About Our Experiment

The title of our experiment is:

“To examine the feasibility of a prototype telescopic boom which may be used for the deployment of probes to perform scientific measurements”.

What does that mean?

Traditionally probes used on rockets for high altitude research are stored in a similar fashion to an umbrella within the rocket. When the target altitude is reached they deploy in the same way you would open an umbrella. This technique requires a relatively large amount of space within the rocket. Also, due to the forces involved, the probe length is limited thus reducing the quantity and quality of measurements that may be performed.

The majority of rockets for high altitude research spin at quite a high rate (approx 4revs/sec) to stabilise their flight. Our probe deployment technique takes advantage of the centrifugal force generated by this rotation. Our design is stored in the rocket in a similar fashion to an internal television aerial in its closed position. When the target height is reached a release mechanism is triggered allowing the probe to deploy telescopically due to the centrifugal force i.e. in the same way you pull the television aerial to extend it.

This design reduces the space required, increasing the number of probes that may be used on any one rocket. The greater achievable deployment length allows for a larger array of measurements to be made.