Rocketeer - Launch your model rocket
When:
Saturday, October 11, 2014 - 10:00am - 4:00pm
Where:
Tripoli Minnesota Launch Site
Location
Who: Model rocketry is generally suggested for ages 10 and up (but my son started at age 4). Participating children should be able to obey all safety rules.
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How much:
Cost for Child/Student: $0.00
Cost for Adult/Educator: $0.00
Description
See also: Assemble a Model Rocket Kit at Sumner Library (Minneapolis), Tue, Sep 23, 1:30pm–4:00pm.
See also: Recreate your model rocket kit in OpenRocket at Maplewood Public Library (Maplewood), Mon, Oct 6, 1:30pm–3:30pm.
DIY Skill: Rocketeer
DIY Challenge 1: Assemble a Model Rocket Kit
DIY Challenge 2: Launch a Model Rocket
Custom Challenge 3: Use an inclinometer to estimate apogee
The launch of the model rocket is scheduled to take at the Tripoli Minnesota High Power Rocketry Club launch in North Branch. Tripoli launches many rockets of all sizes from small models to the obscenely large, and you don't want to miss any of them.
All attending adults and children are asked to review the NAR Model Rocket Safety Code in their Rocketeer packet and to commit to obeying that code. If you have any questions about the code, please ask Nic for clarification.
There is no cost for children to launch, and biodegradable wadding is also provided. There are 12 launch pads available to kids — and if weather conditions permit, we may be able to "drag race" — launching all the rockets simultaneously.
Bring along ...
- your Estes Viking rocket
- your inclinometer
- your rocket records
- your notebook
Nic will provide each child with 4 model rocket engines including igniters and plugs, enough for 4 launches per child!
one A8-3, one B6-4, one C6-3, one C6-5.
Launch pads, launch cards and biodegradable wadding will be provided by Tripoli Minnesota.
If you did not participate in the Sep 23 Rocketeer workshop, you can still attend. If you've previously made a model rocket kit, bring it along. If you haven't, you can buy a fully assembled Quest Starhawk from me for $4.50 and motors to fly it for $2.50 each (while supplies last).
The following information can also be found in the last 4 pages of your Rocketeer workshop packet, with one addition — if the weather is chilly or windy, bring along a jacket, and maybe even a blanket or two.
Your First Rocket Launch
Frequently Asked Questions and Their Answers
WHAT IS IT?
Tripoli Minnesota is a high power rocketry club whose members launch rockets of all sizes from teeny tiny to the obscenely large (some are 20 feet tall or more) that have reached heights up to 21,000 feet! It is a spectacular spectator sport! (Participating is even more fun.)
WHEN IS IT?
Tripoli Club Launches are scheduled for the second Saturday of the month, from May through October.
The last regularly scheduled launch of the year is set for Saturday, October 11, 2014! The first flight is at 10am, and flights typically continue until around 4pm.
Launch details can also be found on the Tripoli Minnesota website at www.tripolimn.org/launches
While you'll find useful details there, you do not need to RSVP to the Facebook group event (or anywhere else) to attend. It's there for publicity purposes not actual attendance — and the vast majority of people won't RSVP. On the other hand, you certainly can RSVP, and it looks very cool in your upcoming events list! You can also share the Facebook event to let your friends know how cool you are ... oh, and to encourage them to attend as well. Join the Facebook group at www.facebook.com/groups/tripolimn/
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
Pretty much free. There's no admission charge for spectators.
Children may fly low power rockets free of charge from the 12 low power launch pads.
- Low power is any motor with an impulse rating no higher than E.
There is a Tripoli Minnesota Junior Membership available at $35/year, and I encourage you to consider joining if rocketry becomes a regular part of your child's activities. Our boy is very proud of his member badge. Junior Members can also fly mid power rockets with adult supervision (motors with impulse ratings F and G).
Adults who wish to fly rockets, need both...
- either a membership in Tripoli Minnesota ($50/year) or a day pass ($15/day);
either can be purchased at the launch site;
- and a membership in one of the national rocketry clubs which includes insurance coverage; you must show the RSO your membership card before your rocket can be flown.
you can join the national level of the Tripoli Rocketry Association ($70/year) at the launch site; other options are National Association of Rocketry (NAR) or Canadian Association of Rocketry (CAR).
Discounted junior memberships to the national clubs are also available ($30/year for Tripoli National).
All national club membership include liability insurance covering injury and property damage to spectators, innocent bystanders, and members.
To fly high power rockets, you also need the appropriate certification. High power rockets have motors with impulse ratings of H and up.
WHAT ELSE SHOULD I KNOW?
Respect the sod! If the sod gets damaged, Tripoli will lose the launch site.
- Do not park on the sod! Just don't do it. Keep looking until you find a sod-free parking spot.
- Do not drive on the sod. Ever.
