| [Not displaying correctly? View web version.] | Peak of Flight Newsletter #470: | |  What the Barrowman Equations left out was how the Center-of-Pressure (CP) of a rocket moves forward when the rocket changes angle-of-attack. What this means is the rocket becomes less stable when flying in breezy conditions.
This article by Robert Galejs is a reprint of his original paper. It was published on several websites, but a lot of those sites went dead, and the article has become hard to find. So we asked Robert if we could place it on our website so that you can find it easier, and the links to it won't go dead as long as we're in business! The good news: If you use our RockSim software to calculate the trajectory of your rockets, you don't need to do any extra calculations. RockSim already accounts for this shift in the Center-of-Pressure as the rocket flies in the wind. You'll also find some links at the end of the article that references some other articles on rocket stability. | | Read the rest of this week's article, either on a downloadable PDF for printing out, or on our website (great for viewing on your phone)! Previous issues of our newsletter are found at our archive page. |
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What is new in rocketry? Here are the latest items to land on Apogee's shelves! | | |  It's shaped like a flower, so we gave it the name Petal Protector. Made by Dino Chutes, this new type of parachute protector creates a superior heat shield from the rocket motor's ejection charge because it has triple the thickness of a normal Nomex® cloth blanket. When folded, it is shaped like a cylinder so that it plugs the tube better preventing hot gases getting around the outside to the parachute. There are three sizes available: 2.6" (56mm), 3" (75mm) and 4" (98mm) diameter tubes.
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| | |  The Aerobee 300, or "Spaerobee", was first flown in 1958. Eleven were flown by the Air Force and Navy with the last taking flight in 1965. The Aerobee series of rockets were designed by Aerojet General and is considered a descendant of the WAC Corporal. Produced by Aerospace Specialty Products, this kit is 1.89" in diameter and about 2 1/2 feet tall and features thru-the-wall laser-cut plywood fins, big balsa nose cone, and pre-rounded basswood conduits.
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| | |  The Aerobee 100 Junior, was first flown early in 1958. This vehicle was designed by Aerojet General to be an inexpensive rocket to fly payloads of 50 - 100 pounds up to 90 miles. Most of the 20 produced used a solid-fuel booster, but two were actually sea-launched as a single-stage rocket (which makes this model eligible for NAR Scale competition). This kit is 1.89" in diameter and about 2 1/2 feet tall and features thru-the-wall laser-cut plywood fins, big balsa nose cone, and pre-rounded basswood conduits.
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| | |  The Black Brant IV is a Canadian sounding rocket designed to launch payloads to over 500 miles high. First flown in 1964, the two-stage rocket was used into the 1980's. Over fifty flew from launch sites all over the world, including Peru, Spain, Norway, Greenland, and the U.S. among others. This single-stage scale kit from Aerospace Specialty Products is nearly three feet tall and features a balsa transition and hard balsa nose cone, laser-cut basswood fins, water-slide and self-adhesive decals and quick-change engine hook.
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|  "I chose Apogee for my scratch build components. As a person, newer to mid and high power rocketry, I watch your how-to videos often for tips and wanted to show my support and thanks by purchasing components through your online store. I will continue to use Apogee for my mid and HPR needs and hope someday to make it to Colorado to shop in-store. A pilgrimage of sorts. Keep up the good work!" -- Joshua Stanley | |
 What is the Status of the Apogee Move to a New Location? We've Moved! We've done the heavy lifting, and happy to announce that we're in our new location. Read more about the big move in our blog. | |
 Have you seen "Barks At Rockets" yet? - The new hilariously funny comic strip by our graphic artist Chris Duran is released every Thursday on our Facebook page. Be sure to check it out and share it with your rocketry friends. |
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 I need help with generating the biweekly newsletter articles since it takes a lot of effort to put them together. And I'm willing to pay big bucks for your help. So ask yourself, are you looking to earn some extra money? I'm now actively seeking writers for articles to appear in this newsletter. And I want unique and cutting-edge articles because that is what you want to read, right? I realize this, so to get articles from outside writers that have the same level of quality, I'm going to have to pay a lot of cash to make it worth it for them. So I've come up with a compensation package where I'll pay up to $350 for good how-to articles. Are you a writer, and does that interest you? That is a lot of cash! Far more than you'll get by writing for other magazines. And with over 23,000 worldwide subscribers, if you write for the Peak-of-Flight Newsletter, you'll gain a lot of notoriety. Writing for the Peak-of-Flight Newsletter is a great way to show off your rocketry projects and your technical expertise, at the same time as helping out other rocketeers. Imagine how great you'll feel knowing that you made a difference to the hobby. If you're interested in writing, see the guidelines on our site. | |
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