Make: Rockets

Copyright
Table of Contents
Preface
	Conventions Used in This Book
	Safari® Books Online
	How to Contact Us
	Acknowledgments
	Photo Credits
Chapter 1. Let’s Fly Some Rockets!
	Shopping List
	The Match Head Rocket
	Balloon Rockets
		Rocket Stability
		Building the Balloon Rocket
	Air Rockets
Chapter 2. Model Rocketry Today
	The Five Faces of Hobby Rockets
	Solid Propellant Rocket Motors
		Some Common Motor Sizes
		Reading Motor Labels
		Storage and Disposal
		Low-Power Model Rockets
		Mid-Power Rocketry
		High-Power Rockets and Beyond
		Water Rockets
		Air Rockets
	A Typical Model Rocket and Its Flight
	Let’s Get Started!
Chapter 3. Juno: A Solid Propellant Rocket
	Parts and Tools
		Where to Buy Parts
		A Detailed Walk-Through of the Parts List
		A Detailed Walk-Through of the Tools and Supplies
	Building the Rocket
		Cutting Body Tubes
		Marking the Body Tube for Fins
		Motor Mount Construction
		Cutting Fins
		Gluing the Fins
		Attaching the Launch Lug
		Installing the Motor Mount
		Shock Cord Installation
		Making a Parachute
		Attaching the Parachute and Shock Cord
		Before You Paint
		Painting the Rocket
	Options
		Alternate Fin Shapes
Chapter 4. Launch Pads
	What Makes a Good Launcher?
	A Quick Lesson in Igniters
	The Mono Launcher
		Building the Base
		Cutting the Metal Pieces
		Building the Tilt Mechanism
		Safety Cap
		Final Assembly
		Blast Deflector Plates
		Launch Rods
	The Mono Launch Controller
		How the Circuit Works
		Building the Mono Launch Controller
	The Quad Launch Pad
		Launch Rods and Blast Deflectors
	The Quad Launch Controller
		Building the Launch Box
		Building the Launch Wire Harness
		The Arming Key
		Testing the Launch Controller
Chapter 5. Flight Operations
	Picking a Launch Site
	Packing for the Launch
	Range Operations
		NAR Safety Code
		The Roles of the RSO, LCO, Flier, and Spectator
		Fire Prevention
	Site Setup
		Mono Launcher
		Quad Launcher Operations
	Preparing the Rocket
		Installing the Motor
		Recovery Wadding
		Packing the Parachute
		Installing the Igniter
		Flight Preparation Checklist
	The Launch
	Recovery
Chapter 6. Compressed Air Rockets
	Building an Air Rocket Launcher
	Building Ballistic Air Rockets
	Flying Air Rockets
Chapter 7. Rocket Stability
	What Is Stability?
	Experimenting with Stability
	Checking Stability with the String Method
	Checking Stability Experimentally
		Finding the Center of Gravity Experimentally
		Finding the Center of Pressure Experimentally
		Checking Stability with a Rocket Simulator
	Checking Stability with Math
		Finding the Center of Gravity with Math
		Finding the Center of Pressure with Math
	Further Reading
Chapter 8. How High Did It Go?
	The Single-Axis Tracker
		Building a Single-Axis Tracker
		Math Behind Single-Axis Trackers
		Using a Single-Axis Tracker
		Altitude Tables for Single-Axis Trackers
	Dual-Axis Tracking
		Building a Theodolite
		Math Behind Dual-Axis Tracking
		Using Dual-Axis Trackers
		Program for Dual-Axis Trackers
	Altimeters
	Comparing the Methods
Chapter 9. Payloads
	Liftoff Weight
		Using Charts to Find the Proper Motor
		Picking a Delay Time
		Using Math to Cheat Mother Nature
	Juno Payload Conversion
		Construction
		Flying the Juno Payload Conversion with an Altimeter
	The Ceres Payload Rocket
	The Ceres A Booster
		Construction
		Flying the Ceres A
	The Ceres B Booster
		Construction
		Flying the Ceres B
	The Thin Man and ICU Payload Bays
		Construction of the Thin Man and ICU Payload Bays
		Flight Preparation
	The Fat Man Payload Bay
		Construction
		Flight Preparation
	The Over Easy Payload Bay
		Over Easy Construction
		Flight Preparation
	The ICU2 Payload Bay
		Construction
		Flight Preparation for the ICU2
Chapter 10. Selecting Parachutes and Streamers
	How Fast Should a Rocket Fall?
