Rocket Propulsion Elements

I have had this book ever since junior year of high school, but have never been able to just sit down and read it through and through. (You see, in high school, there was a lot of math and science background that I was missing in order to even understand it!). Well, during Christmas break I decided very determinedly that I would read the whole thing.


Over break.

While that did not work out as planned (since I got sick and stopped reading), I have now picked up where I left off, at Chapter 4.

I've been learning SO much! I had already thought of myself as an expert in Rocket Science, but after reading this book I really will be.

Specifically what this book has taught me is about how liquid propellant engines work, and a lot about the thermodynamic relations that happen inside an engine. It also looks like it will tie in very nicely to my Dynamics course, and my Mechanics of Materials course, both of which I am currently taking.

When I am done reading I plan to continue my RocS 101 series, with a lot of information based on this book.

So awesome!

(By the way, there is now an eighth edition to this book. As far as I can tell, the only major difference is that they split chapter 10 into two chapters, and they have maybe 30 new figures/graphs. Also, it looks like there is more of an emphasis on electronic integration/monitoring of rocket propulsion systems. Largely the same book).

P.S. Look for a new post soon about a USLI update!

Rocket Propulsion Elements! Finally!

I've had my eye on this book for about a year now, and I FINALLY purchased it! This will be a resource that will be useful in educating myself about REAL rocket science, not model rocketry (which is great, and poses too many challenges anyone could master in a lifetime, but is just too small a scale to even leave the troposphere), nor even high-power rocketry. This is real spacecraft propulsion science, and it is the "definitive" text on the subject!

It reminds my of an old cartoon I drew a few years ago:



I now have 7 books in my library. Books are the best!

I have another new book called "Amateur Rocket Motor Construction". I'm not planning on building my own motors anytime soon, but in the future I hope to.