AQUARIUS IX ALL-UP TEST

KSP - Year 4, Day 262

Aquarius IX, lead by Flight Commander Lanmore with CM Pilot Kenford and MEM Pilot Hantry (the most junior crew of the current program) performed an all-up test with the hardware that will take the first Kerbals to the Mun. The mission was designed to test every possible limit of the astronauts and their vehicles. And it did just that.

Lift off of the Selene rocket carrying both the CSM and MEM

for the first time

This was the first time that both the CSM and MEM were launched together. They were placed into Low Kerbin Orbit using the Selene rocket system. The parking orbit was 110km x 90km, but this was changed by firing the third stage again to put the vehicles in a 300km x 300km orbit. This offered an assurance test that the engine can be restarted in space, as it would for a Munar transfer.

Grand views of Kerbin from the CM

During launch from Kerbin, the MEM is stored beneath the CSM. The CSM must detach from the booster before swinging around to dock and extract the MEM. The combination then continues on to the Mun, discarding the booster. Although a mission to the Mun was not on the cards, this system was tested.

The primary goal of this mission was to perform a manned test of the MEM in LKO. Command Module pilot Kenford Kerman initiated the CSM seperation and docked with the MEM. Kenford is the first pilot to perform this operation in space with the Aquarius hardware. The docking was successful, thanks to all the training in simulators derived from the Unity project. The CSM, now attached to the MEM, detached from the booster, which was then remote controlled to fall back to Kerbin.

Kenford inspects the MEM, which is still attached to the

third-stage booster, before committing to docking

Capture of the MEM through the docking view-port

An artists impression of the Aquarius IX CSM and MEM 

combination in orbit around Kerbin

The next test was the engine of the SM. This fired and changed the orbit from 300km back down to 100km. Tests on the fuel cells and life support systems were also conducted with great success. Following that, Lanmore and Hantry made their way through to the MEM and began power-up before separating from the CSM. Once detached, they became the first Kerbals to pilot a spacecraft that could not re-enter Kerbins atmosphere. The MEM is designed solely for space flight and cannot operate within an atmosphere. This meant they had to re-dock with the CSM to return to Kerbin.

The CSM as viewed from the MEM post un-docking

While Kenford remained in the CSM, Lanmore and Hantry ignited the MEM's descent engine and reduced their orbit to 80km, making them completely independent from the CSM. They spent over four days living in the cramped MEM where they performed maneuvers and tested the life support systems. During a stay on the Mun, the MEM would be their sole habitat so it is vital that the vehicle works as intended. The MEM does not have fuel cells like the CSM. Instead, solar panels and batteries are used and it was critical to ensure these systems worked. An EVA was conducted by Hantry and mock repair work was carried out after grabbing equipment from the external storage containers.

Hantry inspects the MEM during an EVA

Lanmore captures this grand image of Hantry

Hantry carries out work on the externals of the MEM during

an EVA. Here, he has successfully retrieved and fitted a solar panel

When the tasking was complete, the ascent-stage of the MEM (where the astronauts reside) was to separate from the descent-stage to return to the CSM. However, during a system test and start-up of the ascent engine, the rocket motor showed zero fuel flow. Many tests were conducted to no avail, and an un-scheduled EVA was carried out to inspect the internals of the craft. Upon investigation, it was apparently concluded that fuel lines had not been connected correctly between the tanks and the rocket motor. This was a dire and unforgivable oversight.

During an unsheduled EVA, Hantry opens the ascent-modules'

service hatch to reveal the internals. He takes this photograph for the engineers

to inspect back on Kerbin. The fuel lines are missing, causing the engine to 

be completely redundant

Due to the situation, the descent module had to be used again to return the MEM to rendezvous with the CSM. During the last few kilometers, the ascent stage jettisoned the descent stage and continued on using RCS thrusters (which it would have done at this point anyway). This still tested the docking ability of the ascent-stage as it would in a live Munar mission.

Originally, the descent-stage would be discarded in a lower orbit

and fall back to Kerbin. However, because it was needed it wasn't jettisoned

until much later, meaning it will forever drift in orbit

The docking was successful and the crew were thankful to be reunited. Although the mission did not go as intended, it was a fine example for both the astronauts and ground crew to test their adaptability in surprise situations.

Hantry makes his way back to the CM from the MEM by EVA

The ascent-stage of the MEM was released and remotely controlled to re-enter Kerbin's atmosphere using its RCS system

Once the MEM was released and de-orbited, a final system check of the CSM was carried out. Then it was turn of the Aquarius IX crew to come home. The crew splashed down safely after more than eleven days spent in orbit around Kerbin. The data collected from this mission will see the final tweaks made to the CSM and MEM before the next mission.