I flew a rocket into the annular solar eclipse on October 14, 2023, in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada, aiming for 90,000 feet - with a LOT of help. Will we succeed?
Mega thank you to everyone who helped on this project! Watch the credits, they rock.
Check out @xylafoxlin's video for more on the balloon!
• I'm getting more ridic...
Check out @BPSspace for much much more rocket stuff!
Intro Song: Never Ending Moment, by Des Rocs
Prelaunch interlude: Small Shock, by Toby Fox
Credits song: Last Goodbye, by Toby Fox
All other songs:
www.epidemicsound.com/playlis...
Chapters:
00:00 Build
34:02 Test
1:03:48 Launch
1:58:38 Solve
2:19:35 Credits
Top 3 questions I've gotten, just from chatting with people:
1. Did you need FAA permission to do this?
Yes. Very, very much so. We had a temporary flight restriction (basically, a giant cylinder above us) for the entire morning of the eclipse, which I called in prior to launch and closed promptly after.
2. How did you get on the land?
We drove, and we got BLM permission to perform the launch on the Black Rock desert. Had to get a permit for that too.
3. Why 90,000 feet?
It's the highest I could reasonably go for with the tools and time I had. 100,000 feet requires a Class 3 waiver with the Tripoli Rocket Association, who does most (if not all) launches from Black Rock. This was NOT a Tripoli sanctioned launch, but being a Tripoli member was important to pull this off.
Rocket stats (spoilers!):
Height: 14ft, 8in
Weight: 75lb. 49lb booster, 26lb sustainer.
Motors: N5800, M2150
Max speed: 550 m/s (Mach 1.6)
Max altitude: 850 m (GPS, sustainer)