- Pick up your trash — and anyone else's that you see. This includes used igniters, motor caps, motors, tape, rocket parts, etc. Trash cans can be found by the RSO and LCO tables.
Bring sun protection. This is a sod farm. There is no shade at all. Many people bring E-Z UP canopies for some shade between launches. Umbrellas are also popular. You may use stakes to keep your canopy or umbrella from blowing away in the wind but be respectful of the sod when staking.
If it's a colder or windier day, you'll probably want jackets, but we bring along a few blankets as well.
For comfort, I suggest a blanket at a minimum, but most people bring chairs. Some people bring tables.
Bring along plenty of water as well, but there is usually a water jug available for everyone at the LCO table. Brian's Brats also sells bottled water.
If your rocket lands in a cornfield, soybean field or tree line, you be wishing for insect repellent and sturdy shoes. Also, in order to minimize damage to the crops, only one person at a time is allowed into the corn and soybean fields to recover a rocket. Fortunately, unless it's very windy, most low power rockets will land somewhere on the sod.
Bring a camera, with a telephoto lens if you have one. A video camera is a good idea, too. It's pretty spectacular stuff. The high power rockets are breathtaking and the reason we're willing to make the drive. Binoculars are also nice.
Bring your notebook and a pencil. If this becomes a hobby, you'll want to keep records of your rockets and their flights — and the first flight should be in there.
There's a port-a-potty on site — with a donation bucket (Little Johnny's College Fund). Supplying the port-a-potty is the most expensive part of setting up the launch, so I encourage you to make a donation!
Brian's Brats sells brats, hot dogs, chicken, chips and soda pop — but Brian does sell out of food so don't depend on it. We usually bring lunch, snacks and lots and lots of water. (We are usually there for 6 hours or more.)
HOW SAFE IS IT?
Model rocketry under the Rocket Safety Code is a very safe hobby, but unforeseen things can happen, and rockets do have the potential to be dangerous. Children should be closely supervised at all times.
Everyone should pay attention during the launches. From the time you hear the announcement, "The range is closed" until you hear, "The range is open," children should be within arms reach of an adult, and everyone should be paying attention to the launch, flight and descent of each rocket.
- The wind can carry landing rockets into the spectator area, and while the landing will be softened by the parachute, you still don't want a large one landing on top of you or your child.
- Rockets can also separate from their parachutes and parachutes can fail to open, in which case rockets land much faster and much harder!
- Errors in design can cause a rocket to follow an unpredictable path, potentially toward the spectator area.
- Explosions are actually the least dangerous as they usually happen on the launch pad at a safe distance from the spectators.
Because landing rockets represent a potential danger, children should not chase rockets that land outside the range until the "range is open" announcement is made.
Children also should not retrieve rockets that are not their own without the express permission of the rocket’s owner.
If you are considering ear plugs for your family, make sure that everyone can still hear well enough to respond to a "heads up" warning. Look for ear plugs labeled filtered or acoustic.
Between launches, children (or anyone moving about) should be mindful of the rockets that may be on the ground so as not to accidentally damage anyone's hard work (and often quite large monetary investment). This is also true of the vendor tables. High power rockets should be handled only by adults or under close adult supervision.
No smoking on the range or within 25 feet of motor prep areas.
Consumption of alcohol is not allowed on the range.
WHAT ARE THE LAUNCH PROCEDURES?
First, you'll fill out a green low power launch card which you can get from the launch control desk. You'll need to fill out a new one for each flight of your rocket at the launch. The card asks for things like your name and the name of your rocket, and the motor size for the current flight. All launch cards must include the motor size. It also asks for your rocket's length, diameter, weight and color, and projected altitude. It's okay if you don't know these things, but the information will be on your rocket kit packaging, so bring along the packaging or make a note of it. Your deployment method will be by motor eject. There's also a space for comments if you wish to say anything special about your rocket or this flight. (Also record this information in your personal launch record notebook.)
Bring your completed launch card and your rocket with motor, igniter, recovery system (that's your parachute or streamer) and wadding to the Range Safety Officer (RSO) at the launch control desk for inspection. You'll be asked a few questions, particularly about your recovery wadding. It's okay to assemble your rocket prior to seeing the RSO, but the RSO will lift the nose cone to check that it fits (that it is not too tight or too loose), that the recovery wadding is correct, and that the recovery system is not packed too tightly.
After your safety inspection, you'll take your stamped launch card to the Launch Control Officer (LCO) who will assign a launch pad to your rocket, at which point you can enter the range, slide your rocket's launch lugs onto the assigned launch rod and connect the assigned clips to your igniter. When you're finished, return behind the safety flags.
When it is your rocket's turn to launch, the LCO will announce your name, your rocket's name and read any comments you may have made about your rocket. Then the LCO will give a 5 count, press the launch button and then the cheering ensues!
