Rebel Rockets-Day 10

Today, we built another complete rocket. We had to construct a new parachute because it was lost at the last launch. We reused the same fuselage though, and the same shock cord. We also mass produced fuselages today, because we thought we will need a lot of them for when we test out the other variables. We went to the field again to launch this rocket, and it flew up and the recovery system worked well. However, since the fins that were placed on this rocket were not of the same size and were also spaced out incorrectly, it caused the rocket to spiral upward instead of just flying straight up. Also, the wind carried the rocket too far and it got lost in the woods. We need to fix those fins and we also need to find a bigger field because we cannot keep losing these rockets. If we lose one with the accelerometer in it, then that would be a very large setback.

-Christian

We finished another rocket today. We used the same fuslage as the last launch, but we needed a new cone and parachute. We made a bunch of other fuselages today though, because we keep on losing them or breaking them, plus it gives us a chance to test more variables at once. The problem with the rocket we planned on launching was that the fins were different sizes and weren't spaced evenly, so during the launch it spiraled up in the air, it looked cool, but it wasn't supposed to do this. The good news about the launch was that the parachute was ejected and it worked, but the bad news is that it was carried away by the wind. It's really annoying actually. So we have to find a bigger field because we can't lose the rockets especially if the accelerometer is in it.

-Mike B.

Today we built another complete rocket, with a new cone and parachute. We made sure that the shock cord was more securely attached to the cone so the rocket would stay in one piece and we could stand a better chance of recovering it. While doing this we included the newly found coefficient of drag into our equations to nearly complete them. We then went to the high school to launch the rockets. There we acquired the mass of the rocket. With this we will soon be able to finish our predictions. The launch did not go as we had planned. The fins were constructed incorrectly with uneven spacing and sizes, which caused the rocket to spiral as it went upwards and lost maximum height. The rocket stayed attached to the cone and parachute but it still floated away into the woods. We will have to find a more open area to launch in the future.

-Scott

Today, we launched another rocket. This one was much more successful. The rocket flew up and deployed the parachute. The parachute stayed attached to the rocket. Unfortunately, the field was too small, and the rocket floated away. We were not able to recover it. The rocket did not fly up perfectly either. This was because the fins were not spaced correctly. Also, the fins were all asymmetrical. The next time we plan on launching our rocket in a mch larger field. I have a good feeling about the next launch.

-Ben W.

We made many fuselages today and finished up one rocket that was ready for a launch. We made improvements on the shock cord, cone, and parachute. The parachute managed to deploy during the launch but we lost the rocket as it went spirialing out of control. This was because one of the fins was not of the right size and not spaced properly. Good thing we made many fuselages so we can find a bigger field hopfully and recover our rocket this time. It was also a good thing that every thing went fine so we can reproduce better results.

-Kushal