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Newport's Rocketry Activity Photos

Proteus II (Click for details)
         
 
Proteus II just after takeoff and on it's way up to 6,707 feet AGL for a perfect Level 2 certification flight.
  Another shot of the Proteus, probably traveling at over 300 mph.
Read Proteus 3 Narrative   Proteus II Level 2 flight at6,707 feet   Proteus traveling over 300 mph
  e   e  
This is the Proteus I taking off from the Higgs Dairy farm during an MDRA event on a Cesaroni H-143 motor. While the ejection delay was a little too long, it made it up to about 3,000 feet AGL.  
 
The vehicle under power and traveling at over 500 mph. During these later flights, I eliminated the drogue parachute as unnecessary and to help reduce downrange drift at altitude. Even so, the 5 lb. rocket still drifted about 1/3 mile away from the launch pad. Another successful flight on the Cesaroni J-285 reload and the rocket reached 6,876 feet AGL.
Proteus I lifts off at Higgs Dairy farm   Read Proteus 3 Narrative   Traveling at over 500 mph
         
 
 
The Proteus II on the B rack at the Higgs Dairy farm loaded with a Cesaroni J-285 motor just before my Level 2 certification flight.
Read Proteus 3 Narrative   Curt outstanding in his field   Proteus II (Click for details)
         
 
 
Proteus II on its second flight at a later MDRA event. Jerry O'Sullivan's N-powered two stage design is in the background. This rocket has turned out to be a real screamer and lifts off very fast.
Read Proteus 3 Narrative   Read Proteus 3 Narrative   Proteus II (Click for details)
         
The Proteus II after landing way too close to a very wide and deep irrigation ditch. Once both recovery systems are deployed, the overall length of the package (including the ½" kevlar bridle) is almost 40 feet long.  
 
While I repaired the Viper, it was damaged again on its sixth flight when the recovery system piston got fouled on the kevlar bridle, causing the booster and payload sections to smash into each other at altitude, ripping off two fins. After that, I elected to go with all fiberglass construction and this image shows what I call the Proteus I rocket, which still uses motor ejection for the main PML parachute. This rocket used the fins and nose cone from the old Viper.
Proteus II (Click for details)       Proteus-1 (Click for details)
         
The first high-powered rocket I built was a Missile Works Viper scale sounding rocket kit, designed to fly on G and H class motors. This is how the Viper looked following its third flight on a Cesaroni H-143 motor when the aft nozzle seal failed at over 200 mph. The kevlar shock cord trashed the whole side of the phenolic airframe.
The first high-powered rocket I built was a Missile Works Viper scale
sounding rocket kit, designed to fly on G and H class motors.

Copyright © 2004 Curt Newport
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