5 .5
rot 29.75
tex1 wall01 1 1
tex2 wall01 1 1
tex3 wall01 1 1
end
tank
pos -8182.999 0 -1205.8
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .1 6.5 .1
end
tank
pos -8182.999 0 -1205.8
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .149 2.6 .149
end
block
pos -8182.999 6.4 -1205.8
scale .5 .5 .5
rot 29.75
tex1 wall01 1 1
tex2 wall01 1 1
tex3 wall01 1 1
end
tank
pos -8186.5 0 -1199.7
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .1 6.5 .1
end
tank
pos -8186.5 0 -1199.7
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .149 2.6 .149
end

block
pos -8186.5 6.4 -1199.7
scale .5 .5 .5
rot 29.75
tex1 wall01 1 1
tex2 wall01 1 1
tex3 wall01 1 1
end
block
pos -8182.999 2.33 -1205.8
scale .5 .15 14.5
rot 29.75
tex1 wall01 1 1
tex2 wall01 1 1
tex3 wall01 1 1
end
; VASI red lightbar 33-------------------
tank
pos -8315.836 0 -1280.377
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .2 3.5 .2
end
tank
pos -8337.675 0 -1242.276
tex1 wall01 1 1
scale .2 3.5 .2
end
block
pos -8326.773 1.8 -1261.3
scale .6 1.6 44.5
rot 29.75
tex1 fcd09 .33 .937
tex2 Fcd09 .937 .937
tex3 fcd09 .33 .937
end
block
pos -8326.5 1.8 -1261.1
scale .72 1.5 44.4
rot 29.75
tex1 cape23 .125 .1
tex2 cape23 1 1
tex3 cape23 1 1
end

 

[Sky Captain]

I just tried this craft and get into orbit no problem, I even managed to refill fuel tanks by gliding at 60 - 70 km altitude with ~7 km/s and then accelerated into roughly circular 400 km high orbit with 95% fuel left. This craft is much like DeltaGlider EX, it must slowly gain altitude and speed and you also must manage your fuel consumption vs intake so you don`t run out.

This craft made me wonder would it be possible to build something similar in real life probably with some kind of air breathing NERVA nuclear engine that uses atmosphere as reaction mass and needs only little onboard propellant for final orbital insertion.


-----Post Added-----


Although I spotted some glitch in aerodynamics model because you need to fly nose down to maintain level flight.

 

[Marcel]

Sky Captain, your post makes me wonder if my problems with this craft stem from the way I installed it. I simply copied the new versions of the files over the old ones. The spacecraft was still active in my scenario. It appears right visually, but I wonder if I must remove it from my scenario and then add it again. I'm going to give it a try.

 

[Marcel]

LOST(otjka) IN SPAAACE!

I removed my malfunctioning Lastotjka from my current scenario and re-installed it at Habana. I taxied out to the runway. It still slipped and slid a bit, but not as bad as before. I managed to get it lined up at the end of the runway with 0.4% fuel left. I'm thinking there may be something still wrong with my installation, but I'm going to try it out anyway. I refueled with the collectors. I remembered that in my last test of the new version, the hover thrusters were no longer able to lift the craft from Earth. I decided to test it again. I thought that if I burned up enough fuel, the craft might become light enough to take off. When it was nearly out of fuel it lifted off and the nose pitched up. I pressed horizontal level, figuring that because I had crash detection off for this test flight, I'd run out of fuel and bounce on the ground. To my surprise, the craft flipped over an its back, I heard the crash sound and found myself beneath the surface of the planet. I cut the hover thrusters, engines were off, but I heard air rushing past the hull like it does on re-entry. Then I was outside the planet and moving away fast, Very very fast. I once in Celestia focused on the Earth and moved away from it at the speed of light, and this looked similar. I'm sorry that I didn't think to note the actual velocity at the time, but I was somewhat nonplussed. You would be too, If your distance from Earth was increasing by about 0.1 AU/second! I figured that I had to set the sim to unlimited fuel, point my nose to Earth and burn. I couldn't see the Earth, even in planetarium mode but pointing retrograde seemed about right. When the ship came to a near stop, I was 37.99AU from the Earth. The Sun looked like any other star. This reminded me of the old days, playing Frontier Elite 2. You would point your nose at a planet, burn your engine until halfway there, then point your tail at the planet and burn until you reached a relative stop. Repeat two or three times and you can land. That's what I'm doing right now. My first try got me to 2.477AU. This little test flight has turned into quite an adventure!

 

[nidhugg]

Try activating the gas-collectors (C), Marcel. Lastotjka will then collect gas, compress it/ lead it directly through the engines.
The turning nose-wheel -effect needs to be re-implemented. It behaves kind of strange now, yes.

---------- Post added at 09:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:51 PM ----------

Also, if you trim the ship slightly towards the surface you can collect gas more efficiently and still keep a good acceleration. Careful not to burn up though!

---------- Post added at 09:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:54 PM ----------

Oh, if you missed the other controls - check the description on orbithangar. If you activate the Ion-drive -extension you will notice that the flaps are animated in accordance to the amount of thrust.

