February 2021 Virtual Meeting

Posted on February 15, 2021 by kyoerg

by Keith Yoerg (RRS Secretary)

The latest meeting of the Reaction Research Society took place this past Friday, February 12th and had 19 attendees – including several guest presenters. The meeting started with a discussion of the logistics surrounding the upcoming MTA launch & work event next Saturday, which overlaps with ongoing construction on Dave Crisalli’s adjacent land. The construction workers will be utilizing some of the MTA facilities, and following a discussion among RRS members it was agreed that the planned launch & work event could still be held without interfering with construction activities.

Screenshot of discussion during the monthly meeting

GUEST PRESENTATION – POLY RABBOTICS

Members from the Long Beach Polytechnic High School First Robotics Competition team made a presentation on their project and the adjustments they have had to make due to COVID-19 restrictions. Without being able to meet in person to fabricate and assemble parts on their robot, the student-run group has had to shift their work to virtual workshops and at-home competitions to keep their skills sharp. One such competition required teams of 3 to build a mini-robot able to climb a pole.

Title slide for the Poly Rabbotics presentation – checkout their cool logo!

Their team is currently meeting 3 times a week to prepare for competition later this year, which features an altered “at-home” layout. Despite the many challenges, it’s clear that this team is making the best of the situation and continuing to help their members gain knowledge and improve their skillsets.

GUEST PRESENTATION – CSULB ROCKETRY

A second guest presentation was provided by members of the Cal State Long Beach Rocketry team. They compete in the NASA Student Launch Competition which challenges teams to design, build, and fly a rocket to between 3,500 ft and 5,500 ft while carrying a drone payload. The drone must deploy away from the rocket and fly to a specific position.

Presenter Dan Dao in the CSULB campus lab in Feb. 2020.

Fortunately, this team has been able to continue fabrication work on their rocket by following strict precautions to avoid the spread of COVID-19. Their shop site is on the Starbase campus at the Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base, and only a small number of specific team members are allowed on site. During competition last year the team placed 12th out of 46 total entrants, and they hope to finish in the top-10 this year.

PLANS FOR THE UPCOMING MTA EVENT

The primary focus for the upcoming MTA event is construction of a new pit toilet on the property. Dimitri plans to build a wooden platform this week and transport it out to the MTA site on Saturday, along with a sonotube liner for the pit. The wooden platform will rest on posts dug into the ground, and once in place we will remove the port-a-john from its current concrete plinth and secure it to this new platform. Work on welding the new plate on the vertical test stand, clearing nearby brush, and other site maintenance could take place if time allows.

Bill Inman plans to continue work on his solar-powered steam rocket, which uses mirrors to heat water with sunlight. Seemingly unsatisfied with any energy source other than the flaming ball in the sky, Bill has decided to modify his setup so that the tracking mechanism (which automatically tilts the solar collector to track the sun) is powered by a solar panel. Bill will be testing this new setup at the next event and may attempt a launch of the steam rocket.

Mockup of the internals for Dimitri’s hybrid rocket module

Keith will bring his high power solid rockets “Charlie Horse” and “X2”, and intends to launch at least one of them. The goal of the launch will be to test whether the LoRa GPS trackers, which have been discussed at previous RRS meetings, can be used as a cheap way to track rockets. Dimitri is finishing work on a 4-pad solid rocket launch controller (a layout is shown above) as well as a water rocket launch controller, both of which should be ready for testing on Saturday. A discussion on what food should be grilled at the event was concluded immediately after Dave Nordling’s suggestion – brats.

RRS HISTORY

An additional guest with a connection to the society joined us for this meeting – Tom Hendricks. He was a member of the RRS from 1959 – 1960 while he was a student at Glendale High School. He recounted launching micrograin rockets fueled by zinc dust and sulphur, displayed a rocket nozzle he had once launched, and recalled that the only test stand at the MTA site at that time was a lone I-beam (there’s a lot more on-site now!).

Tom also mentioned that back when he was an active member, the majority of the fabrication for the RRS was provided by 1 society member who had a lathe in their home. Many current members were excited to have Tom back in the fold, and he expressed a desire to join us for an event at the MTA soon. We’re looking forward to having him!

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL MEETING RECAP

The final item of business was a recap of topics covered during the January 2021 meeting of the RRS executive council. Council members have received the recommended edits to the constitution from the 2020 Constitutional Committee, and expect to have a version ready for the voting membership to review during the March meeting.

