Difference between revisions of "Reaction Control System"

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The Reaction Control System, mostly just called '''RCS''', is a set of gas-fuelled small thrusters primarily intended for orienting vessels in vacuum. In order to use RCS, you will need both a dedicated RCS fuel tank along with some RCS thrusters. The fuels tanks for RCS are different from solid or liquid fuels tank, and currently come in two options, matching the two different radius of parts.
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The Reaction Control System, mostly just called '''RCS''', is a set of gas-fuelled small thrusters primarily intended for orienting vessels in vacuum. It is toggled on and off by pressing the R key (default key binding). In order to use RCS, a dedicated RCS fuel tank along with some RCS thrusters is needed. The fuel tanks for RCS are different from solid or liquid fuels tank, and currently come in two options, matching the two different radii of parts.
  
The thrusters can be located any where on your ship, there is no need to place the thrusters on fuel tanks or manually run fuel lines to them. The thruster block can provide full rotation control, where as the linear port can only provide thrust in one direction. you should aim to place the thrusters as far away from your centre of mass as possible, thus maximising the torque (turning force) they generate. You should also try to place them with four way symmetry as this can provide the best control. The one final thing to not forget about is that [[SAS]] will make use of the thrusters, so unless you need to keep your ship dead level and/or have RCS fuel to spare, it is best to disable them when you can.
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The thrusters can be located anywhere on a ship. Unlike Jet and Liquid Fuel Engines, there is no need to place RCS thrusters on RCS fuel tanks or manually run fuel lines to them. The thruster block can provide full rotation control, whereas the linear port can only provide thrust in one direction. It is advisable to place the thrusters as far away from your centre of mass as possible, thus maximising the torque (turning force) they generate. It is typically most practical to place them with four way symmetry as this can provide the best control. It should also be noted that [[Advanced SAS]] will make use of the thrusters. To avoid a constant drain of RCS fuel, it is recommended not  to have both the RCS or the Advanced SAS turned on at the same time, unless you need to keep your ship dead level and/or have RCS fuel to spare.
  
 
== Fuel ==
 
== Fuel ==

Revision as of 09:21, 27 September 2012

The Reaction Control System, mostly just called RCS, is a set of gas-fuelled small thrusters primarily intended for orienting vessels in vacuum. It is toggled on and off by pressing the R key (default key binding). In order to use RCS, a dedicated RCS fuel tank along with some RCS thrusters is needed. The fuel tanks for RCS are different from solid or liquid fuels tank, and currently come in two options, matching the two different radii of parts.

The thrusters can be located anywhere on a ship. Unlike Jet and Liquid Fuel Engines, there is no need to place RCS thrusters on RCS fuel tanks or manually run fuel lines to them. The thruster block can provide full rotation control, whereas the linear port can only provide thrust in one direction. It is advisable to place the thrusters as far away from your centre of mass as possible, thus maximising the torque (turning force) they generate. It is typically most practical to place them with four way symmetry as this can provide the best control. It should also be noted that Advanced SAS will make use of the thrusters. To avoid a constant drain of RCS fuel, it is recommended not to have both the RCS or the Advanced SAS turned on at the same time, unless you need to keep your ship dead level and/or have RCS fuel to spare.

Fuel

Template:RCSFuel

Thrusters

Template:RCSThrusters