Introduction | Design | Construction | Videos
In 2003, I took part in a rocketry competition set up by the National Association of Rocketry (NAR). The competition was to build a rocket that met the FAA guidelines and could satisfy certain criteria:
1. The rocket could each exactly 1500 feet (points deducted per foot missed ±).
2. The rocket could safely transport an egg to that height.
3. The rocket had two stages.
With these guidelines there were many designs we could go for, but we decided to go big time. The rocket we would make would be on a rather large scale.
We decided that the rocket would be very thin and have a large cargo bay at the top. We decided to make a very stable rocket. That meant that the center of gravity would have to be well above the center of pressure.
Before we bought any parts we began designing the rocket on the computer. We first selected all the parts and then did all the calculations. The program helped us choose appropriate engines for our use. The final design was almost six feet in height and just less than three and a third pounds.
This was a 3-D rendering of the rocket:
And here are the calculations:
Once everything was set, we got building.
Our rocket was made out of very solid materials. The skinny part of the body was made out of highly reinforced cardboard with a fireproof shell. The payload, nosecone, and all adaptors were strong plastic. The fins were fiberglass, the wadding, and safety cord were Kevlar. Finally the chutes were nylon.
We pieced all of the parts together from our design and since we created the whole plan we had to get all custom made parts.
We used giant G sized motors (motors run A-O the typical being B), and to launch the second stage we used various electronics and timers.
Once everything was ready we brought the rocket out to the launch field. Here was one of our launches:
Finally here is one of our timer tests:
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