Video Production Tips

CAP Squadron 508 Fall Video Festival-October 23, 2019

Entry will qualify creators for CAP STEM Badge- Digital Media

Theme-CAP related video

          Examples: O-flight, PT day, Encampment, Rocket launch, aircraft wash, air show

2-5 minutes in length

Elements of a video-You are telling a story!

          Introduction

          Body

          Conclusion

Steps in producing a video-

          Story idea

          Story Board-maps out the video scenes

          Shot list-ensures you capture the video scenes you need

          Equipment list

          Capture video according to plans

 Edit video-resources for the video

                   A roll-main video sequences

                   B roll-establishing video, scene setting

                   Music

                   Narration-voice over

                   Titles-Opening, credits

Decide on method of publication-render to mp.4 file or consider upload to YouTube

CAP CyberPatriot and STEM Badge Program

CAP CyberPatriot and STEM badge program

CyberPatriot Badge

            Training dates:                               Hours:                       Cumulative total hours:

            Competition Round:                      Date:                         Scores: CP:     Cisco:                       Total: Hours:                                                           Competition hours total:

            Cybersecurity Activity Guide      Hours:                        Cumulative hours:

                        Section 1:                 Date:              Hours:

                        Section 2:                 Date:              Hours:

                        Section 3:                 Date:              Hours:

                        Section 4:                 Date:              Hours:

                        Section 5:                 Date:              Hours:

            Career Dossier:       1-2 pages about a career in cybersecurity

Model Rocketry Badge

Model Rocketry

Stage 1

                        Knowledge- Read Redstone content

                        Testing-Pass Quiz Stage 1                               

                        Hands-on-Build rubber band and chemically propelled rockets                                        Launch rockets built in this stage

            Stage 2

                        Knowledge-Read Titan content

                        Testing-Pass Quiz Stage 2                                                                       

                        Hands-on- Build stage 2 rockets                                                           

                        Launch rockets                                                                   

            Stage 3

                        Knowledge-Read Saturn content

                        Testing-Pass Quiz Stage 3                                                                       

                        Hands-on-Build stage 3 rockets                                                

                        Launch rockets                                                                  

STEM Badges

            Requirements

Complete Achievement 3 of CAP Cadet Program-Feik Achievement

            Document 12 hours of participation in STEM activities

            Career Dossier: write 1-2 page dossier about a STEM-related career.

Suggested ways to complete qualifications for a STEM badge

Astronomy

            Document 4 visits to Foothills Astronomy program

            Document attendance at the astronomy talks at cadet meetings or field trips.

            Career dossier: 1-2 pages about astronomy-related career

Weather

            Document attendance at the weather talks at cadet meetings

            Document daily weather observations in Yuma over 2 months

Temps: High/Low   Significant weather: Fronts, severe weather, clouds, storms

            Career dossier: 1-2 pages about a weather- related career

Digital Media

            Create 2-5 minute video

            (Lead or participate in a video production team project)

            Career dossier: 1-2 pages about a career in digital media

Robotics

            Lead Team 508 activity with Robotics STEM kit

            Provide 20-30 minute presentation on robotics for AE meeting

            Research and build more complex Robotics STEM project

            Career dossier: 1-2 page dossier about a career in robotics

UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems)

            Create 20-30 minute presentation about UAS

            Research 508 acquisition of UAS for 508 use

            Learn to safely fly/operate a drone-Quadcopter

            Career dossier: 1-2 pages about a career involving UAS

           

Aerospace Education Agenda April 2019

Aerospace Education Agenda April 24, 2019

1840           Cadet Presentation C/MSgt Franklin-The Wright Brothers

1900           Announcements

                   Congratulations to new Model Rocketry Badge winners

 CyberPatriot Team 2019 available for sign-ups

          Possible CyberPatriot Camp summer 2019

Application completed for Robotics STEM kit

          AE publication navigation

                   Advanced model rocketry field trip-high power rocketry

                             June 1, 2019-Holtville, CA 0800-1530

                   New Passport program

                             CyberPatriot STEM Badge

                             CAP STEM Badges

                                      Astronomy

                                      Digital Media-more info below

                                      Robotics

                                      UAS

Weather

                   Squadron 508 Video Festival October 23, 2019

                             Team building concepts

1945          Break

1955          Nova Climate Change

2020          Adjourn

Aerospace Education Links Arizona CAP Composite Squadron 508 April 2018

Aerospace Education Links April 2019

Hubble Space Telescope takes striking image of forming dark spot in the atmosphere of Neptune.  Developing weather patterns are deciphered on the distant planet.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/hubble-discovers-mysterious-dark-spot-000823160.html

