Sony's Rocket Project helps students reach the stratosphere, unloads some Vaios in the process (video)
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted March 1st 2010 12:13PM
posted March 1st 2010 12:13PM
We've seen plenty of cockamamie rocket stunts in our day, but there are still few things cooler than an amateur project that reaches for the stars. To this end (and for some free advertising) Sony's announced the imaginatively named Rocket Project, wherein eight high school science students will be selected to receive Vaio CW-series laptops which they'll then use to design and build a twenty-five feet tall, 500 pound rocket capable of reaching the stratosphere (at least theoretically). Qualifying designs must also incorporate a Vaio Z-Series (Intel Core i5) laptop to control the rocket, and a Vaio F-Series (Intel Core i7) as mission control for the launch. As Tom Atchison, Director of the Association of Rocket Mavericks puts it, "the laptops from Sony and Intel have more computational processing power than some of the first spacecraft to reach the Moon. But can a Sony Vaio laptop launch a rocket? That is what this extraordinary group of high school students is going to find out, and I am very excited to give them an accelerated course in rocketry and the unique hands-on experience of building something capable of blasting off into space." Sounds great -- now, how about a similar project for embittered bloggers? PR after the break.
The Rocket Project Powered by Sony and Intel Helps Science Students Reach for the Stars
High School Students Use Intel Powered Sony VAIO Notebook to Build and Launch High-Power Rocket
SAN DIEGO, March 1 /PRNewswire/ --
Overview
* Eight selected high school science students to be given Sony VAIO® CW series laptops to design and build a high power rocket.
* Rocket to be 25 feet tall, weigh over 500 pounds and be capable of reaching the stratosphere.
* Students given accelerated rocketry course by Tom Atchison, Director of the Association of Rocket Mavericks and leading figure in high power rocket community.
* Launch day in April at Black Rock Desert north of Reno, Nevada.
* VAIO Z-Series: 13.1" screen, Intel® Core i5 Processor with Turbo Boost provides the brains for rocket.
* VAIO F-Series: 16.4" screen, Intel Core i7 Processor with Turbo Boost will serve as mission control for the launch.
"Sony products empower and inspire consumers to make the seemingly impossible possible. The Rocket Project is giving a group of highly dedicated science students the rare opportunity to take their ideas beyond the surface of the Earth and actually reach for the stars. We could not be prouder of the role Sony VAIO technology is playing in making their ideas come to life."
-Alberto Escobedo, Director of Brand Messaging at Sony
"The laptops from Sony and Intel have more computational processing power than some of the first spacecraft to reach the Moon. But can a Sony VAIO laptop launch a rocket? That is what this extraordinary group of high school students is going to find out, and I am very excited to give them an accelerated course in rocketry and the unique hands-on experience of building something capable of blasting off into space."
-Thomas Atchison, Director of the Association of Rocket Mavericks
"The processing power of the Intel Core i7 processor is so great that one of the only limiting factors to innovation is imagination. The students in The Rocket Project demonstrate that America's scientists of tomorrow will take our technology to new heights."
-Erik Reid, Mobile Client Marketing Director, Intel Corporation.
High School Students Use Intel Powered Sony VAIO Notebook to Build and Launch High-Power Rocket
SAN DIEGO, March 1 /PRNewswire/ --
Overview
* Eight selected high school science students to be given Sony VAIO® CW series laptops to design and build a high power rocket.
* Rocket to be 25 feet tall, weigh over 500 pounds and be capable of reaching the stratosphere.
* Students given accelerated rocketry course by Tom Atchison, Director of the Association of Rocket Mavericks and leading figure in high power rocket community.
* Launch day in April at Black Rock Desert north of Reno, Nevada.
* VAIO Z-Series: 13.1" screen, Intel® Core i5 Processor with Turbo Boost provides the brains for rocket.
* VAIO F-Series: 16.4" screen, Intel Core i7 Processor with Turbo Boost will serve as mission control for the launch.
"Sony products empower and inspire consumers to make the seemingly impossible possible. The Rocket Project is giving a group of highly dedicated science students the rare opportunity to take their ideas beyond the surface of the Earth and actually reach for the stars. We could not be prouder of the role Sony VAIO technology is playing in making their ideas come to life."
-Alberto Escobedo, Director of Brand Messaging at Sony
"The laptops from Sony and Intel have more computational processing power than some of the first spacecraft to reach the Moon. But can a Sony VAIO laptop launch a rocket? That is what this extraordinary group of high school students is going to find out, and I am very excited to give them an accelerated course in rocketry and the unique hands-on experience of building something capable of blasting off into space."
