WORLD WIDE WEB — Tonight at midnight marks opening of the official six week window for the Sugar Shot to Space's "Launch Pad" fund-raising campaign.  The program officially runs until September 2nd and is designed to raise capital necessary for the group to continue their work.

Their goal is to raise $1,500 to cover the costs of their MiniSShot project, to "lead it toward a successful finale," according to the announcement sent from Richard Nakka, director of the Sugar Shot to Space program. Once the MiniSShot project is completed, the group will enter the next phase of the program, their DoubleSShot project, a journey Nakka labeled "an exciting and even more challenging venture into the unknown."

A special page on their website will keep an updated indicator of the group's fund raising efforts, so visitors can see how they are progressing when they visit the Sugar Shot to Space web site. The indicator is a graphic representation of a launch pad, to give a visual representation of the MiniSShot rocket rising off the pad and clearing the tower when the goal is reached.

According to Nakka's message on the website, "MiniSShot is an important dress-rehearsal for the next chapter of the program — DoubleSShot. The DoubleSShot project will take us 1/3 the way to Space and will be an impressive achievement in its own right."

The minimum donation for the "Launch Pad" fund raiser is $50, but those interested in contributing smaller amounts can do so on the web site's regular contributions page.

More information can be found on the fund-raiser at http://www.sugarshot.org/fundraiser.html.

07-21-2008 10:06 PM  #1
R2K Certified Level Three   Joined: Jul 2007 Posts: 209	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign Sad that most of these projects just seem to stop doing anything after a few years. Sorac for example... When the goal is space, you gotta stick with it. CSXT kept coming back and trying, the last time it looks like they got a ton of money.

07-21-2008 10:36 PM  #2
JustinL New Member   Joined: Jul 2008 Posts: 8	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign I wanted to contribute, but I can't afford their $50 minimum with my senior design project going on right now...

07-22-2008 09:56 AM  #3
denverdoc Rana sapiens   Joined: Aug 2007 Posts: 2815	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign I wonder what keeps them from trying to get corporate sponsorship. Not that I'd go there if I had other options--sugar, publicly funded--the ultimate triumph for all us wannabe farmer astronauts! If they had to I like C&H sugar.

07-22-2008 11:32 AM  #4
Generic New Member   Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 9	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign Quote: I wanted to contribute, but I can't afford their $50 minimum with my senior design project going on right now... From the text: "The minimum donation for the "Launch Pad" fund raiser is $50, but those interested in contributing smaller amounts can do so on the web site's regular contributions page."

07-22-2008 11:41 AM  #5
Just Jerry Freeform rockets advocate   Joined: Aug 2006 Posts: 1110	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign Right now they need a working engine of some sort to go to the next step of getting any outside funding. The donations I have been making are toward the effort of simply getting their engine working. They have a unique two stage in one concept that I have implemented in a solid before, but abandoned for the weight savings and complexity of traditional staging. If they can get that concept to work, their idea of how to approach high altitudes on a low cost, low ISP propellant has a chance to work. I hope I have delivered their enabling technology. Jerry

07-22-2008 12:03 PM  #6
Just Jerry Freeform rockets advocate   Joined: Aug 2006 Posts: 1110	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign Quote: Sad that most of these projects just seem to stop doing anything after a few years. Sorac for example... When the goal is space, you gotta stick with it. CSXT kept coming back and trying, the last time it looks like they got a ton of money. SORAC is a student program and its goal is not so much to go to space as to involve kids in the process of getting something working toward getting there. In that regard it has been pretty successful since it has had several implementations and flights. The success rate of the hardware is low, but they have a shop, elements of working rockets, full access to test sites and a leader who can only be accurately described as one of the original "rocket gods", Bill Colburn. Jerry

07-22-2008 12:05 PM  #7
denverdoc Rana sapiens   Joined: Aug 2007 Posts: 2815	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign You're talking about the dual phase concept--2 stages in one case, where you use the booster to get some good delta vee, coast thru the soup, and then fire again? I thought that notion came from their own team, but have not been following the project that closely.

07-22-2008 12:15 PM  #8
Just Jerry Freeform rockets advocate   Joined: Aug 2006 Posts: 1110	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign I am pretty sure that concept is not "new" but has been reinvented and tested by several folks over the years. I first did it in about 1982-3 so I suspect my implementation preceeded theirs, and I do not claim to be the originator. Mine was a 29mm motor with a full diameter pyro delay (slow propellant really) burning through to another motor. Back then I was using polyester resin or epoxy as a binder too. Prove me wrong! Jerry

07-22-2008 12:30 PM  #9
denverdoc Rana sapiens   Joined: Aug 2007 Posts: 2815	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign I see. The idea had been kicking around for some time and they seized on it as a solution to the single stage to space problem with the ISP limitaions of CHO. I am curious about the motor issues, I assume the top grain(s) have a separate support, and by the time they burn, in effect a really long plenum. Do you know what is going on with the nozzle--is it fixed and optimized for sea level Po, somewhere in between, or high altitude? I've never considered the problem of where best to sacifice efficiency, and assumed to some extent that and the ejected mass favored a proper 2 stage rocket, in spite of the greater influence of Mr Murphy.

07-22-2008 02:29 PM  #10
Johnnie Certified TRA Level III   Joined: Aug 2006 Posts: 214	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign I helped with some of the early design work; working some of the first CAD ideas for them...but was sidelined from the project due to personal reasons...looks like they have come a long way since the early days. Johnnie

07-22-2008 08:21 PM  #11
ddmobley Administrator   Joined: Jul 2006 Posts: 3189	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign They are already at 2/3 of their goal!

07-25-2008 01:20 PM  #12
R2K Certified Level Three   Joined: Jul 2007 Posts: 209	Re: Sugar Shot to Space begins new fund-raising campaign Quote: SORAC is a student program and its goal is not so much to go to space as to involve kids in the process of getting something working toward getting there. In that regard it has been pretty successful since it has had several implementations and flights. The success rate of the hardware is low, but they have a shop, elements of working rockets, full access to test sites and a leader who can only be accurately described as one of the original "rocket gods", Bill Colburn. Jerry Hmm they were in the CATS list and were building a CATS rocket that looked like it was going to launch any day now. I dont complain, just sad that so many great projects dont get finished. If I win the lotto I will fund small amateur rockets all the time.