History

USCRPL was founded in 2005 with the goal of putting a student-designed and -built rocket into space. The Lab’s rigorous research and development into state-of-the-art rocket technology has resulted in an impressive 8-mission set, comprising of over 12 different airframes and motors. Each one of these incremental vehicles and static fires played a role in building up the technologies needed for a successful space-shot rocket. An all-carbon motor case was tested on Silver Spur, avionics were tested on ATV and Deja Vu, thermal systems were tested on SixyBack, and all of it was tested at a small scale with the Fathom series, to name a few. When all was deemed ready, the Traveler series was born. After multiple failed attempts, it was Traveler IV that finally made the trip to space.

Armed with determination and the skills of USC students across all engineering disciplines, RPL has made incredible advances in the fields of solid and hybrid propellants, composite structures, thermal protection, high altitude recovery, and on-board avionics systems. With an unwavering emphasis on pushing the cutting-edge, USCRPL is the world’s premier undergraduate research group for experimental rocketry technologies.