Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Starchaser Plans Test Drop

Posted by michael on 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.

22 of 149 comments (clear)

  1. TV Land? by blackmonday · · Score: 4, Funny

    Why do I have the sudden longing to watch a McGyver re-run?

    1. Re:TV Land? by FyRE666 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      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.

      --
      Code, Hardware, stuff like that.
  2. Science lovers by mao+che+minh · · Score: 4, Funny
    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.

    1. Re:Science lovers by sprouty76 · · Score: 3, Insightful
      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...

      --

      No, I don't want a free iPod

    2. Re:Science lovers by Theodore+Logan · · Score: 3, Insightful

      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.

      --

      "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance" - Derek Bok

  3. In the words of Gus Grissom... by HotNeedleOfInquiry · · Score: 4, Funny
    "Spam in a can"

    --
    "Eve of Destruction", it's not just for old hippies anymore...
  4. "Salvage One"? by Kevin+Burtch · · Score: 3, Interesting


    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).

    --
    - Preferences: Solaris 10 (servers), Ubuntu (desktops), Solaris 11 (personal servers) -
  5. YESS!! by kingkade · · Score: 5, Funny

    This one is due to undergo a test descent (with Steve inside) in Arizona.

    i got dibs on his stereo and leather jacket.

    --
    why run from Vincenzo?
    1. Re:YESS!! by ArsonSmith · · Score: 3, Funny

      You make it sound difficult or something. I mean it's not rocket science.

      --
      Paying taxes to buy civilization is like paying a hooker to buy love.
    2. Re:YESS!! by Uller-RM · · Score: 3, Interesting

      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.

  6. Cement mixer and some old joysticks by raskchanky · · Score: 5, Funny

    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.

  7. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  8. cement mixer? by cpeterso · · Score: 4, Informative


    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."

    --
    cpeterso
  9. You think this sounds a bit amatuerish... by sprouty76 · · Score: 5, Interesting
    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 (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.

    --

    No, I don't want a free iPod

  10. Bennet's early "tests" were HP model rocket flight by StefanJ · · Score: 4, Interesting

    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

  11. He's not my favorite amateur rocketman! by Theodore+Logan · · Score: 3, Informative

    I assume he could be, but up to now I hadn't even heard of him. I thought everybody's favorite was Brian Walker.

    --

    "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance" - Derek Bok

  12. Re:Oh boy... by orius_khan · · Score: 3, Funny

    BBC's site is already under big load with that war stuff now with slashdot I don't know if there severs can take it.

    Yeah, good thinking. You better mirror the story for them here on Slashdot... Those little independent newspaper sites don't stand a chance against the onslaught of /.'ers...

    --
    Sometimes the best solution to morale problems is just to fire all the unhappy people.
  13. Why wait till the last minute? by countach · · Score: 4, Funny


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

  14. Hmmm... sounds familiar by jonfromspace · · Score: 4, Funny

    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!

    --
    I am become Troll, destroyer of threads
  15. Illudium Pew-36 Explosive Space Modulator by Esion+Modnar · · Score: 3, Funny

    Where was the boom? There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering Kaboom!

    --

    They say the first thing to go is your penis. Well, it's either that or your brain. I forget which...
  16. He's a brave, foolish man by Zerbey · · Score: 3, Insightful

    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!

  17. Re:this guy is a moronic blowhard by Pyromage · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "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.