I listed my top 5 rocket-related goals for 2020 in my last post, but I am quickly realizing that an appendix is necessary.
It’s not just that I feel the need to go into further detail. Sure, each of those goals I already listed can be (and needs to be) broken down into multiple sub-parts. For example, in transforming my backyard shed into a workshop, I need to do a couple of major things:
- clean it and haul out a bunch of junk;
- knock out parts of the wall, frame window locations with wood, and install windows for natural light;
- wire it with electricity by running conduit from the main power supply in the house;
- install new wooden countertop for work surface;
- install light fixtures;
…and so on. Each of these has sub-parts as well – you get the idea. That will be a decent sized project. But aside from my previous post, I also need to add a few extra things to my list of what I want to accomplish in 2020:
- Write an “instructable” on how to build a high power rocket. One of the reasons I got into rocketry to begin with was that I came across a really good instructable on HPR.
- Learn more about the laws and regulations governing spaceflight and rockets (manned and unmanned) and write and publish an article on this topic, maybe in a law journal. I was inspired by an article I saw on Politico recently.
- Get an amateur radio (“ham radio“) license. I’ve never really considered this until recently, but it’s becoming increasingly obvious to me that having such a license would be extremely useful when adding electronics to a rocket, since the ground station communicates with the rocket via telemetry, through radio. In fact, I’ve been looking at the TeleMetrum flight computer recently for the electronics bay in my rocket, and to legally operate a TeleMetrum flight computer system in the US, you need at least a “Technician Class” amateur radio license from the FCC.
So.. I’d better get started!
Improbable Ventures 