How to make a rocket launcher with your own hands. Signal rockets: how to give signs in different conditions. balloon rocket

Facebook

Twitter

Pocket

LinkedIn

fb messenger

Rocket modeling is an activity that captivates not only children, but also quite mature and successful people, as you can see from the composition of the teams of athletes at the World Championship in rocket modeling sports, which will be held in Lviv on August 23-28. Even NASA employees will come to compete on it. With rockets assembled by myself. In order to make the simplest working model of a rocket with your own hands, special knowledge and skills are not needed - the Internet is a large number of detailed instructions. Using them, you can make your own rocket even from paper, even from parts purchased at a hardware store. In this article, we will take a closer look at what rockets are, what they are made of, and how to make a rocket with your own hands. So, in anticipation of the Championship, you can get your own model and even fly it. Who knows, maybe by August you will decide to take part in an out-of-class competition in launching rockets with a payload “Save Space Eggs” (to be held as part of the Championship) and compete for a prize fund of 4,000 euros.

What is a rocket made of?

Any rocket model, regardless of class, necessarily consists of the following parts:

  1. Frame. The rest of the elements are attached to it, and the engine and the rescue system are installed inside.
  2. Stabilizers. They are attached to the bottom of the rocket body and give it stability in flight.
  3. Rescue system. Needed to slow down the free fall of a rocket. It can be in the form of a parachute or a brake band.
  4. Head fairing. This is the cone-shaped head of the rocket, which gives it an aerodynamic shape.
  5. Guide rings. They are attached to the body on the same axis, they are needed in order to fix the rocket on the launcher.
  6. Engine. Responsible for the takeoff of the rocket and is even in the most simple models. They are divided into groups according to the total thrust impulse. You can buy a model engine at a tech store or build your own. But in this article we will focus on the fact that you already have a finished engine.

Not part of the rocket, but a must-have item launcher. It can be purchased at ready-made or assemble it yourself from a metal rod on which the rocket is attached, and a trigger mechanism. But we will also focus on what launcher you have.

Classes of missiles and their differences

In this section, we will consider the classes of rockets that can be seen with our own eyes at the World Championship in rocket modeling in Lviv. There are nine of them, eight of them are approved by the International Aviation Federation as official for the World Championship, and one - S2 / P - is open not only to athletes, but to everyone who wants to compete.

Rockets for competition or just for yourself can be made from different materials. Paper, plastic, wood, foam, metal. A mandatory requirement is that the materials are not explosive. Those who are seriously involved in rocket modeling use specific materials that have the best performance for missile purposes, but can be quite expensive or exotic.

The S1 class rocket in the competition must demonstrate the best flight altitude. These are one of the simplest and smallest rockets that take part in competitions. S1, like other missiles, are divided into several subclasses, which are indicated by letters. The closer to the beginning of the alphabet, the lower the total thrust of the engine that is used to launch the rocket.


S2 rockets are designed to carry payloads, according to the FAI, a "payload" can be something compact and fragile, with a diameter of 45 millimeters and a weight of 65 grams. For example, raw egg. A rocket may have one or more parachutes that will bring the payload and rocket back to earth unharmed. Missiles of class S2 cannot have more than one stage and they must not lose a single part in flight. The athlete needs to launch the model to a height of 300 meters and at the same time land it in 60 seconds. But if the cargo is damaged, then the result will not be counted at all. So it's important to strike a balance. The weight of the model with the engine must not exceed 1500 grams, and the weight of the fuel components in the engine must not exceed 200 grams.

S3 rockets may look exactly like S1 rockets to the uninitiated, but their mission in competition is different. S3 are rockets for the duration of the descent using a parachute. The specifics of the competition in this class is that the athlete needs to carry out three rocket launches, using only two models of rockets. Accordingly, at least one of the models still needs to be found after launch, and they often land several kilometers from the launch zone.

