(Unmanned) Amateur rocket fired into space

[muriel_volestrangler]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3724841.stm

An amateur unmanned rocket has been launched into space from the Nevada desert - the first time this has been achieved by a privately-built vehicle.
The Civilian Space eXploration Team's 6.5m (21ft) GoFast rocket is understood to have exceeded an altitude of 100km.

A 14-second burn allowed the rocket to reach an altitude of more than 100km - the official boundary of space - in about three minutes. It reportedly spent several minutes in space before beginning its descent.

[ewagner]

1. 14 Second burn?

Isn't that a little short?

[tekriter]

3. That does sound short, considering...

it would start to slow down as soon as the burn stopped.

[Kolesar]

5. It was going several times the speed of sound after 14 seconds

Then it just coasted for the next three minutes. 60 miles in 3 minutes is an average speed of 1200 miles. When you consider that it slowed down to zero mph at the apex of the flight, it probably launched at twice the average speed.

There is newtonian physics to figure this out.

[ozone_man]

17. I get 2.5 minutes total.

14 seconds burn acceleration and 2 minutes 16 seconds coasting. Peak velocity of 1,333m/s. So it travels 9,300m under burn and 90,600m coasting.

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. Ignoring air resistance ...

... to reach 100 km you need a speed of 1400 m/s (v^2 = 2 * g * 100000)

To get to 1400 m/s in 14 seconds is an acceleration of 100 m/s/s, or just over 10g. So it's possible (I think the shuttle manages about 5g?).

[Goldmund]

8. You're assuming...

...that gravitational acceleration stays constant throughout the flight. But it doesn't -- at 100 km, it would be G*M/((r+100km)^2),where G is the gravitational constant and r the radius of earth. I haven't had enough coffee to do the calculation.

[muriel_volestrangler]

11. Yes, it's a rough calculation

but I don't think the change in gravity would be very significant - looks like a 3% change to me (radius of Earth = 6390km?). Air resistance would probably matter more - assuming the 14 seconds at 100 m/s/s, it reaches about 9600m, at which altitude (just higher than Everest) there's still a fair amount of air left (in reality, I'd expect less acceleration at the start, and more at the end, when the rocket has used most of its fuel; that would put the altitude it reached at maximum speed a bit lower, I think).

[TahitiNut]

15. r=6378 km

:shrug: Not really much less at apex ... about 96.1% G

FWIW, escape velocity is 11.2 km/s

[tekriter]

19. This is so far over my head I'm getting dizzy.

Math was never my strong suit.

[havocmom]

2. So anybody can do this, given the resources?

Man, I better check our homeowner's insurance....

[Occulus]

12. yup

I do believe this is the first time this has been achieved....

[Xithras]

14. Yes and no

There are a number of federal permits that you need to have in order to build a rocket this large...for example, if it's a solid fuel rocket, you need to hold a special permit that allows you to handle low explosives. You also need FAA permission to launch, which is difficult to get in populated areas. You'd also better have a decent insurance policy to cover any property or bodily harm that is done by an errant rocket or miscalculated landing zone.

If you don't get the permits, you can't launch. Luckily, the various permits generally require some level of training or certification before they will be granted, which lowers the odds of someone doing something stupid and taking out their local subdivision.

[havocmom]

18. What if you don't live in a populated area ? We are pretty remote.

And the kid next door is always sending explosives up in the air and into my yard. Most of the locals around here do hold permits for low explosives. Like I said, I best be checking my insurance policy.

Also, though FAA permission is required, what assurances does one have that there won't be rouges firing without it? Private corporations have their own armies, are they gonna have missile systems too? Do I need to install an anti-missile system of my own? Seems this will make it easier for real terrorists (as opposed to the phantoms the junta tries to spook us with daily) to get bigger and better equipment, their own spy satilites and so on. Face it, corporations will sell anything to anybody with the $$ and the current US government seems hell bent on protecting arms dealers.

There are no governments or national boundaries anymore. There are only corporations and the political window dressing they employ. This is NOT a good thing.

[dave29]

22. :)

:)

[Jacobin]

4. Is this Dick/Burt Rutan's rocket?

Those guys are brilliant.

[Ready4Change]

10. Not Rutans.

Here's a link on Rutans latest flight, which reached 212,000 feet with no reported problems:

http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/technology/rutan_flight_040513.html

The rocket this thread is about is unmanned. (Unlike Rutans manned vehicle.) You could think of "Go Fast" as a great big Estes model rocket, but that would be a vast understatement. "Go Fast: is VERY high performance.

[HawkerHurricane]

7. See, We Do Need Missile Defense!

Private Citizens in Nevada Now Have Ballistic Missiles!

[WheresWaldo]

9. Check out the ANSARI X-PRIZE Competition

http://www.xprize.org/

Private space craft being built to enter a competition.

[Occulus]

13. and once its proven that private space flight can be a reality

I wonder what will happen...

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

16. "In case of Rapture, this rocket will be unmanned"

That's why it was never heard of again.

[daleo]

20. It has been fun

But the government will quickly clamp down or co-opt these ventures. I can't see that they would give up their monopoly on space flight or ballistic missiles (which is what this is, at this point).

[Longhorn79]

21. What does it take to lose amateur status?