When Caleb Hans and his fellow Husker Rocketry teammates prepared to launch their rocket at the International Rocket Engineering Competition in Midland, Texas, this summer, months of work came down to a single moment.
Despite a year of preparation, one test launch and countless design tweaks, the team knew anything could happen once the rocket left the launch pad.
"It's so stressful because, despite all the prep we'd done up to that point, we just can never predict exactly what's going to happen," Hans said. "You're just waiting to see if it's all going to work."
The last-minute adjustments the team of 17 Huskers made right up until launch didn't help calm their nerves, but they did help produce nearly flawless results. Competing before hundreds of student teams from around the world and industry professionals, Husker Rocketry recorded a perfect flight and recovery, with the rocket landing less than a quarter mile from the launch site. The performance earned the team seventh place overall among 141 schools and fourth in its division.
"We had a perfect flight and perfect recovery, too," Hans said. "Our rocket landed not even a quarter mile from the launch site, so it was great. It's so gratifying and relieving to see all your work pay off."
That success was nearly a year in the making. Guided by College of Engineering faculty and industry mentors, the team began preparing for the competition shortly after last year's event.
"We use so much data that we collect to make all our decisions," Hans said. "We had one test flight in May at UNL's Haskell Agricultural Laboratory, and that went really well. Some industry mentors were there with us and suggested ways we could improve our aerodynamics. We took all that into account, and I think that really helped us at the actual competition."
Hans, who leads Husker Rocketry's avionics team and serves as president of the UNL Aerospace Club, said the experience also offers a glimpse of the career he hopes to pursue.
"I'm a big space geek, and I really want to work in space engineering, so being able to build a rocket as a team of students is super, super cool to me," Hans said. "When we're at the actual launch site in Texas, you feel like you're in your own mini mission control center. It makes you feel like this career is really possible."
