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 HUNTSVILLE, Alabama USA — Some University of Alabama in Huntsville rocketeers are hoping "Blue Thunder" will roll in with another championship in 2008.
Student teams at UAH, Alabama A&M and Auburn universities are among 11 school teams in eight states competing in NASA's 2007—08 University Student Launch Initiative. Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville hosts the program, which was founded last year as a sister to the popular high school Student Launch Initiative. The Alabama Space Grant Consortium and ATK Launch Systems of Brigham City, Utah, are also participating. UAH's 2006-07 entry — "Sky Charger," in the school's signature blue — brought home top honors, said team faculty adviser Dr. Marlow Moser. Can they do it again with the 2008 Blue Thunder rocket? "I think they're better than even odds," said Moser of UAH's Propulsion Research Center and the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department. "But I think there is some really tough competition out there." The challenge is to design and build a rocket that will reach an altitude of one mile above ground level, no more and no less. In addition, each team is evaluated on its design, presentation and what they decide to load aboard for the ride. "Everybody does their own scientific payload," Moser said. "We're adding more instrumentation this year."
There will be an accelerometer to measure speed and magnetometers that will measure the rocket's angle in respect to the Earth's magnetic field and more, he said. And the students working on Blue Thunder are considering a detachable payload that will parasail back to ground, perhaps controlled by an autopilot, he said. UAH won last year, but Fisk University in Nashville came in second and will be back this year, Moser said. UAH overshot the altitude target by about 400 feet and Fisk undershot by 400, so the contest was decided on the merits of the teams' designs and presentations. About 30 students are involved between the two semesters of the year, Moser said. Making the rocket and payload work gives the young rocket men and women a lot of hands—on experience in engineering and teamwork. "I get the most out of hanging around with such bright students," Moser said. Other teams in the 2007-08 University Student Launch Initiative are Harding University in Searcy, Ark.; Mississippi State University in Starkville; Missouri University of Science & Technology in Rolla; the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks; Vanderbilt University in Nashville; Utah State University in Logan; and the College of Menominee Nation in Green Bay, Wis. They will gather in Huntsville in the spring for the final launch competition April 19. "It's a pleasure and a privilege to invite these teams to participate in this year's challenge," said Tammy Rowan, manager of the MSFC Academic Affairs Office. "The University Student Launch Initiative is a vital part of NASA's education mission — helping foster new generations of scientists, engineers and explorers." USLI info: http://education.nasa.gov/edprograms/descriptions/University_Student_Launch_Initiative.html Copyright © 2007, The Huntsville Times.
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