September
26, 2003 The
SDSU team learned about hard starts the hard way. see www.sdsurocket.org and click
on "hard starts"
This type of test helps create interest for a program
that teaches students about real rocketry, and spectacular failures (like the
one the SDSU students experienced) are excellent learning tools.
The
CSULB/Garvey group achieved a small but significant advancement in the state of
the art. They were the first to fly an aerospike powered rocket.
The engine
had a leak around the nozzle, which caused the steel to melt and the thrust to
push the vehicle over.
They knew it was risky, but they also knew that
a full set of static fire tests would be expensive and time consuming.
Consider
each test consumes a tank of LOX and Helium ignitors, ablative liners, fuel, all
the hardware and electronics that may be lost in the event of an explosion etc.
On average the cost is going to be a few thousand dollars at least. Better than
the millions that it would cost the big guys, but still not cheap.
Keeping
student interest and excitement up is not compatible with exhaustive testing.
NASA has been talking about workforce development for a long time and Garvey
has been doing it.
Steve
Flometrics
www.rocketfuelpump.com |
