Project Hius Interstellar craft for 2010P1 development

[Jarvitä]

FPS drops to around 5 with the NAV screen on for me (geforce 8800GTS 512). Also, is there any way to actually operate the MFDs from the NAV screen?

 

[Artlav]

New stuff:

The scoop controls:

You can steer the craft by varying the power to the coils of the scoop, and thus the drag. Only works at high enough velocities.
8 coils, at least 4 are needed for the thing to work.
Now the power consumption is proportional to the configuration of the field, and would probably be related to the velocity.

The field would be unstable at certain conditions, making the ship shake around.

Second, the information and main flight controls were duplicated and/or concentrated at the navigation page:

Finally, for the comfort and utility of the Hius main computer, there is now a way to define, store into a separate file (config/hius_colors.cfg) and load from it the color scheme of the menu.
Some people are colorblind after all, and some are sensitive to design.

Next thing, main reactor controls and maybe basic life support - oxygen consumption, strap yourselves button, crew getting hurt at sudden engine stop if not used (+1.5G to -0.7G in a blink - not nice).
Then, another version released to test it all.

Cleanup is over.

I've never tried it, but didn't the Vespucci use some sort of ramscoop? How did that work?

A tank that is refilled and an engine that consumes. Tried that before, that's the method that does not work too well at time accel.

Another attitude control note: with the scoop open and some initial speed (200 km/s?), there will be significant forces that could be harnessed to provide stabilisation by "slightly" (I don't know if it's an applicable word) changing the configuration of the scoop

Nice idea...
Implemented.

A still more significant yet related problem: at default integration settings, and high time compressions the craft tumbles disastrously. Space-fixed orientation should be maintained by default (given by a Euler triple or a quaternion).

I usually give it a bit of spin - the hab module can be angled slightly in thrust position to account for that (not animated yet). That would keep it stable.
The scoop would be used as stabilizer in real life case, but under 100000x any amount of correction by that causes an explosive spin-up.

Re: communications. Not being a physicist, cannot answer a simple dumb question - can the Hius send messages to Earth by modulating the main engine?

It's a VERY bright engine, something one should be able to see from many light years away. So, yes.

Since this thing likely has plenty of electrical power RCS could be using arcjets.

Sure, a ship that takes a year to turn around would be fun to fly.

You don't want to change attitude when you're at speed, you want to keep the craft pointed in the direction of travel, because the magnetic scoop and associated equipment are not only to present to drive the ship, but to protect the ship from interstellar gas and debris (though getting rid of solid debris will be a bit tougher... they would require ionisation, somehow).

Within acceptable limits. There is now a radiation gauge at the Hab module, and i'm going to use it.

About solid debris - what about a particle shield? Fine dust fired ahead, to sweep all the incoming dust, and recycled as it fall back in.
Not modellable, unfortunately.

In addition, the coil/scoop can be turned into a parachute;

If you haven't noticed, that is the only way Hius can be slowed down right now.

FPS drops to around 5 with the NAV screen on for me (geforce 8800GTS 512). Also, is there any way to actually operate the MFDs from the NAV screen?

Bad. The MFDs are operated by keyboard shortcuts all right, but putting buttons on the screen is possible. Not sure if i'll keep this configuration, it's pre-NG, incompatible with everything but DX7 and slow.

 

[Carmen A]

Wow this is getting very Star Trek like. I like

 

[mc_]

It's getting complex

 

[Izack]

Wow this is getting very Star Trek like. I like

Not quite. If it were getting Trekish we'd be talking about phase-variance modulation of the interbeam supercore while pondering the difficulties of the subspace torque to a speckled orange bartender with a funky hairdo. As awesome as that might be sometimes, not now thanks! :tiphat:

 

[jedidia]

while pondering the difficulties of the subspace torque to a speckled orange bartender with a funky hairdo.

:lol: that one definitaley crossed the stupidity-threshold

 

[Artlav]

Update:
http://orbides.1gb.ru/orbf/hius-110118.zip

The new flight model is quite done, anyone want a test ride?

Now, not intending to insult anyone's intelligence, here is a draft of the manual:

Acceleration:

At start, you need to power the ship up.
For acceleration you need DHD boosters.
For control you need RCS.
To power them you need main reactor.
And you probably would like some lights.
Turn them all on on the Power page.

Punch killrot to start stopping the spin, it would take about 200 seconds.
At the end of it, start transferring the vessel into thrust configuration by retracting both modules. That's what both button does.

It may be a good idea to switch to scoop camera, as it gives a way to see where you're going and have proper orientation w.r.t the controls (press Home once there). Alt+4 does the same.

Now, we are ready to go.
Pick your target (nothing less than a star!), point the ship to it, give it about 0.01G of spin for stability.
All the info and controls for that are on the Navigation NAV page.
After that, just fire up the DHD engines, set 100000x and wait.

Once you reach 4-6 Mm/s, it's time to go ramjet.
Stop the DHDs and turn them off on the power page, turning Primary on as well.
The reactor can power either the constrictor and scoop, or DHDs, not both at once.
Then, at the SCP page of the Reactor menu start the scoop, and set it's power to maximum.
All that's left is to close the constrictor, which is the CNT control just left of DHD thrust controls.

