Hey all! I wrote a step by step mining guide for Steam and I figured I'd share it here. If you have any questions, additions or feedback please let me know here or on the steam guide and I'll update and edit as needed.
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=437378871
Unlocking the Research
Before we start an asteroid or extraterrestrial mining operation it is important to unlock the key parts and understand what they do. There are several parts that are utilized for Mining.
Surface Scanning Module
The Surface Scanning Module is a critical part in surveying a planet or moon. You will use this part to find the exact ore concentrations on the ground.
M700 Survey Scanner
The M700 Survey Scanner is a critical part in setting up a mining satellite. You will use this part to survey a planet or moon in order to find general ore concentrations.
ISRU Converter
The ISRU Converter is a critical part in setting up a refinery. You will use this part to convert ore into fuel.
'Drill-O-Matic' Mining Excavator
The 'Drill-O-Matic' Mining Excavator is a critical part in setting up a mining operation. Obviously you will use this part to mine ore.
Small Holding Tank
The Small Holding Tank is a part in setting up a mining operation. Obviously you will use this part to store ore.
Large Holding Tank
The Large Holding Tank is a part in setting up a mining operation. Obviously you will use this part to store ore.
M4435 Narrow-Band Scanner
The M4435 Narrow-Band Scanner is an optional part in surveying a planet or moon. This part will allow you to see a narrow swath of land with higher detail than the Survey Scanner.
Scanning for Ore Concentrations
Step 1. Setup an ore concentration scanning satellite.
The satellite will need;
- M700 Survey Scanner
- Any Antenna
- A Control Module (Probably probe, but you could do it manned)
- Power Generation*
- Power Storage*
- Xenon Fuel and Engines**
- Small Inline Reaction Wheel**
- M4435 Narrow-Band Scanner**
*You can get away with having just either power generation or a lot of power stored in batteries. When you first use the M700 Survey Scanner it will transfer the scans back to Kerbin which takes a lot of power.
**These are nice things to have on a scanning satellite, but by no means required.
Step 2. Launch the scanning satellite into POLAR orbit around the moon/planet you intend to mine.
A polar orbit of 25000m* to 1,500,000m* is required to use the M700 scanner.
The a POLAR orbit is required in order to properly scan the moon or planet you intend to mine. Usually in KSP we setup equatorial orbits, so I am stressing that the orbit needs to be polar for a very specific reason. If you accidentally setup an equatorial orbit it will take a lot of ÃŽâ€v to fix.
*These may vary on very small or very large objects like Jool or Minmus, but generally speaking a 50,000 to 100,000 orbit will do just fine.
Step 3. Use the satellite to determine a high concentration of ore.
Once you have scanned the moon or planet and transfered the data back to Kerbin (you'll get 10 science) you'll be able to overlay ore concentration onto the moon or planet you scanned. You can setup the overlay from the satellite or from the Tracking Station.
Step3a - From the satellite
From the satellite right click the M700 Survey Scanner and select 'Toggle Overlay'. When you enter the map mode you'll see the moon/planet you scanned with an ore concentration overlay now. You can adjust your M700 Survey Scanner to hone in on a good mining operation location.
Use Cutoff+ to raise the minimum ore concentration in order for the overlay to display. Basically you want to keep raising this percentage until there's no overlay left, then use Cutoff- just once and all of the terrain highlighted will be the highest concentration locations.
Step3b. - From the tracking station
First, focus on the body you just scanned. On the right panel of your screen where the Info and Orbit icons are there will be a new icon for Resources. Click the button and then select Resources -> Ore. The setup here on out is the same as it was on the satellite, use cutoff+ to find the highest concentration possible.
Surface Scan with a Rover (Optional)
This part is a little optional, you can setup a base from the M700 Survey Scan, but that scan only tells you generally what concentrations of resources will be in an area. On the surface, concentrations will vary by a few percentage points. In order to find the most ideal location for a mining base, I suggest using a rover with a surface scanner.
You'll want somewhere fairly flat, trying to land a giant mining base on slopes is going to be tricky. The slopes will also block direct sunlight, so if you're in the inner solar system you want as much sunshine as possible. (This patch also made it so any moon/planet past Dres has really bad solar power generation)
You'll want something close to the equator. It'll be easier to land/take off from and it'll have longer days than if you setup on the poles.
You can setup your rover to also double as a fuel tanker. Setup the rover so it has a docking bay that can couple with your mining base. If you then design and build ships that can dock with your rover you can export the ore or fuel from the surface.
Attached is a picture of my fuel rover.
Setting up a Mining Base
Once you've picked out a specific location for a mining base it's time to set it up! This guide assumes you know how to land, orbit, etc and I don't want to tell you exactly what to design and setup, but here is some tips and ideas.
- Make sure your drills are attached to a HIGH mass object like a giant fuel tank. Drills will produce heat and when they're attached to high mass objects, the high mass objects help to absorb a lot of that heat efficiently.
- Attach solar panels or wings to the high mass object / fuel tank your drills are attached to. They'll act as passive radiators, dissipating heat away from your drills.
- Setup your mining drill so that it has a pilotable command module for an engineer. Engineers also help to manage and dissipate heat from the drills.
- Set up your mining base so it can be docked with in some way, otherwise all the ore and fuel you're producing will likely go to waste.
- Bring a lot of batteries or fuel cells. If you want your drills and ISRU to run continuously you'll need to supply it with a lot of power. Solar generation is great, but when it is night time on the planet or moon you're on, you'll need batteries or fuel cells to keep it going.
- Think about setting up a mining base that is coupled with a fuel rover. You can use the fuel rover to dock with landing vessels to refuel them, or to use a reusable vessel to transport the fuel to an orbital station.
- Make sure to have storage for all the types of fuel you'll want to produce. The ISRU can make MonoProp, Liquid and Oxidizer. If you don't have a tank for MonoProp, for instance, you won't be able to produce it. With that in mind also make sure your fuel rover has storage for all types too.
Here's a little screenshot of the first Mining Base I setup if that helps you.
Mining an Asteroid
Every asteroid will have a certain mass and ore concentration. Mining an asteroid is very much like mining a planet or moon. You'll need drills, ISRU, heat management and power management. Keep in mind a few VERY important things.
- Asteroid mass is limited. This means you can deplete an asteroid of ore.
- Asteroids come with their own ore concentrations, meaning a 95% Class A asteroid can have more ore than a 5% Class C asteroid.
- Turn off your drills when your ore tanks are full. The drills will keep depleting the asteroid even if you have nowhere to put the ore.
Here's a screenshot of a Class A 95% concentration asteroid I landed at KSP.
Edited by rhadamant