Project Skyshot is a series of kit-built rockets that go to a higher altitude then my previous rockets (D/E engines and multi-staged rockets). I want to learn all the skills nesssasary to begin Project Theremin by making kits of similar rockets. It is similar to and builds on Project Newcomer, but with bigger and more powerful sized rocket, up to the planned size of the ultimate Theremin rocket. These are the official goals of Project Skyshot:
To learn:
The first two goals are a direct pre-cursor to Project Theremin, while the third goal was added on later just because I thought Skyshot rockets would be a good testbed to test it on. I have wanted to learn dual deployment for sometime to increase recoverability rates on high altitude flights, as drifting away in the wind is the most common problem for recovering my rockets. The plan was to complete the first too goals and imediatly start work on the Theremin rocket, which at the time was simply a scratch built mid-power swoosh-pop rocket. I was going to build a few kits featuring dual deployment during Skyshot until the Project Theremin rocket was declared operational, and then take my own shot at in on Theremin.
However, when I was hit with a new zeal and inspiration by a combination of some BPS.space videos and my college roommate's fusor and rocket projects I restructed my rocket projects to all be under a single rocket (more detail on the Project Theremin page). Project Skyshot still exists, but will be exclusivly for kits and will probably only consist of the rockets currently under construction (SKY-2 and SKY-3). Dual-deployment has become a higher priority as the first version of Theremin will possess it, so I am building SKY-2 Betelgeuse Booster as a prototype for the elctronics and deployment system I am learning about/developing.
SKY-3 Charon Clipper will be my first multi-staged rocket.
It is called 'skyshot' in reference to how the Apollo missions to the Moon were refered to as 'moonshots', so a 'skyshot' is a description of these rockets missions, despite that the project itself is more an analog of Project Gemini than Project Apollo, with Project Theremin being Apollo.
Project Skyshot officially started Saturday, January 22nd, 2022 when I started work on SKY-1 Raqiya' Xplorer. I constructed SKY-1 fairly stock, however I did imploy the "fin-side" launch lug placement technique (gluing the launch lug to the body tube right next to the fins in stead of directly inbetween two) first used on Newcomer II and my new Universal Parachute System. I made a slight modification to the system for SKY-1 where I added a second keyring for the skockcord. This is because the eyelet on the nose cone is very small and I thought it would be hard to move the keyring through the eyelet if the fat shockcord was taking up all the room. Indeed, when there is a new can tab in the keyring and it expands, it just barly fits through the eyelet as is. I call this the "UniChute" system and intend to use it on all my rockets I can (some don't have parachutes) ever since I invented it on NC-IV Ascention.
This was my first kit with two engine mount centering tubes, however it was esentially the same as one with only own tube except with a "repeat with second tube" step and placing them on either end of the tube instead of one in the center. I made a fin stripe pattern using shaprie modeled after the original Space Launch System (SLS) rocket "racing stripes" seen on the SRBs in early design renders. In real life, they traded out the stripes for more practical black boxes, but I thought they looked cool and adapted them to my rocket.
I brought SKY-1 Raqiya' Xplorer to the monthly launch by Spaceport Rocketry Association (SRA) on March 19th, 2022. It was my third flight of the day and it was around 1:30pm. It was a good flight, with low amounts of weather cocking and successful parachute deploymewnt. At apogee. Due to the heights it was at when the main deployed it was blown away out of sight before it hit the ground, so I didn't really know where to look for it. It was almost the exact same fate as Newcomer I on it's third flight. When I last saw it is was directly above the right end of the line of trees going perpendicular to the "launch road" downrange, we were standing beside the club's trailer in the crowd that gathers there.
There was a large brush fire (not caused by rockets, but by a motorcycle sliding into a ditch and catching grass on fire with it's engine) down range may have created an updraft and kept the rocket from descending as it was blown away. This I say because it seemed to stop going down at a certain point, and just getting smaller and harder to see (because of the smoke, I assume).
The announcer and the other club officers or experienced rocketeers told me not to angle the rod, but to go straight up, despite the fact that this seemed to aide in recovering closer to the launch pad. For SKY-1. I don't think this would have made a difference, but for some of my other rockets, namely Newcomer 3, it seems that it would have helped alot. I am not exactly sure why they told us not to do that, because it was reasonably windy. My mom thought that maybe it was because they wanted to be able to see the rockets deploy their chutes for the announcment, since the wind was coming from the south, or up range, and was behind the annoucners and the trailer probably made it harder to see there. The sun was also in that section of the sky, so it is a possible explanation.
However, I reaffirm the determination that dual-deployment or even simply a smaller parachute is nessasary for any subsequent flights, especially mid-powered. Some sort of delay would also help, but if it enters a ballistic descent nose-first it could speed up to a chute-tearing velocity and shred any recovery devices deployed. A Jolly Logic Chute Release would work perfect, but they are simply too expensive. Perhaps SKY-2 Betelgeuse Booster will be my first dual-deployment rocket.
As of May 2022, I have decided to modify SKY-2 to use a homemade electronic dual deployment mechanism. The lower section of the body tube will instead become effectivly a part of the nosecone and allow the electronics to be placed inside of that. I also renamed SKY-2 to Betelgeuse Booster instead of just Betelgeuse and SKY-3 Charon Clipper instead of Cloud Clipper so that the names would be more of a pattern with "Raqiya' Xplorer".
| Name | Designation | Model | Notes | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raqiya' Xplorer | SKY-1 | Estes Cherokee-E | My first D/E power rocket. Also first time useing slide decals, and my custom paper decals. Lost on maiden flight in March 2022. | Lost |
| Betelgeuse Booster | SKY-2 | Estes Cherokee-E | Second D/E power rocket. Improvements to SKY-1, mainly first attempt at some sort of dual deployment or delayed deployment system. | In Construction |
| Charon Clipper | SKY-3 | Estes Epic II | First multi-staged rocket. | In Construction |
More Skyshot rockets will be built as they are determined they are needed.
Updated 4/24/2022 by William Boersma