-Thomas Atchison, Director of the Association of Rocket Mavericks
"The processing power of the Intel Core i7 processor is so great that one of the only limiting factors to innovation is imagination. The students in The Rocket Project demonstrate that America's scientists of tomorrow will take our technology to new heights."
-Erik Reid, Mobile Client Marketing Director, Intel Corporation.
Wait till Dell starts Mission Missile, give a Dell Studio XPS to 100 select ex-KGB scientists. Let the fun begin!
@bazookafx3 lol, Dell vs. Sony, but they dont aim for reaching the stratosphere but for maximum dmg at the the competitors factories?
@bazookafx3 Yes, while the winners of the Sony contest get to sell their rocket to North Korea, Dell winners become the Iranian missile program's all-star team.
Yeepee more space junk.
Enjoy further challenges as Sony releases a series of firmware updates to further discourage you from reaching for the stars in any way other than the one they have laid out for you!
@stridermt2k
Are you saying this is the crew responsible for fixing my fat PS3?
@stridermt2k
Sony CEO: "Damn... the cover story for the PS3 network failure was supposed to launch yesterday! You fools!"
Lowly Sony workers: "Does this mean we get fired?"
Sony CEO: "You're just lucky they're only American high school students..."
"the laptops from Sony and Intel have more computational processing power than some of the first spacecraft to reach the Moon."
I thought modern washing machines were more powerful than the original Moon-landing craft? Am I wrong?
@GlynC
my washing doesn't seem to be very smart..
@nicholasphan
washing machine i mean..
@GlynC No, that is correct.
The Apollo Guidance Computer was a 2.048 MHz processor.
Modern embedded devices could range anywhere from, say, an ATTiny13 (10 MHz or so) to fancypants 32-bit processors that can run at upwards of 80 MHz or even more just to handle a few pairs of soiled undergarments.
Why are they using a full size laptop to control the rocket? Thats wasteful and stupid, a graphing calculator could do anything they could have possibly needed to do to control that rocket.
You would have to launch all this unnecessary computing power in your rocket, which would then just be dead weight that does nothing, which leads to more fuel needed, limitations on height, so on.
I mean really, does this rocket need to send out it's own twitter feed and play crysis in space too?
@joebob
yes.
@joebob
Actually, its more complicated than first value. The Apollo systems used pneumatic, not digital controllers for a lot of the controls that operated the lander and launch vehicle. This allowed them to use a much simpler computer to control the flight trajectory.
Still, today, using all digital systems, you need a lot of horsepower.
Also, a lot of computational processing is involved in the aerodynamics design of the rocket, propulsion system, as well as the machine control to mfg to components and parts.
It is a bigger deal that you may realize.
You can see more about Mavericks here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzOSjv6I8JM&feature=related
These are not toys......or model rockets. Ky Michaelson, one of our team flew beyond the Karman line in 2004. That's space!!
@Rocketmavericks
I never said that building a rocket is easy, what meant is that is it really necessary to send a core i5 laptop into the stratosphere? I mean the laptop isn't really meant to be lean, and for a rocket that is only meant to go into the stratosphere and back do you need something with the power of the core i5 (which will guzzle energy needing a larger battery)? I really don't think so, an Intel atom chip can do the job of flying that rocket and be small, light, and sipping energy (which allows for a small battery).
If the Saturn V can make it to space with relatively less horsepower than my netbook, I think that for this mission and for this rocket, a modified netbook with an Atom chip will do the job nicely.
I mean the only reason they are even sending the laptop into space is so sony can get marketing props.
@joebob there probably is *some* reason, because if all it took was an Atom, they could've just made the rocket control laptop a Vaio P. They have a shedload of the things to get rid of anyway. =) (I love mine, but I'm in a slim minority there, and I heartily advise other people not to buy one because running Vista on the thing is unrelenting pain, and modern Linux distros won't work either).
UK Will Never Get That :(
Man, that Gary Coleman guy never gets old does he.
Remember when Nokia said the same thing about their n97 that it also had so many times more processing power :/
that's all good until they try to launch there rockets and get the 8001050F error
Hope they build a slim model or it will just be a HUGE brick
But can a Sony Vaio laptop launch a rocket?
Answer: Well, I think yes but for humanity preservation instinct PLEASE DO NOT USE WINDOWS! Imagine a BSOD in the most delicate moment of the launch!
I would use LINUX as OS instead.
@Mr Warmth Looks like you're jealous. Stop being bitter. These kids are great.
Will they be using the battery as an ignition source?