For models of this class, parachute diameters usually reach a diameter of 90-100 centimeters. Common materials are fiberglass, balsa wood, cardboard, the nose is made of lightweight plastic. The fins are made from lightweight cork wood and can be covered in fabric or fiberglass.

The S4 class is represented by gliders, which must be in flight for as long as possible. These are "winged" devices, whose appearance quite seriously different from what can be expected from a rocket. They rise into the sky with the help of an engine. But in gliders it is forbidden to use anything that will give them acceleration or somehow affect soaring, in the sky the device must be kept solely due to its aerodynamic characteristics. The materials for such rockets are usually balsa wood, the wings are made of fiberglass or foam, and balsa wood too, that is, everything that weighs almost nothing.

Class S5 rockets are copy rockets, the purpose of their flight is altitude. The competition takes into account not only the quality of the flight, but also how accurately the participant managed to repeat the body of a real rocket. These are basically two-stage models with a massive launch vehicle and a very narrow nose. They usually go very fast towards the sky.

S6 class rockets are very similar to S3 class rockets, but they eject a brake band (streamer) in flight. In fact, it performs the function of a rescue system. Since missiles of this class also need to stay in the air for as long as possible, the task of the competitor is to create the lightest and at the same time strong hull. Models are made of parchment or fiberglass. The bow is made of vacuum plastic, fiberglass, paper, and the stabilizers are made of lightweight balsa wood, which is coated with fiberglass for durability. Ribbons for such missiles are usually made of aluminized lavsna. The tape should intensively "flap" in the wind, resisting falling. Its dimensions usually range from 10x100 centimeters to 13x230 centimeters.

Models of the S7 class require very painstaking work. Like the S5, these models are multi-stage copies of real rockets, but unlike the S5, they are evaluated in flight, among other things, by how plausibly they repeat the launch and flight of a real rocket. Even the colors of the rocket must match the "original". That is, it is the most spectacular and complex class, don't miss it at the World Rocket Modeling Championship! Both juniors and seniors will compete in this class on August 28th. The most popular rocket prototypes are Saturn, Ariane, Zenit 3, and Soyuz. Copies of other missiles also take part in the competition, but as practice shows, they usually show worse results.

The S8 is a cruise gliding radio-controlled rocket. This is one of the most diverse classes, there are significantly different designs and types of materials used. The rocket must take off, make a gliding flight within a certain time. Then it must be planted in the center of a circle with a diameter of 20 meters. The closer the rocket lands to the center, the more bonus points the participant will receive.

Class S9 is rotorcraft aircrafts, and they also compete with each other in the time spent in flight. These are lightweight models made of fiberglass, vacuum plastic and balsa wood. Without an engine, they often weigh about 15 grams. The most intricate part of this class of rockets is the blades, which are usually made from balsa and must be aerodynamically correct. These rockets do not have a rescue system, this effect is achieved due to the autorotation of the blades.

In competitions, rockets of this class, as well as classes S3, S6 and S9, must be at least 40 millimeters in diameter and at least 500 in height. The higher the subclass of the rocket, the larger its dimensions must be. In the case of the most compact S1 rockets, the body diameter should not be less than 18 millimeters, and the length should not be less than 75% of the rocket's length. These are the most compact models. In general, there are limitations for each class. They are set out in the FAI (Federation Aviation Internationale) code. And before the flight, each model is checked for compliance with the requirements of its class.


Of all the missiles taking part in the current Championship, only models of the S4, S8 and S9 classes are required that none of their parts separate during flight, even on the rescue system. For the rest it is acceptable.

How to make a simple and working rocket model from scrap materials

The easiest rockets to make at home are the S1 class, and the S6 class is also considered relatively simple. But in this section, we will still talk about the first. If you have children, you can make a rocket model together or let them build it themselves.

