ANSWERS: 6
  • This question is somewhat vague. It is possible for an object to orbit the earth at any height. So long as the gravitational acceleration of the rocket is equal to the square of the velocity divided by the distance of the rocket from the center of the earth, the rocket will orbit the earth. The closer the rocket is to the earth, the faster it needs to go in order to fall into an orbit. I assume by asking if the rocket can 'reach orbit' that you are really asking if it can make it into outer space. Another grey area is exactly what is meant by 'model rocket.' I will assume that you mean something relatively small, like a toy, and thus for the sake of this answer I will limit the mass of the rocket to 10 kg ( about 22 pounds. Note that this is still large - it's just an approximation and you'll see that it really doesn't matter. ) In order for an object to reach outer space, it must reach what is called 'escape velocity.' The escape velocity of the Earth is 11,200 m/s (about 25,000 mph). An expensive model rocket engine delivers an impulse of about 100 Newton-seconds. We need to impart an impulse of (11,200 m/s * 10 kg ) = 112,000 Newton seconds to our rocket if it is to escape the pull of earth's gravity. - so we would need 1,120 of these engines if we were to get our rocket into space. Each engine weighs around 0.1 kg, so 1,120 engines would way 112 kg - around 250 pounds. That's way over 10 kg limit we set on the size of our rocket. So, no, it's not possible. If you want to get going that fast without your fuel weighing you down, you can't do it using powered fuels like model rockets - you're going to need some compressed liquid oxygen.
  • The real answer is no At the present time amatuer rocket technology is not capable of reaching orbit. Advanced groups of amatuers (Graduates engineers,chemists, software specialists) have their rockets at about 80,000 feet. They will go higher. Some NASA engineers (private ventures)are close to the mark using the technology the got at NASA and a whole lot of personal genious.. ) These are not model rockets. They have more computer technology than on the nasa moon flight Hey, but what do I know
  • I think once you've gotten into the technology needed to get a rocket to go that high, and that maneuverable, it would no longer be considered model rocketry. It would be considered a space program by then.
  • If by "model" rocket, you mean one that has been created by someone other than a government or a company, rather by a private citizen just for fun, then yes. Granted, it would be exceedingly expensive, but the technology is available, and if money is not an issue then there is no reason why the technology couldn't be implemented by a group assembled by a private citizen just for the hell of it.
  • Yes. Stick it onto a real rocket. (use V. good glue!).
  • No. If you want to use solid fuel as a propellant, you would need a huge booster, which would disqualify the rocket as a model rocket. Look at the size of the solid fuel boosters on the Space Shuttle. They are huge, and they burn for only two minutes after liftoff, then fall back to earth where they are recovered. A private citizen might be able to put a rocket in orbit, but such an endeavor would be enormously expensive. The problem is that damn gravity!

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