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Space

Starchaser Plans Test Drop 149

Posted by michael from the egg-drop-soup dept.
cwalkden writes "Everybody's favourite amateur rocketman, Steve Bennett has unveiled his new space capsule that he hopes will get him one step closer to the edge of space. This one is due to undergo a test descent (with Steve inside) in Arizona. Earlier versions of Steve's capsules included one made with a cement mixer and some old joysticks." Our previous story was in 2001.
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Starchaser Plans Test Drop More

Starchaser Plans Test Drop

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  • TV Land? (Score:4, Funny)

    by blackmonday ( 607916 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:47PM (#5665655) Homepage
    Why do I have the sudden longing to watch a McGyver re-run?

    • Re:TV Land? (Score:5, Interesting)

      by FyRE666 ( 263011 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @09:52PM (#5666289) Homepage
      From the previous BBC article (concerns over safety):

      BBC News Online put these criticisms to Steve Bennett. He responded: "We are not planning any tests such as wind tunnel or vibration tests before we launch it. That is what the test flight is for."
      Man this guy has serious balls ;-)

      On a related note; there was a programme along the lines of ScrapHeap that aired a while back in the UK where 3 teams from the UK, USA and France (I think) were given the task of building aircraft with the eventual goal of competing for maximum distance, and controllability (they had to land on a line). The caveat was that only tools and materials from the Wright brother's era were allowed to build the craft.

      Anyway, come the day, the French and US teams had based their craft upon proven designs, whereas the UK entry was just made up out of thin air so nobody knew quite what would happen! The teams took it in turns to test; the French pilot got his plane rolling and practiced a few hops a few feet in the air. The US team did something similar, but with a little more height, and damaged their craft a bit.

      Now the UK team went for their "test run". The pilot gave it full throttle and launched himself into orbit (one of the ground crew mentioned the pilot was "a bit of a nutter") - the thing was hundred of feet up, the pilot - big shit-eating grin plastered across his face was throwing it around the sky for several minutes before making a perfect landing in front of the astonished opponents! It was so utterly irresponsible, but cool at the same time - not testing, just give it some welly and see what happens. Brilliant!

      Obviously the UK entry won pretty convincingly in the real flight.
    • Actually I thought more of the Crichton book and movie The Andromeda Strain. That was a space capsule returning from the upper atmosphere over Arizona after collecting all sorts of nice extraterrestrial germs. In the novel the capsule wasn't manned, but it was interesting to see that government concerns over biological weapons are nothing new. I just read this book a month ago, so it came to mind. Off topic, but this was one of Crichton's better novels, narrated in a documentary, straight forward style

  • Science lovers (Score:5, Funny)

    by mao che minh ( 611166 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:48PM (#5665661) Journal
    It is amazing how passionate some people are about science (especially astronomy). It takes a brave and inquisitive person to take the time to not only develop such a vessel, but to also test it.

    I earnestly wanted to share in this man's interest, but that "free underwear vouchers" ad in the right hand column got me......distracted. Figleaves.com baby.

    • Re:Science lovers (Score:3, Insightful)

      by sprouty76 ( 523155 )
      To be fair, this isn't really astronomy - astronomy is studying space and the objects in it, especially visible ones.

      What Steve is doing is more like rocket science, albeit at a fairly amateur level.

      OT, I remember when he had a real (early) starchaser rocket above the bar in a place here in Manchester. Now we have to make do with a full size replica...

    • Re:Science lovers (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Zeinfeld ( 263942 )
      It takes a brave and inquisitive person to take the time to not only develop such a vessel, but to also test it.

      Brave, inquisitive and amazingly reckless.

      Its a bit like the invention of bungee jumping, base jumping etc. exactly what would the loss to humanity be if people had not invented them?

      Apart from a new way for millionaires to go for thrill rides there does not appear to be a major payoff here.

      I would be much more interested in a cheap way to stick a bot on the moon or on mars.

      • Re:Science lovers (Score:4, Insightful)

        by Theodore Logan ( 139352 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @08:41PM (#5665976)
        Its a bit like the invention of bungee jumping, base jumping etc. exactly what would the loss to humanity be if people had not invented them?