To make a model you will need:

  • two sheets of A4 paper (it is better to choose multi-colored ones so that the rocket looks brighter, the thickness of the paper is about 0.16-0.18 millimeters);
  • glue;
  • polystyrene foam (instead of it, you can use thick cardboard from which the boxes are made);
  • a piece of thin polyethylene, at least 60 cm in diameter;
  • ordinary sewing threads;
  • stationery gum (as for money);
  • a rolling pin or other object of a similar shape, the main thing is to have a smooth surface and a diameter of about 13-14 centimeters;
  • a pencil, pen or other object of similar shape with a diameter of 1 centimeter and another with a diameter of 0.8 centimeters;
  • ruler;
  • compass;
  • engine and launcher if you plan to use the rocket for its intended purpose.

On the drawings, which are very numerous on the Internet, you can find missiles with different ratios of the length and width of the body, the "sharpness" of the head fairing and the size of the stabilizers. The text below gives the dimensions of the parts, but if you want, you can use other proportions, as in one of the drawings in the gallery below. The procedure still remains the same. Look at these drawings (especially the last one) if you decide to assemble the model according to the instructions.


Frame

Take one of the saved sheets of paper, measure with a ruler 14 centimeters from the edge (if you don’t get the same volume as ours, just add a couple more millimeters to your figure, they will be needed in order to glue the sheet). Cut off.

Twist the resulting piece of paper around the rolling pin (or whatever you have). The paper must fit perfectly on the object. Glue the sheet directly on the rolling pin so that you get a cylinder. Let the glue dry, in the meantime, take on the manufacture of the head fairing and tail of the rocket.

The head and tail of the rocket

Take the second piece of paper and the compass. Measure 14.5 centimeters with a compass, draw from two diagonally located corners of the circle.

Take a ruler, attach it to the edge of the sheet near the beginning of the circle and measure a point on the circle at a distance of 15 centimeters. Draw a line from the corner to this point and cut out this section. Do the same with the second circle.


Glue the cones from both pieces of paper. At one of the cones, cut off the top by about 3 centimeters. This will be the tail section.

To glue it to the base, make cuts on the bottom of the cone about every centimeter and a depth of 0.5 centimeter. Bend them outward and apply glue to the inside. Then glue it to the rocket body.

To attach the head fairing, you need to make a "ring", thanks to which it will be attached to the base. Take a sheet of the same color you used for the base and cut out a 3x14cm rectangle. Roll it into a cylinder and glue it. The diameter of the ring should be slightly smaller than the diameter of the base of the rocket so that it fits perfectly into it. Glue the ring to the head of the rocket in the same way as you glued the base (just don't cut anything off the cone this time). Insert the second side of the ring into the base of the rocket to check if you have guessed with the diameter.


Let's get back to the tail section. The rocket needs to be stabilized and an engine compartment made. To do this, you need to take the paper again, from which you made the base of the rocket, cut out a 4x10 cm rectangle, find an oblong and round object about 1 cm in diameter and wrap a piece of paper around it, after lubricating it with glue over the entire area so that you end up with a dense multilayer cylinder . On one side of the cylinder, make cuts of 4 millimeters, bend them, apply glue to the inside and glue to the tail.

At the bottom of the rocket should be stabilizers. They can be made from thin sheet foam or, if not available, thick cardboard. You need to cut out four rectangles with sides of 5x6 centimeters. From these rectangles - cut out the clamps. You can choose any shape you like.

Please note that the head fairing, tail cone and engine compartment must be set exactly along the longitudinal axis of the hull (they must not be tilted away from the hull).

rescue system

In order for the rocket to smoothly return to the ground, it needs a rescue system. In this model we are talking about the parachute. Ordinary thin polyethylene can act as a parachute. You can take, for example, a 120-liter package. For our rocket, you need to cut a circle with a diameter of 60 centimeters in it and fix it on the body with slings (about 1 meter long). There should be 16 of them. Strong threads are suitable for the role of slings. Attach the lines to the parachute with adhesive tape at an equal distance from each other.

