MACH 23
OUR FIRST COMPETITION
OVERVIEW
In 2023, our Junior Development Programme consisting of first and second-year members entered the Mach-23 competition, launching their rocket, "Eligius".
​
The Mach series of competitions are the most prestigous university rocketry events in the UK and Mach-23 marked GU Rocketry's first foray into the competitive arena.
ABOUT ELIGIUS
Eligius is a single-stage, partially reusable launch vehicle powered by a commercial ammonium perchlorate composite propellant I-class motor. It is capable of flying a CanSat payload of up to 1kg, which for the Mach-23 launch was a suite of environmental monitoring sensors intended to assess emissions from agricultural activities.
THE LAUNCH
Eligius launched at 19:13 on Thursday the 29th of June from Machrihanish Airbase, Campbelltown, to an altitude of 827 metres above sea level before completing a successful dual parachute deployment and deploying the payload. Both vehicles followed a nominal trajectory and completed a safe touchdown approximately 200 metres from the launch site. Recovery was swift and both vehicle and payload are in perfect condition with all flight data extracted.
We are very happy to report that GU Rocketry achieved second place in the Mach-23 1.5km combined category after a near-textbook flight!
