Adventure on Minmus
Di Costanzo Pasquale
Marigliano Alessandro
Toppi Antonio
Teachers
Flammia Armando
Terriccio Attilio
Federico II University with Shizuoka High School
ITI “E. Majorana” Somma Vesuviana - Naples
LEARNING FROM A SPACE MISSION SIMULATION PROGRAM
What’s Kerbal Space Program?
• Kerbal Space Program (KSP) is a space mission simulation program in the form of a game.
• The player leads a space mission operated by Kerbals, a race of small green humanoids, on their home planet Kerbin.
Why should you use it?
You can learn:•How a space vessel works
•Physics laws and their practice
•Physics of celestial objects
•Problem Solving
•To be as efficient as possible
Kerbal Space Program - Modes
The user starts a new game by choosing one of three game modes.
• Sandbox: unlimited resources. You can test any vessel you build and test flights.
• Science: unlimited funds but you must carry out scientific experiments through your flights and gain science points to unlock advanced components.
• Career: Limited resources. The player must complete contracts offered by the game to earn funds.
The Kerbol System
The planet Kerbin is in the Kerbol System, similar to the Solar System
Kerbin and Minmus
Kerbin is the planet where the mission
starts
It has the same atmospheric pressure and
surface gravity as the Earth
Minmus is the second and smallest
satellite of Kerbin
First Mission: the vertical launch
Objectives:
• Gain science points
• Learn the game basics
Components:
• Solid fuel booster
• Parachute
• Science points collector
Second mission: sub-orbital spaceflight
Objectives:
• Fly out of the atmosphere
• Land back on Kerbin safely
New components:
• Liquid fuel booster
• Stack Decoupler
• Thermometer
• Barometer
Third mission: orbiting Kerbin
Objectives:
• Set into a stable orbit around Kerbin
• Try out orbital manoeuvres
New components:
• Ogives
• Radial decoupler
• Winglet
Orbital manoeuvres
Prograde Retrograde Normal
Main mission - objectives
• Land on Minmus and return to Kerbin
• Collect scientific data about Minmus
• Collect sample material of Minmus surface
• Obtain zones and heat map of Minmus
• Use as few resources as possible
How to make the flight efficient?
• Take advantage of the planet rotation to gain additional speed
• Carry out manoeuvres at specific point
• 𝐸 =𝑚∗𝑣2
2
• Optimize the Thrust-to-weight ratio
• 𝑇𝑊𝑅 =𝐹𝑇
𝑚∗𝑔
• Calculation of Δv (delta v)
• 𝐼𝑠𝑝 =𝐹𝑇
ሶ𝑚Δv=ln(
𝑀𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
𝑀𝑒𝑛𝑑)∗𝐼𝑠𝑝 ∗ 𝑔
𝑚
𝑠2
• Calculation of escape velocity
• 𝑉𝑒𝑠𝑐 =2𝐺𝑚
𝑟
Main mission - components
Utility:
• 1x Command Pod
• 1x Service Bay
• 2x Photovoltaic Panels
• 1x Heat Shield
Decouplers:
• 2x Stack Decoupler
• 2x Radial Decoupler
Engines:
• 2x Solid Fuel Booster
• 3x Liquid Fuel Tank
• 2x Liquid Fuel Engine
Experiments:
• 4x Thermometer
• 4x Mystery Goo™
• 4x Barometer
• 1x Science Jr.
Aerodynamics:
• 2x Ogives
• 3x Winglet
• 1x Parachute
Qui ci andrà il video
URL video
https://1drv.ms/v/s!Anj0xdYf845Jg6UdEPybdOShlWmMYw?e=osTFZi
Scientific results
Kerbin Minmus
Atmospheric pressure 101,190 Pa 0 Pa
Average temperature 308.28K (35,13°C) 232.32K (-40,83°C)
Gravitational acceleration 9.81 m/s2 0.491 m/s2
Additional discoveries:
• Due to its size Minmus has no atmosphere
and a low gravitational acceleration
• We took different samples from every
zone of Minmus' surface and we
discovered that the surface is mostly icy also thanks to the cold of the satellite
Major Minmus zones:
• Poles, located where Minmus axis of rotation
intersects its surface
• Flats, which are like frozen lakes, are
several on Minmus and the biggest three are
called Lesser, Great and Greater flats, they
are made of ice
• Lands, which resemble Earth's mountains,
can be three different types:
• Lowlands (2000-3000 meter above flats level)
• Midlands (3000-4500 meter above flats level)
• Highlands(4500-5700 meter above flats level)
• Slopes are located on the edge of the zones,
they are really steep
Heat map of Minmus
• Temperature depends from
the zone
• Higher when on cliffs
• Lower in correspondence of
the flats
220K 250K
Lessons Learned
Physics competences acquired• Newton's law of universal gravitation
• Calculation of escape velocity
• Gravity assist
• Space flight dynamics
• Resource management
• Mission logistic
Project management• Working in group
• Problem solving
• Learning from errors
• Making decisions
• Making internet researches
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION
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