Getting to orbit for the first time is the biggest milestone in KSP. This guide walks you through building your first stable rocket and executing a clean gravity turn.
Getting to orbit is the single most important thing to learn in Kerbal Space Program. Once you understand it, the entire Kerbol system opens up. Don't worry — your first ten rockets will explode. That's the game.
Before you build anything, turn on the Navball. It lives at the bottom centre of the screen during flight. The prograde marker (yellow circle with a dot) is your best friend — point your rocket at it during ascent.
BUILD YOUR ROCKET
Start with a Mk1 Command Pod on top. Add a parachute above it (you'll need to come home). Below the pod, stack:
• 1× FL-T400 Fuel Tank
• 1× LV-T45 Swivel engine (it gimbles, which means steering)
• 4× AV-T1 Winglets at the base for stability
For getting to orbit you'll need more fuel. Add another FL-T400 and an FL-T800 below your first tank. Check your TWR (Thrust-to-Weight Ratio) in the VAB — it should be between 1.3 and 1.7 at launch. Too low and you won't leave the pad. Too high and you'll waste fuel fighting drag.
Add 3–4 fins at the very bottom of your rocket. Stability during the early ascent is free — and fins weigh almost nothing.
THE GRAVITY TURN
This is the manoeuvre that gets you to orbit efficiently. Here's the exact sequence:
1. Launch straight up. Full throttle.
2. At 100 m/s airspeed, gently tilt 5–10° east (right on the navball).
3. Keep tilting gradually as you gain speed. By 10,000m you should be at about 45°.
4. At 45,000m your drag is almost zero — tilt to roughly 15° above the horizon.
5. Watch your Apoapsis (Ap) in the map view. When it reaches 80,000m, cut throttle.
6. Coast to Ap. At 30–45 seconds before reaching it, burn prograde until your Periapsis (Pe) also clears 70,000m.
Congratulations — you're in orbit.
70,000m is the Kerbin atmosphere boundary. Both Ap and Pe need to be above this for a stable orbit. If your Pe is below 70km it will slowly decay.
COMING HOME
To deorbit, burn retrograde (opposite to your prograde marker) until your Pe drops to around 30,000m. Kerbin's atmosphere will do the rest. Deploy your parachute below 500m (right-click it, or press P) and you'll land safely. Jebediah approves.