Record Launch Attempt for Model Saturn V Rocket

By Nancy Atkinson - April 23, 2009 at 4:40 PM UTC | Space Exploration
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[/caption] If you are interested in model rocketry, take a look at this. One man hopes to make a world record by launching a 36-foot (10.9-meter) tall Saturn V model rocket. Steve Eves has been working for two years on building the rocket, and he's counting down to this Saturday, April 25 when the launch is planned. The launch pad is on a farmer's field near Price, Maryland, about 50 miles (80 km) east of Baltimore. The model is 1:10 scale of the original Saturn V rocket.

According to an article on the DC Space News Examiner, the rocket weighs over 1,600 pounds (725 kg), and will be powered by a massive array of nine engines: eight 13,000ns N-Class motors and one 77,000ns P-Class motor. The estimated peak altitude of the flight is 4,000 feet (1,219 meters) . Just like the original Saturn v, nothing of this scale has ever been attempted in model rocketry. The model Saturn V will be a world record attempt for the largest amateur rocket to ever be launched.

ROCKETS Magazine and The Maryland Delaware Rocketry Association (MDRA) are supporting the event, to mark the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon mission in 1969. Word has it that several astronauts, including Alan Bean, the fourth man to walk on the moon, have signed the rocket.

Best of luck to Steve Eves!

Source: DC Space Examiner

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson is a space journalist and author with a passion for telling the stories of people involved in space exploration and astronomy. She is currently retired from daily writing, but worked at Universe Today for 20 years as a writer and editor. She also contributed articles to The Planetary Society, Ad Astra (National Space Society), New Scientist and many other online outlets.

Her 2019 book, "Eight Years to the Moon: The History of the Apollo Missions,” shares the untold stories of engineers and scientists who worked behind the scenes to make the Apollo program so successful, despite the daunting odds against it. Her first book “Incredible Stories From Space: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Missions Changing Our View of the Cosmos” (2016) tells the stories of 37 scientists and engineers that work on several current NASA robotic missions to explore the solar system and beyond.

Nancy is also a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador, and through this program, she has the opportunity to share her passion of space and astronomy with children and adults through presentations and programs. Nancy's personal website is nancyatkinson.com