Image of Chris Lujan explaining different setups for security cameras

Council members Keith and Larry have been working on plans to install a security camera at the MTA, and presented the current status of the project. The goal is to have a network hotspot run WiFi security cameras. The project will start with the installation of a hotpot in the Dosa building (once shipped from backorder). The plan is to power the hotspot with a solar panel and determine the installation location that provides the maximum WiFi signal range. This will allow for optimum placement of WIFi security cameras. Chris Lujan has a lot of experience with home security cameras as a result of personal research, and shared that knowledge to help with the project.

NEXT MONTHLY MEETING

The next RRS monthly meeting will be held virtually on Friday, March 12th at 7:30 pm pacific time. Current members will receive an invite via e-mail the week of the meeting. Non-members can request an invitation by sending an email to:

secretary@rrs.org

MTA launch event, 2021-01-09

Posted on January 13, 2021 by Dave Nordling

by the Reaction Research Society

The Reaction Research Society held its first launch event of the new year on Saturday, January 9, 2021. Dave Nordling was the pyro-op in charge. We had a couple rockets prepared and some maintenance work we wanted to continue. Dmitri Timohovich brought his whole family to the event and we enjoyed grilled burgers there at the Mojave Test Area. The January winds were light and cool that day. It was a good day for launch.

Bill Inman enjoys a burger in the George Dosa Building

Everyone relaxing for a short lunch before getting to launch.

Wolfram Blume brought his two-stage rocket, the Gas Guzzler. His ramjet upper stage was rebuilt from last year’s unfortunate breakage when dropped during loading on the launch rail last year. 3D-printed plastic parts can sometimes be very brittle and care must be taken.

The 1515 launch rail was put into position with some help from Bill Inman and a few others. Bill Inman is still working on his solar tracker for his latest iteration of the Scalded Cat. He made the trip from Carson City to the Mojave Test Area to help others with operations and we were very thankful.

Wolfram was able to mount his booster stage on the rails and carefully erect the launcher. The booster uses a commercial solid motor, an Aerotech “K” motor.

Wolfram cleans the 1515 rail at the RRS MTA in preparation for mounting the booster

Wolfram’s booster sits on the launch rail

The ramjet for this first flight was loaded with water to simulate the weight, but would not be fired. The primary goal was to demonstrate the staging and recovery systems powered only by the booster. Wolfram went back to the loading area to complete the preparations of the upper stage. During a system checkout, the parachute deployment charge fired. After some careful examination, the source of the problem seemed to be related to errant software commands. Wolfram aborted his launch attempt and returned with his rocket stages for further examination back in Los Angeles. Although the charges could be reloaded, he could not be certain that an early parachute deployment would occur and wreck his vehicle during flight.

Dmitri Timohovich and Waldo Stakes worked on completing the welding of the new steel plate on the vertical test stand. This plate on the vertical test stand was damaged during a test failure many years back and late last year was finally cut out and the space grinded to fit a replacement plate. Unfortunately, the stick welding system would require a different type of welder and a more powerful source to drop a reliable weld. The welding of the plate will be reattempted at the next event.

With the grinding complete, the plate is fitted and ready to be welded in place

The second launch of the day would be Dave Nordling’s nitrous oxide hybrid rocket. This 38mm H-sized commercial hybrid motor kit from Contrails Rocketry (H-222 model) had a modified igniter and was mounted in a new 4-inch body made by Larry Hoffing. The prior launch attempt had issues with severing the nylon plastic filling line so the ignition energy was increased with small bit of composite solid propellant ignited by an electric match.

Several minor problems occurred during launch preparations. The nitrous bottle and manifold filling system was working well but the electrical control box failed during tests. After some discussion, the defective switch box was removed and we were able to fire and get a clean launch

Dave Nordling leans against the old blockhouse with the second build of the hybrid rocket waiting for launch

We repacked the motor before launch and adjusted the vent tube to be more visible. The filling of the rocket went quickly and smoothly, only about 20 seconds before the white stream of liquid could be seen. The filling was stopped and with a short five-count and the rocket was fired. The rocket came off the rails quickly and it seemed that the modified igniter worked. The big problem was the parachute recovery switch wasn’t turned on before launch. This simple oversight would mean a rebuild would be necessary.

The simplest error can lead to sad results.

The rocket was recovered on the north end of the MTA site. It only seemed to reach about 300 feet of altitude. Unfortunately the ballistic landing broke both stages and the internal motor mounts and a complete rebuild is necessary. The motor case was parts were in tact and so it was extracted and will be reloaded,

The hybrid motor seems to arc to the north against wind.

