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Weather at the Oct.2 Amesbury launch

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13 years 6 months ago #4578 by jhagan
Weather at the Oct.2 Amesbury launch was created by jhagan
Hi,

The NOAA say`s this about Saturday:Northwest wind between 9 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.

I have read in the forum about lost rockets at Amesbury and have seen a one drift out of sight. I have not lost a rocket yet and I don`t want to on my L1 attempt. I am sure it will happen sometime though.
So if the wind speed stay`s true to what NOAA say`s what would be the max safe elavation?
For an AMW reload H143 motor the elevation will be over 2300FT, would it be safer to postpone the attempt for more favorable wind conditions?

Thanks,

Joe Hagan

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13 years 6 months ago #4580 by billspad
Replied by billspad on topic Re:Weather at the Oct.2 Amesbury launch
Rocketmax10 wrote:

Hi,

The NOAA say`s this about Saturday:Northwest wind between 9 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.

I have read in the forum about lost rockets at Amesbury and have seen a one drift out of sight. I have not lost a rocket yet and I don`t want to on my L1 attempt. I am sure it will happen sometime though.
So if the wind speed stay`s true to what NOAA say`s what would be the max safe elavation?
For an AMW reload H143 motor the elevation will be over 2300FT, would it be safer to postpone the attempt for more favorable wind conditions?

Thanks,

Joe Hagan



It depends on which way the wind is blowing. If it\'s going the long way on the field away from the power lines you might have a shot.

Consider this. Your rocket is at 2300 feet falling at 15 fps under parachute. It\'s going to take 150 seconds to hit the ground. If I did the math right, with a 10 mph wind it\'s going to travel 15 horizontally every second. So for every foot it drops it\'s going to go a foot horizontally. I think that puts you in the parking lot if the wind is going exactly the right way.

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13 years 6 months ago #4586 by Boris Katan
Replied by Boris Katan on topic Re:Weather at the Oct.2 Amesbury launch
There is no way I would ever fly a rocket I valued to 2300 ft at Amesbury and deploy the chute at apogee.

On a windy day a flight to half that altitude with a chute at apogee will take the rocket off the field in many directions.

Please, test the waters with a high thrust G first.

Tube fins, added weight, or dual deploy are all ways to deal with altitude challenges.

Last launch, in low winds, a dual deploy flight to 1450ft and single deploy to 780ft traveled 2/3 the way across the field.

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13 years 6 months ago #4588 by HotRod Lincoln
Replied by HotRod Lincoln on topic Re:Weather at the Oct.2 Amesbury launch
Just some DATA to give food for thought:

Sept 18 Amesbury. Winds 5-8 mph highest gust 24mph (but that\'s a gust) Between 1200 and 1300hrs.
Winds where blowing twords the High-Power Lines.

My pretty basic 3\" rocket, 44oz. loaded, CTI H125 classic (love that motor).
Sim says 1779feet.

Dual deploy went wrong. I will estimate chutes out at 1200 feet.

Result? see \"lost and found\" thread.

Now if the winds were perfect and blowing the opposite direction (twords the parking area) I would have a much better chance to recover.

Just stuff to think over.
I have my fingers and toes crossed that the winds may not be that high tomorrow.
And the rain passes through...

Good Luck on the L1!
H143 Smokey....Same motor I used to L1. Sweet.

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13 years 6 months ago #4591 by bobkrech
Replied by bobkrech on topic Re:Weather at the Oct.2 Amesbury launch
The good news is that the winds for Saturday are predicted to come from the North West which is the good direction, blowing from the powerlines to the soccer fields.

The bad news is that the winds are going to be blowing a steady 10 mph and gusting to 24 mph in the morning to mid-afternoon.

The parking lot is about 2300\' SE downwind from the high power pads.

A rocket apogeeing at 1000\' will land over the brook and short of the llama pen in a 10 mph NW wind, and on the soccer fields in a 20 mph NW wind.

A rocket apogeeing at 1500\' will land in the llama pen in a 10 mph NW wind, and over the parking lot in a 20 mph NW wind.

Dual deployment recovery is recommended for high power flights over 1500\' in winds over 10 mph at Amesbury to insure an in-field recovery. Main deployment altitude should not exceed 500\' with 400\' preferred. All high power pads must be angled straight up or to the west towards the swamp. Under no circumstances may the rod be angled to the north over the spectator area.

Bob

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13 years 6 months ago #4595 by Marsfire
Replied by Marsfire on topic Re:Weather at the Oct.2 Amesbury launch
THE FOLLOWING IS MOSTLY OPINION:

The short answer to your question is yes. If you are concerned enough about the wind to ask about it then you should scrub. This is a cert attempt and you want EVERYTHING you can possibly control to be in your favor. That includes not flying if the wind feels to high to you. You will feel sooooooooo much better about not flying then you will about failing because of a strip, zipper, or no return. I scrubbed 3 times before I got a day I liked and the flight was perfect. I also think (just my opinion) 2300ft. seems really high for a Lvl. 1 cert. Even on a good day in Amesbury that\'s long walk recovery altitude. How \'bout a smaller motor? I used the H97J (B) \'cause who doesn\'t love a smoky motor B)) and flew to, maby, 800ft. The flight did everything a cert flight needs to do and the witnesses could see it at apogee. Of course if that\'s just the way you want to do it that\'s totally fine.


Andrew

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