Project Overview

The overall goal for the MaCH-SR1 project is to build a reusable launch vehicle that will be capable of delivering a 10 lb payload to altitudes greater than 400,000 ft, or NASA-defined "space". Working towards this goal naturally provides a way for students to learn about rocket science in a vigorous, hands-on manner that is not currently provided by the College of Engineering. This project began as a way to offset the absence of rocket propulsion courses offered in the undergraduate curriculum. By the end of the project, the university will have an operational vehicle that can be used by students and faculty to launch high-altitude research experiments at a much lower cost than can be currently done by contracting with NASA.

The MaCH-SR1 will be built around hybrid rocket technology that is being developed here at CU by the current team. The final flight engine will deliver a proposed 12,000 lbs of thrust to the vehicle for 15 seconds, propelling it to speeds over mach 3 at burnout. The vehicle will then coast for the rest of its ascent to space where it will deliver a scientific payload. The decision to use hybrid rocket technology for this project is based on three main points. First, it is not a mature science, so there is room for actual research. Second, hybrids are inherently safe since they use an inert solid fuel that is only mixed with the oxidizer at the time of ignition. Lastly, inherent safety in the system and process implies decreased costs over other types of propulsion.

In order to reach these goals, a multi-year project management plan has been developed over the last year and a half. This plan is student derived, and has evolved from a somewhat naïve idea to a very sound, multi-phased plan based on real project management models. The plan consists of five different phases, each with specific goals that work towards meeting the larger goals. Each phase will be accompanied by design reviews to ensure that the program requirements have been correctly and completely identified, and that they are being met in an appropriate manner.

The initial phase, Phase 0, involved a long period of infrastructure building and feasibility studies which helped to clarify the current goals and approach. Currently, the project is in Phase I of the management plan. This has involved an enormous amount of student effort towards designing and building the first prototype engine, which will be test fired at Lockheed Martin in Littleton, Colorado for the first time in mid-June of this year. Progress has been documented on this website. Phase II involves taking the information learned from Phase I and applying it to a larger prototype flight engine. The engine will be optimized iteratively and flown in Nevada for verification purposes, marking the end of Phase II. Phase III will concentrate on building the 12,000 lb thrust MaCH-SR1 flight engine based on the previous static tests and flight experience gained by the team, and will end with a successful flight to space by the vehicle. Phase IV will concentrate on optimizing the system and the eventual introduction of the MaCH-SR2 to the University of Colorado for service.

The cost for this entire project is difficult to estimate with pinpoint accuracy, but will likely be around $35,000 by the end of Phase III. To date, the project has minimized cost by persuading companies to donate materials, by carefully researching and scrutinizing every purchase, and by machining all parts on campus. These tactics will be important in the second design phase, which will have additional flight hardware and static testing expenses that Phase I did not have.

There are eight students and four advisors on the team this year. Each year of the project will likely see an additional eight to ten students with various majors. Since the project will last at least another three years, a minimum of 35 students will be directly affected. Based on the historically large impact that other ambitious rocket projects have had on students at other universities, this estimate is probably conservative. Once the static engine and flight tests start, the publicity will grow and the interest will follow. Already there are a large number of sophomore and junior students interested in joining the project.

The most significant value to the students working on this project is the hands-on involvement in systems-level engineering within a multi-disciplinary environment. This project also provides other significant educational opportunities including: the creation and management of design and control documentation, the preparation and presentation of design reviews, team building, project management, and the application of budgetary constraints. The team anticipates that this project will benefit the University of Colorado on an institutional level by being able to use MaCH-SR1 as a foundation for other ambitious multi-disciplinary research projects in the future.