Kerbal Space Administration

Year 16, Day 288 Having entered the space industry as a private company, the newly founded space organization SpaceK recently unveiled its new payload rocket, the GDLV5 (Generally Designed Launch Vehicle 5), in cooperation with KSA and C7 Aerospace Division! The GDLV5 rocket was designed to carry MULTIPLE payloads to LKO (Low Kerbin Orbit) as well as being able to carry one small payload to geostationary orbit if needed. This is new, because we have had rockets that can carry multiple payloads to orbit before, but not this many! This rocket can carry up to 8 small KubeSat satellites into LKO. Rockets before this could only carry about a maximum of 4 of those same satellites. On top of this, the rocket is HUGE, standing about half the height of the Vehicle Assembly Building. It's essentially a flying building. It recently had its first test flight, which went super well, and just after that, it had its first true deployment mission, where it deployed 6 KubeSat satellites into LKO,...

Year 16, Day 2  Finally, after so long without having satellite maps of Kerbin and the Mun, we FINALLY have some with the KSA's new satellites, Kerbserver v1 and the Munar Reconnaissance Orbiter!   These satellites were designed for one thing and one thing only: to observe Kerbin and the Mun and produce high-quality color satellite maps of both worlds. It's nothing too complex, really. Just some HD maps of Kerbin and the Mun, but STILL, this will allow us to have actual color maps of the entirety of Kerbin and the Mun! In fact, a company on Kerbin, Codac, along with the help of Kerbal Mapping Ltd. will allow these maps to be put on some sort of webpage soon, thanks to the new advanced radio and antennae features achieved on Kerbin recently, known as the Internet. So definitely stay tuned for updates on that!  

Year 15, Day 244 A new space telescope has been launched, called the Kandra Space Observatory; and it captures X-rays. This new telescope (technically a space observatory in orbit) is called the Kandra Space Observatory, designed and funded for by the Kandra Foundation and KPL. The project costed approximately ƒ17,000 (Funds) to develop and launch (roughly 102 million USD). What's different about this telescope, however, is VERY cool indeed! Instead of just capturing visible light, kind of how like the Kerman Space Telescope works, it also is able to capture X-rays, which can allow the telescope to pierce deep into near planetary systems. In fact, one new exoplanet has ACTUALLY been found around the close star Tuun, the brightest star in the night sky. That planet's name is Puf, a potentially habitable "eyeball world", only the third planet found around Tuun so far. We already discovered the binary planetary system of Rask and Rusk a while back, and Debdeb has a lot...

  Year 15, Day 112 After the launch of the Kalileo Jool Orbiter (KJO) earlier this year, it has finally arrived at Jool and plans to study and take pictures of the gas giant like never seen before. Alongside pictures, of course, the spacecraft will also conduct close flybys of several of Jool’s moons, including Laythe and Vall, with a possible venture near Tylo. Scientists are eager to see the detailed images and data KJO will send back, especially after a nail-biting launch when fuel margins were almost too tight for even leaving Kerbin orbit. Now safely in Jool orbit, the mission team is optimistic about uncovering new insights into the planet’s atmosphere and cloud composition, magnetic field, and its moons. First data sent back included stats about time, fuel left, energy, and estimated time for the RTG to die, which will be decades. We also now know for certain that Jool is made of mostly hydrogen and helium... however, we still do not yet know what causes it to be so green. I...

  Year 15, Day 13 The first batch of pictures from the Kerman Space Telescope have returned, and let's just say, they are ethereal! The images returned just about 3 weeks after KST was launched and put in orbit on Year 14, Day 420. These images are edited, but they have to be, since even the most stacked of space images need a little edit to show themselves. And that does NOT mean these are fake images; they are very real indeed. Now, without further ado, here are the images. We'll put captions on each image so you know what the image is photographing. Karina Nebula Atlas Nebula Andromeda Galaxy (K31) Omega Nebula Large Magellanic Kloud Small Magellanic Kloud Triangulum Galaxy (K33)

  Year 14, Day 422 We now have what the KSA meant when they said they were launching something "really cool" into space on the next Kerb-Shuttle mission... A space telescope! Specifically called the Kerman Space Telescope (KST), this is a first-of-its-kind invention that costed "a lot" to put into LKO. It's a visible-light capturing telescope just like the big observatories we have down here on Kerbin, but MUCH more expensive and, of course, in space! It was launched 2 days ago aboard KS-2, and was just announced that it's working today. It has not yet taken any pictures, but may be expected to soon. It will first attempt to capture the Atlas Nebula, a pyramid-shaped nebula in the southern sky. If the image comes out good, they will call first mission success and continue imaging operations as long as possible. Let's cross our fingers and pray to the Kraken that this works out and everything goes well. Certified Article by the KSA

  Year 1, Day 6 Remember the planned satellite to be put into orbit, that could start Kerbal-kind's reach for an interplanetary comms network? Well, just today, it was put into orbit! This technically does not count as a mission, as missions don't last forever. And this satellite is planned to last for hundreds of years! Without a specific return date, we do not know when it will come back, but as long as the solar panels don't degrade and batteries remain charged, it should last for a century, maybe even more. The satellite uses the newly developed advanced payload rocket, the Kepsilon 1. It launched on the 4th hour of the morning with the satellite inside, and reached stable high Kerbin orbit at about noon, KSC time. After fairing separation, the payload was decoupled into orbit and the second stage of the rocket safely burned up in the atmosphere of Kerbin and splashed down in a remote part of the ocean. The satellite confirmed communications was online, did several expe...

 Year 1, Day 3 That's right - the KSA is thinking about actually putting up a relay satellite into low Kerbin Orbit! It will have more unique sensors and last longer than Stayputnik. It will also have a far more complicated communications system, and even a color camera to capture the first color photos of Kerbin from space! If they pull this off, it could open the door to crewed spaceflight.

  Year 1, Day 1 Today, the Kerbal Space Administration launches its first official mission; a mission to Kerbin orbit! Approved yesterday by mission leader Gene Kerman, this starts the Space Program's quest to reach the stars. Several other launch sites facepalm as they realize the Kerbal Space Administration reached space first! The satellite launched into orbit, called Stayputnik, will attempt to read data from outer space using its sensors. It includes a temperature sensor, gravity sensor, barometer, black and white camera, and 4 antennae for communication back to the ground. The mission will likely end in about 3 months when in reenters the atmosphere and burns up like a shooting star. First photos are expected to come back soon! May this be a huge leap for Kerbal-kind in the advancement of technology! IMPORTANT UPDATE: The first images of Kerbin have come back, and they are absolutely breathtaking! Have a look: