The Rocket Has Flown!
March 23rd, at a secret location in the depths of Maryland.
Under the harshly critical gazes of my niece, nephew, and 2 friends of theirs, and other notable VIPs
the model rocket flew 4 successfull flights.
The Vehicle
I built the rocket to use up some model rocket engines I bought for Halloween.
Since I had 2 types of engines, one fairly weak and the other pretty powerful, I
built the rocket in a modular form, so that it could be either 42" tall, or 24".
The Launches
Launch #1:
Using the smaller configuration and the weaker engine. It
had been many years since I launched rockets, so I went with the safest configuration
first. At a guess I'd say it went 50 feet up, and landed real close to the launch pad.
No damage was sustained. The rocket was very stable.
Launch #2:
Still unsure about the stability of the large configuration,
I went with the small rocket/high power configuration. Also, since the last launch had
arced the rocket towards a nearby lacross game (In no way threatening it, but I imagine the PLAYERS didn't
know this) I aimed the rocket to go straight up, rather than compensate for wind.
This proved to be a mistake, as this configuration sent the rocket "way up in the
sky" as my nieces friend succently put it. (Wild guess: 600ft?) The wind carried
it much further than expected, planting the rocket right at the top a tree.
By the time I reached the "site" my big brother was already climbing the tree. Not
only did he recover the rocket, he managed to not break his own neck in the process.
What a guy! No damage was sustained, and again the rocket was very stable.
BTW, my brother Pete had just celebrated his (41st I think, Pete?) birthday.
Launch #3:
Not wanting to climb trees again, I used the long rocket and
high powered configuration. I also packed the parachute tighter so the rocket would be closer
to the ground when the chute opened. This flight went (wild guess again) 400ft up, and came
down halfway between the launch pad and the trees. While the rocket continued to be very
stable, the heavier upper portion of the long rocket banged into one of the fins. I determined
the damage wasn't critical, trimmed the damaged fin [14k image] a bit, and prepared for the final launch
of the day.
Launch #4:
Used the same configuration as launch 3. We watched this one closely,
as I MIGHT have been wrong about the damaged fin. But the rocket flew true
again, and sustained no further damage.
The Future?
Two problems were encountered. The first (dropping the rocket into a tree) can
be handled with experience. The second (the fin damage caused by the long
configuration) I will handle by recovering the long upper section with a
separate chute from the lower section. That should keep them from bashing each
other as the chutes open.
The Numbers
I'm guessing at how high the rockets went. I imagine I could get some books, with
the thrusts produced by the engines, and how much the rockets weighed, and estimate
their drag, and get a real altitude estimate. Or buy one of those manual tracking
devices and get the height that way. In a gadgety, geeky way, this could be fun,
and might be a good example to set for my nieces and nephews. Until then, you'll have
to rely on my guesses until someone more knowledgable naysays me. -grin-
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Copyright © - Kirk Wagner
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Last updated: 3/30/97