You cannot enter the launch area to retrieve your rocket or fix a failed attempt until the "The range is open" announcement is made.
Speaking of failed attempts, be careful to not knock the igniter clips off of someone else's rocket while hooking up your own!
If you need help, ask!
You may fly your rocket(s) as often as you wish, provide a launch pad is available. We usually have 3 to 6 flights per launch.
One caveat: Any launch has the potential to result in the loss of your rocket — usually because you just can't find it in the cornfield, soybeans, or the trees.
WHAT ABOUT ROCKET WADDING?
Recovery wadding protects your parachute or streamer by trapping the burning particles and providing some insulation from the tremendous heat of the rocket motor's ejection charge. Without it, your recovery system will be melted into a useless plastic wad.
Tripoli will provide you with biodegradable wadding (cellulose insulation, affectionately known as rocket barf). You cannot use the coated tissue paper recovery wadding sold at most hobby stores as it will pollute the sod farm.
WHAT ARE ROCKET MOTOR RATINGS OR CLASSIFICATIONS?
The leading letter gives the maximum total impulse of that class of engine. The average thrust times the burn time of the engine is called the total impulse of the engine. The total impulse is then the product of the force and the duration over which it was applied. Both a B6-4 and C6-3 engine have same average thrust (6 newtons), but the "C" engine can burn twice as long for double the total impulse. When you go from one letter to the next, the maximum total impulse doubles.
Any given C motor is not necessarily twice as powerful as any given B motor as a motor with a total impulse of 5.00 newton-seconds will be classed as a B motor while one with a total impulse of 5.01 newton-seconds would be classified as a C motor.
Low power motors are ¼A through E. Mid power motors are F and G. High power motors are H and up.
The first number indicates the average thrust in newtons. A C6-3 has an average thrust of 6 newtons, and so does a B6-4.
Thrust is a reaction force described by Newton's second and third laws. When a system expels mass in one direction, the expelled mass will cause a force of equal magnitude but opposite direction on that system. For vertical launch of a rocket, the initial thrust at liftoff must be more than the weight.
The unit of thrust is the newton, which is equal to the force needed to accelerate 1 kilogram of mass at the rate of 1 meter per second squared. It is named after English physicist and mathematician Isaac Newton.
The second number indicates the length of the delay time in seconds between the engine cutoff and the firing of the ejection charge. The delay time determines the length of the coasting phase of the flight. A C6-3 has a delay time of 3 seconds. A B6-4 has a delay of 4 seconds. A zero indicates no ejection charge rather than no delay.
WHAT SHOULD I PACK IN MY TOOLKIT?
Things we have actually used at a launch:
- chopstick (for packing wadding)
- pipecleaners (for cleaning launch lugs)
- needlenose pliers
- scissors
- scotch tape
- masking tape
- fine grit sandpaper
- pencils
- Sharpie®
- notebook (for rocketry records)
- pencils
- hobby knife
- all-purpose glue
- wood glue
- plastic cement
- ruler (or tape measure)
- wet wipes (for hands, not rockets)
- small wind-proof trash container (like a Tupperware® container)
- allergy medication!
WHAT ABOUT MASA?
The Minnesota Amateur Spacemodeler Association also holds regular launches on a sod farm north of Elk River near the town of Nowthen, typically on the 4th Saturday of the month. More information can be found at www.masa-rocketry.org
WHERE IS IT?
The launch is on Central Turf Farm near North Branch, MN. It's about an hour drive from northeast Minneapolis.
- Take I-35 north to exit 147 for MN Hwy 95/St Croix Trail/Main St toward North Branch/Cambridge.
- Turn right (east) onto MN Hwy 95 and drive about a ½ mile.
- Turn left (north) onto County Rd 30/Forest Blvd/Railroad Ave and drive about 3¼ miles to 420th St (Sinkhole Rd).
- Turn right (east) onto 420th street and drive about 2¼ miles to the Central Turf Farm entrance. This is an unmarked road. The turnoff is located at GPS Coordinates 45.557288, -92.929562 aka N 45.557288, W92.929562 aka N45°33'26.3", W92°55'46.5" or at the approximate street address 8835 Sinkhole Rd, North Branch, MN 55032.
- Keep your speed BELOW 25 MPH while on the sod farm roads!
- Turn right (south) onto this road and drive ½ mile to the "T" intersection (there's a turnoff to the left almost immediately, go well past that to the "T")
- Turn left (east) at the "T" and drive about ¼ miles to first unmarked road
- Turn right (south) and drive another ¼ miles to the launch site
- Turn right (west) and find a parking spot.
- Stay off the sod! Stay on the dirt road at all times. Do not park on the sod.
- Parking is allowed on one side of the road only! Park on the same side of the road as the other vehicles.