Fold the parachute in half, then in half again, then squeeze.

To secure the parachute, take another thread, the length of which should be twice the length of the body. Glue it to the engine compartment between the two stabilizers. Tie an elastic band to the thread in two places, so that if you pull the thread, the elastic band stretches, and the thread is a stretch limit (recommendations: tie the elastic band to the thread at a distance of 5 centimeters from the top edge of the case).

Before putting the parachute into the rocket, you need to place a wad. For example, a piece of cotton wool (or soft paper, napkins) can act as a wad. Make a ball out of the material you like and insert it inside the rocket. If you have talcum powder, then sprinkle it with talcum powder to prevent possible ignition due to the charge being triggered. The wad should not be tight, but the amount of cotton wool should be sufficient to push the rescue system out.

Insert it inside the rocket, then put the parachute and lines. Gently, with rings so that they do not get confused.

A streamer can also act as a rescue system, and if you want to make an S6 class rocket, then you can see how to lay and tie it in these photos.

Signal rockets are an integral part of the arsenal not only of the military, but also of tourists, hunters, and fishermen.

Observing all precautions, you can independently make cartridges for signaling.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Purchase necessary ingredients. You will need 0.5 liters of acetone and 15-20 g of Sokol smokeless pyroxylin powder, black powder. For the pyrotechnic mixture, take by weight two parts of finely ground potassium nitrate and one part of magic powder and powdered sugar.

2. Mix acetone with gunpowder and leave for 5 to 10 days. Shake the mixture periodically. It should turn out to be homogeneous, thickish, green-gray in color.

3. Glue the cups from 1 mm thick paper. Its height should be approximately the same as that of a shot wad (container). The height of the wad varies depending on the caliber of the bullet.

4. Make a pyrotechnic mixture from the above ingredients. In extreme cases, magnesium can be replaced with silver. Add a little powder solution to the resulting mixture. You should get a thick slurry. Pack it tightly in paper cups, leaving about 0.5 cm to the top edge. Leave the mixture to dry completely.

5. Gently grind the black powder. Do this in a metal container with a wooden pestle. Add some of the acetone and gunpowder solution you already prepared and fill the dried cups to the brim. Again, wait until the mixture hardens, brush on top with a thin layer of powder solution and sprinkle with crushed black powder.

6. Take the wad container and cut off the cup and obturator from it. Drill a 3 mm through hole in each of them. Glue the parts so that the holes match.

7. Insert 1.5 g of “Falcon” into the sleeve, the part you made with the obturator down. Add black powder to the drilled hole.

8. Insert the glass you made with the pyrotechnic mixture there (bottom to top). Now the sleeve must be closed with a cardboard gasket, 1 mm thick. The edge of the sleeve is rolled with a twist. If there was silver in the cartridge, then the trace from the shot will be bluish, if magnesium is white.


The steam engine was surpassed by the powder tubes of the Chinese army, and then by the liquid rockets invented by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and designed by Robert Goddard. This article describes five ways to build a rocket at home, from simple to more complex; at the end you can find an additional section explaining basic principles building rockets.

Steps

balloon rocket

    Tie one end of the fishing line or thread to the support. The back of a chair or a doorknob can serve as a support.

    Pass the thread through a plastic drinking straw. The thread and tube will serve as a navigation system with which you can control the trajectory of your rocket from balloon.

    • Rocket model building kits use a similar technology, where a tube of similar length is attached to the body of the rocket. This tube is threaded through a metal tube on the launch pad to keep the rocket upright until launch.
  1. Tie the other end of the thread to the other warp. Be sure to pull the thread taut before doing this.

    Blow up the balloon. Pinch the tip of the balloon to keep air out. You can use your fingers, a paper clip, or a clothespin.

    Glue the ball to the tube with tape.

    Release the air from the balloon. Your rocket will fly along the set trajectory, from one end of the string to the other.

    • You can make this rocket with both long and round balls, and experiment with the length of the tube. You can also change the angle at which the missile's flight path travels to see how this affects the distance your missile travels.
    • Similarly, you can make a jet boat: Cut the milk carton lengthwise. Cut a hole in the bottom and thread the ball through it. Inflate the balloon, then place the boat in a tub of water and deflate the balloon.
  2. Wrap the rectangle tightly around the pencil or dowel. Start rolling the strip of paper from the end of the pencil, not from the center. Part of the strip should hang over the pencil stem or the end of the dowel.

    • Use a pencil or dowel a little thicker than a drinking straw, but not much thicker.
  3. Tape the edge of the paper with tape to keep it from unwinding. Tape the paper along the entire length of the pencil.

    Fold the overhanging edge into a cone. Secure with tape.

    Remove the pencil or dowel.

    Check the rocket for holes. Gently blow into the open end of the rocket. Listen for any sound that indicates that air is escaping from the sides or end of the rocket, and gently feel the rocket to feel the air escaping. Tape up any holes in the rocket and test the rocket again until you have fixed all the holes.

    Add tail fins to the open end of the paper rocket. Since this rocket is quite narrow, it will be more convenient to cut and glue two pairs of adjacent fins than three or four separate small fins.

    Put the tube in the open part of the rocket. Make sure the tube protrudes enough from the rocket that you can pinch the end with your fingers.

    Blow sharply into the tube. Your rocket will take off with the force of your breath.

    • Always point the tube and rocket up and not at anyone when you launch the rocket.
    • Build several different rockets to see how different changes affect her flight. Also try launching your rockets with your breath. different strength to see how the force of your breath affects the distance your rocket travels.
    • The toy, which looked like a paper rocket, consisted of a plastic cone on one end and a plastic parachute on the other. The parachute was attached to a stick, which was then inserted into a cardboard tube. When blown into the tube, the plastic cone caught air and flew up. Reaching maximum height, the stick fell off, after which the parachute opened.

Film can rocket

  1. Decide how long/height you want to build your rocket. The recommended length is 15 cm, but you can make it longer or shorter.

    Get a jar of film. It will serve as a combustion chamber for your rocket. You can find such a jar in photo shops that still work with film.

    • Find a jar that snaps on the inside, not the outside.
    • If you can't find a film bottle, you can use an old plastic medicine bottle with a snap-on lid. If you can't find a jar with a snap-top lid, you can find a cork that fits tight in the neck of the jar.
  2. Collect the rocket. The easiest way to make a rocket body is the same way you did with a paper rocket launched through a straw: just wrap a piece of paper around a film jar. Since this jar will serve starting device your rocket, you should stick paper to it so it doesn't fly away.

    Decide where you want to launch your rocket. It is recommended to launch this type of rocket in an open space or outdoors, as the rocket can fly quite high.

    Fill the jar 1/3 full with water. If there is no water source near your launch pad, you can fill the rocket somewhere else and carry it upside down to the pad, or bring water to the platform and fill the rocket there.

    Break an effervescent tablet in half and dip one half into water.

    Close the jar and turn the rocket upside down.

    Move to a safe distance. Dissolving in water, the tablet will release carbon dioxide. Pressure builds up inside the jar and rips off the lid, launching your rocket skyward.

match rocket

    Cut out a small triangle of aluminum foil. It must be isosceles triangle with a base of 2.5 cm and a median of 5 cm.

    Take a match from the matchbox.

    Attach the match to the straight pin in such a way that the sharp tip of the pin reaches the head of the match, but is not longer than it.

    Wrap the aluminum triangle around the match and pin heads, starting at the very top. Wrap the foil as tight as possible around the match without knocking the needle out of position. When you have completed this process, the wrapper should be about 6.25mm below the match head.

    Remember foil nails. This will push the foil closer to the match head and better mark the channel formed by the pin under the foil.

    Pull the needle out carefully so as not to tear the foil.

