Success!!

We successfully launched Launch Vehicle 2.3 (LV2.3) this weekend in Brothers, Oregon, at the Oregon Rocketry's Brothers Launch Site.

Saturday morning drive and afternoon setup

We gathered at Tim's house Saturday morning at 9:00am to pack all of our rocket bits: launch tower, antennas, launch control table, etc. We managed to pack it all into the back of Dave's pickup truck and in Dan's brother Bill's "Toy Hauler" - a large 5th wheel ATV carrier (thanks Dan! thanks Bill!). It was pretty amazing, actually: it was probably the fastest packing and smallest number of vehicles carrying rocket bits we've ever had since LV0. And, amazingly, we actually left on time.

We arrived in Brothers around 5:00pm, and in the last few hours of sunlight, managed to raise the launch tower and set up the antennas.

Done with setup

Saturday evening sunset

Thunderstorms to the west

Saturday evening we stayed up late carefully prepping the avionics module and Dan's helicopter... but we - shockingly- even managed to get some sleep.

This was an "airframe only" launch, but we still managed to cram in a bunch of systems into the rocket:

An Ozark Aerospace ARTS flight computer (hooked to the nose separation ring and the main chute line cutter
a 2m backup system, which used a Alinco DJ-7T 2m radio hooked into a Atmel ATMega168 with a DTMF decode chip (also hooked to the NSR and 2nd line cutter).
Keith's Telemetrum flight computer, with GPS (flown as payload only, with it's 900 MHz telemetry sending real-time telemetry and acting as a direction finder).
An Olimex LPC2148 development board with SCP1000, MP3, and ADXS pressure sensors and ADXL3xx 2 axis accelerometer.

Dave and payload

Andrew working on payload

working late into the night

Dan working on his helicopter

Sunday morning prep

Sunday morning we got back to work 9:00am, did a final checkover of the avionics, attached the igniters, buttoned up the rocket, and took it to the launch tower.

Rocket Cam

Launch Tower Computer

Prepping the launch tower

Putting together the rocket (avionics through motor bay)

We were ready to go by about 12:45pm, just in time the 12:30pm - 2:30pm waiver that Jeff of BORG called in for us. Again, surprisingly, we were ready to go, we just had to wait for a cloud break. After waiting about 30 minutes for a largish patch of blue sky, we turned on the avionics system(s), and cleared the pad.

Pete loading the N motor

Ready to go

Rocket and launch tower

One fun distraction was Dan's electric "T-Rex" helicopter. He strapped our spare camera and 2.4 GHz ATV transmitter to the nose and buzzed launch control and the launch tower. We had high hopes to catch the launch from the helicopter's perspective, but a loss of RC control made the 'copter crash and snap a blade. Next time!

Helicopter pre-flight

Helicopter on its way!

RC Helicopter flight movie (14 MB)

Sunday afternoon launch.

Ian hit the "launch" button at about 1340 PDT in our Java "LaunchControl" software that he patched for this airframe-only flight, and it counted down and launched the rocket over the WiFi link to the launch tower. The rocket leaped off the pad on Pete Ekstrom's "N" motor with a eery blue glow. We heard two large reports, which later we figured out was the motor "chuffing" (overpressuring).

Launch!

Blast left by motor

Here are some movies:

Short video of launch

600fps movie of launch (3 MB)

Onboard view of launch

TODO: Better edit of 800 MB (!) onboard video. The current video is "DivX" (I think) and so you may need to add a DivX codec to view it.

We lost track of the rocket as it went above the cloud layer, and we all desperately were hoping the parachute system would work. Keith lost telemetry for a a few seconds, but once he got it back, he was able to announce that we were falling slowly enough that we should be on the drogue.

Looking for chutes!

And indeed, about a minute after that, the drogue and rocket were sighted.

LV2.3 falling on the drogue

Rare shot of the main deploying

Nosecone and main body

Finally, the ARTS board fired the line cutters and the main chute came out. To top it all off, the rocket landed only a few hundred feet from the launch tower!

Nose cone and drogue parachute on ground

rocket body and main parachute on ground

A well used motor

And just in time, too: about an hour after the launch, the winds whipped up and started blowing over tents and people, and it started to drizzle. We packed up in record time, and headed back to Portland.

All in all, a perfect flight!

Thank you to Jeff and BORG for arranging the waiver.
Giant thank yous to Liz, Casey and Alex for helping out so much.
Double thanks to Alex Speaks of Zander Speaks Photography for taking such great photos (you can see http://speaksphotographic.com/psas for even more photographs of the launch).

Also thanks to:

Thanks to PSU, NASA, IBM...

