Pathfinder VI Experimental Payload: Desna

The objective of this project is to design, fabricate and test a fixed wing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that is to be carried in, and deployed from the Pathfinder VI rocket. The UAV, known as Desna, is tasked with being able to carry a Tamarisk 640 75mm thermal imaging camera, and transmit live video footage to a ground station from 8500 feet AGL. Desna must also fit inside Pathfinder VI’s 7.5” diameter, 35” long cargo bay. To accomplish this, Desna’s wing configuration, determined through description matrices and light prototype testing, will consist of a 35” wing that rotates about its center with 11” folding winglets to increase lift and stability. Desna will be constructed from blue high-density foam to allow for cheap, rapid prototyping as well as being light as possible while still being able to survive the G loadings during assent. Desna will fly in Pathfinder VI this June in the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition as an experimental payload