Episode 4 of the GopherCraft Great Space Race opens in the VAB with a craft named Basket 13 loaded. Basket has just researched "the thing that gave us the sciencey thing" and wants to use it. Two flights follow, both with Hanvan Kerman in the pod. Basket 14 gets into space and comes back with a pile of science, Basket 15 starts spinning on the climb, and the episode ends with science to spend and still no orbit.
Basket 14 takes shape
Basket works on getting side tanks to snap on with decouplers ("I want four of these guys"), adds a Science Jr. and more parachutes, and keeps it to two so they do not block the door. The name changes to Basket 14. The crew panel shows Hanvan Kerman in the Command Pod Mk1: "Same guy we had in the last couple of missions, he did a pretty good job."
On the pad the staging looks wrong ("Oh, I messed something up"), so Basket recovers the vessel without launching, adds a decoupler between the engines, and sends it out again.
A missed maneuver node
Basket 14 lifts off at night and climbs well. "I feel good about this mission." Then Basket tries a maneuver node for the first time ("I don't know how this works") and misses it: "My node was too close for my reaction time." The craft is already heading back down. "So I guess my attempt to orbit has failed."
Basket points it straight up instead and goes for science. The materials bay runs in space ("The microgravity has greatly affected the growth of the crystalline structures"), and with the altimeter past 93 km Hanvan steps out for a short EVA and climbs back in. The pod falls back under its parachutes, Basket refusing to speed up time "so nothing breaks," and splashes down in the water. Hanvan does one more EVA beside it. The Science Summary for Basket 14 lists eight experiments, 37.6 science earned and a total of 41. "That materials bay really works well for science."
Basket 15 spins
Basket keeps the design ("I don't think I need to really change anything"), looks at an extendable antenna, and saves the craft as Basket 15. It starts rotating soon after liftoff. "For some reason I'm spinning." Then: "Oh, this is a disaster." By the time Basket has it under control the climb is lost. The materials bay runs while still in the atmosphere, the altimeter gets past 53 km, and Basket tries a second maneuver node but expects to run out of fuel before the burn is done. The pod comes down on its parachutes and tips over. The Science Summary for Basket 15 shows 17.6 science, for 58 in all.
Where it ends
In the R&D tree Basket looks over Advanced Rocketry, which costs 45 science and offers the Rockomax Mark 55 Radial Mount Liquid Engine, and the Mk1 Cockpit under Flight Control. Nothing is bought on screen. Basket leans toward the rocketry node, "because it seems like I'm running out of fuel before I can get to do what I wanna do." The end card wishes Gopherboy, Scoti Garbidis, Pikerize and Sayulily good luck. Hanvan is home safe, and the save stands at 58 science with no orbit yet.
