The Science of Kerbal Space Program

What is Kerbal Space Program?

There is a growing trend among games to not simply tell a story, but to simulate reality. 

Such is the case of Kerbal Space Program (KSP). At a glance, the game is downright cartoonish. The player is put in charge of running a space program for a race of little green men called Kerbals, on a planet that is designed to be an Earth equivalent in the game, named Kerbin for obvious reasons.

PAYO_AYO. I Made a Kerbal Graphic of Jeb "ghost-riding the Whip" Digital image. Reddit.com. imgur.com, 01 Feb. 2014. Web. 19 Nov. 2014.

But for how childish the game look, there is a surprising amount of work that goes to making the game as close a simulation as possible, while still remaining playable for fun, to the point that NASA has actually taken an interest in the game, despite certain simplifications that need to be made.

The game, as of the time of writing, since the game is still in the alpha stages, places the player in charge of managing several aspects of a space program run by Kerbals. Recent updates have added problems of funding and research to better create a "story mode" for the game, but at its core the game is about teaching the player some of the considerations that need to be made when creating a rocket. Early on, player is forced to teach their self basic ideas like "How much fuel is too much fuel?" and "How do I get into orbit?" From there, many goals become self imposed. Do you want to go to the moon, or create a space station, or send rovers to other planets?