Beautiful image of Westerhout 40 nebula show birthplace of new stars is striking color

https://www.yahoo.com/news/nasa-spots-space-butterfly-giving-030739318.html

NASA plans autonomous drone package for Mars 2020 mission. This will be the first heavier than air flight launched from the surface of the red planet.

https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/28/mars-helicopter-bound-for-the-red-planet-takes-to-the-air-for-the-first-time/?yptr=yahoo

Rocket Lab scores successful launch of a DARPA satellite as New Zealand Company hope to compete in launch vehicle sphere

https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/28/watch-rocket-labs-first-launch-of-2019-lift-a-darpa-experiment-into-orbit/?yptr=yahoo

Does it or doesn’t it. Detecting methane on Mars a possible marker for a prior or current form of life.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/methane-mars-discovery-just-lot-160217278.html

Is it really possible to capture an image of a super massive black hole? We may find out soon.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/probably-see-first-ever-photograph-172746558.html

Unmanned flight of Boeing’s Starliner delayed from May to at least August. Program appears to be trailing SpaceX with widening gap.

https://techcrunch.com/2019/04/03/boeing-confirms-delay-of-starliners-first-test-flight/?yptr=yahoo

Sources of highest power electromagnetic bursts in universe identified

https://www.yahoo.com/news/scientists-find-origin-powerful-gamma-ray-burst-much-energy-sun-will-release-lifetime-111204178.html

NASA finds surprises mapping surface of an asteroid

https://www.yahoo.com/news/nasa-asteroid-probe-shot-bennu-213708481.html

First image of a black hole released

https://www.yahoo.com/news/first-ever-photo-black-hole-130924044.html

Mars Curiosity rover drills holes in red planet’s surface despite partial failure of drilling hardware.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/nasa-curiosity-rover-just-drilled-000733415.html

Israeli spacecraft malfunctions and smashes into moon

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FDSP198?ref_=imdbref_tt_wbr_piv&tag=imdbtag_tt_wbr_piv-20

https://www.engadget.com/2019/04/14/beresheet-moon-probe-final-image-the-big-picture/?yptr=yahoo

World’s largest aircraft successfully takes to the skies for the first time

https://www.yahoo.com/news/stratolaunch-worlds-largest-plane-takes-135706308.html

New wing design being developed by NASA and MIT may change aviation in the future

https://www.yahoo.com/news/nasa-mit-created-airplane-wings-222558331.html

Possible disaster during unmanned test of SpaceX crew capsule at Cape Canaveral

https://www.yahoo.com/news/smoke-seen-miles-spacex-crew-222508141.html

https://www.yahoo.com/news/space-x-capsule-designed-carry-people-space-burns-launchpad-190350056.html

Earth Day 2019: Global warming doubts dispelled

https://www.yahoo.com/news/earth-day-2019-high-temperatures-131301815.html

Field Trip to the Palm Springs Air Museum

Team 508 Visits Palm Springs Air Museum

Sunrise was almost an hour before our planned departure time. The day dawned with perfect weather for a trip to the Palm Springs Air Museum. This venue was suggested by one of our senior members as an excellent destination for our aerospace education program. His recommendation proved to be spot on.

Although we listed the field trip as open to other squadrons in the Arizona Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, this time there were no takers. They missed out on a great opportunity. Squadron 508 Cadets boarded our CAP van for the 0700 departure time. We had an overflow of attendees so late comers travelled in a personal vehicle. The trip to Palm Springs was uneventful. Fortunately, feared traffic congestion associated with the Coachella Music Festival did not materialize.

On arrival at the museum no sooner was the van unloaded than two eager docents joined our group in the parking lot to guide us through the admission process.

Palm Springs Air Museum Entrance

It was good to be welcomed so enthusiastically. The museum waived admission fees for cadets. What a splendid start to our tour. We took advantage of the two guides available to split into two smaller groups for the guided museum tour. Our guide was Clyde, a flight instructor who was never active duty military though this was not reflected in a lack of knowledge of the museum’s exhibits. Aircraft flown during WWII were the focus of our tour though other eras were also represented.

The first stop was by the P-47 and its neighbor the British Spitfire.

P-47 in its grandeur

Excellent specimen of the Spitfire, a star of the Battle of Britain

Both aircraft were active early in World War II (WWII). The Spitfire was one of the main fighters utilized to defend the UK and help win the Battle of Britain. Remarkably that was Hitler’s first loss in the war. Watch the video available on Amazon Prime for an excellent history of the Spitfire design: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FDSP198?ref_=imdbref_tt_wbr_piv&tag=imdbtag_tt_wbr_piv-20

Next on our itinerary was the B-17 hangar. Here we encountered a highly polished specimen. Check out a fine example of nose art on this B-17.

