Honestly, this made me a little sad. it was a beautiful video that visually displayed one of the biggest losses with post-apollo NASA. When Nixon cancelled Apollo and approved the Shuttle we lost decades of progress in space. Combining a launch escapeless manned vehicle with a payload on top of lifting body design was a compromised disaster waiting to happen that had no clear goal in mind other than making money. Once we had our first shuttle disaster it had absolutely no chance of returning its investment because no company wanted to risk human lives to launch a satellite that an expendable rocket could do much more economically and safely. I understand a mission to Mars would be risky and may result in a dead astronaut, but I can imagine the national response would be much less traumatic to lose a couple people on Mars than a dozen people in our atmosphere from the shuttle....

A Mars mission in 1981 would have been a brutal experience for the crew IMO. Spending months in a small room with other crew members only to look forward to months on the return trip. I understand the astronauts are intelligent and highly motivated, resourceful people...but it would been a super difficult mission.

You had me hooked at "Giant Saturn V with 8 boosters attached to it."

Would've launched on the same day as Mt. St. Helens blew, what an evening newscast that would've been!

If this was a movie, something the audience doesn't understand would have gone totally wrong, multiple people would have died and the thing would have turned into a rescue mission. Oh, and something with potatoes

The cinematography was amazing, obviously you put a lot of time into the video and game play. The usage of mods and visual enchantments are great and you definitely deserve more than 249 subscribers, I mean... 250! :)

This was a very interesting video, however I did have a good laugh when I saw the astronauts.

And they will be in a seated position with no room to move for about half a year?

This is beautiful! Lots of work went into this. It may not be very realistic but still a great video! :D

Very nice. The Gemini era hardware would have been outdated though, and the lander being pointed retrograde throughout the trans mars burns would have been seriously uncomfortable for the crew. As it is, VERY nice job. You got it done far more economically than Stephen Baxter.

Bad Luck Brian Version: "Spend two months on Mars. Crash land in North Korea."

Excellent! Brought back fond memories of my childhood. Watching the moon launches and the returns. And yes, we did go to the moon.

Some people are taking this too seriously acting like it was exactly what they were going to do like come on man chill give the man some respect for at least posting this amazing video.

Amazing work, One of, If not the best KSP video's I've seen in a very good while. Great Work!

my god, this deserves more credit. you read "Humans to mars: Fifty years of mission planning" and used the same lander for mars.

Speaking as someone who saw the First Moon Landing as it happened, I really wish this video was simply a reconstruction of history.

How do you feel such a sense of awe and triumph for a bunch of Kerbals? Well done

Okay, I'll admit, the cinematography was great. However, anyone saying this is realistic isn't correct, unfortunately. First off, NASA wouldn't have re-used Gemini hardware for something like this. In 1969, much less 1972, Gemini hardware was considered obsolescent. As such, you would be much more likely to see a modified Apollo CSM with some sort of additional hab module. Also, the crew would have never launched in the MEM, not the least of which because in the video, you showed it as being launched with the MEM pointed retrograde all the way until transfer stage separation. This would have never been okayed by the designers, because every burn until transfer stage sep would have induced pushed the crew towards the "roof" of the MEM, away from their seats. This could result in significant injury or death for the crew. Additionally, you're using cryogenic propellants long after they logically would have boiled off, even in cryogenic tankage. More realistically, you'd have used the S-IVB stages for trans-Martian injection, then switched over to a hypergolic transfer stage for mid-course correction. Also, the MEM wouldn't have done a direct descent from Mars entry, as there wouldn't have been sufficient delta-V on board for that maneuver, even including the lander, unless they were only spending a tiny amount of time on the surface and lacked anything remotely resembling lab space or an equivalent to the Apollo program's ALSEP. Another reason they'd have never launched in the MEM is that there are no provisions for a launch escape system, which would mean that in the event of a launch failure the crew would be unable to save themselves, and would almost certainly die horribly. Please don't assume I hate this video. As I said, the cinematography is great, and it does show that you put a lot of thought into this. However, I tend to nitpick things like this, and I felt that I should leave my feedback on the video.

We need a Mars Direct video one day, that would be cool

Thats a really Kerbal thing. Got most powerful rocket in the world? NEEDS MOAR BOOSTERS!

The song playing when they first land on the surface of Mars sounds almost like an alternate variation of "Freedom Fighters" by Two Steps From Hell.

