KCNSC Sponsors Rocketry Competitions
Earlier this spring, 17 student teams from universities across eight states gathered at the KLOUDBusters “Rocket Pasture” launch site South of Argonia, KS to compete in the 2021 Argonia Cup. Their objective? To launch a rocket containing a golf ball payload 8,000 feet above ground and recover it safely in “re-flyable condition.”
Hosted by KLOUDBusters and Tripoli Rocketry Association, Inc., the Argonia Cup is a rocketry competition that challenges “teams of collegiate students to design,
construct, and execute a multi-disciplined rocketry project utilizing innovative engineering and technology concepts.” The three teams whose rockets land closest to the target landing spot split the cash prize pool provided by sponsorships from various companies in related industries, including the Kansas City National Security Campus (KCNSC).
Beyond providing a $1,000 sponsorship, KCNSC worked with Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) to fly a Research and Sounding Rockets (RASR) payload. Lead Electrical Engineer Tim Navickas and Electrical Products Centers of Excellence Leader Dan Krueger, attended the event to support the RASR efforts and serve as KCNSC ambassadors.
In June, KCNSC also provided a $5,000 sponsorship to the 2021 Spaceport America Cup, a rocketry competition, held virtually this year due to COVID-19 limitations, where students present their designs for solid, liquid and hybrid rockets that target altitudes of 10,00.
Missouri S&T students Davin Schmied (left) and Trevor Aldenberg (right) attended the Argonia Cup as part of the Missouri S&T Rocket Design Team.
Supporting competitions such as the Argonia Cup and Spaceport America Cup helps build stronger relationships with university partners, attract new talent to KCNSC and provide valuable opportunities to evaluate new technologies in flight environments. To date, KCNSC has launched more than 25 RASR flights at the Rocket Pasture in collaboration with Missouri S&T, Oklahoma State University and the University of Oklahoma.
