Argh annoying jank!!!!

[unknown.exe]

Ok I've been using orbiter for a while now and I'm pretty novice... but I have gotten past the VERY steep learning curve so
now I know the function of most of the MFD's (ie. orbit, sync orbit, align plane, docking, vot/vtol, surface and NAV MFD's).
I have been doing KSC - ISS - MIR and vice-versa with the DGIV for a while and now I am very good at it... so I decided to to
a KSC - Moon transfer and land at brighton base, pad 2.
But there are a multitude of problems, most likely stemming from my innability to get into a nice, neat orbit. This is my
procedure:

I open the Lunar Transfer scenario and turn off the recording...
1. Wait until moon and my RINC = ~0, full throttle to 10 degrees, gear up
2. Angle up to 30 degrees, turn to ~09.2 (east):         (|  |  |  09 |  |  |)    in order to keep RINC ~.07.
                                                                                                    ^
3. At 40A, I enter RCS mode and angle down to 20 degrees, keeping my flight-path icon...(+)... around 00
4. I adjust here and there to keep my RINC ~.07. Then when my orbit circle starts really moving on the Orbit MFD, it shifts
around so that the gray circle and my green circle overlap with my periapsis below the surface of the grey sphere.

In the Lunar Transfer recorded tutorial, they were able to make the apoapsis rise a bit above the earth's surface, with
periapsis just touching the surface. I am never able to achieve this and I'm not sure if this really matters in the long run
w/ the Lunar Transfer. Someone help me please!

[markl316]

It really doesn't matter as long as you have a stable orbit around 300 kilometers.
The difference between your apoapsis and your periapsis will depend on your vertical speed at main engine cutoff.

If you are at 0.0 vertical speed, and you cut off your engines when ecc is at its lowest (you may want to slow to .1x
time warp), then you will enter a circular orbit at the altitude you cut off your main engines.

The greater your vertical speed at main engine cutoff, the greater the distance will be between your apoapsis and
periapsis.  So if you want to avoid the shifting you mentioned in problem 4, cutoff at about 240 km with 0.0 vertical
speed (or as close as you can get to it).  I've found that at an altitude of main engine cutoff of about 110 km, a vertical speed of about 120 m/s will put me in about a 300x30 orbit.

When in doubt:
Burn prograde at apoapsis to raise periapsis
Burn retrograde at apoapsis to lower periapsis
Burn prograde at periapsis to raise apoapsis
Burn retrograde at periapsis to lower apoapsis




Post Edited ( 04-02-08 23:44 )

[unknown.exe]

Yeah I know about the secondary ejection burn tht puts u in a stable orbit, thanks!

[ar81]

I would advise to use Interplanetary MFD.