Both launches of Frostbite, our second 2.2” diameter 54” long rocket went according to plan this month. We launched on the 9th at the Quad Cities Rocket Society launch site. We had two goals in mind for these launches. Goal number one was to certify Pedro (me) as a level 2 Tripoli member, to ensure that the rocket team will always have an available team member who is certified to launch rockets at competitions. The second goal of the launches was to test a new altimeter that we won as a prize for getting second place at the Argonia Cup. This new altimeter is more advanced, but it was never used before, so we had to make sure it worked before we put it in our bigger rocket.
Rocket Information:
Name: Frostbite
Weight: 6 lbs.
Length: 54 in.
Width: 2.2 in.
Flight 1 Stats:
Motor: I430 Speed: 238.7 m/s Altitude: 5230 ft
Flight 2 Stats:
Motor: J712 Speed: 324.6 m/s Altitude: 7231 ft
After these two launches, we have gathered enough data to make sure that our new altimeter works as planned and will be ready to use in any of our next launches. The altimeter gave us real time information on all aspects of the flight, from altitude and acceleration, to speed and GPS coordinates. All of this was transmitted from the rocket to a smartphone that acted as our ground station. This will be really useful in future launches since it will allow us to see the data in real time.
Pedro de Oliveira (Freshman)