Canon EOS 5D
ƒ/6.3
400 mm
1/5,000
640

The top half of this rocket blew off as it was accelerating, a sure sign of a motor failure. Then it returned like a meteor to Earth.

I kept the motor drive going on full telephoto to capture the sequence. Here are a sequence of four frames to get the sense of it.

Since this is a weekend of experimental rocketry, with home built body and motor designs, there were large number of spectacular failures.

Another complication: the Black Rock Desert had some heavy dust storms, and as we build our motors outdoors, the fine dust can get on the o-rings as we are lubricating them. This can compromise the seals, which rupture as the motors burn at high pressure.

(next frame)

5 responses to “Coming In Hot – 1”

  1. benjiman Avatar
    benjiman

    end of service life

    Reply
  2. DNSF David Newman Avatar
    DNSF David Newman

    You turned this spectacular failure into a fine photo.

    Have you seen the scene at the end of the movie Koyaanisquatsi?

    http://www.philipglass.com/html/recordings/koyaanisqatsi-1983.html

    Reply
  3. !fatima Avatar
    !fatima

    its certainly burning on the wrong side 🙂 cool shot

    Reply
  4. Vox Sciurorum Avatar
    Vox Sciurorum

    "This can compromise the seals, which rupture as the motors burn at high pressure."

    So you’re saying your rockets are as good as NASA’s.

    (Saying that reminds me of watching China Syndrome with a group of college students in 1986. We all laughed when the nuclear guy boasted that the plant’s quality control was second only to NASA’s. The movie was made in the 1970s when that was a more impressive claim.)

    Reply
  5. Happy Tinfoil Cat Avatar
    Happy Tinfoil Cat

    @benjiman LMAO

    That’s the first rocket I’ve seen go in reverse.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *