McCallie School · Student Rocketry
Building the First Student-Built
Liquid Oxygen Rocket Engine
The McCallie Propulsion Lab (MPL) is a student-run engineering team designing, building, and test-firing a liquid-propellant rocket engine, a first for a high school program.
Our Mission
McCallie Propulsion Lab exists to give students hands-on experience with real propulsion engineering, from propellant chemistry and combustion dynamics to structural design and avionics. Our flagship goal is to design, build, and static-fire a liquid oxygen / fuel rocket engine entirely engineered by students, something no high school program has done before.
Current Projects
What we're building right now, click through for the full breakdown and stats on each.
Test Stand
Our in-house-built static-fire stand, instrumented for serious data collection.
Helios
A 600 lbf LOX/Ethanol regen engine built for the Nexus lander.
Hyperion
MPL's first propulsion system, a 3.75 kN regen-cooled LOX/Ethanol engine.
Nexus
Our first vehicle: a vertical lander built to compete in the CPLC.
The CPLC Challenges
The Collegiate Propulsive Lander Challenge (CPLC) is a 4-year, $390k prize competition that challenges rocketry teams to hit major milestones on the road to a fully reusable, self-landing rocket, from a controlled hotfire with thrust vector control, up to a 50-meter hop that launches, lands, and touches down safely within a 10-meter circle.
Bess Touchdown Award: $25k
A controlled descent from 10 meters to a gentle, reusable landing with payload.
Tethered Hover: $25k
Hold a stable, controlled hover for 10 seconds with payload, on tether.
Hop: $50k
Fly from the ground to 50 meters and land within a 10-meter circle.
Our Plan
CPLC is built for university teams, but we're planning to pursue it anyway, as a high school exception. We're reaching out to the CPLC to make our case and, if accepted, work toward these same milestones alongside college rocketry programs across the country.
Sub-Teams
Engineering
Design and analysis of the engine, propellant systems, and test stand, from CAD to test data.
Business
Sponsorships, budgeting, outreach, and partnerships that keep the lab funded and connected.
Manufacturing
Machining, fabrication, and assembly of the engine, test stand, and propellant system hardware.
Our Team
A small team of high schoolers building hardware most college teams haven't attempted yet.
Ayan Chakraborty
Lead Engineer & Founder
LeadershipAndrew Voss
Advisor
SpaceX AlumniCaleb Bagby
Advisor
Lab DirectorJosiah Obeng-Boampong
Engineering
EngineeringAJ Gupta
Business Lead & Manufacturing
Business & ManufacturingPorter O'Shaughnessy
Business & Manufacturing
Business & ManufacturingTarek Ankar Burdette
Manufacturing
ManufacturingKol Lea
Business & Manufacturing
Business & ManufacturingSponsors
MPL is a student-funded engineering program run as a nonprofit. Your support fuels every test fire.
Become a Sponsor
Propellants, machining, electronics, and test equipment all require funding. Reach out to partner with us.
Sponsor MPLOur Partners
We couldn't do this without the companies who supply materials, manufacturing, and mentorship.
Platinum Level
Blue Level
White Level
Help Us Reach Ignition
Interested in partnering with or sponsoring MPL? We'd love to hear from you.
Contact Us
Questions, sponsorship inquiries, or just want to say hi? Reach out.