        Apart from a new way for millionaires to go for thrill rides there does not appear to be a major payoff here.

        Oh, but there is! Many people believe NASA has become too buerocratic and ineffective. While I do not know enough of NASA's inner working to determine whether the American people get good value for money or not, it is not unreasonable to assume that they don't. When the space race began NASA was a small company that all of a sudden was given an almost unlimited budget. It growed to fast - of course there's going to be some friction.

        What I'm getting at is that projects of this sort may wake people up. Maybe NASA isn't the only way of getting into space. Maybe there are other ways - better ways. We'll never know until we try, that's all.
      • I would be much more interested in a cheap way to stick a bot on the moon or on mars.

        Remember that the most costly part of a satellite launch happens before we get into what we would call space (as opposed to just really really high in the atmosphere). If this guy can build a better/cheaper/easier way to get into space, then its just a matter of patience, good aim, and a little luck.
    • You know, it also takes a great deal of research, study, and experience. I wonder if he even used formulas to calculate how much rocket power he would need to accomplish this. What about saftey systems? Tests? I think there are way too many factors that he isn't thinking about. From reading the article, he seems over confident.
    • It is amazing how passionate some people are about science (especially astronomy). It takes a brave and inquisitive person to take the time to not only develop such a vessel, but to also test it.

      I wonder if this guy filled out his organ donor card... He has got more than his fair share of balls and it would be a shame to waste em when some poor /.er could use em! :)

      Right, wrong, irrelevent. What is, is.

  • In the words of Gus Grissom... (Score:5, Funny)

    by HotNeedleOfInquiry ( 598897 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:50PM (#5665672)
    "Spam in a can"

  • The article says He will have an extra parachute strapped to his back and a large knife inside the capsule - just in case he has to get out in a hurry. This sure sounds like Jackass II or Fear Factor on steroids to me :))
    • So I expect a gang of squirrels to beat him up if they can get past the Gaurdian Angels in charge of security :)

      (That was an allusion to Trigger Happy TV, the only British show worth watching outside of Junkyard Wars.)

  • "Salvage One"? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Kevin Burtch ( 13372 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:53PM (#5665682)

    I think that was the name... anyone else remember that TV series with the home-made rocket where the capsule was made out of a cement truck's mixer?

    I think their logo was a vulture... the whole idea was they made money by salvaging space junk (or something like that, I was a kid).

  • YESS!! (Score:5, Funny)

    by kingkade ( 584184 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:56PM (#5665705)
    This one is due to undergo a test descent (with Steve inside) in Arizona.

    i got dibs on his stereo and leather jacket.

    • Re:YESS!! (Score:4, Funny)

      by ArsonSmith ( 13997 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @08:35PM (#5665927) Journal
      You make it sound difficult or something. I mean it's not rocket science.

      • Seriously, materials science, manufacturing techniques and computers have come such a long way since we first put people into space it's gotta be easier than it was the first time.

        By the way, anybody know where that aphorism come from? I think I saw it first in "Blue Mars", but I don't know whether it's original.

    • Re:YESS!! (Score:3, Insightful)

      by isorox ( 205688 )
      Y'know, its sad that people are so unimpreessed and negative about this sort of thing. I wonder what you would have said 100 years ago when a couple of madmem tried flying, in the air!
      • They never would have heard about it, because they wouldn't have had access to slashdot. Furthermore, you wouldn't have had to put up with them, because you wouldn't have had access to slashdot. Someone tell me how the internet is enriching our lives again...
      • w, its sad that people are so unimpreessed and negative about this sort of thing. I wonder what you would have said 100 years ago when a couple of madmen tried flying, in the air!

        There's little doubt that he will survive 12 seconds. What happens after that is the concern. And Orville had the tiny advantage of only being three feet off the ground [killdevilhills.com] when his machine stopped flying. Old RM's going to be slightly higher than that, and if things go wrong he will no longer be Rocket Man, but rather Pancake Man, o

        • How many people died on Columbus' first voyage to america? How many people died on the voyages to the south pole? How many peopel have died on Everest?

