Our Crowdfunding Groups
Welcome to STAR's Spring 2023 Crowdfunding Campaign! We are proud to showcase our past achievements and introduce new exciting projects & initiatives that will further improve our technologies and inspire more interest in science and engineering.
▲ 2022 Crowdfunding Campaign
Spring 2022 Team ▲
This year, STAR’s outreach division is ecstatic to announce that the STAR Scholarship Program is officially in action! Over the past year, our now-president, Aarabhi Achanta, has worked alongside NexGeneGirls–a nonprofit seeking to provide opportunities, education, and connections to high school girls looking to pursue a career in STEM. In addition to providing financial support for a group of six talented women of color, we will also be hosting a series of workshops this October that will assist them with applying to colleges and continuing their passion for STEM in higher education. We are excited to be working with the College Admissions Mentorship Program (formerly People’s Test Preparation Service) to assemble a good curriculum for the recipients of STAR’s scholarship. Currently, Rachel Weber (Outreach Lead) and Anjana Saravanan are continuing the progress of this scholrship nd furthering its growth throughout this semester!
Congratulations STAR team on the successful static test-fire of our rocket engine! This Hotfire was earned by the hard work and stolid dedication to the challenge. Despite some initial problems with sensor connections and fluid system assembly, the team persevered and solved each problem to meet the demands of our first hotfire. After quickly diagnosing and resolving issues with LOX pressure data cutoffs and power system malfunctions, we successfully ran cryo fill and actuator arm through pressurization, ignition, and finally full system go. We started up the engine and scrambled to document our achievements. Although there are many technical and procedural improvements to be made, we got great results from our array of pressure, load, thermal, and power sensors. This project milestone is a testament to the prowess contained within UC Berkeley STAR and the broader technical community as a whole. Congratulations once again on a job well done!
▲ ALULA
IREC (Intercollegiate Rocketry Engineering Competition) is a 5-day competition where rocketry clubs from the nation get to network and present their rockets as well as launch them. Judges place teams depending on different requirements such as technicality and apogee.
IREC 2023 Check Launch ▲
DAVE, or the Deployable Aerial Vehicle Experiment, is a glider mission piloted by STAR for the 2022-2023 year. DAVE is designed to be a glider that we can launch from the rocket at apogee to carry our experiments and get astronomically more value out of each launch. To accomplish this, however, DAVE must be capable of shrinking from its large wingspan to fit inside the rocket and then awaits takeoff until carried outside the vehicle by a parachute, where it can freely unfold and collect new types of experiments previously impossible for the team.
More recently, with DAVE, we have been preparing to start the project’s second iteration such as remaking the CAD, unfolding mechanisms, and adding new elements. From stronger materials to an added parachute, we emphasize bracing DAVE for its landing after deployment. We also have planned additions of RF control of our elevators, DAVE will be pilotable from the ground and allow us to change course mid flight.
DAVE Prototype ▲
The SSEP 2 is the next step in putting us even closer to our goal – while one can achieve Space Shot with a single-stage vehicle, it requires custom solid propellant motors (SRAD motors), which is a challenging project that requires regular testing and manufacturing of such motors. On the other hand, a multistage vehicle can reach space with conventional, off-the-shelf motors, and in fact, has successfully been done before with N motors! Such vehicles would, however, need a compact staging mechanism. This SSEP 2 project works on improving the current mechanism to achieve a different level of performance. Since we already have experience building(and succeeding in the building) multistage rockets, we gave ourselves a deadline of two years to build this rocket.
STAR sees projects from both short-term and long-term perspectives. We have big dreams of launching each of our unique and complex rockets! However, to do so, the Business team need all the help we can get! We would greatly appreciate any support that our donors can provide! And to give back to our donors, we have cool prizes that range depending on the amount donated. Feel free to check them out!
Approximate breakdown of our expenses for this year! Overall: $18,710.85
We love the work we do at STAR and are always happy to talk about it! Contact us at:
Email: UCBerkeleySTAR@gmail.com
Website: stars.berkeley.edu/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/starberkeley/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ucberkeleystar/
Finally, a shoutout to the following teammates for helping set up the crowdfunding page:
Sharon Onofre-Lozano
As a supporter of STAR, you will be provided access to all the latest news on our team and projects through our monthly newsletter.
As a token of our gratitude for your support, we will provide you with a hand-signed note from our team along with some cool shiny custom STAR stickers!
As a token of our gratitude for your generous support, we will send you a signed Polaroid photo taken during one of our events to you along with all previous perks!