From here it's a long flight ahead.

At about 10-15% C you would like to tune down the scoop - it's not providing more inflow, but makes more drag. Anything over 50% is superfluous above 15% C, but less than 50% collapses the field, reducing inflow regardless of the speed.

The equilibrium point is at about 70% C, that's where the drag would match the thrust. ~ 210 Mm/s is when we're in technical zero-G.

Deceleration:
To decelerate the ship you'll have to use the drag.
When backwards to the flow, the scoop produces 4 times more drag than forwards.
So, carefully lower down the engine and the scoop power. Too quick and the crew would find themselves flying to the ceiling under several Gs.

The Drive button on SCP screen routes joystick/keyboard input to the scoop coils offset, allowing you to steer the ship rapidly.

Quickly but carefully turn the ship 180 degrees, the transition between two modes would be sharp - the vessel will rapidly gain deceleration Gs once the wrong side forward. Not too slow, or the relativistic slipstream radiation would do much harm.
Once back-forwards, the DHD shield and DHD itself becomes Hab's radiation shield.

From here on, regulating the scoop power would vary the deceleration.

The Hius is capable of there and back again journey on single load, 24 Mm/s is the DHD delta-V, so you can do a 4 acceleration/8 deceleration two-way flight plan, or you can do a 10/14 one-way flight plan, or the fastest 4/20 one-way flight.

Deceleration slows down quickly as the velocity drops, so if you can start braking with DHDs at 20Mm/s, you'll arrive 6 months earlier than if you are braking from 6 Mm/s.

About 2600 AU from target is the good distance to start decelerating for 8 Mm/s DHD point.

Enjoy! (And don't forget to note bugs and ideas)

.

 

[Jarvitä]

Nice work! Will definitely give the new version a spin tomorrow.

Is there a physical reason the drag is increased when pointed retrograde?

 

[Artlav]

Is there a physical reason the drag is increased when pointed retrograde?

Sure. Pointing forwards the stream goes through the ship, the magnetic constrictor that makes it fuse, and out of the back, slowing only slightly.

While in braking mode (that auto-engages when retrograde), the field spins the stuff in a whirlwind, completely stopping it and sending back forwards, thus causing much more drag.

 

[Izack]

Fantastic! Can't wait to try this out later. And chances are...bugs will be encountered. Will try to steer clear of Klendathu. :thumbup:

 

[Spacethingy]

I'm sort of guessing I'm wrong here, but why does she have fuel tanks full of Rutherfordium (RF) and Mercury (Hg)?

 

[Artlav]

I'm sort of guessing I'm wrong here, but why does she have fuel tanks full of Rutherfordium (RF) and Mercury (Hg)?

RF - Reaction Fuel, fuels the emergency boosters.
Hg - HyperGolic, the RCS fuel (old, very old. Should be uranium now or something).

 

[Carmen A]

I love the systems complexity of the thing.

What would happen if we try interstellar flights in multiplayer

"Erm, red two, you're falling behind at 10 AUs a second.."

 

[Artlav]

What would happen if we try interstellar flights in multiplayer

Hm, i wonder if the vessel is copysafe.
May not work with more than one of them in the sim.
To be fixed soon if a problem.

 

[Carmen A]

@Artlav, was just joking - we in the world of OMP have not gone past LEO yet if you notice

we'll eventually make it to the moon, hopefully faster than NASA

 

[Urwumpe]

Quickly but carefully turn the ship 180 degrees, the transition between two modes would be sharp - the vessel will rapidly gain deceleration Gs once the wrong side forward. Not too slow, or the relativistic slipstream radiation would do much harm.
Once back-forwards, the DHD shield and DHD itself becomes Hab's radiation shield.

Can you include a radiation monitor and a Caution & Warning screen? That would be really making sense then.

And where can I find the mini-bar?

 

[Artlav]

was just joking ... we'll eventually make it

In any case, now you should be able to, if you get to it.

Can you include a radiation monitor and a Caution & Warning screen? That would be really making sense then.

Certainly, it's already planned. I only need to find what kinds of radiation to expect.

And where can I find the mini-bar?

The bar is at level two, far prograde side (garden is level 0).

 

[Urwumpe]

Certainly, it's already planned. I only need to find what kinds of radiation to expect.

Hard X-Ray radiation would be a good guess, your whole spacecraft says "Bremsstrahlung" to me. :lol:

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Bremsstrahlung

 

[Wishbone]

Have got a few ideas on crew requirements in general, will continue in the Space Math and Physics to avoid drawing the discussion off topic. On topic: installed but have not yet run the scenario.

The most important question is right now IMHO the following: what drinks are there in the bar?

 

[Urwumpe]

I had a quick test flight in the lunch break, it is really feeling like a programmed sci-fi novel. But:

• Targeting a star is pretty hard. There should be some kind of real navigation display, maybe with some basic astronomic functions like also determining the position relative to the sun and the other closest stars to the sun.
• When you retract the habs, the camera pitches down in external view.