Subteam Leads
Year | Lead |
|---|---|
| 2015 Fall - 2017 Spring | Zach B. |
| Fall 2017 | Sam A. |
Overview
"Propulsion" refers to the system that provides the systems necessary to accelerate the vehicle. It encompasses both solid and liquid rocket propellant design and operation.
MIT Rocket Team operates both commercial and custom propulsion systems. The development of our in-house propulsion started in the fall of 2015 with an extensive review of local, federal, and University regulations on making rocket motors. Over the summer of 2016 several students conducted research on Project Firefly. Project Firefly graciously allowed us to develop our fuel in tandem with their research. We gained access to their test facilities in exchange for access to our mixing facilities and storage depots. This first propellant formulation was called Xaphan Blue.
In the fall of 2017 as part of Project Hermes the propulsion team began a series of improvements to the custom solid formulation, now dubbed "Xaphan White." This propellant is expected to be higher performance, cheaper, and easier to produce.
Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS)
COTS motors are proven systems, purchased from reputable vendors. They can be flown at all launches with a suitable waiver. Find out more about them here.
Custom Propulsion Systems
Recently the team has begun to pursue custom propulsion systems. These are either Liquid or Solid propellant based.
Combustion Chronicles