Following up on the project

Well to be truthful I was really busy with the classes and completely forgot about N-Prize. That said I do have the GPS device Garmin Novi that I will be using to track the balloons while they ascent, the issues currently however is with the price tag of the tanks, they are just too expensive for me to handle currently. So I figure this project will take shape only when I get the money I need in spring 2010 for the tanks needed which will be filled with hydrogen peroxide of course. Well the idea is a rackoon concept and a small microcontroller to separate the rocket ones the balloons reach the appropriate altitude as well as to initiate ignition. Solid rockets of course are better but its just not enough impulse by them and too much weight, so I will have to use a hydrogen peroxide rocket engine.

If anyone from Seattle area would like to help me out anyway possibly, I would be glad to form a team with them =) thanks.

My current supplies:
6 military balloons
1 GPS Garmin Novi
1 PCI microcontroller
(1 hi-techy material...*secret*) =p

N-Prize chocolate

WOW. I received chocolate pieces spelling "Happy X-mas from N-Prize" woooohooo...I love them, very delicious. The founder of N-Prize send the team members the chocolates, yummy. Thank you so much =) Well it is a great way to propel space exploration, through chocolate to the stars...instead of "per astera ad astrum". hahah. lol

That said, I will be ordering a tank for the fuel for hydrogen peroxide pretty soon. Its kinda expensive though. Sux 4 me.

Qi spacecraft logistics

The way I see it, the only way to win this N-Prize is by following closely other missions of rockoon concept and high altitude balloon launches and after that go as simple as possible, utilizing the least number of components required...

Balloons arrive...yay

Seems like the balloons I ordered online for my rockoon concept have arrived, the balloons are old military *junk* but hey they can still float, not as high as the new ones. I ordered these military balloons, six of them and hopefully they perform the task of not popping when filled with helium and perhaps getting higher than 30k feet. Alright than. But the plan is of course is to buy much better newer balloons from a reliable company like Totex. 

My first blog entry. Wohooo! =)

Today on November 13 of year 2008, the Qi Spacecraft will be registering for the N-Prize competition, how amazing is that?! Yay!!! The N-Prize as some of you may know of it, is a competition sort of like X-Prize Competition were SpaceShipOne from ScaledComposites has aced the space frontier, except the N-Prize is simplier and thus less demanding challenge...but neverthless a competition that is hard to come by these days. Especially for a heart-broken student like me, boy... like I said N-Prize is a competition and the challenge is to put a spacecraft into orbit around Earth for 9 orbits total or more at altitude of 100km or higher, quite demanding...I say. But there is a catch, the N-Prize specifies that the whole venture of engineering spacecraft + rocket must be less than $2000, which is where the troubles arise. Ay.