          • Re:YESS!! (Score:4, Interesting)

            by Uller-RM ( 65231 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @11:36PM (#5666724) Homepage
            Bad comparisons. Here's a better one.

            The year is 1650. We've already made a couple of voyages to the new colonies. Everyone says that if you want to go there on your own, you need to spend a lot of money: building a rather large ship with multiple masts, training a crew of sailors to operate it, filling it with provisions for the journey, etc. Even if you plan ahead and take every precaution, it's still a perilous journey.

            Steve Bennett claims that he can get to America on a tiny single-mast vessel made out of cheap wood by himself. If people point out the problems in this -- catching enough wind to move, rowing when there's no wind, lack of room for food, etc. he blows them off as saying that they're afraid of him accomplishing the impossible.

            In all likelihood, he's going to end up drowning in the Pacific.

            I mean, seriously. The man has never had any astronaut training, never been subjected to high Gs, and his last press frenzy involves him strapping a bunch of rockets to a converted cement mixer and launching himself into the air. That's nearly 12 Gs of acceleration -- we feed high-oxygen air to fighter pilots who experience 3 or 4 Gs at best to keep them from blacking out.
            • The year is 1650. We've already made a couple of voyages to the new colonies....Steve Bennett claims that he can get to America on a tiny single-mast vessel made out of cheap wood by himself...In all likelihood, he's going to end up drowning in the Pacific.


              Either you meant to say "Atlantic", or you are predicting that Steve will reach mars. ;-)
            • Well, Thor Heyerdahl showed us that it is indeed possible to get to America on a tiny single-mast vessel made out of not even cheap wood but reed.

  • Cement mixer and some old joysticks (Score:5, Funny)

    by raskchanky ( 132187 ) <raskchanky@yah o o . com> on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:57PM (#5665707)
    Sweet! Nothing inspires confidence in your homemade spacecraft like listing the garage-sale parts it was built from. I'm betting he's got a few toilet paper tubes in there somewhere too, most likely as part of the exhaust system.
    • "" Sweet! Nothing inspires confidence in your homemade spacecraft like listing the garage-sale parts it was built from. I'm betting he's got a few toilet paper tubes in there somewhere too, most likely as part of the exhaust system.""

      true, but hey it's what he wants to do. Some people are born to be a Darwin award winner, others work at it real hard. I think he is the latter. The question is who will get first post submitting this one to the awards people.
    • Hey, a used sock and some duct tape kept the Apollo 13 crew breathing for a few days.
    • toilet paper tubes in there somewhere too, most likely as part of the exhaust system

      Toilet paper tubes as an exaust system?!?!? Why the hell didn't I think of that ::bashes head against wall::

      NOW I can finish my own rocket! Thanks!
    • though if you follow the link what it actually says is "resembles a converted cement mixer", it's not actually made from one.

  • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:57PM (#5665710)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • cement mixer? (Score:5, Informative)

    by cpeterso ( 19082 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @07:57PM (#5665715) Homepage

    The article says that his rocket resembles a cement mixer, not that it actually was a cement mixer.

    "But other rocket experts are worried, not least because the Thunderbird capsule resembles a converted cement mixer, containing sheets of hardboard and a few computer joysticks."
    • I wonder if he is going to run a foul of the Homeland security act.
  • I remember when he had one of his real unmanned rockets displayed in a bar in Manchester, then the lorry to transport it got delayed, so it had to be carried on foot through the city centre!

    From http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/ewm/newsletter/e wm302.html [manchesteronline.co.uk] (near the bottom):

    IMAGINE THE SPACE SHUTTLE BEING CARRIED by a team of men through the streets of New York. Well Hyde rocket man Steve Bennett had to have his team of assistants carry his rocket Starchaser 3a through the streets of Manchester. It had been on show at the Fab cafe theme bar, Portland St, and should have been taken to Salford University for a lecture, but the lorry booked to carry it was delayed, so it had to be transported using leg and shoulder power! Salford University lecturer Steve hopes to make it big through his rocket-building hobby-turned-business, and predicts a glowing future for space travel. Who knows, maybe in a few years time we'll be blasting off in one of Steve's rockets from Ringway to Mars on a late booking.