Amazing work on the audio clips. While the hardware is a little inaccurate, amazing video

I never thought such a simple mechanism could reach Mars. I know it sounds silly to say It is simple but the fact that you could do it in 2 launches amazes me. Amazing video, will share it without a doubt!

The whole thing looks go good and you really get pulled into it. Until i heard the KSP staging sound. I was pulled straight out of the simulation.

No dialogue whatsoever, and it's still better than any sci fi movie made this year.

Literally speechless. Amazing man, very good job 💪 😍

Oh my goodness. That was beautifully done. Thank you

I didn't realize how big the lander capsule actually was until the ladders were deployed ... wow... Thanks for the video man, it actually felt somewhat like a documentary to watch - you know those 45 minute "what-if" documentaries. The only thing missing was the voice-over/cut-in-between commentary from experts. This could totally be used for something like that. Also excellent choice of music and obviously fantastic camera work.

simply watching this video and beeing an space exploración fan...I have felt a little sample of that feels that a person there would feel

Amazing video man. I'm speechless. Can't even imagine how much work that video needed. You just earned sub

Your videos are absolutely beautiful and inspiring, and among the best KSP vids I've seen anywhere. Keep up the good work!

I absolutely adored your video and loved the cinematography. However I do have a small bit of criticism nothing really just a personal pet peeve, when there are scenes outside of the interior vehicle muting the sound may add to the effect of it being in space. Again a personal pet peeve and a small criticism however i still did absolutely love all the effort and heart i saw in this video and i think it is a wonderful creation.

Awesome job again. You nailed it!

Everything about this video is beautiful. The score, the camera work and gameplay. Absolutely sick :O

Two saturn V launches in 3 days ? Nah, doesn't sounds realistic enough, knowing NASA's ability for always being accurate in time :x Btw, great video ! Keep goin'

Really enjoyed watching this but the return vehicle was an Apollo capsule and not Gemini if the mission had gone ahead. Also the proposed plan at the time was to land the return vehicle 9 months before the actual landing with another return vehicle in Mars orbit for backup. Both return vehicles had the ability to land in case the primary vehicle had any issues ☺

I hate to say (as someone who loves space tech), I’m actually kinda glad they didn’t go to mars in the 80’s. Knowing what we know now, the trip probably would have killed the crew, or at the very least disabled them by the time they got to Mars. The people coming back from 6+ month stays on the ISS are in pretty rough shape. We really should be throwing our efforts at simulating gravity.

Amazing man! Great work love it!

this was very impressive. nice work!

Beautiful. And extremely realistic.

One giant leap awesome video especially the end when you traveled from Mars to the Earth in a Space Capsule crew will be going nuts impossible can't live in a capsule

Amazing video man, definitely the most cinematic KSP video I ever saw

A wonderfully made video, with great attention to detail (although not sure on the Simpson-like characters?!) Truly awe-inspiring to think that the technology to achieve this was essentially already available - with a bit of tweaking - some 50 years ago. It's high time we made this happen - and I'd quite like to see it before I cark it!

Great usage of mods and visual effects!

Awe-inspiring! This was incredibly beautiful. I cried. That said, we sure did leave a lot of garbage behind at every stage. I guess that is the price we pay for progress.

Imagine living in Gemini capsule for more than a year, it must've been a terrifying experience

thats a fuckin pain to sit facing the engines, with you back facing space

Awesome Video + soundtrack

Nice video. (But if you make another one please consider making the parachute(s) used for reentry MUCH bigger. I kept waiting to see the primary chutes deploy!) Again, good looking video!

A delghtful visual experience Thank you and the team

This is superb. It reminds me of Stephen Baxter's Voyage in many respects. Natalie, the astronaut who takes the first steps, says it all: "I'm home!"

Thank you for making this, it was realy cool

Congress, Jimmy Carter, and a hostile mass media killed any real space program as soon as Nixon left office. I remember Tiny Tim defending the space program while Johnny Carson parroted the cliche that "the money should be spent solving problems here on Earth". As Tiny Tim said, "there was poverty in the Middle Ages but it didn't stop them from building the cathedrals we can still appreciate today".

Amazing video!

I love this video, keep up!

Riding a Gemini from Mars all the way back to Earth must really suck.

What a great video. Really makes you wonder about what could have been. Only one critic though. In the video, you have the crew going toward the sun to go to Mars and away from the sun heading home.

