AERD, Bangladesh's First Hybrid Rocketry Team

Founded in February 2022, Amateur Experimental Rocketry Dhaka (AERD) is a pioneering student organization dedicated to hybrid rocket propulsion in Bangladesh. Our initiative is generously supported by a research grant from the American International University of Bangladesh (AIUB), under its respective Dr. Anwarul Abedin Institute of Innovation (D2A2I). Initially founded as a compact team, AERD has rapidly evolved into a diverse and dynamic group of 40 members. This team encompasses 10 high school students and 30 undergraduates from 14 major institutions across Bangladesh, embodying a rich diversity of ages and backgrounds.

Over the past year, we have achieved remarkable milestones, including testing Bangladesh’s first-ever hybrid rocket engine which was covered across national televisions and major newspapers including Dhaka Tribune, Daily Star, Prothom Alo, The Business Standard, and more. Additionally, we have developed a low-cost weather balloon module in Bangladesh that is now in its third wave of optimization. More than a student organization, we are a group of passionate individuals who share the dreams of pushing the boundaries of research and innovation at the forefront of Bangladesh's scientific exploration and most importantly rocketry. Meanwhile, we’re also focused on research with the team testing 2 engines weekly and working on several papers.

Since its creation, AERD has designed and produced an internal system for engine testing and data collection.To acquire exact data, we created our own portable DAQ system utilizing the national instrument NI-9205. Our journey's beginning was not easy, and we made modest steps at a time. Starting with hand-built protoboards and putting everything together, each phase came together as a puzzle.

At AERD, we also developed our hybrid rocket engine control hardware and software from the ground up. At its core we have a 32bit esp 32 mcu to control our ignition timings, and along that an interface to visualize and define our hot-fire sequences. AERD CNTRL is the first open-source hardware developed for our hybrid engine static test fires.

For our upcoming goal of launching a hybrid rocket, meticulous data collection is important. To this end, we have deployed several weather balloons equipped with CubeSats to gather essential data. Simultaneously, we are developing a CanSat to amass further information and have begun creating our proprietary On-Board Computer (OBC) for processing sensor data and telemetry. This initiative has led us to apply for registration with the Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA), significant as we hope to continue spreading rocketry across Bangladesh in ways other than the current seminars and workshops. As we also began on other projects including the development of a throttle valve and thrust vector control system, we realized we could not do this alone.

Our pursuit of rocketry will significantly advance with the support of PCBWay. As AERD sets its sights on designing and constructing hybrid rockets in addition to a hover vehicle in the future, we are often met with the challenges of procuring and fabricating parts that align with our stringent budget constraints and ambitious timelines. Access to PCBWay’s rapid prototyping services would not only expedite our design cycles but also empower a broader segment of our team with invaluable hands-on experience in design and fabrication processes.

Collaborating with PCBWay would offer us the tools and resources to refine our flight computers, making our systems more robust, efficient, and capable. That said, we hope to collaborate with PCBWay to secure a brighter aerospace future for Bangladesh.

A few of our coverages:

Weather Balloon: https://www.thedailystar.net/campus/noticeboard/news/aiub-and-aerd-successfully-launches-their-first-weather-balloon-akashbani-v1-3522546
First Hybrid Rocket Engine in Bangladesh: https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/325072/first-hybrid-rocket-engine-in-bangladesh-tested
AIUB and AERD's Agreement Signing: https://www.aiub.edu/agreement-signing-ceremony-between-dr-anwarul-abedin-institute-of-innovation-aiub-and-amateur-experimental-rocketry-dhaka

We have also been covered numerous times by the Bangladesh National Television Channels.

For our media, please refer to: