Liquid Rocket Airframe Recovery System

Overview

AerospaceNU is building a liquid-propellant rocket, and a reliable recovery system is what makes a high-energy vehicle reusable instead of disposable. I joined the recovery sub-team to help design the airframe structure that protects, deploys, and survives the parachute event.

What I'm doing

• Designing the airframe recovery structure on a 10-person team, balancing weight, load paths, and packing volume.
• Researching existing parachute and recovery system architectures from amateur and collegiate rocketry to inform design decisions.
• Modeling components in SolidWorks and fabricating proof-of-concept hardware using laser cutting, 3D printing, and hand fabrication.
• Running safety and functionality tests to validate that the system performs reliably under deployment loads.

What I'm learning

Recovery is the part of a rocket where structural, aerodynamic, and pyrotechnic considerations all collide. Working within a 10-person team has been a lesson in scoping a sub-system, hand-shaking with adjacent teams (airframe, avionics, propulsion), and converging on a design that everyone can build against.

Status

Active — currently in early design and prototyping. I'll update this page with photos, CAD renders, and test results as the project progresses.