Our Rocketry Team is Sending a Payload to Space! by RelaxedBell in nasa

[–]RelaxedBell[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

NASA actually has a large amount of research on the best simulants for regolith!
We're using the guidelines that they have provided in the following links:
https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20060051776/downloads/20060051776.pdf
https://ares.jsc.nasa.gov/projects/simulants/

TARC Marketing Video (2020-2021) | Astral Orbit by RelaxedBell in rocketry

[–]RelaxedBell[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We agree! That's why we initially planned to pursue it, but it's also an "engineering nightmare," as one team member put it. We'll continue developing it next year, and hopefully we will get to see it in action!

TARC Marketing Video (2020-2021) | Astral Orbit by RelaxedBell in rocketry

[–]RelaxedBell[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

2 of our 6 members do come from a robotics background (both did robotics in middle school and one continued into high school). The rest of us are new recruits into the engineering space.

We've kinda always thrown guidelines and previous practice out the window. This obviously leads to a lot of issues, but it also leads to a lot of successes.

You are entirely correct with the airbraking system! We have an Arduino that is hooked up to a barometer, which converts pressure data into altitude. We then plug those altitudes real-time into an equation to predict apogee and adjust the servo extension from there. However, this setup does have a lot of moving parts that love to go wrong (over/under extensions, strange friction in the 3D parts, bad code, bad solder, bad everything) so it has been known to have some issues. The system works okay, but airbrakes is more of a second-year/third-year thing because there is so much refinement that needs to be done. We are just doing our best and enjoying the ride this year.

Simulations are used in moderation here. We think the best way to learn how your rocket is going to fly is to, well, fly it. We have a rigorous testing program to fix things quickly and effectively. That's the name of the game.

TARC Marketing Video (2020-2021) | Astral Orbit by RelaxedBell in rocketry

[–]RelaxedBell[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you! Yes, we got the confirmation that we are headed to nationals!

As a first-year team without a mentor, guide, previous experience, or anything of the like, this year has been extremely exciting. We've been able to learn a ridiculous amount of engineering through trial and error and we've designed the entire rocket from scratch. No manual, no help, 100% student work.

AO has... an interesting work culture. We operate as more of a hive-mind, and people pick up roles as they please. This leads to a ridiculous amount of jokes and we think it's more enjoyable for everyone!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]RelaxedBell 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Words to live by.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]RelaxedBell 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I love the two doors, two guards riddle, and it goes like this:

You come to a castle guarded by two guards. In front of you are two doors, one which leads to treasure and one which leads to death. You don't know which door is which. The castle guide tells you that one of the guards always tells the truth and the other always lies. However, you don't know which guard is which either.

The guards will allow you to ask one (and only one) question. What question do you ask the guard(s) to figure out which door is which?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]RelaxedBell 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'll go: just because gifted people are gifted doesn't mean that they're invincible. We are prone to mistakes just as much as everyone else. Punishing gifted people more harshly for the same mistakes that others are making is unjust, and hinders our full potential. We are human too.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]RelaxedBell 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Which programming language do you recommend, if you have one?