The Automated Transfer Vehicle, or ATV, was an expendable cargo spacecraft developed by the European Space Agency used for space cargo transport from 2008 to 2014. The ATV design was launched to orbit five times, exclusively by the Ariane 5 which, you'll notice, is part of the Knes mod ! The five ATVs were named after important European figures in science and engineering: Jules Verne, Johannes Kepler, Edoardo Amaldi, Albert Einstein, and Georges Lemaître. Those names were re-used as parts name here. The ATV was a spaceous and advanced spacecraft, which gave birth to the Colombus ISS secton (named after the Colombus Space Station project). This spacecraft, as well as all the projects associated, are now yours !

ATV invariant parts

Whathever you want to build in an ATV-style (the real-life ATV, some station parts or labs), you'll need those sections.

Basic Build Guide

Nose adapter

• Docking Port
  • K06 "Arcas" Docking Port Jr.
  • OR Active ECBM (for MRK) (cover)
  • OR ECBM (for MRK) (cover)
• ATV "Lemaitre" Nose Adapter (2.5 to 0.625/1.25)
  • 4x 0° "Bottlaender" Front RCS

Servic Module

• ATV "Verne" Service Module
  • 4x ATV "Einstein" Solar Panel
  • 4x ATV "Maximin" Bottom RCS
  • ATV "Leproux" Antenna

ATV Modular Sections

Those ATV segments can be added, removed, re-added, deleteed and finally piled-on on your various ATV-derived crafts. Whathever springs your mind is good, but you may want to know each part before stacking them one above the other. Some are useful to build space stations, others will just give you more room space or some bonus fuel supplies, and some may even have scientists on board ! Surely you'll find a way to make some sense out of that.

In addition to those, you'll find another adapter, a Monopropellant fuel tank and battery section, to suit your different spacecraft's needs.

Basic Build Guide

ATV "Amaldi" Pressurised Module

Well, it's a bit embarrassing actually: the Amaldi is not designed to be fitted with external hardware. All you have to do is to stack it atop or below any other section !

"The ATV Pressurised Module can deliver dry cargo, water, compressed gas and propellant to a space station." It may explain why ESA used to use it to send such things to the ISS, on the real-life ATV cargo.

STEAM "Calypso" ScienceLab Module

Once again, there is not much to be told about the building of this module. It feels ok on its own, so pile it on or under and you're good to go !

"No longer are you limited to research facilities only on Kerbin! With the Mobile Processing Lab, you can conduct long-term experiments and ongoing research with the data you collect in the field. Be sure to check back on your scientists from time to time, and transmit the results of their research home! This model is guaranteed to spontaneously combust less than previous models, and also has the equipment necessary to clean out and restore functionality to inoperable experiments." Both reassuring and scary, isn't it ?

STEAM "Laputa" ScienceLab Module

This time, you may want to add something on the sides of the Laputa. You'll notice 4 weird-looking spots on the sides of Laputa, on which you might fix radiators, solar panols, or anything which might help with the onboard crystal reasearch (which, by the way, are fully legal).

"The "Laputa" module is equiped with multi-user instrument for the fundamental study of the processes of nucleation and crystallisation of biological macro-molecules, and specifically, how these processes are influenced by gravity." If you understood that, you know how to use the Laputa.

STEAM "Caravelle" Node Module

If you wondered how to build a space station out of ATVs, that's how ! Thanks to the Caravelle (which, by the way, is available with 1, 2, 3 or 4 side nodes), you'll be able to build anything, as long as it requires ATVs and no more than 4 axis... To the Caravelle could be attached Cupolas, dormitories, science labs (yes, including the disreputable "crystal" lab), arriving cargos and leaving capsules. A whole world is within reach once you have a Caravelle docked to your station ! Plus, you have no alternatives, so you'd prefer to be ok with it.

Each side nodes will perfectly suit an ECBM (active or passive) or a stock docking port (1.25m size). To sum up: enjoy !