    Make a launch pad out of a paperclip.

    • Bend the outer fold of the paperclip at a 60 degree angle. This will be the basis of the launch platform.
    • Fold the inside fold of the paperclip up and slightly to the side to form an open triangle. You will attach the match head wrapped in foil to it.
  1. Place the launch pad on the rocket launch site. Again, find open space on the street, since this rocket can fly quite long distance. Avoid dry places as match rocket can start a fire.

    • Make sure there are no people or animals near your spaceport before launching the rocket.
  2. Place the match rocket on the launch pad head up. The rocket must be positioned at least 60 degrees from the base of the launch pad and the ground. If it's a little lower, bend the paperclip even more until you get the right angle.

    Launch a rocket. Light a match and place the fire just under the wrapped head of the match rocket. When the phosphorus in the rocket ignites, the rocket will take off.

    • Keep a bucket of water nearby to extinguish used matches to make sure they are completely extinguished.
    • If a rocket unexpectedly hits you, freeze, fall to the ground and roll on it until you knock out the fire.

water rocket

  1. Have one empty 2 liter bottle ready to serve as a pressure chamber for your rocket. Since a plastic bottle is used in the construction of this rocket, it is sometimes referred to as a bottle rocket. It should not be confused with a type of firecracker, which is also known as bottle rockets because they are often fired from inside the bottle. This form of bottle rocket is banned in many places; water rocket is not prohibited.

    Make fins. Since the rocket's plastic body is quite strong, especially after being reinforced with tape, you'll need equally strong fins. Hard cardboard may work for this, but it will only last a few runs. It is best to use a plastic similar to that used to make plastic folders for papers.

    • The first step is to design your fins and create a paper template to cut out the plastic fins. Whatever your fins, remember that you will need to fold each one in half later on for strength. They should also reach the point where the bottle begins to narrow.
    • Cut out the stencil and use it to cut out three or four identical fins from plastic or cardboard.
    • Bend the fins in half and attach them to the body of the rocket with strong tape.
    • Depending on the design of your rocket, you may need to make the fins longer than the bottle neck/rocket nozzle.
  2. Create a nose cone and payload bay. To do this, you will need a second two-liter bottle.

    • Cut out the bottom of an empty bottle.
    • Place the payload in upper part cut bottle. Anything can be a load, from a lump of plasticine to a ball of elastic bands. Place the cut off bottom part inside the bottle so that the bottom is directed towards its neck. Fix the structure with tape, and then glue this bottle to the bottom of the bottle, which acts as a pressure chamber.
    • The nose of a rocket can be made from anything, from the cap plastic bottle to a polyvinyl tube or plastic cone. Once you figure out what kind of nose you want for your rocket and put it together, attach it to the top of the rocket.
  3. Test the balance of your rocket. Put a rocket on your forefinger. The balance point should be just above the pressure chamber (at the bottom of the first bottle). If the balance point is off, remove the positive weight section and change the weight of the weight.

  4. Choose a spaceport for your rocket. As with the rockets above, you should only launch the water rocket outdoors. Since this missile is larger and stronger than other missiles, you will also need more open space to launch. The spaceport should also be located on a flatter surface. Air has mass, and the denser that mass (especially near the Earth's surface), the more it holds back objects that try to move through the air. Rockets need to be streamlined (have an elongated, elliptical shape) to minimize the friction they need to overcome as they fly through the air, which is why most rockets have a pointed nose cone.

    3. Balance the rocket at its center of mass. Total weight The rocket must be balanced around a certain point inside the rocket to make sure it will fly straight and not tumble. This point can be called the point of balance, the center of mass or the center of gravity.

    • The center of mass is different in every rocket. Typically, the balance point will be just above the fuel or pressure chamber.
    • While payload helps to raise the missile's center of mass above its pressure chamber, too heavy a payload will make the missile too top heavy, making it difficult to keep the missile upright prior to launch and steer the missile during it. For this reason, integrated circuits have been included in computers. spacecraft to reduce their weight. (This has led to the use of similar integrated circuits (or chips) in calculators, electronic clock, personal computers, and recent times also on tablets and smartphones.

