"The Spacecraft"

S.I.S.E. 1a

Sarnus Inner System Explorer

Craft Stats

  • Name: Sandpiper

  • Crew: 2 Crew

  • Ship Cost: $95,022

  • Launch Cost: $134,845

  • Total Parts: 89

  • Science Package: Yes

Mass/Fuel

  • Wet Mass: 17,838kg

  • Dry Mass: 6,998kg

  • Total Dv: 1,762m/s

Description

When looking at the models for landing on the inner moons of Hale and Ovok, our scientists noticed that the gravity was so low that capture and landing were going to require a rethink of ship design in general. So, naturally they went straight to an old design that had always worked well, the faithful CHEE. This was, in hindsight, mostly done for reasons of aesthetic symmetry on the final spacecraft, and not for purely solid engineering reasons.

This ship uses the basic hull design of the CHEE, but removes the side mounted Liquid Fuel Engines and Passenger Compartment. Instead, we mount a basic LV-909 rocket on the back, and a couple of 24-77's on the front in case we need to reverse without changing direction. Then basic RCS are added along with a massive amount of monopropellant. This ship, once being captured at the target moon, will operate on RCS only. Finally, we add an eight (8) strut landing system for additional stability.

This one should be interesting to see if it works as intended.