You can also find launch site driving directions with a map at www.tripolimn.org/node/1097
Learn more:
- The Beginner's Guide to Rockets (online curriculum)
- RocketModeler (interactive program)
- OpenRocket (model rocket simulator)
- Model Rocket Design And Construction, by Timothy S. Van Milligan (book)
- Handbook of Model Rocketry, by G. Harry Stine & Bill Stine (book)
Payment information
- Please plan to send your payment the same day that you register.
The organizer will expect to receive your payment within 3 days of your date of registration — or by the payment deadline above, whichever comes first.
- Immediately after you register, you will be emailed payment instructions from admin(at)homeschoolrecess(dot)com.
Make sure your email filters recognize this address as a legitimate sender. If you don't receive this email, please check your spam, junk or bulk mail folder. Contact the organizer if you are unable to find it; if you receive no response to your email, please call the organizer.
You are not officially registered until the organizer receives your payment.
- When the organizer records your payment, you will be emailed a payment receipt from admin(at)homeschoolrecess(dot)com.
If you've sent your payment and haven't received a payment confirmation, please contact the organizer by email or phone.
- If the organizer doesn't receive payment within 3 days of your date of registration or by the payment deadline, whichever comes first, the organizer may remove your family from the registration list.
You will be notified with an email from admin(at)homeschoolrecess(dot)com should this unfortunate event occur.
If you are unable to send payment immediately, please contact the organizer to make other arrangements. This protects the organizer from non-payment due to payment instructions blocked by overly aggressive spam protection.
- If you need to cancel your registration, please do so via an email request to the organizer.
Non-payment is not an acceptable way to cancel your registration. If you wish to cancel, please be respectful of the volunteer organizer's time and send an email request.
If you fail to send a cancellation request by the cancellation deadline, you will remain responsible for reimbursing the organizer for the cost of your family's participation.
- To help the organizer identify you in the registration database, please include your username and field trip number along with any requests. This information can be found in your payment instructions email message and on the registration form on this page.
Cancellation information
TO CANCEL: (1) Please let the organizer know as soon as possible via email. TO CANCEL ON THE DAY OF THE EVENT: (1) Please let the organizer know if you are unable to attend — via email, text message or voice mail.
Additional information
Please arrive by:
The arrival time for the Tripoli launch is anytime between 10am and 1pm. My family's goal will be to be there by 10am. Technically, the launch can go as late as 6pm, but that is unusual. They are usually wrapped up by 4pm and sometimes as early as 2pm.
Where to meet:
You'll find our family under a blue umbrella. We'll try to make ourselves as visible as possible and will be looking around for your family, too.
Food policy:
Brian's Brats sells brats, hot dogs, chicken, chips and soda pop — but Brian does sell out of food so don't depend on it. We usually bring lunch, snacks and lots and lots of water. (We are usually there for 6 hours or more.)
Alternate plans:
Check the Tripoli Minnesota website at www.tripolimn.org before leaving the house. Launches are subject to weather conditions (primarily wind speed, cloud ceiling height, and precipitation). If cancelled due to weather, Tripoli first tries to reschedule for next day (Sun, Oct 12), and then for the next weekend (Sat, Oct 18 or even Sun, Oct 19).
Parking information:
Do not park on the sod. Parking is allowed on one side of the road only! Park on the same side of the road as the other vehicles. Respect the sod! If the sod gets damaged, Tripoli will lose the launch site. Do not park on the sod! Just don't do it. Keep looking until you find a sod-free parking spot. Do not drive on the sod. Ever.
Directions:
The launch is on Central Turf Farm near North Branch, MN. It's about an hour drive from northeast Minneapolis. 1. Take I-35 north to exit 147 for MN Hwy 95/St Croix Trail/Main St toward North Branch/Cambridge. 2. Turn right (east) onto MN Hwy 95 and drive about a ½ mile. 3. Turn left (north) onto County Rd 30/Forest Blvd/Railroad Ave and drive about 3¼ miles to 420th St (Sinkhole Rd). 4. Turn right (east) onto 420th street and drive about 2¼ miles to the Central Turf Farm entrance. This is an unmarked road. The turnoff is located at GPS Coordinates 45.557288, -92.929562 aka N 45.557288, W92.929562 aka N45°33'26.3", W92°55'46.5" or at the approximate street address 8835 Sinkhole Rd, North Branch, MN 55032. 5. Keep your speed BELOW 25 MPH while on the sod farm roads! 6. Turn right (south) onto this road and drive ½ mile to the "T" intersection (there's a turnoff to the left almost immediately, go well past that to the "T") 7. Turn left (east) at the "T" and drive about ¼ miles to first unmarked road 8. Turn right (south) and drive another ¼ miles to the launch site 9. Turn right (west) and find a parking spot. 10. Do not drive on the sod. Ever. Stay off the sod! Stay on the dirt road at all times. You can also find launch site driving directions with a map at www.tripolimn.org/node/1097
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