    4. Stabilize the rocket with the tail fins. The fins allow the missile to fly straight by providing air resistance against a change in direction. Some fins are designed to be longer than the rocket's nozzle, helping to keep the rocket upright before launch.

    • Always wear safety goggles when launching any of the free-flying rockets (except balloon rockets). For larger free-flying rockets, such as water rockets, it is also recommended to wear a crash helmet to protect your head if the rocket hits you.
    • Do not fire any of the free-flying missiles at another person.
    • The presence of an adult is highly recommended when operating any of the rockets propelled by anything other than human breath.

Signal rockets are the main means of signaling in any conditions. All other signaling means, for example, flags, pennants, do not possess this quality. A signal flare can be launched from anywhere in the open air, from a shelter, from a building window, from a narrow street. In this case, the signal will be visible for many kilometers, the rocket is understood to a considerable height. It is impossible to achieve the same effect using other available signaling means.

General arrangement of signal flares, principle of operation

The flare needs to be as visible as possible, so two effects are used: either light or smoke. Accordingly, lighting flares are used for signaling and lighting at night, and smoke flares during the day. To give signals in any conditions, you need to have both types of missiles. Wind, poor visibility, sharply reduce the effectiveness of flares. The smoke flare is visible for several minutes. Lighting - for a few seconds, but there are special options with a parachute. They work for several tens of seconds.

Illumination flares have various colors glow. At the same time, the colors of signal rockets make it possible to encode various information, and with the simultaneous launch of several rockets (usually up to 3), the number of signals will already be more than a dozen.

Any flare has two pyrotechnic charges. One is for engine operation, the second is for receiving a light or smoke signal. According to the same scheme, charges are assembled in a signal cartridge for a hunting rifle and for a shot for various artillery.

Examples of color or smoke signals

  • One green rocket means "everything is fine, continue";
  • Red - help is required;
  • Red and green - logistics required.

Flare gun rockets

The most well known, cheapest and accessible view signal rockets. Launched from a compact flare pistol, its vernacular name- rocket launcher. The most common model is the Shpagin signal pistol. It was developed in 1943 and is still in service today. also in different countries several dozen other models based on it are produced. Caliber - 26 mm. Cartridge weight - 50-75 g. Expelling charge - ordinary powder. Signal has several options for colors. By the way, color marking is used to identify the cartridges themselves.

For a hunter, the light weight of the emergency kit, its protection from moisture, and a long shelf life are important. Signal cartridges possess all these qualities. They use military developments, the best and most reliable technological solutions. In addition to cartridges for a gun, there is also a separate device with a barrel large caliber and a trigger mechanism (trade name - "signal hunter").

Color additives for smoke and light signals

In the military, only red, green and white (colorless, white-yellow) rockets are widely used. For them, color additives are well developed and optimized:

  • Red flame and red smoke signal - strontium nitrate;
  • The green color of the flame and smoke is barium nitrate;
  • Blue and cyan color - copper chloride;
  • Yellow - sodium, sodium compounds;
  • White color of the flame and white smoke - various gunpowder, aluminum.

These are general notations for signals. You can apply any other schemes by prior arrangement.

All other colors (purple, carmine, orange) are obtained by mixing metal salts. The use of organic dyes has also been used for a long time and is promising in production. For example, signal orange smoke is obtained by simply adding a dye of the appropriate color.

White rockets are usually referred to simply as flares. Their pyrotechnic composition is designed to produce a bright white flame with burning and the highest possible light output. There is a simple and objective calculation method here: the ratio of luminous intensity in Cd for each weight unit of the composition is measured.

If you have any questions - leave them in the comments below the article. We or our visitors will be happy to answer them.