Guest: Prof. Mike Brookes, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal | Co-founder of the UKZN Aerospace Systems Research Institute 

Our next guest is part of a team that has successfully competed a test launch of a 1-D hybrid rocket. The Phoenix 1-D was carrying experimental sensors and cameras as part of the mission. Sounding rockets are rocket-propelled launch vehicles that carry experimental payloads to the upper reaches of the atmosphere that play a crucial role in facilitating experiments in a wide variety of scientific disciplines, including biotechnology, astronomy, astrophysics, materials science and meteorology. Through their Space Propulsion Programme, young mechanical engineering students work on the rockets focusing on advancing their skills in advanced manufacturing, aerospace systems design, rocket launch operations and computational analysis.