CR4 Photos - May 16, 1999
This page contains thumbnail images of photographs taken
with a 35 mm camera mounted in a 4-inch diameter rocket. Images from other flights
of the CR4 can be accessed from the Photo Album page.
Launch Date: Sunday, May 16, 1999, ~3:00 pm
Event: MTMA Launch No. 1
Launch Location: Mantua Township, Portage County, Ohio
Weather: Sunny, 75 degrees F, SW wind 5-10 mph
Map of Launch Site:
Flight Notes: Launched on an Aerotech F50-4T. The
flight trajectory was totally different from any other rocket launched on this day. At first
I thought it may be due to the fact that the CG is not in the center of the body tube;
however, the arc of the flight was about 90 degrees clockwise from the direction the camera
was facing at ignition. Some observers noted that in my haste to turn on the camera and back
away, I set up a swaying motion in the launch rod. It is thought that this rod whip caused
the trajectory to arc to the east, toward the main road (with a very deep ditch on each side).
Due to the arcing trajectory, maximum altitude was lower than expected and ejection was
relatively late. The recovery systems on the camera payload and separated booster deployed
fully, but at a much lower altitude than expected. The booster wound up in an Elm tree near
the main road while the payload bay (with camera) wound up in a wet ditch on the east side
of the road. The side of the payload bay and the front of the camera were wet. The camera
was opened in a darkened room that evening. The inside of the camera and the film were dry.
The film had been rewound, either by water shorting the automatic end-of-roll rewind
circuitry or completion of the roll.
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1 |
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Rocketeers, camera facing East (ground test).
Click here to download high-resolution image 255KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 27KB.
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2 |
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Rocketeers, camera facing East (ground test).
Click here to download high-resolution image 223KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 26KB.
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3 |
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Self portrait, just after switching
on the camera and quickly backing away, camera facing North.
Click here to download high-resolution image 151KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 14KB.
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4 |
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Arcing ascent looking down to ENE
at road, host's house in right edge of frame (note darker green tree, an Elm, which
completely obstructs view of street and ditches).
Click here to download high-resolution image 218KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 24KB.
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5 |
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Arcing descent looking down and back
to WNW at range and host's garage/barn.
Click here to download high-resolution image 233KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 24KB.
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6 |
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Blurred (ejection?).
Click here to download high-resolution image 208KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 19KB.
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7 |
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Controlled descent nose pointing
to NNW at road, host's drive at left edge of frame (payload spinning slightly).
Click here to download high-resolution image 237KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 25KB.
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8 |
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Blurred (spinning).
Click here to download high-resolution image 270KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 25KB.
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9 |
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Controlled descent nose pointing
to SSW looking at ditch on East side of road, drive across from and north of Elm tree.
Click here to download high-resolution image 194KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 23KB.
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10 |
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Controlled descent nose pointing
to SSW looking at road, Elm tree, and ditches.
Click here to download high-resolution image 188KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 22KB.
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11 |
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Controlled descent nose pointing
to SSW looking at road and East ditch across from Elm tree.
Click here to download high-resolution image 232KB.
Click here to download low-resolution image 23KB.
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Only eleven exposures were printable. The remainder of the roll was
underexposed (ditch bottom) or unexposed (rewound due to ditch-water-induced short
circuit--the camera is toast). The 35 mm film was procesed and printed on standard size
prints. These were scanned at 300 dpi for high-resolution, reduced by 50% (effective 150
dpi) for medium-resolution, reduced by 50% again (effective 75 dpi) for low-resolution, and
reduced by 50% yet again (effective 37.5 dpi) for thumbnail-resolution.
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This page was created on May 25, 1999, and last updated on June 16, 2000.
