Rocketry Online

BurnSim 3.0 Released

BurnSim is a solid rocket steady-state ballistic simulation software for the Windows platform. In a nutshell, input your motor, nozzle and propellant characteristics and BurnSim calculates the Kn through the burn and predicts estimated chamber pressure and motor performance. Once your motor design is in BurnSim, you can tweak the parameters such as nozzle diameter or grain core diameter and instantly see how the Kn, chamber pressure, and motor thrust is affected. BurnSim will also optimize your nozzle design.

Motor designs in BurnSim can be saved and recalled for later use. In addition, test data can be imported and graphed alongside simulation data to compare sims to results. BurnSim allows you to make notes about your propellants and motor designs, all saved in one convenient location.

Once you're happy with the your motor design, BurnSim can then export a .ENG file for use in RockSim, wRasp or other rocket flight simulators. You may also export the data to a text file (comma delimited) for use in virtually any system. You can estimate your motor's performance and rocket's flight before you even cast a grain!

Changes in BurnSim 3.0 include:

Context Sensitive Help / documentation

Ability to mix grains of different propellant type Import test data and graph it alongside simulation data for comparison, imported data saved with to the motor design for later use Keep notes on propellants and motors Vary Propellant a, n, and ISP* for different pressure ranges Graphic Illustration of defined propellant grains Calculation of nozzle exit diameter from given expansion ratio Port/throat Ratio, as well as throat/port UI changes and miscellaneous bug fixes Migrated to Microsoft .NET platform

BurnSim 3.0 licenses are being priced at $39.00, 2.x License holders can upgrade for $14. Visit www.BurnSim.com for details and downloads.

An "Out of this World" LDRS 27 Event at the Kansas Cosmosphere

KloudBusters has added a unique event made available exclusively for LDRS 27.

We're hosting an LDRS 27 evening excursion to the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center to experience one of the largest collections of space artifacts in the world. On Friday August 29. 2008 a motor coach will depart from the Best Western Airport Inn & Conference Center at approximately 7:30 PM for the 1-hour drive to Hutchinson. We have reserved the Cosmosphere for exclusive LDRS 27 access from 8:30 pm to 10:30 pm where you can roam the various galleries of the Center. At 10:30 the bus will return to the Best Western back in Wichita.

Cost for LDRS 27 attendees and their guests is $20 per person which includes round-trip bus travel and a ticket to the Cosmosphere. If you would like to drive yourself to Hutchinson, cost for Cosmosphere admission only is $12 per person.

Bus space is limited and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

Reservations for this "Out of this World" event may be made with your LDRS

27 pre-registration and are available in advance only. Tickets will not be available at the Cosmosphere - you must purchase them through KloudBusters.

Check out some of the details of the Kansas Cosmosphere at http://www.cosmo.org

PLEASE NOTE: The "Out Of This World" event has just been made available. If you have already pre-registered and would like a reservation for the event, you may send your extra payment via PayPal to payments@kloudbusters.org. Add a comment to your PayPal payment and we'll update your pre-registration reservations.

Giant Leap Rocketry offers Firestorm 54 in Dyna-Wind Airframe

Giant Leap Rocketry now offers the Firestorm 54 in Dyna-Wind airframe. Dyna-Wind is the compression-bonded composite tubing offered exclusively by Giant Leap.

According to Ed, owner of Giant Leap, “customers love the Firestorm 54, and now it’s available with an airframe that has the strength of composite tubing, but at a lower price.”

To learn more about the Firestorm 54 in Dyna-Wind, please log on to:

www.giantleaprocketry.com

NASA Student Launch Initiative Completed 4/25/2008

April 25th marked a momentous occasion for 16 teams of high school students from across the United States. The 25th was launch day for NASA's Student Launch Initiative, a program aimed at teaching high school students what it means to do work for NASA.

Their efforts began when they placed high enough in the Team America Rocketry Challenge to earn them the opportunity to submit a proposal for SLI. The goal? To design and build a science payload, to be launched in a high power rocket, to an altitude of one mile.

After the proposals were accepted, the teams had to work through the phases of the project, from the Preliminary Design Review, through a Critical Design Review, to the Flight Readiness Review. At each phase, the teams had to put together dozens of pages of documentation, which were submitted to NASA for review, then discussed with NASA engineers via conference call.

On April 23rd, the teams arrived in Huntsville for two days of site-seeing at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. Then, on the 25th, the teams performed the task for which they had worked for months -- flying their payloads.

Many of the teams experienced success, but there were some failures along the way, with two rockets coming in without a recovery system. In addition, Plantation High School experirenced the joys of hanging a rocket 50 feet up in a tree!

Numerous photos of the launch activities can be found at http://www.rocketryonline.com/misc/sli2008/index.htm

AeroTech Contact Update for April 21 & 22

AeroTech/RCS is moving to new offices and is upgrading its phone system on April 21 & 22. Please be aware that our regular phone service may be interrupted during this time. If you are unable to reach us at 435-865-7100, calls may be temporarily directed to Karl Baumann in manufacturing at 435-590-2254 or Betty Camizzi in administration at 435-590-2264. Thank you!

ORIONCRAFT GUILD BACK ON LINE

OrionCraft Guild is back after some underemployment issues. We are seeking help with design and fabrication on experimental rocketry projects.

