UCI Flies LOX-Methane Rocket
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- čas přidán 29. 08. 2024
- April 29, 2023
UCI Rocket Project recently test fired their LOX-Methane rocket motor after a couple years in stasis. With this test firing a success, the team moved rapidly to launch vehicle integration, and was able to bring their rocket out to fly on a busy off-weekend. Their aluminum skinned rocket is made in a conventional fashion, with aluminum hollow structural square tubes and bulkheads. The LOX-Methane motor in a flight vehicle is itself a substantial achievement for a student rocket team.
This flight also marks the first team we've requested silence during launch, in order to improve communication and help listen and look out for impacts. The USC RPL team were very respectful of this, but we had forgotten to let them know that they didn't have to remain quiet for their own static firing later that day.
The ascent of the UCI rocket went without incident up to around 9000ft, and there weren't any internal detonations from gaseous vapors like had occurred with the most recent CSULB and Purdue LOX-Methane rockets. Unfortunately, the recovery of the rocket failed as the parachutes tore the recovery section away from the rest of the vehicle. The recovery section was recovered attached to the main chute later that day. Some of the aluminum panels tore away, but enough remained, and enough irregular surfaces were exposed, that the rocket landed in fairly decent shape following what must have been a horizontal descent.
A full cryogenic flight vehicle, by a student team. They knocked it out of the park
We finally did itttttt. Fully methalox launch vehicle with a pretty decent altitude 🔥 Thanks for the sick video Derek, hope you're there to film our next launch!
Wow. That's an incredible achievement. Well done to them!
This is seriously impressive!! 🎉
So Rad!!! Nice job, you are living my dream
Very cool, thank you Derek!!
Zot zot zot 🎉
Nice vid man