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I'm starting a new long-term project. I want to build a 1/26th scale Space Shuttle full stack. Meaning an external fuel tank (ET), two separating solid rocket boosters (SRBs) and a gliding home orbiter. This will be ambitious and will probably take a number of years to complete with varying degrees of success along the way.
Why the Space Shuttle?
If you look at what's happening in our hobby, there is a new catalyst that's starting to shake things up: flight computers and software. Now, I get that altimeters and timers have been around for a long time, but I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about flight computers that are beginning to add capabilities that we thought were unthinkable not too long ago. Most of this has come from Joe Barnard's amazing mind (bps.space), but others are also working on this - first in low power rocketry (as Joe did) and now it's expanding into mid to high power rocketry. BPS Space is starting to get to a place with hardware, software and material science where thrust vectored flight is coming - this will eliminate the need for fins and will add a number of new capabilities to our hobby: propulsive landing, better staging, etc.
This will lead to new vendors, new tools, new materials (like ceramic thrust vanes) and new capabilities that only software can bring (roll programs, fly by wire, etc.).
One of the things I love about rocketry is it's both wide and deep - you can sit at low power rocketry and develop thrust vectored flight or go to level 3 and get to space. It's as big as you want it to be, with no pressure to go either way.
The Space Shuttle has been a challenge in our hobby ever since Estes created the first one in 1976 with cruddy, vacuum formed plastic parts and an offset motor engine in the external tank. The model was complicated and unwieldy, but decidedly cool. While it was expensive, it was cool to spend $25 and have the most advanced model rocket available. There has been a lot of work in this area by people like Andy Woerner and George Gassaway - both people I have studied for the last two months trying to talk myself into this project. We all stand on the shoulders of giants and Andy and George (and many others) have paved the way for this.
The Space Shuttle has all the challenges that the hobby/sport has been chasing for a long time:
There's a lot to prove to RSOs and I expect there to be a lot of feedback on this build. That's welcomed as long as it's constructive.
In the meantime, check out my 1/2 scale ALCM Boeing Cruise Missile that's getting close to being finished in the next month or so.
See you on the journey...
Why the Space Shuttle?
If you look at what's happening in our hobby, there is a new catalyst that's starting to shake things up: flight computers and software. Now, I get that altimeters and timers have been around for a long time, but I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about flight computers that are beginning to add capabilities that we thought were unthinkable not too long ago. Most of this has come from Joe Barnard's amazing mind (bps.space), but others are also working on this - first in low power rocketry (as Joe did) and now it's expanding into mid to high power rocketry. BPS Space is starting to get to a place with hardware, software and material science where thrust vectored flight is coming - this will eliminate the need for fins and will add a number of new capabilities to our hobby: propulsive landing, better staging, etc.
This will lead to new vendors, new tools, new materials (like ceramic thrust vanes) and new capabilities that only software can bring (roll programs, fly by wire, etc.).
One of the things I love about rocketry is it's both wide and deep - you can sit at low power rocketry and develop thrust vectored flight or go to level 3 and get to space. It's as big as you want it to be, with no pressure to go either way.
The Space Shuttle has been a challenge in our hobby ever since Estes created the first one in 1976 with cruddy, vacuum formed plastic parts and an offset motor engine in the external tank. The model was complicated and unwieldy, but decidedly cool. While it was expensive, it was cool to spend $25 and have the most advanced model rocket available. There has been a lot of work in this area by people like Andy Woerner and George Gassaway - both people I have studied for the last two months trying to talk myself into this project. We all stand on the shoulders of giants and Andy and George (and many others) have paved the way for this.
The Space Shuttle has all the challenges that the hobby/sport has been chasing for a long time:
- Separation of components into flight - requiring a timer and other things like passive and active traction on the boosters.
- A complex center of gravity - the orbiter, ET and SRBs change a simple measurement into something devilish.
- The need for flight controls acting during boost, separation and recovery - perhaps a little beyond what a human can deal with.
- Flight controllers that have been fire-tested by other hobbies. A great example of this is Ardupilot - an auto pilot for drones, fixed wing powered and unpowered flight and helicopters and boats and submersibles (https://ardupilot.org/).
There's a lot to prove to RSOs and I expect there to be a lot of feedback on this build. That's welcomed as long as it's constructive.
In the meantime, check out my 1/2 scale ALCM Boeing Cruise Missile that's getting close to being finished in the next month or so.
See you on the journey...
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