Nose art 

Clyde and group dwarfed by the starboard wing of the B-17

We learned that the crew heavily dressed in layered gear to ward of the -40 degree temperatures that prevailed during bombing missions flown at or above 30,000 feet. The get-up even included electrically heated underwear. Nevertheless, flight operations were uncomfortable for the 11 servicemen in each aircraft.

Trying to keep warm on a B-17 mission

Overall losses were 40% during the European strategic bombing campaign for B-17 squadrons. Brave young men took to the air in the effort to cripple German manufacturing capabilities.

We backtracked a little for a stop by the twin engine B-25 Mitchell bomber. Engine cowls were partly removed and puddles of oil pooled on the floor under the massive radial engines. Notice the disciplined attention of our cadet group.

At 12 o'clock, B-25 Mitchell

Polite attention 508 cadet group

Next was a short detour to watch ongoing air operations staged on the tarmac adjoining the Palm Springs Airport. The P-51, always a crowd pleaser, was available for airplane rides. The $1,900 ticket cost was a little too steep for any of us.

Airplane Envy-P51 Mustang

A short sortie on a C-47 was also possible at a more affordable rate of $99. Such a trip was tempting but we had to forego a flight because of the limited time we had for our visit. We needed to keep our feet firmly on Tierra firma for this day. So we moved on to the hangar housing aircraft operational in Pacific Theater of WWII.

At the third hangar the transition was from primarily land-based army aviation to carrier-based naval aviation. Manufacturing the air brakes for the SBD Dauntless dive bomber must have been a challenge.

SBD Dauntless dive bomber with "holey" dive brakes

Somehow we missed out on the opportunity to climb into the cockpit of the F4U Corsair that the other group had. However everyone enjoyed this glimpse of the famous aircraft that contributed so much to the operational concept of close air support perfected by the Marines during the battles for Pacific islands held by our Japanese enemy.

Gull-winged killer from Pacific Theater WWII-the F4U Corsair

Aircraft of the utilized by the US during the Cold War were the focus of the end of our visit. The F-86 reminded me of the series of novels that I read when I was a teenager. That aircraft model single-handedly spurred my interest in aviation. 

A star of the Korean War the F-86

A Bell H-13, so familiar from the TV production M*A*S*H*, hung from the ceiling. Diagonally, on the hangar floor was its younger cousin the Bell U-H1 Huey. We still have a version of this Viet Nam era helicopter flying search and rescue missions out of our Marine Air Base in Yuma. The F-4 Phantom, F-14 Tomcat and EA-6B Prowler among other aircraft were on display on the tarmac outside the hangar.

Machines (EA-6B Prowler, F-14 Tomcat) and Mountains

After all the walking and standing it was time to take a load off and secure much needed sustenance at the museum café. The days was rapidly winding down but about an hour remained for individual time to check out the museum. Many took advantage of the computer simulators in the Museum library.

Finally we rounded everyone up for the drive back to Yuma. We made one stop for snacks and the traditional date shakes then we pulled back out on the highway to complete the day’s journey. We arrived back at the hangar as the waxing half-moon was rising in the east over the Yuma Foothills.

                               

Field trip to Palm Springs Air Museum

CAP Team 508’s visit to the Palm Springs Air Museum

Plans have been underway for several months for a field trip to the Palm Springs Air Museum. The weekend is now fast approaching so it is time to convey final details concerning the visit. The education department of the museum has kindly waved admission fees for cadets attending the event. Senior members can expect to pay a $14.50 cost for an admission ticket. As of our last contact it was not known if we will have a guided tour. Another group is attending the same day so it all depends on whether a docent will be available to lead a tour for us. Regardless, we will have full access to the extensive static displays at the museum. Also, a session in a flight simulator will be possible for those willing to pay the additional fee. Check the museum’s web site at https://palmspringsairmuseum.org/. The museum has a café for refreshments. Otherwise bring your own sack lunch.

Transportation details: Those planning to travel by the CAP van should meet at our hangar by 0645 on Saturday morning, April 13. Expect to take to the road at 0700.  The 170 mile drive should take about 3 ½ hours. Estimated departure time for the trip home will be between 1400 and 1500. I hope everyone is looking forward to what should be an extraordinary experience.

