Looking for Rocketry/Satellite Projects

Aerospace / RC
#1

Hey everyone. I am posting to see if anyone is currently working on projects related to rocketry, satellites, or anything space related.

I am a software engineer and am hoping to find some folks to build space + spaceflight related projects with. It would be interesting to build something like a LEO satellite and raise funding to launch on one of the ride share launch providers out there (SpaceX Falcon 9, Rocket Lab Electron).

This post is super broad so feel free to reach out to brainstorm some interesting project ideas!

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#2

What does it cost to do something like that (the launch, not the satellite itself)?

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#3

@mdredmond , The cost for a 50kg satellite on a falcon 9 ride share to sun synchronous orbit is $275k and “similar prices” for LEO. Here is the source for that: SpaceX

Definitely a large chunk of change, but maybe a compelling enough mission would draw the interest of potential donors.

#4

@try_reboot, Check out the chat log from last night’s RBNV meeting at 8:01 pm.

There was as interesting discussion about the possibility of launching a CubeSat.

RBNV – Robot Builders Night Virtual – January 31, 2023 - dprg.org

The video of the meeting will be out on YouTube in a week or so.

Some interesting links…including a site where you can buy a CubeSat(?):

CubeSat - Wikipedia

List of CubeSats - Wikipedia

CubeSatShop.com - One-stop webshop for CubeSats & Nanosats

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#5

@David_Steele Great thank you for the heads up. I also brought this up at science committee Sunday Jan 29 and there is a lot of interest. I am going to begin putting together a strategy shortly and will check out that convo above.

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#6

Have you checked out the North Texas Tripoli Prefecture?

It’s not satellite/space related but it’s serious “amateur” rocketry. Dunno if anyone in the local prefecture is serious enough to launch at Balls, but it’s worth checking out.

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#7

@John_Marlow I will check that out for sure. Building a liquid fueled amateur rocket would be sweet.

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#8

Hey @David_Steele , looks like the video is unavailable on Youtube:

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image2126Ă—1404 135 KB

I wonder if RBNV is aware of this.

#9

I’ll send a message to them. Thanks for mentioning this.

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#10

We’re discussing a hybrid platform to land itself. We take it to 50,000ft, land it, then go looking for money. ISP is everything…after landing it.

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#11

Interesting. Is this through the Science group or…?

#12

There are a few of us who make the annual pilgrimage to the Black Rock Desert in Nevada (BALLS). We also have a launch site i Seymour, Texas, with a 32,000 foot waiver.

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#13

Several years ago @Josh_Melnick and I investigated doing a cubesat. We talked with the owner of kubos, the company that makes satellite software up in Denton. The owner is a great guy and had a ton of good advice.

The main thing to getting a launch funded is to come up with something that a company would like to test but it would be too expensive for them to test internally. You can find funding for the test because even at a quarter million it’s cheaper to have you do it than do it internally.

Our tentative idea at the time was testing yinmn blue at a heat shield because it reflects like 90% of uv radiation. It was an early stage idea so whenever even really vetted the idea, we just used it as a starting point for working through the rest of the cubesat requirements.

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#14

Wow! That 32,000 foot waiver is a big deal! Anybody out there pushing the limits?

#15

Yes. Several. We also have a member who pushes 100K at BALLS.

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#16

The video is up now. Fast forward to 14:18 for the satellite discussion:

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#17

@NikeMikey That sounds awesome. Would love to join y’all.

#18

Thank you, David.

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#19

That is good advice. NASA gives similar guidance for prospective teams looking to get a ride through the NASA Cubesat Initiative.

Yinmn Blue as a heat shield is a super interesting idea. Are you still in contact with the owner of Kubos? It would be great to talk space with someone in the industry.

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#20

I am not personally still in touch with him, though @Josh_Melnick may be.

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