 

[Marcel]

I tried the gas collectors, but they aren't working for me outside the atmosphere. As I said above, I think there is something wrong with my instillation. The ion engine animations and exhaust look really nice. I'm cheating and using unlimited fuel with 0.1% on board. I'm really enjoying the challenge of getting Lastotjka back to Earth. It's now 0.135AU away. I'll try to land this weekend, then re-install it. Btw, has anyone else experienced falling below the surface of a planet and being ejected like this? I haven't even built up the skills to go to the Moon yet, and suddenly I found myself zipping past Jupiter and Saturn!

 

[Marcel]

Ok, so it took two weekends...

...but I'm back! I really enjoyed this scenario! Here I was, a test pilot in a prototype spacecraft who encounters a bizarre, unknown space-time anomaly that flings him into the outer solar system! The collectors aren't working, I'm out of fuel and I'm watching the solar system contracting before my eyes in real time. Ok, try to get the engines working. Good thing I brought a basic repair kit with me. A basic repair kit consists of a can of WD-40, duct tape, pliers, screwdriver and a hammer. You bundle this up in your towel. The basic repair procedure is as follows; if something is supposed to move and doesn't, you apply the WD-40. If something is not supposed to move and does, you apply the duct tape. Use the pliers and screwdriver as needed, and if all else fails, whack it with the hammer. The towel has myriad uses that I won't go into here. I had noticed excessive fuel consumption, which led me to inspect the seals between the fuel tank and that other whathamacallit. You know the one I mean. Anyway, it seems that they weren't "installed correctly", and lost pressure when outside of Earth's atmosphere, creating a blowback into the collectors, preventing them from working. I managed to do a bit of a workaround, and re-enforced the seals, so they would work if I kept the fuel tank pressure to a minimum. Good thing I brought that duct tape! I'm not sure what the problem here is because I don't know how it all works, I'm only the test pilot! Did the repairs, and whack! I've got thrust! Now to figure out how to get back.
I'm rated for orbit, rendezvous and docking, not interplanetary flight. You didn't hire me for this! (I love the imagination play that this thing generates!) I don't know transx, or even if it would work in this situation. I used orbit mfd and map mfd with hud set to surface. I had to tell the computer which planet I was interested in at that distance. The orbit mfd was displaying a cryptic diagonal line, but I had distance, velocity and direction and kick-*** engines. I flew the spacecraft in vector mode, like 3D Asteroids. As I got closer I learned to decipher to orbit mfd display. It was showing my vector past the Earth as a straight line, and Periapsis as the closest point. The object was to thrust towards the planet, and try to come to as near a stop as possible at periapsis. I had an interesting situation near the planet. I was close enough to set my periapsis at 10m. Unfortunately I miscalculated my turn to retrograde burn. It was downright scary to see the Earth bearing down on me like a bullet train. If I had hit the planet at that velocity, I would have caused the extinction of several endangered species! Once I got close enough to see the planet to see the planet hanging out there like a ping pong ball, rendezvous with the planet became similar to rendezvous with the ISS. I visually moved the direction indicator where I wanted it using common sense seat of the pants flying to trim my velocity relative to Habana as much as I could, when the orbit mfd rewarded me with... a curve! I had dropped to hyperbolic! I found myself approaching PeT and suddenly standard orbital procedures applied. I found that burning somewhat before PeT caused it to move away from my position, allowing me to approach it and burn multiple times. I managed to get Lastotjka into a 7.1 by 7.4m orbit, Habana is in darkness, and it was time for bed. That was my first weekend.
During the week I did a plane change burn to an equatorial orbit I could easily jump off from when dawn approached over the spaceport. I knew that I must wait until I had the time to do a deorbit burn and landing in real time, because the save state function isn't working yet, and I can't appear in the atmosphere at hypersonic speed with the gear down. This weekend as dawn approached, I did another plane change to pass over Habana. The spacecraft in orbit performed as expected. I did the deorbit burn and turned off retrograde, but left Lastotjka's orientation alone. I tested it to see if it turned to a position of least resistance while grazing the upper atmosphere. It did, and faced in the direction of travel, with the left wing pointing toward the ground. It too some time to level it, an I lost track of the attack angle. Lastotjka bounced off the atmosphere and re-entered about 3000k WSW of Habana. Fine with me, I wanted to test it in atmospheric flight in the first place! It flew fine. I had to do some trim adjustments to keep it level. The nose needs to point down. I could adjust the trim in outside view thanks to your animations. I got it up to about 2000kph at 25km and cruised back without incident. As Habana approached I cut throttle and glided down to the point where I could open the wings. This had the expected effect of tilting the nose back and increasing lift. I'm really impressed with the low speed performance of this craft I approached the runway at about 50 and touched down at around 35. Does this thing even have a stall speed? I taxied back to the landing pad, and just before I got there, I tested the collectors again. Sure enough, they worked fine in the atmosphere! This flight from nearly 38AU to Earth took about a month of game time.
Conclusion: This spacecraft will be able to take you anywhere!

 

[nidhugg]

Seems like a nice little adventure you had there with the Lastotjka
I noticed too that the ISP at low thrust with the combined engine mode is a bit unrealistic.
A version with state saving + some improved physical parameters is on the way.

 

[Marcel]

Yeah, that was a BLAST(off)! I must have slipped past an error check and gotten a major "you aren't supposed to be here" vector added to my velocity, or something. It was a lot of fun bringing it back, and I might add, I brought your ship back to you in one piece! I haven't messed with orbiter for the last few days. I think I'm still a little dizzy from the flight. I'm going back to KSC and work on my SLF for awhile.