Donner and Vasco De Gama: Project Duna, phase 1!

Donner I on the launchpad.

 So in the wee hours of the morning, ZAXA engineers rolled out the Donner Launch Vehicle to the platform. DLV was a purpose-build vehicle on the 3.5 metre platform provided by KW Rocketry, quad-boosted with basically just two stages to orbit - SRB burn and then liquid fuel burn. Donner, a trio of rovers intended to do site selection for a Kerbal colony on Duna, launched shortly afterward.

Donner Launch!

So the Donner vehicle launched pretty much without a problem, though it blew up on launch twice for no apparent reason. Once we actually got it airborn, however, ascent was pretty well straight forward.

And that was about the extent to which things on this mission went right.

SRB Sep is one of the more beautiful operations a rocket performs.

This was just one of those missions - one of those times where there was just enough pressure applied to the known science that you were operating in largely-virgin territory.

Apparently the galaxy falls right over Kerbin Equatorial. Cool.

Firstly, I neglected to factor time's effects into the launches properly, so I wound up with both Donner and Vasco da Gama in orbit a good 45 days before the transfer window to Duna opened, and their low parking orbits of 150 km or so meant that I couldn't accellerate time any faster than 100 times. That was actually fine, since I spent most of that time physically at work. Both vessels had a mechanical Jeb, but since Vasco was the "active" vessel when I went to work, that meant that it would ultimately arrive in a Duna orbit first, after which I could transfer it to Ike, then go back and capture Donner in Duna Orbit.

Immediately after the apoapsis circularization burn.

Also, while I'm not particularly superstitious, I should keep a healthier respect for the power of names, since the Donner launch went about as well as the wagon train for which it was named. Woops.

So what went wrong? Well... you'll see. I actually managed to save George with his gyroscopes... about the only bright side of the operation.

Fins extended, but no real power until we get dayside.

 

Kerbol-rise.  Time to pop the farings!

Faring deployment. and we get to see the Rover Train.

Donner Party: Easily my most sci-fi-looking ship ever.

Vasco de Gama on Transfer Burn Vehicle.

Vasco Da Gama: Ike Equatorial

George demonstrates the minimal entry heating effects of Duna.

... and flips upside down when he pops his parachutes.

Still upside down, George contemplates the Ikerise.

Magically upright, landing on the heat plate!

And plate separated. Ike goes into standby to await Kerbol Rise.

Tamsen breaks away from the train.

Retrorocket burning to de-orbit. 

Retro-Rocket Seperates as Planned...

And then, so does the parachute-heatshield array.

Jacob does Dunian Yoga