Experimental Rocketry

Most of the projects on this page describe the design, construction, and flight of an
N2O hybrid rocket. A few other topics are included.

Rocket Development

  1. Solus-N... Working page.. A minimum diameter N hybrid. Click
    Flight reportcoming soon

  2. Ugly-N - UglyGreen rocket modified to fly with an "M" class Nitrous/PVC rocket motor.
    Electronics include an R-DAS, a Perfectflite miniTimer, and a BigRedBee GPS. Click

  3. Small Step - A minimum diameter, scratch built K rocket Click

  4. Twist-and-Pull - A very small scratch built rocket... just for the fun of it. Click

  5. UglyGreen - Test the electronics and recovery in a low/slow flying rocket.
    Electronics include an R-DAS, a Perfectflite miniTimer, and a BigRedBee GPS.
    The rocket is a slightly modified Wildman Extreme kit. Click

Motor Development

  1. Darwin - a Nitrous and Acrylic bench top rocket motor Click

  2. Ignitor work:
    February test: Click
    December test: Click
    November test: Click
    October test: Click
    Failure to light: Click

  3. Another slow motion ignitor video. Watch video.

  4. Hot weather test. Motor failed to light but the tank pressure did stabilize to 400 PSI as designed. ( Click

  5. Another successful static test of the flight configuration M motor
    with a camera strapped to the motor itself. Click

  6. First static test of a flight configuration M motor. Click
    Slow motion video of an igniter. Watch video.

  7. Another successful static test on the horizontal test stand. Click

  8. A new horizontal test stand. Successful static test on the new test stand. Click

  9. First static test on the vertical test stand. Click

  10. The beginning - General description of a hybrid rocket motor,
    pictures of first-attempt hardware, and pictures of a vertical test stand. Click

Other/Misc

  1. A simple homemade fin can Click
  2. A simple homemade nosecone Click
  3. A simple homemade parachute Click

  4. FAR Test Site, Mojave California:
    Flight test of a large LOX-Ethanol liquid rocket: Click
    Static test of a large sugar motor (Sugar Shot to Space): Click
    The Facility Itself: Click

  5. GPS locator and tracking by BigRedBee. Click

  6. Balls Rocket Launch

  7. Test of an active pressure regulator on the N2O tank. Click

  8. Design for high strength tie-downs. Designed and built but not used. Click

  9. Todd Moore's HDAS Spreadsheet for simulating hybrid motor performance. HDASv1.6.xls