CRITICAL REPORT (CDR) GUIDELINES

The Critical Design Report (CDR) is part of the NASA Systems process. The CDR is designed to answer the following question: Is the system design mature enough to proceed with full-scale fabrication, assembly, integration and test?

The CDR is designed to narrow the PDR ideas into your final design. The CDR should include the following information: rocket diagram, flight simulation, altimeter manual, and pre-flight, Launchpad and flight arming, and recover/post-flight checklist. The report will consist of 2-3 pages that act as an updated version to your Preliminary (PDR).

1. Please indicate or highlight any changes from your Preliminary Design Report (PDR) on this report. Explain changes if any and why.

2. List the type of materials used to construct you project. (mainly the airframe, fins, motor mount) Photos are nice too.

3. Explain the operation of your altimeters and functional electronic/science payload projects.

4. Indicate the type of motor impulse you selected. Show a flight performance profile (simulation) from RocSim, OpenRocket or MATLAB programs.

5. A complete diagram or schematic of your rocket/project will be required. Nose cone, internal airframe components which includes payload, active recovery devices (BP), parachute(s) / harness placement, motor mount and fin connections.

6. Provide a short summary of your projects predicted flight performance.

7. List team members who will perform special roles and project assignments. a. Payload Specialist b. Parachute Recovery System. (drogue and main) c. Arming and Programming Flight Altimeters d. Lead Airframe Construction Analyst e. Pre-launch Field Team Members f. Recovery Team