We really need designers, and will help train those interested in CAD tools. Free trial software is available thru Alibre, www.alibre.com too.

visit my group; http://www.yourchristianspace.com/groups/mygroups/

my now obsolete web site shows past projects:
http://users.ameritech.net/diluther/page3.html

David Luther

Extreme Rocketry Seeking Construction Zone Writer

For several years now, Extreme Rocketry magazine has had a regular column appearing in each issue titled the 'Construction Zone.' The column contains information about intermediate to advanced scratch building techniques. Our most recent writer, Ben Jarvis, has decided to step down due to new requirements of his full time job. As a result, Extreme Rocketry is seeking a writer to write the column. Extreme Rocketry pays writers 2.5¢ per word; the Construction Zone column is 800-900 words per issue. It is not a high paying job and typically those who take on the position do so because they wish to help the hobby through writing rather than writing as a source of income. Those wishing to apply for the position of Construction Zone column writer should have experience in writing for publication as well as a competent background in building rockets. To apply for the position, send an email to czone@rocketeermedia.com with information about yourself and why you might be a good choice for the position. It is also helpful to provide one or two samples of your writing.

Top 100 Teams Qualify For World's Largest Rocket Contest

Arlington, Va. – Countless hours spent designing, hand-building and testing model rockets has paid off for 100 teams that will be vying for the sixth annual Team American Rocketry Challenge national title next month.

The Aerospace Industries Association announced the finalists for the world’s largest rocket contest Friday. A complete list of the qualifying teams is available at www.rocketcontest.org.

The teams will meet at Great Meadow in The Plains, Va., on May 17 for a final fly-off and a chance to win more than $60,000 in scholarships and other prizes.

About 7,000 students on 643 teams from 43 states and the District of Columbia took part in the qualifying rounds of competition.

AIA President and CEO Marion Blakey said the participating middle and high school students once again proved themselves to be both enthusiastic and creative, an encouraging sign as the aerospace industry faces a looming workforce shortage.

“I’m pleased to see such a committed group of finalists,” Blakey said. “I’m looking forward to seeing these teams compete next month, but I’m even more excited to see what their futures hold. We’re seeing here firsthand the faces of the future innovators for our industry.”

The contest presents teams with a dual challenge. Teams must launch their rocket as close as possible to an altitude of 750 feet with a flight time of 45 seconds. The payload of two raw eggs must return to the ground unbroken.

Teams had until April 7 to submit qualifying scores, which were achieved by launching the rocket in their home region under the supervision of a judge from the National Association of Rocketry, AIA’s co-sponsor of the contest. The competition is also sponsored by NASA, the Defense Department, the American Association of Physics Teachers and 34 AIA member companies.

AIA created the Team America Rocketry Challenge in 2003 to celebrate the centennial of flight and to generate interest in aerospace careers among young people. The aerospace and defense sector is bracing for a workforce crisis over the next decade as the scientists and engineers lured to the industry by the space race and the Cold War hit retirement and not enough qualified young Americans take their place. Almost 60 percent of the U.S. aerospace workforce is 45 or older, according to statistics compiled by AIA last year.

The aerospace industry offers a variety of career opportunities, from building space vehicles to designing state-of-the-art fighter aircraft to planning future commercial jetliners. Whether in engineering, production, testing or integration, aerospace careers are challenging and unique.

As a major supporter of the Team America Rocketry Challenge, Raytheon Company is sponsoring the winning team’s trip to a major international air show for the third consecutive year this year. Last year, Raytheon took the winning team to the Paris Air Show, and members of this year’s winning team will go to the Farnborough International Air Show near London in July. There they will compete in an international fly-off with the winner of the British version of the Team America Rocketry Challenge.

Lockheed Martin Corporation will provide $5,000 scholarships to each of the top three teams again this year, and NASA invites some of the top teams to participate in their Student Launch Initiative, an advanced rocketry program.

For more information about TARC, including details on how to sponsor a team or to apply for press credentials for the finals, visit www.rocketcontest.org.

Russian Space Shuttle Navigates Rhine River

A Soviet spacecraft is making an unusual journey down the Rhine River this week. The historic Buran vehicle is on its way from the shipyards in Rotterdam to its new home at a technical museum in Speyer, Germany.

You can read the complete story on Spiegel Online International

ROCKETS Magazine Releases A DVD of Cool Flights

ROCKETS Magazine has been traveling across the country for the past two years covering the biggest and the best rocket launches. In that short time ROCKETS Magazine has produced 25 DVD’s, which exhibit more white knuckle, fast action excitement than anyone could stand to watch. The latest DVD from ROCKETS Magazine is the highlight reel of some of the more memorable flights.

You will see some of the most extreme, sophisticated and complex projects that your fellow fliers have ever put their heart and soul into. You’ll see it all. ROCKETS Magazine lives by the motto, “When they work they are cool and when they don’t work, they are really cool.” In this no holds barred video, which includes rare, unseen footage, you will see the successes and the failures in spectacular fashion that only ROCKETS Magazine can bring you. Included is on-board video from some of the flights that might require taking a Dramamine before settling in to watch the DVD.

This is the first volume in a ROCKETS Magazine series called "Cool and Really Cool Flights". Sit back, turn up the volume and watch in amazement with what your fellow rocketeers have come up with. You’ll cheer when you see how well the project worked. You’ll groan out loud when they fail. You’ll cringe as you anticipate the outcome. Will it be perfect chute recovery or a ground capture? Will the project be displayed it in a museum after the flight or will it be reduced back to kit form and taken home in trash bags? “Cool and Really Cool Flights” is three and a half hours of heart pumping action in a two DVD set.

Over three and a half hours of video action on this 2 DVD set. Dolby digital 5.1 Surround sound.

$19.95 USD
(plus $2.00 shipping & handling)

Rockets Magazine subscribers: $17.95 USD
(plus $2.00 shipping & handling)