Traveling Around the Kerbol System

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Want to travel around the Kerbol system but don't know how to start? No worries! I will teach you how to go to another Celestial Body while being efficient at the same time. Let's jump in!

This page assumes that you have already traveled and landed on the Mun and Minmus. You can find some tutorials here if you haven't:

Specifications

  • Length: 15 minutes - 1 hour
  • Difficulty: Moderate
  • For Version: 1.0 to 1.2
  • Recommended Delta-V: ~3,500
    • ~1,500 to ~2,500 for Interplanetary Transfer
    • ~1,500 to get into orbit

Additionally, you will need an understanding of orbital mechanics (see Tutorials section), maneuver nodes, angles, and a lot of patience.

Planning Your Trip

Where to go First?

It is best to first go to Duna because of many reasons. It has an atmosphere similar to Kerbin's which is suitable for aerobraking and parachutes. It is also Kerbin's nearest neighbor and possess a moon similar to the Mun: Ike.

You can find a tutorial to go to Duna here.

Rocket Requirements

To go to another Celestial Body, there are some essential requirements that you should have on EVERY interplanetary rocket.

  • Parachutes (required for a return to Kerbin)
  • Solar Panels and Batteries (especially for probes)
  • An Efficient Engine (The Poodle engine or the Nuclear engine should do just fine)
  • Fuel (Use AT LEAST a Rockomax Jumbo fuel tank or equivalent)
  • Reaction Wheels (The ones in each capsule would work also)
  • An Antenna (For communications (ESPECIALLY for probes in Version 1.2))
  • Docking Port (This is not required, but is strongly recommended in case you get stranded in orbit)

Planetary Alignment

Make sure your target planet is ALIGNED with Kerbin. Or else, you could be drifting for years and wasting fuel until they happen to match up.

Phase Angle
The angle from Kerbin to Kerbol to your destination planet. This could be in front or behind you.

Simple Phase Angles

Moho: ~250 degrees behind Eve: ~55 degrees behind Duna: ~45 degrees ahead Dres ~80 degrees ahead Jool: ~95 degrees ahead Eeloo: ~100 degrees ahead

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