Beckie Timohovich recorded the hybrid flight on her phone, The rocket seemed to immediately curve to the north off the rails opposite of the wind. It seems that the nylon fill line might be still holding fast despite the added solid propellant charge. The 3/16-inch nylon plastic line being strong enough to hold back the 900 psi nitrous pressure, it also poses a challenge to cut cleanly from the ignition charge. A static firing of the motor will be done next to get a better look at how well the fill line severs and measure the thrust curve directly..

The remnant of the fill line from within the hybrid after firing. The end looks smoothly extruded.

After recovering the hybrid rocket and putting away the equipment, we flew a water rocket for Dmitri’s young son. Although very simple, these things are very fun.

Max Timohovich holds the water rocket fired several times at the end of the afternoon.

The event was a partial success and there is more work to be done on our facilities including adding a new toilet facility at our site and welding in the plate on the vertical test stand. The next hybrid rocket launch may be a couple months away, but Bill Inman may have his next design of his solar heated steam rocket ready for launch af fhe MTA in a few weeks. He had his first successful flight in the Nevada desert just before Christmas. He is getting ready for a flight from the RRS MTA.

Bill Inman has his first successful flight of his solar-powered steam rocket on 12/22/2020

Wolfram seemed confident that he too might be ready to try his first launch of the Gas Guzzler at about that same time. If the next launch event occurs before the next monthly meeting on February 12, 2021, the announcement will come through the society email list.

The sun sets at the RRS MTA after a good day.

January 2021 Virtual Meeting

Posted on January 11, 2021 by kyoerg

by Keith Yoerg (RRS Secretary)

The Reaction Research Society’s first meeting of 2021 took place this past Friday, January 8th and was attended by 11 members. Dave Nordling provided a review of the December 2020 event at the MTA, a written account of which can be seen in the post preceding this one.

PLANS FOR THE UPCOMING MTA EVENT

The first discussion was regarding plans for the upcoming MTA event on Saturday, January 9th. Dimitri (and family), Wolfram, Bill, Waldo, and Dave (as Pyro Op) stated their intentions to attend the launch. Plans include continuing repair and replacement of the bent panel on the vertical launch structure led by Dimitri and Waldo, a launch of Dave’s hybrid rocket, a demonstration flight of Wolfram’s Gas Guzzler, and mention of a grill-out with hamburgers! Expect a launch event update on the results soon.

RESTROOM AND OTHER FACILITIES IMPROVEMENTS

The discussion continues on improving the restroom facilities at the MTA. While the Executive Committee pursues bids from contractors and other options for a more substantial restroom facility, finding a more immediate replacement for the current pit toilet is a top priority. Digging a new pit toilet should be made much easier by the recent delivery of a CAT backhoe to the Mojave. Due to security concerns, the equipment is being stored at the FAR site in view of their security cameras. Larry and Keith agreed to look into options for cameras that could provide similar security at the MTA.

While the initial plan was to drag the concrete plinth from the current pit toilet to the new one, a decision was made to proceed with building a new wooden platform to mount the port-a-john instead. Of concern was the seemingly likely outcome of damage to the concrete plinth when trying to place it with the equipment available. Dimitri outlined his idea for the new structure and offered to sketch out a more formal design after reviewing at the MTA at the launch event.

DUES REMINDER AND FUNDRAISING BRAINSTORM

The RRS treasurer offered a reminder for members to pay their dues for 2021, which remain at $40 for full membership and $30 for student membership. As a reminder, the full membership dues will be increasing to $50 in 2022. For questions regarding dues payments, contact the RRS treasurer:

treasurer@rrs.org

Most of the members on the call got involved in the brainstorming session on how to increase fundraising at the society to cover our insurance and other yearly costs. Xavier proposed putting on a holiday party for the society as a ticketed event, and offered to take charge of scoping out costs and possibilities for the 2021-2022 winter season (when in-person gatherings will hopefully be allowed again). Dimitri discussed the challenges and opportunities involved in listing the MTA site with the Kern County Film Commission as a shoot location. The possibility of holding an auction, either stand-alone or as a part of the yearly symposium was also proposed, and Dimitri offered to put together a draft form letter to submit to companies to solicit donations. Additional items would be donated by members or other involved entities.

2020 CONSTITUTIONAL COMMITTEE

A request was made for an update on the status of the 2020 Constitutional Committee, which has been drafting changes to the constitution of the Reaction Research Society. Committee member Frank described that only a few outstanding issues remain, including the definition of active membership, which need to be finalized by the Executive Council before being presented and voted on. The Executive Council intends to meet on this issue soon and present the new constitution to the voting membership in the coming months.

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
				1	2	3
4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17
18	19	20	21	22	23	24
25	26	27	28	29	30
« Oct				Dec »