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K. Adlington

Level 2 Rocketry

The step up from Level 1: designing and building higher-performance rockets from scratch, and taking them from simulation through to recovery.

UC Aerospace rocketry programme · Composite airframes and dual-stage recovery

Role
UC Aerospace member — Rocketry Program
Timeframe
Following Level 1

Level 2 Rocketry built directly on the Level 1 foundation. I progressed to designing and building higher-performance rockets from scratch, which meant working through the full rocket design process — flight simulation, dual-stage recovery systems, and the construction to match.

A key part of the programme involved composite materials, fibreglass and carbon fibre, used to fabricate strong, lightweight airframes. I gained practical skills in material selection, layering technique and structural assembly, so the rockets could withstand launch and flight stresses.

The Level 2 airframe unpainted, standing against a spray booth door. The bare fibreglass body tube runs the full height of the frame up to a long tapered metallic nose cone, with four swept fins bonded at the base.
Figure 40:Unpainted fibreglass, Level 2
The Level 2 rocket recovered in a grass paddock after flight. The orange body tube lies intact with its fins attached, the separated nose-cone section a short distance away, and the red and white parachute laid out beyond it, still joined by shock cord.
Figure 41:Recovered Level 2 rocket

The programme also covered integrating avionics systems and recovery mechanisms into the rockets, with dual-stage parachutes carrying the descent, the arrangement the programme relied on for safety and reliability during flight.

Technologies

Composite Layup (Fibreglass & Carbon Fibre)Dual-Stage Recovery SystemsFlight SimulationStructural Assembly

Key outcomes

Added composite airframe construction and dual-stage recovery to the Level 1 foundation, building fibreglass and carbon-fibre rockets designed to survive real launch and flight loads.