On November 11, 2007 ASA test fired
our 2000 lb thrust rocket motor at the BCMA airfield south of Houston.
The motor ran a full duration (20 seconds), the computer system worked
well, and the test stand held the motor solidly.
Refer
to the Propulsion team website for more
details.
A:The
motor produced about 1500 pounds of thrust initially, but this tapered off
to around 800 pounds as the test progressed.
Q:What is
“exploding” out of the motor?
A:Caused
by a “hard start” ignition, a pressure wave blew off our
graphite nozzle.The chunks you see
flying past the camera were the outer pieces of the nozzle.
Q:What
happened to the video camera?
A:Our
nozzle-cam was intentionally placed in the line of fire downstream of the
rocket motor.Video from the camera
was recorded on a VCR nearby.Here
is a unique picture of ignition looking up the rocket nozzle:
Q:Does the camera still work?
A:Yes, it still works and we’ll use it again next time.
Q:Did the computer system work?
A:Yes, the computer system and remote video monitoring system worked
great.Data, video, and commands
were sent wirelessly to/from the test stand,
Q:What next?
A:Next year, we will fix the remaining issues with the rocket motor
and re-test fire it.Then, we will
build a rocket body around this motor and launch it!
Q:Could you tell me more about the program?
A:ASE Program:For the last
year and half, high school students have worked with volunteer engineers to
build a liquid-fueled rocket motor and computer control system.
This engineering outreach program, called Aerospace Systems
Engineering, is designed to teach students practical engineering and
inspire them to pursue college careers in science and engineering.
You can follow the
progress of each team on their blog pages:
