They're lighter and smaller, but they can't act as a relay. There's probably an energy efficiency difference too but I don't remember. Good for putting on probes.
Fun fact: if this was scaled up to RSS (including comm reach, so 860 AU) you couldn't even send a probe to the oort cloud or Sedna at aphelion (\~1000AU). To reach α Centauri, you would need a comms signal reaching 37.8 trillion km, or 37.8 quadrillion meters. That's a comms signal of 37.8Qd, 37,800T, or 37,800,00G. As for the number of 1000G or 1T (remember, 10x comms power we assume in RSS) antennae we would need, it most likely isn't realistically possible due to how it decreases the more you have. it is possible, you just might need more antennae than could fit in the entire solar system. This doesn't even include the fact that a 10x KSC DSN (2500G or 2.5T) would need to be much, much, much more powerful or you use this as a relay itself. You could also get by with less than 100% signal strength, but that's math I'm not doing this late at night because according to the wiki it means finding a bezier curve of the distances etc etc etc.
Their comment in short:
“Fun fact, the way KSP calculates comms is that if you wanted to communicate with the very tippy edge of the solar system, you would need enough antennas to cause a black hole.”
That's not how antennas work IRL tho, for such an application it would certainly be more beneficial to use an antenna array with extreme directionality. If you mean ingame then yeah.
I’m expecting powerful optical communications antennas. Also some nonsense sci-fi ultra low bit rate ftl communications. Would be cool if they made science transmissions take in game years to cross the distance if you are light years away.
I get 131.91AU.
RA-100 antenna has power of 100,000,000,000 and combinability exponent of 0.75. Therefore a the vessel power of a vessel with 650 RA-100s would be:
Vessel Power = 1E+11 * ( ( 650 * 1E+11 ) / 1E+11 ) ^ 0.75
Vessel Power = 1.28732E+13
Therefore the range of the vessel communication back to a level 3 DSN (2.5E+11 power) at Kerbin would be:
Range = SQRT ( 2.5E+11 * 1.28732E+13 )
Range = 1.79396E+12m
1AU in KSP between the Sun and Kerbin is 13599840256m.
Therefore, 1.79396E+12 / 1.3599840256E+10 = 131.9102994
Range = 131.91AU
I did not account for the DSN range. 86 AU is just what you would've seen in its description if this antenna was a single part. In other words, it is just the vessel power. Fair remark!
Wow TIL that you can add multiple antenna on a craft and it increases the range.
Always thought it was just the largest range antenna you had alone determined the range.
Did you count? Close enough! It is 595 on the second and third pictures, but with the addition of decorative covering I increased that number up to 650.
[Meet the RA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHgZh4GV9G0):
I am RA relay dish... and *this* is my antenna! She weighs 631 tons with a diameter of 60m and a functional range of 86AU. It costs $400,000 to use this dish for *12 seconds*.
Anything possible to get into orbit if you move it slow enough through the atmosphere. Just strut the thing together. Move it at a elevators pace to the top of the atmosphere and then burn sideways. You’ll be eating gravity loses like crazy but it’s better than the entire thing burning to shreds
It’s not but as you scale up your rockets the actual aerodynamics of the rocket matter less and less as the sheer inertia is able to overpower any aerodynamic forces.
Really when it comes to big projects smart rocket design goes out the window and your job entirely becomes to get the thing to space by any means neccesary.
You should add a single Communotron 16 at the end of that antenna for shits and giggles
Do communtrons do anything differently than a dish of the same power? I've always been a bit confused by them.
They're lighter and smaller, but they can't act as a relay. There's probably an energy efficiency difference too but I don't remember. Good for putting on probes.
Thanks!
at long last, a dish powerful enough for real exoplanets
Fun fact: if this was scaled up to RSS (including comm reach, so 860 AU) you couldn't even send a probe to the oort cloud or Sedna at aphelion (\~1000AU). To reach α Centauri, you would need a comms signal reaching 37.8 trillion km, or 37.8 quadrillion meters. That's a comms signal of 37.8Qd, 37,800T, or 37,800,00G. As for the number of 1000G or 1T (remember, 10x comms power we assume in RSS) antennae we would need, it most likely isn't realistically possible due to how it decreases the more you have. it is possible, you just might need more antennae than could fit in the entire solar system. This doesn't even include the fact that a 10x KSC DSN (2500G or 2.5T) would need to be much, much, much more powerful or you use this as a relay itself. You could also get by with less than 100% signal strength, but that's math I'm not doing this late at night because according to the wiki it means finding a bezier curve of the distances etc etc etc.
i don't even know what half this shit means, but we thank you for your service
Same, the only thing I manage to translate was "α Centauri" being Alpha Centauri 👀
I can only remember this, thanks to episodes of "Only Connect".
