Project Daedalus

Project Daedalus is designed to be a low-complexity introduction to rocket design available to anyone dedicated to and passionate about rocketry and engineering design. Our Daedalus team prides itself in accepting anyone interested in learning the fundamentals of rocketry with the desire and drive to participate.

Daedalus is a two-quarter-long program, beginning in Fall Quarter and ending early Spring Quarter. Our more experienced members guide new students through the design and construction of a G-class model rocket. Each workday includes a short presentation that teaches a relevant concept, followed by group work in teams of 4-6 people. Presentation topics include CAD development, simulation setup, MATLAB programming, and design review expectations. We strive to help new undergraduate students develop the engineering skills they will need to succeed in our more advanced engineering teams and provide foundational knowledge of practical engineering skill sets that reinforces fundamental theory provided by the UCSD curriculum. Creativity and innovation are highly encouraged, so design restrictions are minimized. At the end of this program, teams will travel to the Friends of Amateur Rocketry (FAR) in California City, CA to launch their designs.