Union College Rocket Team

The Union College Rocket Team will compete in the Spaceport America Cup in June 2019 in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico.  The Roaring Dutchman 2 rocket design and construction has been split into three systems (with engineering lead):  Structures (Madeleine Miller), Electronics and Avionics (Sirus Negahban) and Propulsion and Recovery (Daniel Brack).  The rocket body is fiberglass coated kraft phenolic, the fiberglass fins are mounted to the body with steel fittings and the nosecone is fiberglass.  The interior structure consists of custom laser cut microlite/epoxy laminates and cold rolled steel.  The rocket will be propelled by an M1450 Cesaroni motor to a desired altitude of 10,000', at which time the Telemetrum flight computer will send an electronic impulse to the black powder charges placed in the fore of the body, igniting them and separating the body into three pieces, allowing both the scientific payload (Habitability Assessment Roving Vehicle, HARVe) and the 5' drogue parachute to deploy.  HARVe will descend under its own parachute and assess the habitability of the landing environment with various sensors, e.g., thermometer and barometers.  The rocket will descend under drogue until the flight computer detects a 1,500' altitude, at which time another set of black powder charges will detonate to deploy the 12' main parachute.  The Roaring Dutchman 2 and HARVe will then be recovered, and flight and environmental data will be downloaded and displayed with competition judges.