	Streamers Versus Parachutes
	Streamer Design
	Thoughts on Parachute Material
	Parachute Selection Tables
	Parachute Physics
		The Energy of a Falling Body
		Parachute Aerodynamics
Chapter 11. Water Rockets
	The Launcher
		Building the Launch Tube
		Building the Lower Pressure Tube
		Building the Launcher Base
		Building the Launch Release Mechanism
		Adding the Pressurization Tube
		Adding the Launch Cord
	Themis: A Ballistic Water Rocket
	Flying Water Rockets
Chapter 12. Parachute Recovery of a Water Rocket
	Building the Water Rocket Parachute System
		Installing the ServoChron Software on the LaunchPad Microcontroller
		Building the Electronic Timer
		Building the Framework for the Parachute Chamber
		Building the Parachute Bay
		Adding the Spring and Electronics to the Parachute Chamber
		Programming the Servo Position and Delay Time
		Finishing Touches
	Flying Themis with a Parachute
Chapter 13. Subsonic Aerodynamics
	Reynolds Number and Viscosity
	Mach Number
	High Reynolds Number Drag
	Kind of a Drag: The Three Types of Drag
	The Importance of Streamlining
	Understanding and Reducing Drag on a Model Rocket
		Nose Cones
		Body Tube
		Base
		Fins
		Launch Lugs
		Putting It All Together
	Example: The Coefficient of Drag for Juno
	Further Reading
Chapter 14. How High Will It Go?
	Predicting Altitude Using Physics
	Predicting Altitude with a Rocket Simulator
		Rocket Finish
		Launch Conditions
		Rocket Mass
	Comparing Simulators to Flight Data
Chapter 15. Minimum-Diameter Rockets
	Hebe: Skinny Rockets Fly Faster and Higher
		Construction
		Recovery
		High-Performance Finishes
		Flying Hebe
Chapter 16. Mini-Rockets
	Toutatis: The Powerful Midget Rocket
		Construction
		Flying Toutatis
	Eros: A Small Rocket That Flies High
		Construction
		Flying Eros
Chapter 17. Multistage Rockets
	The Two-Stage Romulus
		How Staging Works
		Construction
		Flying Romulus
Chapter 18. Cluster Rockets
	Things to Consider When Clustering Rockets
		Why Cluster Rockets?
		Picking the Right Number of Motors
		Configuration of Clustered Motors
		Staging Cluster Rockets
	The Three-Motor Cerberus
		Construction
		Flying Cerberus
	The Ceres C Booster
		Construction
		Flying the Ceres C
Chapter 19. Helicopter Recovery
	Nicomachus
		Construction
		Flying Nicomachus
Chapter 20. Rocket and Boost Gliders
	Rocket-Powered Aircraft
	Icarus
		Construction
		Flying Icarus
	More About Rocket Gliders
		Further Reading
Chapter 21. Air Rocket Glider
	Daedalus
		Construction
		Flying Daedalus
Chapter 22. Rocket Clubs and Contests
	National Association of Rocketry (NAR)
		The Pink Book
		National Association of Rocketry Annual Meet (NARAM)
		National Sport Launch
		World Space Modelling Championships (WSMC)
	Tripoli Rocketry Association (TRA)
		Large and Dangerous Rocket Ships (LDRS)
		Badd Ass Load Lifting Suckers (BALLS)
	Local Clubs
	Canadian Association of Rocketry (CAR)
	Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC)
Chapter 23. Onward and Upward
	Reloadable Motors
		Building the Aerotech RMS 24-40 Motor
		Attaching Igniter Clips to a Copperhead Igniter
		Cleaning the Motor
	Designing Your Own Rockets
		Collecting the Requirements
		Initial Design
		Simulating the Rocket
		Construction
		Flight Testing
	Odd Rockets
	The Outer Limits
Appendix A. Programs from the Book
	Juno Simulation
	SRockS
	Theodolite
Appendix B. Places to Buy Stuff or Find Information
	Model Rocket Parts and Supplies
		Aerotech Consumer Aerospace
		Altus Metrum
		Apogee Components
		Art Applewhite Rockets
		Balsa Machining Service
		Custom Rocket Company
		Estes Industries
		FlisKits, Inc.
		Hobby Lobby
		JonRocket.com
		Maker Shed
		Micro Center
		Rocketarium
		Quest Aerospace
		Stomp Rocket
	Clubs and Information Websites
		AirRocketWorks
		Author’s Website
		Elprotronic
		OpenRocket
		Rocket Reviews
		The Rocketry Forum
		ThrustCurve.org
		US Water Rockets
	Electronics Parts and Supplies
		Digi-Key
		Jameco Electronics
		Mouser Electronics
		Newark element14
		Radio Shack
		SparkFun
	General Supplies and Hardware
		Ace Hardware
		Amazon
		Bolt Depot
		Home Depot
		Lasco
		Lowe’s
		Jo-Ann Fabric Store
		National Balsa
		OnlineMetals.com
		SIG Mfg. Co.
Appendix C. The Projects in This Book
	The Rockets
		Air Rockets
		Balloon Rockets
		Cerberus
		Ceres
		Compressed Air Rockets
		Daedalus
		Eros
		Hebe
		Icarus
		Juno
		Juno Payload Conversion
		Match Head Rockets
		Nicomachus
		Romulus
		Themis
		Toutatis
	The Launch Pads
		Compressed Air Rocket Launcher
		The Mono Launcher
		The Quad Launcher
		The Water Rocket Launcher
	Trackers
		Single-Axis Tracker
		Theodolite
	Science and Math
		Aerodynamics
		Computer Science
		Electrical Engineering
		Mathematics
		Rocket Motors
Appendix D. The NAR Model Rocket Safety Code
Glossary
Index
About the Author