NASA’s Space Grant Midwest High-Power Rocket Competition

Unique NASA Opportunity to Launch Rockets (2022-2023)

Informational Telecon: September 19, 2022 @ 7:00 PM; January 12, 2023 @ 7:00 PM
Contact James Flaten, flate001@umn.edu, for call-in information

MnSGC Notice of Intent to Compete Deadline: October 1, 2022
WSGC Notice of Intent to Compete Deadline: October 28, 2022
WSGC Award Announcement: November 10, 2022
$400 Registration Fee Due: January 31, 2023
Safety Meeting @Fox Valley Technical College*: March 25, 2023 (10:00 am - 2:00 pm)
Launch Competition in North Branch, MN: May 13-14, 2023 (Rain Date May 15, 2023)
“Precision Landing Challenge”

Awards:* $2,400
*Subject to the availability of funds

The Minnesota Space Grant (MnSGC) announces NASA’s Space Grant Midwest High-Power Rocket Launch Competition. This competition is an opportunity for students to design and construct rockets to be launched at a competition in the spring of 2023 in North Branch, Minn.

WSGC Announcement of Opportunity
MnSGC Announcement of Opportunity
MnSGC Notice of Intent to Compete
MnSGC Competition Handbook

Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium (WSGC) will sponsor up to three (3) teams with prior rocket experience to compete in the national competition.

Note: Teams selected to participate in the Midwest High-Power Rocket Competition may only receive funding for one WSGC sponsored rocket competition. Individuals cannot compete on a Collegiate Rocket Launch team, but are encouraged to mentor a Collegiate Rocket Launch team.

A faculty advisor must complete the following steps:

• Register as faculty on the WSGC website (https://spacegrant.carthage.edu/about/login/). Applicants will be prompted to update personal information annually.
• Submit the “Create Rocket Launch Team (NOI)” Grant Application Form (https://spacegrant.carthage.edu/forms/application/rocket-launch-team/).
• Submit a preliminary budget

If applying for both the Collegiate and Midwest Rocket Competition, please indicate in the Rocket Launch Team NOI which competition is the school’s preference.

Once the faculty advisor completes the Notice of Intent (NOI), identifies the team name, lists the known student participants, and chooses which competition the team will compete in, each student will need to:

• Register as an undergraduate student on the WSGC website (https://spacegrant.carthage.edu/about/login/). Applicants will be prompted to update personal information annually.
• Upload a current resume to applicant profile (optional). Applicants must check box in order to allow WSGC to share the applicant resume with Wisconsin Aerospace Industry partners for co-op, internship, and employment opportunities.
• Complete the Midwest High-Powered Rocket Competition Rocket Competition application (https://spacegrant.carthage.edu/forms/application/midwest-high-powered-rocket-competition/)
• Indicate past rocket experience

Team/Individual applicants who meet the following requirements can apply for this grant by registering and applying online at spacegrant.carthage.edu/about/login:

• be US citizens
• attend any WSGC Academic Affiliate Institution full-time
• have prior rocket experience
• submit an academic institutional representative acknowledgment
• submit a preliminary budget
• have a committed faculty mentor
• be comprised of 4-6 team members
• select a team leader

Individuals/teams may:

• seek advice/mentorship from Industry, Tripoli, NAR, and others
• include Graduate students* as long as they represent less than 50% of the team members

*Note from Tripoli: Without exception, university teams must involve an experienced mentor, preferably a TAP or L3CC, during the design and construction phases of their rocketry projects if they expect to fly them at Tripoli events. The mentor must be certified at or above the level of motor the team wishes to fly AND experienced in the type of construction, propulsion, and recovery the team uses.

Although it is ultimately up to the judgment of the RSO and Launch Director, University teams who build a rocket that requires a motor higher than their member cert levels, and then as an afterthought contact a club hoping to fly (without ever involving an experienced mentor) should be told no.

COMPETITION ENGINEERING PARAMETERS

2022-2023 “Precision Landing Challenge” (summary description): Students teams will design and construct a single motor, single stage, high-power rocket that will fly twice during the competition. The challenge is (A) to use a steerable parachute during a totally-unpowered descent to guide the rocket booster to land as close as possible to a specified ground target, probably about 1000 ft from the launch pad, and (B) to land the booster so that it remains upright. (Aside: The booster is allowed to separate from, and descend independently from, the upper section of the rocket, as long as all parts of the rocket land at safe speeds and are recovered in re-flyable condition.) Rockets will fly first on a Cesaroni 273-H-225-14A “White Thunder” (2-grain, 38 mm diameter) motor, and must exceed 1000 ft AGL (Above Ground Level). The second flight will have a target apogee as close as possible to, but not exceeding, 3000 ft AGL, and can be on any Cesaroni or AeroTech I-class or J-class 54 mm diameter motor. The rocket must carry a “non-commercial” (i.e. not sold for rocketry) data-logging sensor suite to characterize flight performance, including logging (at least once a second) GPS, av-bay pressure, 3-axis acceleration, and 3-axis rotation. The booster must also contain a look-up and look-down camera system, to collect video of the rocket motor boosting, the rocket separating, the steerable parachute in action, and the rocket landing. Bonus points will be given to teams whose members increase their certification level using individually-built rockets (which will be unrelated to the (team-built) competition rocket described above). Additional details about the competition will be included in a handbook. Note that all fabrication work on the rocket(s), except for possibly machining of plastic and/or metal parts, must be performed by students.

As part of the award acceptance, awardees will be asked to attend the Annual Wisconsin Space Conference as outlined in the award agreement and submit the following documents on the WSGC application website under Program Applications/Your Applications:

All Advisors/Participants

• Award Agreement Letter
• Media Release Form
• One-Paragraph Biography
• Professional Photo

Advisor

• Institutional W9
• Invoice

Team Lead

• Submit all MNSGC documents to Gary Stroick with Minnesota Tripoli Rocketry Association by due date
• Upload copies of all MnSGC documents to WSGC Grant Management page
• 2-3 Project Photos
• Final Team Roster

All Team Members

• Attend the WSGC Safety Review Meeting at EAA
• Oral Design Presentation
• Launch Competition
• Present project at the 33rd Annual Wisconsin Space Conference
• Submit a proceedings paper for the 33rd Annual Wisconsin Space Conference online journal

The WSGC Student Tools & Tips website is an excellent resource for all of your Space Grant Midwest High-Power Rocket Launch Competition needs. If you cannot find your answer here, questions can be sent to the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium at spacegrant@carthage.edu . Questions will be answered on an individual basis, and duplicate questions will be posted on WSGC’s Facebook Page.

Application questions may be directed to Dr. Farrow, farroww@msoe.edu or the WSGC Program Office.
Logistical questions may be directed to James Flaten, flate001@umn.edu .
Technical questions may be directed to Gary Stroick, president@OffWeGoRocketry.com .