Flight Readiness Review“Analysis of Atmospheric gamma

radiation as a Function of Altitude by means of Scintillator Probe”

St. Thomas High School, Houston, TX

http:// rocketry.sths.org*

Mr. Lynch- Head MentorMr. D. Laney, mentorMr. M. Loughlin mentorSteven Schroeder- Program ManagerDamon Emerson- Rocket designThomas Loughlin- PayloadAndy Holm- ConstructionGregory Katsaros- Audio VisualNick Yuan- SafetyRobert Forzano- Outreach/PublicityChris Jardine- CommunicationsNavin Kalluri- Communications

Agenda• Mission Statement and Goals• Project Update• Launch Vehicle and Payload Summary

• Vehicle Body System• Propulsion System• Recovery System• Payload System• System Tests

• Full Scale Launch• Payload Experiment• Safety• Budget and Outreach

Mission statement and Goals

Mission StatementOur mission is to supply accurate data about cosmic

radiation by building a safe and functioning rocket that can provide ample time for data collection.

Our Major Project Goals•Reach an altitude of one mile.•Payload records data on ionizing radiation.•Both parachutes deploy at predetermined altitudes.•Land within one square mile.•Rocket retrievable with payload intact.•Shed light on radiation variation with altitude.

Project UpdateSince the CDR we have finished construction of the full-scale rocket, which included:• Coating the body tubes with fiberglass and epoxy • finishing the motor mount and attaching it and the fins to the lower

body tube• Securing the nose cone to the upper body tube• Constructing full-sized payload section• Assembling and inserting the recovery system

Things we still have left to do:• Make repairs to the rocket (will explain later)

Fins

– (L) Fins are carefully aligned and affixed to the Motor Mount Tube with epoxy and fiberglass cloth. (R) The finished fin assembly without the all-thread rods connecting the upper and middle Centering Rings, and the Retention Bolts on the Lower Centering Ring.

Centering Rings

(L) Two U-bolts were placed on the Upper Centering Ring in order to distribute the forces involved in the deployment of the Shock Cord. (R) All-Thread Rods were used to connect the upper two Centering Rings, also, to distribute forces involved in ejection.

Launch Vehicle and Payload Summary

Vehicle:Length – 99” Gross Liftoff Weight – 17.8 lbDiameter - 5.54” Payload Mass - 4.4092 lbMotor – K700W Stability Margin – 2.92 Maximum altitude- 5400 ft Launch System - 1.5”x1.5” (10’)Section 2 weight: 3.43 lbsSection 3 weight: 4.34 lbs

Recovery:Drogue – 28” at ApogeeMain – 120” at 900 ft.

Payload Experiment Summary:Measure levels of cosmic radiation with altitude through the use of

scintillator probes whose data will be correlated with time and altitude.

SYSTEMSVehicle Body

PropulsionRecovery

PayloadSystem Tests

(1) Vehicle Body System

•Modified LOC Precision Magnum 3e•Three Body Tubes (5.40”- size needed for payload) Lower (31”) – K700W, Drogue, G10 Fins Middle (28”) – Payload Bay Upper (11”) – Main Chute•Nose Cone (21”) GPS Transmitter- 151.82 MHz

| | CG CP

Rocket Length: 99” Center of Gravity: 62”Center of Pressure: 78” Stability Margin: 2.92

(2) Propulsion System

•Motor: Aerotech K700W

•Thrust / Weight: 10 N/ lb

•Velocity off Launch Rod:87.2 ft/s

•Rail Length: 10 ft

•Burn Time: 3.594 s

(3) Recovery System

Drogue Chute• 28” LOC Precision• Deployed at Apogee • Harness: braided nylon, 0.0625 in. thick, 30 ft in length• Deployment Velocity: 61.2 ft./s

Main Chute• 120” LOC Precision• Deployment at 900 ft•Harness: braided nylon, 0.0625 in. thick, 30 ft. in length• Deployment Velocity : 71.9 ft/s

Redundancy Plan• 2 Perfectflite Dual Deployment Altimeters mean velocity:• Each one will connect to a drogue and main ejection charge

Landing• Landing at 152 s Section 1 KE: 37 (ft-lb)• Expected Drift: 1092 ft. Section 2 KE: 46• Mean velocity: 24.9 ft./s Section 3 KE: 65

•Bay #1 - Circuit Board, Scintillator Probe•Bay #2 - Two Altimeters – Linked to ejection charges at either end of Payload Bay.

Within Nose Cone•GPS Transmitter

Outside of Lower Body Tube•Video camera

(4) Payload System

Sled holding two dual-deployment altimeters. Ring at the end of the sled is designed to hold six switches – two to activate the Altimeters, two safety switches for the Drogue, and two safety switches for the Main Parachute.

(4) Payload System

Full Scale Launch• Although our rocket performed

well in most aspects, our launch wasn’t successful because our recovery had two errors

• The charges for the main and drogue chutes were wired backwards, the drogue chute deployed at 700 feet

• The main chute did not deploy at apogee as it would have because the connecting shear pins were too thick

• We did not test the ejection charges on ground before the flight, a mistake we certainly will not make again.

• The rocket sustained heavy damage, but we are making repairs and will ground test this Saturday

Payload Experiment

HypothesisAfter consideration of the effects

due to terrestrial radiation, we would expect the counts to increase with elevation as the net absorption of Secondary Cosmic Radiation by the atmosphere decreases.

Payload Experiment

Significance(1) Radiation will be measured using scintillator probes

which are much more sensitive to gamma radiation than Geiger Mueller tubes and can give as a more accurate picture of how radiation is distributed with altitude.

(2) Radiation levels are suggested to be associated with changes in atmospheric conditions (such as cloud formation and global warming; chlorine production and ozone depletion)

(3) Radiation levels are linked to the breakdown of DNA in organic tissue and so merit further study.

System testingTested•GPS – Locality tracking.•Camera – Video testing.•Vehicle – Scale model launch.Testing•Payload – scintillator probes and (a) consistency of data collection, (b) background counts, (c) isolation of ray sources.Will Test•Recovery – Ejection charges and chute

deployment. Safety and RF Signals.•Propulsion – (a) Inspection of parts,

(b) assembly supervision.

safety plans

Prior to each project phase:

Review system risks and mitigations.

Review Safety Codes.

Pass test on Safety Procedures.

Sign Safety Statement.

Budget and Outreach

• Upon completion of the rocket, documented expenses will be submitted to NASA for reimbursement.

• In coordination with the Advancement Office at our school, funding requests are being forwarded to alumni and local businesses. Funds are beginning to accrue.