Well that's the coolest lander I've ever seen.

I think it would be more simple (and reasonable) to deliver large fuel cannisters to the Mars orbit instead of whole new crew module. It would, in effect, ensure bigger internal space for the crew, which (even in a, so called, big Gemini) would be for such a long (!) flight crucial.

It is shock to see a 100 meters tall rocket returns in just a capsule.

A favorite but sad joke in our Family is that what if in the future we get good at space travel (to more likely far distant Stars ) but then unfortunately have to only pass by those still in route because we are unable to dock and pick them up as we go on by.

very nicely done. great shots.

Excellent work!

Thanks for watching? Thanks for making this. A thousand times thank you.

At 13:20 I was like , ahh yeah here we go ... there goes the parachute aaaannd ... WTF is that

13:58 gosh it looks like we are really the aliens since the lander is like a ufo

I think it would've been suicide to attempt this in 1980. NASA still has like a 60% success rate landing probes on Mars.

Aint nobody spending 2 years in a Gemini capsule

Absolutely stunning video!

KSP. The most awesome simulator ever.

So a mars version of the once proposed Gemini Moon program. Interesting

If going to the moon was like strolling across town on a sunny spring afternoon, getting to Mars would be like hiking to the North Pole in the middle of winter.

Fascinating! IMHO, the MEM and Big G conceptual spacecraft were plenty roomy for outbound and return Mars transits, respectively, for small crews. There was a Big G variant with enough Delta V for Moon landing and return - so perhaps the same vehicle, aerobraked into Mars orbit, would have been capable of the trans-Earth burn. The actual Big G was designed for rear-docking - but perhaps a front docking hatch was possible, too. I do believe that NASA would have insisted on the MEM be launched upright, if the crew was meant to be aboard during the ascent - otherwise, eyeballs-out, you know... ;-)

This reminds me very much of the alternate history / parallel reality science fiction novel "Voyage" by Stephen Baxter, in which the first human landing on Mars happens in the mid 1980s.

Great job.I can’t imagine being cooped up, even in the larger Big Gemini capsule for months. I don’t see how those guys managed two weeks in LEO missions.

Many Saturn V redesigns were briefly considered. But with 4x Titan strap-ons, not 8. The Saturn V S-1C first stage would have needed a fair bit of redesign to handle the torque, twisting and compression loads of more than 8 million pounds of solid booster thrust. That would have made the S-1C really heavy. Would have been easier to use the already-tested F-1A engines, stretch the first stage fuel tanks, and stick to 'only' 4x Titan solids. The S-2 upper stage could use the newer, more powerful J-2S engines as would the S-IVB upper stage. In fact: a new upper stage could have been designed that would have matched the width of the S2; used 2x J-2S and had a lot more propellants - and it would have been no longer than the older S-IVB stage. Such a described booster would get 200 metric tons into low Earth orbit, or shoot 70+tons directly at Mars. This booster design *WAS* considered. Check out Mark Wade's Astronautix.com: www.astronautix.com/s/saturnv.html I know you wanted a single-shot Mars launch. But 2x launches of the booster I described would still get you the Mars mission with minimal rendezvous and docking maneuvers in Earth orbit before departure. And the launch vehicle would use a lot less time and money being redesigned...

According to some accounts, man was already on Mars.

25 minutes and 02 seconds and I didn't even blinked!!

Was going great until Lego Marty Feldman stepped out Jk great vid! Really well done!

Imagine being the first man on mars and having been in a zero g environment for 2 years - you couldn’t walk when you step out

I've never been this early to a video.

Fascinating to watch but far fetched. I can't imagine travelling from Mars to the Earth in something the size of a Gemini capsule. That said, Nixon should have started a Mars mission rather than pursue the space shuttle. Thanks for bringing this study to light.