    Anyway, he's been a local minor celebrity for years now, all the best to him.

  • Bennet's early "tests" were HP model rocket flight (Score:5, Interesting)

    by StefanJ ( 88986 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @08:09PM (#5665791) Homepage Journal
    The High Power rocketry community is fairly amused by Bennet.

    A lot of his early tests, some of which were filmed for an X Prize documentary, appeared to be flights of a big model rocket, powered by commercially available rocket motors.

    Nothing wrong with that, but you can't really learn anything of value by doing this that would be applicable in making a rocket capable of boosting a capsule to office.

    I would be more impressed to see Bennet testing liquid fuel rocket motors. Amatuers on this side of the pond (e.g., the Pacific Rocket Society) have been doing this for YEARS without coming up with a "man rated" motor.

    Stefan

    • Nope, nothing of value, save giving Bennet the adventure of the life time, and moving it from the theoretical "Yeah, it probably might work," to "Jesus the bastisge did it".

      Which I think is what he's actually after. Innovation is cool, but this guy is going into space, and I probably won't.

      • No, the parents point is that there was no question of whether it would work, others have "tested" similar rockets lot's of times.

        This guy is not going into space. This guy is getting as much publicity as possible for planning to go into space. He's showing the press impressive looking "test launches" using rockets well known both to work, and to be incapable of lifting a person into space.
    • Sorry, that should have been "boosting a capsule to ORBIT." Not office. A huge cluster of big model rocket motors might be enough to lob the capsule into the side of an office building, however.

      Solid fuel won't get any reasonably sized manned capsule into orbit. Suborbital, maybe.

      [M(f)+M(0) / M(0)] = e^(Vd/Vex)

  • steve bennett (Score:1, Insightful)

    by paul_cairney ( 209501 )
    I wonder if he made the capsule out of tate and lyle sugar...

    oh and good one about the centrifuge training, yet more lies from possibly the worst ambassador to the UK amateur rocketry community, with his lies and relentless media whoring damaging the hard work put in by many groups such as Mars [mars.org.uk] and Aspire Space [aspirespace.org.uk].
  • If ever I had the preminision to see it coming... this would be it.

    • Re:Darwin canidate (Score:2, Insightful)

      by 2short ( 466733 )
      Sadly, I don't think he will ever earn the darwin award. He's after the publicity of "planning" to launch into space. He's clearly smart enough to not try more than talking about it.
  • That's evolution for ya! ;) j/k

    I hope he succeeds. This will be one giant leap for commercial space flight.. I can't wait to see that pearly blue from orbit!

  • Go Russia (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Glad to see russia is back in the space game

  • this guy is a moronic blowhard (Score:3, Troll)

    by anonymous loser ( 58627 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @08:21PM (#5665857)
    I think this comment from the linked article sums it up best:

    John Bonsor, of Starr, a Scottish rocketry group is puzzled. "I don't understand what is happening. He has been using cheap rockets, has a mixed bag of success and disaster and has achieved less than many others have working from their garage. It is ridiculous to claim that he leads the field, except in the number of crashes."

    Combined with his obvious propensity to make false statements (e.g. saying he was sponsored by NASA) I think we can only hope he wins the Darwin award with style, if he actually launches.

    • Nice, actually hoping he dies.

      Maybe acknowledging that he stands little chance but wishing him well would be more appropriate?

    • Re:this guy is a moronic blowhard (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Pyromage ( 19360 ) on Saturday April 05, 2003 @12:31AM (#5666948) Homepage
      "Thomas edison worked on the problem of designing a filament for an electric light bulb for nearly two years. An issastant once asked him how he could keep trying after failing so many times. Edison didn't understand the question. In his mind, he hadn't failed at all. He is supposed to have replied, "What failure? I know thousands of things that do not work."

      From http://www.gamasutra.com/features/19991222/mcconne l_02.htm

      Insult him for being stupid. Insult him for using cheap rockets. But don't insult the man for trying. Don't knock him because he hasn't succeeded. Don't berate him for not being the best.

      You may hate him for statements he makes, but at least he tries. Most people I know haven't the spine to do anything requiring half the courage as what he's trying. I may not respect him for what he chooses to attempt, but I respect his courage, and that he does attempt it.