Model Rocketry April 2018

Team 508 Rocket Launch

If it’s spring then it must be time for another model rocket launch for Yuma Squadron 508 cadets. We were right on schedule this year with the launch set for the first Saturday in April at Contreras Field near the Yuma Foothills. The members of Yuma Aeromodelers Club kindly made the field available to us so we could safely launch our rockets, away from the more populated areas in our vicinity. We earned their generosity by helping to organize and direct automobile parking during the annual Air Show event in late February.

I have been encouraging cadets to earn the CAP Model Rocketry Badge by covering required knowledge tasks and hands-on activities as part of our monthly Aerospace Education (AE) schedule. Cadets must also pass the three required open book quizzes on their own. Quizzes are accessed online through the CAP eServices web site. The rocket launch is the final step in earning the badge and patch.

The first objective in achieving a successful rocket launch is to secure an arsenal of model rockets. To start with we had a number of rockets left over from last year’s launch. The ARF (not a dog vocalization) almost ready to fly rockets by Estes have proved to be quite durable for us. But there were additional rockets we needed to build. Construction was carried out in our conference room at the CAP hangar during the March AE meeting. I provided three of the more advanced Estes rocket kits. These were either two stage rockets or rockets with cargo carrying capability. Building these types of rockets is required to complete the Stage 3-Saturn module of CAP Model Rocketry basic model rocketry program. Cadets formed three groups to cooperatively build out the kits. The models were the most complicated we have attempted over the last two years. Kits had a high degree of construction and detailing difficulty. Unfortunately, the finished rockets seemed to be a bit more fragile than their ARF cousins.

Plan of the evening: Build 3 model rockets

The day of the launch dawned with clear skies and a promise of light winds, ideal conditions for model rocketry. We arrived at Contreras Field and quickly set up our two launch pads and a rocket preparation area to load engines and pack recovery parachutes. A small canteen area was provisioned with cold water, chocolate chip cookies, muffins, and of course, candy bars. Sugar is an important component in providing the high energy levels needed to launch and retrieve spent rockets. The ARF rockets provided great entertainment, especially when they were configured with C6-5 engines. 

Eggscaliber and an ARF side-by-side ready for launch

Launches were generally vertically true and rockets reached a satisfying altitude before the secondary charges deployed the orange and white parachute recovery systems. The two stage rockets were problematic due to construction problems. We could only use the booster stage of one of the rockets. However, this rocket proved to be a true crowd pleaser because of its impressive length and the multiple pieces that deployed at apogee. The slower acceleration at ignition also appeared more realistic than the less massive rockets we were launching. The cargo carrying rockets were entertaining. We launched 3 hardboiled eggs but the nose cone fell off at altitude each time and the egg fell out, vividly demonstrating the laws of gravity. We were slow to conclude that a little Scotch Tape would have solved this problem. Suffice to say that the second egg-carrier rocket, Eggscaliber, kept us all on our toes during its launch.

We ran out of intact rockets to launch before we ran out of engines. Nevertheless, everyone had a good time; there were no injuries; and we finished on schedule so the field could be reopened to its waiting, more common, winged models. The group offered suggestions to solve or prevent the various modes of failure we observed while launching our rockets. Take home conclusions to save for next year. We loaded up the van and headed back to our hangar to rest up after an energetic morning. Final numbers are not in yet but approximately six of the cadets completed the final requirement for their Model Rocketry badges. Awards will be made to each at an upcoming squadron meeting.

Information for cadets working toward your Model Rocketry STEM Badge

CAP cadets in Arizona Wing are offered opportunities to work toward the STEM badge for Model Rocketry by participating in the activity detailed in the link below or in the alternate exercises planned by AE staff of Composite Squadron 508 in Yuma:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eDKkoxumCs9W7wIq0H9bJZfCs27SpQbb/view?usp=sharing

Squadron 508 has a sequential method of earning a STEM badge in Model Rocketry that includes classroom sessions to prepare for the three quizzes based on the information in the CAP Model Rocketry pamphlet, hands-on rocket building exercises at the squadron meeting rooms, and model rocket launches. All of our cadets are encouraged to earn this badge. We go out of our way to make this as easy as possible. This fiscal year we have already held one of the classroom sessions and have completed the hands-on rocket builds for all three modules. 

All are invited to participate in our model rocket launch this Saturday, April 6th 2019 at Contreras Field from 0700 to 1000. We have the model rockets, engines, launch pads, and launch controllers for a planned 30+ rocket launches including several multi-stage rockets and two payload carrying rockets. I will provide the HARD boiled eggs. Hope to see you all there.