... and the IEEE AESS

Launch information

Estimate elevation of hill by launch tower: 4900 ft MSL
Launch control was at (GPS): 43 deg 47 min 55.4 sec 120 deg 38 min 54.5 sec @ 4459 ft
Launch tower was at (GPS): 43 deg 47.652 min 120 deg 39.0889 min @ 4488 ft (2m accuracy w/10 satellites)
Drogue was 16 paces and main was 34 paces away from LT, and between them was 32. Tim's paces are ~ 6 ft.

Launch Data

2009-05-31 data from arts.csv
2009-05-31 data from telemetrum.gnumeric
Olimex data: lost due to lack of launch detect

TODO: Post graphs and final altitude and velocity numbers.

Notes on the launch

We need straighter fins
- better fin clamps? Screw holes so close together may torque fins?
- Bar between clamps and fins? Could use shims between clamp and bar.
2m backup system
- horizontal polarization of the bird feeder didn't reach the rocket on the rail (again)
- Better long wire antenna?
- Arm rocket by local HT at pad,
- or multiple (diverse) 2m uplink antennas
- Goal: verify 2m operation in flight.
- Here's the of the 2m backup system.
- Here's the backup pyro system source code for the AVR microcontroller.
Avionics issues
- Really didn't like lack of feedback from all the different systems
- Need a post-launch checklist for what to do with the avionics
Launch lugs
- Decide how to really do it. The bottom lug was seemed silly.
Aeroshell
- Too hard to deal with: too tight! Tim: Make them looser.
- Need to think about sequencing how everything fits together.
Things that were great
- Dan's brother Bill's toy hauler (thanks Bill! thanks Dan!).
- A dirt bike was awesome to have to explore the area and go back and forth from LC to the LT.
- The two canopies were enough, as long as we had the inside of the Toy Hauler.

Next steps:

Possible August launch
- Won't be ready with Avionics
- Two months: pretty darn close
October BRD launch
- Four months away
- Initial avionics: APS, 2m, pyro and ATV nodes (keep DVR?)
- Bonus: FC, IMU, etc.
- Two airframes for two launches?

Things to bring for next time:

Yellow caution tape for coax to antennas.

Pre-Launch Logistics

The launch of Launch Vehicle No. 2.3 (LV2's third airframe) is taking place at a Oregon Rocketry's "pick up" launch under research launch rules, courtesy the Bend Oregon Rocketry Group.

Launch Details

The actual launch is taking place:

Sunday May 31st, 2009 after 12:00pm and most likely before 3:00pm
South of Brothers, Oregon at Oregon Rocketry's flight line (Click here for a map of coordinates +43.79942 -120.65086). For more explicit directions, see Oregon Rocketry's directions page.
We must know you are coming ahead of time (email 'info' at 'psas.pdx.edu'), and attendees must sign both a PSU and Tripoli Rocketry Association liability waiver.

Launch-Specific Information

Checklists for May 31st Launch

Launch Procedures for May 31st Launch

Timeline

Time	Date	Activities
8:00am	Saturday 5/30	Meet at Tim's house in Tigard, and pack up remaining rocketry supplies. Go over final checklists.
10:00am - 2:30pm	Saturday 5/30	Drive to Brothers, Oregon launch site (4.5 hour drive).
3:00pm - 7:00pm	Saturday 5/30	Set up in Brothers, with dinner.
Evening	Saturday 5/30	Final prep, marshmallow roast, star viewing.
10:00am - 12:00pm	Sunday 5/31	Final prep, watch BORG launches.
12:00pm - 1:00pm	Sunday 5/31	Target time for launch of LV2.
1:00pm - 3:00pm	Sunday 5/31	Recovery LV2, pack up, watch BORG launches.
3:00pm - Evening	Sunday 5/31	Return to Portland (4.5 hour drive)

Lodging

You can camp out at the launch site, but you must observe OROC's site regulations.
There are several hotels and motels nearby.
Bart may have some places to stay.

Weather

Possible showers on Saturday, partly sunny on Sunday. It'll be ~ 60-70 during the day, but it's going to get awfully chilly at night. Here's the weather forcast.

Transportation

People, cars and stuff leaving Saturday morning

Who	In What	Other people?	With What
Andrew	red van	1, maybe 2	tools, pop-up tents, etc., 2nd Yeasu for backup
Dan	truck?	?	"Toy hauler", tools, rocket.
Dave	truck	Candace, 3-4 other people	Dan's trailer, with launch tower and other large things, and tools.
Glenn	car	No	HTs, arrow antenna, 2x SLA batteries, SWR meter, 2m birdfeeder.
Ian	car	1	nothing

People looking for rides who have not yet found one:

None

People not caravaning:

Pete

Who	In What	Other people?	With What
Maria	car	Kate, Chase	-
Bart	car	Keith, Jules, Ian Duffe	-
K	car	Paula, 1-2 others	-

People showing up independently

Jay and Doug (by car)
Steve and Louise (by plane, rendezvousing with Glenn)
Morgan and Margaret and friends
Nathan with parents
Theo