  • He's not my favorite amateur rocketman! (Score:4, Informative)

    by Theodore Logan ( 139352 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @08:22PM (#5665860)
    I assume he could be, but up to now I hadn't even heard of him. I thought everybody's favorite was Brian Walker [rocketguy.com].
  • And I am going to have a big knife just in case the parachute tangles.

    I hope he secures the knife well in the cockpit. After all, we wouldn't want it to suddenly fly loose and cause him bodily harm or even death.
  • He confirmed that it was his intention for the Nova capsule to be launched on a 3,050-metre (10,000-ft) shake-down mission by a cluster of commercially available rocket motors all strapped together.

    Estes stock is going to shoot through the roof with this news! Pun intended :)
    • IIRC, Estes is privately owned. It's the largest employer in the very small town of Penrose, Colorado (where I used to live).

      They've got the market cornered on model rockets, but I think the rockets mentioned in this story are in a different class. I don't think they have anything with a 6 second burn time, as the story mentioned.

  • Why wait till the last minute? (Score:5, Funny)

    by countach ( 534280 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @08:35PM (#5665924)

    Give him a Darwin award now, while he's still alive to enjoy it!

  • Hmmm... sounds familiar (Score:5, Funny)

    by jonfromspace ( 179394 ) <jonwilkins@@@gmail...com> on Friday April 04, 2003 @08:36PM (#5665932)
    Dot Com Boom:
    Step 1: Build Website

    Step 2: ??????

    Step 3: Profit!

    Upcoming Space Boom:
    Step 1: Build Homemade Rocket

    Step 2: ??????

    Step 3: Death!
  • Darwin Awards...

    Guys like this prove that the awards don't descriminate for even rocket scientists.
  • Sounds like a darwin award is coming.

    I can imagine him saying:
    "no planning, no testing, I put my life on the line because I believe in my product."

    Not the way to get investment $$.

  • Illudium Pew-36 Explosive Space Modulator (Score:3, Funny)

    by Esion Modnar ( 632431 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @09:55PM (#5666301)
    Where was the boom? There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering Kaboom!

  • He's a brave, foolish man (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Zerbey ( 15536 ) on Friday April 04, 2003 @10:03PM (#5666334) Homepage Journal
    You've got to hand it to Steve, he's been told by countless critics that if he tries to launch into space he'll die trying but he presses on regardless.

    I truly hope he does make it and proove the critics wrong! Good luck to him, he's one of a dying (no pun intended) breed of true pioneers!

  • Good luck, and good-bye (Score:1, Interesting)

    by Hao Wu ( 652581 )
    Nice guy. Too bad he's dooming himself to a hopeless death by crashing in a firey, ill-conceived life's dream of his.

    Not a bad way to go really!

  • there once was a man-made rocket
    that was built with funds out of pocket
    three were shot into space
    and vanished without trace
    the hatch they forgot to lock it

    Michael.
  • The article states that next, he's building a capsule with 3 seats to attempt the shot into space. Can someone take a guess at who's gonna be crazy enough to want to blow up with that nut?

    BTW, in Soviet Russia, the space program builds YOU, and that's the way it ought to be.

    • Can someone take a guess at who's gonna be crazy enough to want to blow up with that nut?

      I'd give it a go, what good is life if you don't expand your horizions a little? (pun only partially intended)

      The greatest losses in your life will come from chances you never took. Course, I'd make sure my life insurance covered this and was paid up.

  • Not my favorite! (Score:3, Insightful)

    by HisMother ( 413313 ) on Saturday April 05, 2003 @02:01AM (#5667332)
    Steve Bennett isn't my favorite Amateur Rocketman -- John Carmack is!
  • while this is 'just' a manned drop test, the actual launch will get him not higher than 30k feet. That's not a space flight. However, I wish him all the best, for despite al the back seat criticising goin on, he's the one with a dream. just hope he'll be successful, and some big money guys starts dreaming like him, give him lots of money to go boldly where no private company has gone before. If we have to wait for the NASA people we'll be earthbound till eternity. they lost their vision, Steve's got THE RIG

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