Today was far more successful than the previous trip to the rock quarry for testing ejection charges. The nosecone popped off with little effort and sheared all shear pins! We now have a better idea of how much ejection charge we need to ensure proper separation and definitely had some fun testing!

Now that the IMU has been properly hooked up to the Arduino board progress has begun on programming the board. Data is being collected and is properly outputting to the serial monitor. A proof of concept has been programmed to simulate the signal used to ignite the ejection charge. Once the electronics system has detected a significant drop in altitude an LED lights up on the Arduino board to simulate the signal to eject the parachute.

Payload guy here. It’s taken till 2^nd semester but we have a list of payload ideas that people find acceptable and are actively working towards.

Possible Payload List of Ideas:

1. Marshmallows, see how they stand up to G-Forces; fall out map
2. Determine the relationship between altitude and temperature
3. Fly various consumer electronics and see how they stand up to the forces.
4. Construct a simple accelerometer and record the g-forces during flight.
5. Construct a simple vibration detector and record vibration during flight
6. Devices to protect a raw hen’s egg from breaking under the forces of acceleration and deceleration.
7. Devices to protect a hard-boiled egg, including peanut butter and a non-Newtonian fluid (cornstarch and water).
8. Tubes of shaving cream, cornstarch and water, jello, and some liquids stacked by density (alcohol, water, corn syrup, baby oil, cooking oil).
9. A hand-held GPS unit which will record the flight data for subsequent analysis of altitude and flight track.

The team does seem to find the more electronic ideas more exciting but since the payload will need to be 10lbs, minimum, we will need to find a way to add some weight to the payload to meet the standard.

However, I am also doing the payload module, which has been the focus of my time this week. It’s important to find a tube that is made of a material that is not so brittle, with an emphasis on ductility/bend-ability. The point being that if the tube were to break under any circumstances, I would not want to have the tube break the rocket from the inside out. I would want tube to just bend under any inconsistencies that happen to pressure the tube during the rocket trajectory. But while communications are going on, I’ll try to find some project ideas to get going underway. Till, next week.

—-Dallas Chang, Payload Lead

“If my calculations are correct, when this baby hits 88 miles per hour… you’re gonna see some serious shit.”
-Doc Brown, Back To the Future (1985)

Recovery Team 1/30/15: has been and will again this weekend be testing recovery ejection charges out at the Pullman Rock Quarry. The 17th of January was our first time at the quarry testing and let’s just say we learned that we need to seal our fuselage better, re-drill sheer pin holes, limit the amount of entrances from the bulkhead to the electronics bay, use different ejection charges, and fill in old shear pin holes. This week, we have finished modifying the test stand, re-drilling holes, sealing holes, and modifying the actual connection for the igniter.