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[GreatWyrmGold]

I've been wondering...is it even possible to have an SSTO that doesn't have wings?
And, perhaps more importantly, does anyone have advice on how to get SSTO spaceplanes to orbit?

[IronTomato]

I've been wondering...is it even possible to have an SSTO that doesn't have wings?

So basically an SSTO rocket? Probably. It would be difficult to stay at a horizontal velocity while you're building up speed, though.

[BigD145]

Lots of SSTOs don't have wings. They generally rely on part clipping to keep center of mass inline with center of thrust.

Wing? Who needs wings?

[Kanil]

I've been wondering...is it even possible to have an SSTO that doesn't have wings?

So basically an SSTO rocket? Probably. It would be difficult to stay at a horizontal velocity while you're building up speed, though.

How would it be any more difficult than with a staged rocket?

The new combined fuel tank+engine "booster" they added in the last patch can be paired with a single probe core to get a 2 part SSTO...

[Sean Mirrsen]

I've been wondering...is it even possible to have an SSTO that doesn't have wings?
And, perhaps more importantly, does anyone have advice on how to get SSTO spaceplanes to orbit?

As I said, with the new parts in the ARM pack, it's pretty easy.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

To make SSTO spaceplanes, you need either Turbojets or RAPIERs, plus the ram-air intakes (the glowy blue ones). Get a decent takeoff TWR, add enough wings to glide with the tanks full, and set up some action groups to quickly toggle your air intakes and engines.
  When you have that, you take off, aim 45 degrees upwards, get to 15k altitude and accelerate as fast as you can while staying in the atmosphere for as long as you can. Open the resource panel and watch your Intake Air level, do not let it drop fully. At some point you will likely need to be accelerating almost horizontally, building speed while almost not gaining altitude at all, but it's important that you don't start losing altitude because denser air will slow you down.
  At some point your intakes won't get enough air. The exact point where that happens varies, but you should be at at least 20-24km altitude and going at 1000 - 1300m/s, otherwise you're unlikely to make orbit. If you have a turbojet, now is the time to fire the rocket engine(s) and toggle the jet and the intakes off via action group. If you have a RAPIER, it will switch automatically, so you only have to close the intakes. On rocket power, you aim up 45 to 60 degrees, open the map screen, and do your best to push your apoapsis to space, higher is better. Once you think you're good, coast to the apoapsis and, if you still have fuel left, circularize.

[GreatWyrmGold]

Lots of SSTOs don't have wings. They generally rely on part clipping to keep center of mass inline with center of thrust.

Wing? Who needs wings?

Pity he didn't show it taking off or anything.

To make SSTO spaceplanes, you need either Turbojets or RAPIERs, plus the ram-air intakes (the glowy blue ones). Get a decent takeoff TWR, add enough wings to glide with the tanks full, and set up some action groups to quickly toggle your air intakes and engines.
  When you have that, you take off, aim 45 degrees upwards, get to 15k altitude and accelerate as fast as you can while staying in the atmosphere for as long as you can. Open the resource panel and watch your Intake Air level, do not let it drop fully. At some point you will likely need to be accelerating almost horizontally, building speed while almost not gaining altitude at all, but it's important that you don't start losing altitude because denser air will slow you down.
  At some point your intakes won't get enough air. The exact point where that happens varies, but you should be at at least 20-24km altitude and going at 1000 - 1300m/s, otherwise you're unlikely to make orbit. If you have a turbojet, now is the time to fire the rocket engine(s) and toggle the jet and the intakes off via action group. If you have a RAPIER, it will switch automatically, so you only have to close the intakes. On rocket power, you aim up 45 to 60 degrees, open the map screen, and do your best to push your apoapsis to space, higher is better. Once you think you're good, coast to the apoapsis and, if you still have fuel left, circularize.

Noted.

[BigD145]

Lots of SSTOs don't have wings. They generally rely on part clipping to keep center of mass inline with center of thrust.

Wing? Who needs wings?

Pity he didn't show it taking off or anything.

Yeah, not like the other dozen or more videos of takeoff and landing or one of the last videos of a double round trip without refueling.

[IronTomato]

I've been wondering...is it even possible to have an SSTO that doesn't have wings?

So basically an SSTO rocket? Probably. It would be difficult to stay at a horizontal velocity while you're building up speed, though.

How would it be any more difficult than with a staged rocket?

I wouldn't know from experience, since I normally move my staged rockets upward, whereas single-stagers usually need to build up speed because of their generally lower power.

[BFEL]

I don't really get why people are so obsessed with SSTO. It doesn't really provide any tangible benefit over normal rocketing, it seems to propagate solely on "coolness factor"

[Sean Mirrsen]

An SSTO rocket doesn't need to get to orbit like a spaceplane. I think it's way past due for the terms "SSTO" and "Spaceplane" to be separated from each other in the minds of KSP players. One is in no way connected to another, like "round" and "orange", with the same case where one well-known and widely available thing is both at the same time.

An SSTO rocket is basically just a rocket. It doesn't need to be literally single-stage, but it needs to be one solid, non-separating piece. It achieves orbit exactly like a regular rocket does, with a gravity turn or a sideways burn at apoapsis, the only difference is that it lugs all of its empty tanks along with it, rather than shedding them.

prepost edit:

I don't really get why people are so obsessed with SSTO. It doesn't really provide any tangible benefit over normal rocketing, it seems to propagate solely on "coolness factor"

Right now it's mostly practice. For when the economy kicks in. :evilgrin:

[GreatWyrmGold]

I don't really get why people are so obsessed with SSTO. It doesn't really provide any tangible benefit over normal rocketing, it seems to propagate solely on "coolness factor"

...And your point?
What in KSP isn't for coolness factor?

[LoSboccacc]

I've been wondering...is it even possible to have an SSTO that doesn't have wings?
And, perhaps more importantly, does anyone have advice on how to get SSTO spaceplanes to orbit?

pfft. doesn't have to be anything fancy or clippy as other people suggest.

here, I would post a video but it is so dead simple to replicate:

Spoiler: simplesinglestagetoorbit (click to show/hide)

as other said, there is nothing fancy to do it with rockets, because dv depends only on fuel and ship mass

ssto with breather engine on the other hand allow you to get into space without spending a lot of oxidizer requiring only little fuel to reach 20km@1500m/s

[BFEL]

I don't really get why people are so obsessed with SSTO. It doesn't really provide any tangible benefit over normal rocketing, it seems to propagate solely on "coolness factor"

Right now it's mostly practice. For when the economy kicks in. :evilgrin:

Just throw parachutes on your spent stages. Works in Mission Controller.

[Sean Mirrsen]

I don't really get why people are so obsessed with SSTO. It doesn't really provide any tangible benefit over normal rocketing, it seems to propagate solely on "coolness factor"

Right now it's mostly practice. For when the economy kicks in. :evilgrin:

Just throw parachutes on your spent stages. Works in Mission Controller.

Not the same thing. You never know what the actual costs will be for recovery. Having an SSTO craft doing rounds guarantees that not only your investment in construction remains, but also that it literally stays in one piece after the mission, and can - with some skill - fly itself to land right on your doorstep.

And of course it's cool. ^_^

[Rabid_Cog]

Has anyone ever tried combining FAR with Deadly Reentry? Its... tough.