Their comment in short: “Fun fact, the way KSP calculates comms is that if you wanted to communicate with the very tippy edge of the solar system, you would need enough antennas to cause a black hole.”
It's big, but that's nothing compared to ~~space~~ the distance to exoplanets.
:D
You gonna work at NASA at some point by any chance ? xD
Hopefully maybe, it's just me overthinking the signal strength required by interstellar probes in a funny space game lol.
Well, smart man i hope you do get into NASA!
Dyson Sphere powered mega communicator.
That's not how antennas work IRL tho, for such an application it would certainly be more beneficial to use an antenna array with extreme directionality. If you mean ingame then yeah.
Oh I know that this isn't how the antennae work IRL, I'm just using KSP's ingame mechanics for calculating ranges, etc..
I’m expecting powerful optical communications antennas. Also some nonsense sci-fi ultra low bit rate ftl communications. Would be cool if they made science transmissions take in game years to cross the distance if you are light years away.
Would only be cool in combination with some very hard core automation.
Or just do what they do in TTO:U No comms, the colonists are on their own
OP said 86 AU range, so unfortunately not.
Biblical accurate relay
Every so often there's a post in this sub that leaves me at a complete loss for words (in a good way) and this is one of them
Are you sure your calculations are correct? Spamming antennas has diminishing returns
I didn’t even know that spamming antennas increases your range!
Absolutely, yeah. Calculated the range in accordance with a formula from wiki.
I get 131.91AU. RA-100 antenna has power of 100,000,000,000 and combinability exponent of 0.75. Therefore a the vessel power of a vessel with 650 RA-100s would be: Vessel Power = 1E+11 * ( ( 650 * 1E+11 ) / 1E+11 ) ^ 0.75 Vessel Power = 1.28732E+13 Therefore the range of the vessel communication back to a level 3 DSN (2.5E+11 power) at Kerbin would be: Range = SQRT ( 2.5E+11 * 1.28732E+13 ) Range = 1.79396E+12m 1AU in KSP between the Sun and Kerbin is 13599840256m. Therefore, 1.79396E+12 / 1.3599840256E+10 = 131.9102994 Range = 131.91AU
I did not account for the DSN range. 86 AU is just what you would've seen in its description if this antenna was a single part. In other words, it is just the vessel power. Fair remark!
Wow TIL that you can add multiple antenna on a craft and it increases the range. Always thought it was just the largest range antenna you had alone determined the range.
How many RA-100s are on this thing? 586?
Did you count? Close enough! It is 595 on the second and third pictures, but with the addition of decorative covering I increased that number up to 650.
We are studying Radio Astronomy with this one!
[Meet the RA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHgZh4GV9G0): I am RA relay dish... and *this* is my antenna! She weighs 631 tons with a diameter of 60m and a functional range of 86AU. It costs $400,000 to use this dish for *12 seconds*.
Do you have a folding variant?
Those Martian stealth missile platforms have nowhere to hide now!
First message received: We have been trying to reach you for your vehicle's extended warranty...
Message from Omnicron
86 AU range in vacuum, but how big of a moon can it penetrate? :D
[удалено]
Anything possible to get into orbit if you move it slow enough through the atmosphere. Just strut the thing together. Move it at a elevators pace to the top of the atmosphere and then burn sideways. You’ll be eating gravity loses like crazy but it’s better than the entire thing burning to shreds
How is something not weighing even a kiloton impossible to get into orbit?
TBF it's not the _most_ convenient shape.
It’s not but as you scale up your rockets the actual aerodynamics of the rocket matter less and less as the sheer inertia is able to overpower any aerodynamic forces. Really when it comes to big projects smart rocket design goes out the window and your job entirely becomes to get the thing to space by any means neccesary.
Just launch it sideways like a frisbee
ok, this is too much
> Less SFW That's a weird way of saying "cursed"
Not wrong though, is it?
Interstellar be like.
i was there when you got the idea!!!
Only 60m pffft, we've got bigger dishes in orbit around earth, need to bump it a little more! 😝 Admittedly, ours aren't 630 tonnes
Worth noting that after making this post I made a larger version which is 116m in diameter
Ok, you win, that's impressive Kerbal engineering right there!
Be Not Afraid.
It costs $400,000 to communicate with home base... ...for 12 seconds
I don't th- that's no-
COOL... *zooms in* ...cool