How to make your own mini space program!

[Sun]

The vid says it all.

[Tommygun]

I like that this method doesn't evolve using a hot plate, but I was surprised he used the blender to cut the potassium nitrate into a fine powder.

[astropapi1]

Heh, I have a video about this open on another tab. I've got 3kg of Kno3 and 2kg of sugar, a couple of friends and I were going to make some rockets for a school science thing. We knew it was kinda crazy (since our school doesn't have a lot of open space), but our teachers allowed it, so we ended up spending about 40 bucks for the entire thing. The event is supposed to happen on wednesday and they told us yesterday that we would not be allowed to fly the rockets.

Of course we're still going to do it! Just not for school.

Oh, and we're taking lots of safety precautions on this project. I know things can heat up pretty quickly and I'm a professional violin player, so I'm not goint to Mcgiver my way into rocket making.

EDIT: Here's Grant Thompson's take on the subject:

EDIT2: Oh, your video is from Grant Thomson too... I haven't got the upload notification yet.

Edited October 29, 2014 by astropapi1

[Aghanim]

Which is better for potassium nitrate rocket, the r-candy method or the powdered KNO3 + powdered sugar method?

[K^2]

Which is better for potassium nitrate rocket, the r-candy method or the powdered KNO3 + powdered sugar method?

Ideally, neither. Solid rocket is best built with uniform grains of fuel and oxidizer bound in a polymer matrix. But that's tricky to achieve with home made components. If your components are KNO3 and sugar, your options are, indeed, limited to these two.

Candy can give you better performance in theory, but if you happen to have a crack, it will explode. That's why real rockets tend to have polymer matrix. For home-built stuff, powder is much easier to pack without cracks, so you might have more consistency with it. In practice, both will give you pretty low performance and will occasionally explode, so it's really whatever works for you.

Keep in mind that there are extra safety concerns for both methods, too. If you are packing powder, read some info on packing black powder for rockets. This should be pretty similar. I would definitely avoid being too close to it. Certainly, don't hold the rocket while packing powder. There's always a chance of explosion. If you are going with candy method, it's even more likely that you'll accidentally set the stuff on fire too early, but at least it's not confined, so you'll avoid explosion. Doesn't mean hot, burning stuff won't fly all over the place. Gloves, goggles, etc. are a good idea in both cases. Just common sense stuff, really.

[Frozen_Heart]

Illegal over here in the UK

Having to work on a gaseous oxygen-plastic hybrid motor. Trouble with that is you're pretty much limited to making the motor and not launching anything with such limited funds.

[andrew123]

Illegal over here in the UK

Having to work on a gaseous oxygen-plastic hybrid motor. Trouble with that is you're pretty much limited to making the motor and not launching anything with such limited funds.

Haha... Try doing that in San Diego...

The US Navy doesn't take kindly to unannounced rocket launches while conducting training sorties.

[Camacha]

The US Navy doesn't take kindly to unannounced rocket launches while conducting training sorties.

Yet they do not mind doing the same the other way around

[andrew123]

Yet they do not mind doing the same the other way around

At least they conduct live-fires either in cordoned-off sea ranges and areas such as White Sands missile range.

Or course, there's the accidental launches... but they're the exception.

EDIT: If you're referring to the Air Force and CIA operating drones in the middle east, then the navy isn't far behind. X-47b, FTW!!

... And, yes. The SLBM proving launches are announced.

Why else would the Chinese send out their spy vessels to collect 'telemetry data' when possible.

Edited October 31, 2014 by andrew123