I was expecting something closer to Werner Von Braun's 1981 mission concept with the 2 radially mounted nuclear "shuttles" (basically if the third stage of a Saturn 5 was equipped with a nuclear thermal rocket) for the Mars transfer burn. However this design relied on a plan for other technologies that ultimately lost funding before the Apollo program ended. Your mission was very creative, using the tech available then. Would have been horrible for the astronauts but certainly feasible. I'm in the process of building a stock version of Werner's 1982 Mars landing concept, which you can find online. I am thinking of not making it a manned landing however, his lander design looked a bit premature and relied on the data available at the time in 1969

May I add something ladies and gentlemen? I believe that the return vehicle should be on or at Mars months before the crew is sent. ( Preferably on Mars )This to ensure that it arrives safely and all components on the craft are in working order. But that's just how I feel about it. And I don't think NASA is going to listen me anytime soon. LOL By the way..And I think you'll get a big kick out of this.. Now please understand just because I've worked at the Manned Spacecraft Center doesn't mean I am knowledgeable on the subject. I've lived near there since my father retired from the NAVY in 1969 and went to work as a manager for the NASA T-38 aircraft at Ellington. I am a retired sheet metal worker and worked on what we call the new Mission Control Center when it was built in the early 90s. Here's the fun part. You know those egg crate looking fluorescent light covers for the lights? LOL They spent $600 each for those. Our tax dollars at work. LOL Rumor was there were two control rooms. The other for Reagan's Star Wars. I never saw it. They did tell me that they wouldn't use the control room for 5 years because that was how long a battery would last in a bugging device. But that doesn't mean a thing. They will tell you anything. And I don't remember when they first used the new control room.

Nicely done. Fanciful, I think (there was a proposed Venus flyby but I’ve never heard of anything like this), but still interesting. 😊

This would've been the biggest thing since Apollo 11

How are you doing mid-transfer corrections with cryogenic propellants?

Very well done! :D

the rendering is great!

If this happened then we would probably be sending probes and rovers to titan

very cool video!!!

I need the names of the songs! they made this video all the more enjoyable to watch

I'm just thinking how they get 2 gigantic rockets stacked, rolled out and loaded in 3 days.

poor MEM. OutstandingShould be a Academy Award for this

I'm not sure how long it took to make this video, but I love.

Houston the tranquility base the eagle has landed

Fantastic !!!

Wait wait wait They were planning on sending humans to Mars with those tiny capsules? Multiple months, on a capsule that small?

Logic,, not human emotion for a moment,, Why return the astronauts to the Earth? It is a hard discussion,, but a very needed discussion. First,, likelihood of success. Mars missions thus far have a 2/3rds success rate. So for starters we had best prep ourselves for dead astronauts that do not arrive well. And the return portion of the mission has poorer odds than that,, because there is no infrastructure. I would assign the odds as 50/50 for the return. So, if we send three missions or foot prints, flags, and return,, math says just one of the three will make it home. BTW,, the settling of the Americas had worse odds of the first trans-Atlantic voyages than are anticipated for Mars. Odds are, you can get there,, odds are that you cannot go and come home. Costs. The mission will cost billions. And most of those billions will be spent on the return. This is simple math,, and a difficult concept. That last one pound of fuel used to re-enter Earth's atmosphere, REQUIRES 50,000 pounds of fuel and hardware to ship it to Mars and then to ship it home,, so there is the last one pound left for re-entry. It is millions of pounds of fuel and hardware to get that last tiny capsule and parachute descending to Earth. The actual break down of costs will give you 12 to 15 Billion to get there and 80 to 100 billion to get home,, and you still are not likely to succeed. Remember the odds? You will spend 85% of your budget,, on a feature that is unlikely to succeed. Better,, simpler,, cheaper Send older astronauts,, really,, does it matter where you live your last days? We do not live forever,, so do not go until the kids have finished college and are 30 and on their own. A resupply rocket filled with beans and dried meats can be sent for 1/100th of what it costs to send people. And,, if you are not just doing the flags and footprints stuff,, send scientists,, real researchers to study, live out their days in the lab of Mars,, For less money,, you can have scientists on the ground for years, studying, recording, transmitting back to Earth,, putting rock under the microscope,,, 1,000 times the research and results,,, for less money,, and a greater probability of success. 1.000 times better. And then, after you have people on the ground,, and more joining them,, living,, working,,, now you have people that become your local infrastructure. Now if some want to go home,,, they just might be able to. Mars is too far away to dink around with half measures of sending young pilots and rocket engineers,, collect 22 pounds of rocks and come home. It is illogical in the extreme. You would never spend 7/8ths of your budget to bring the computer or binoculars home. So why would you spend 7/8ths of your budget to bring the used computer home? I'll go. Today, right now. Send me the beans and ham, and spare parts to keep me breathing and drinking water. Come home? Why? The adventure is there, not here. Are you listening Elon? You had better be.

where do you have this baloon-like parachute from?