All rocketeers should become familiar with a rocket flight simulation program. A very popular one is called Open Rocket. This program allows you to input parts and set their size to find out how your rocket might fly. There are other programs like Rocksim but that is a paid program so people starting out may not want to make the investment just yet into dedicated rocket design and simulation software. You certainly don’t need to because I have used Open Rocket for all my rockets.

Start by visiting the open rocket website to download the program. You will need java to run this program so you may also need to download java from their website too if it is not already installed. It should look like the image below when you open it for the first time.

There is an Open Rocket wiki that can explain some of the basic functionality but for new users, it might be best to watch a YouTube tutorial series. BYU’s rocketry team made a video tutorial series a few years ago so the software version is a bit older but the basics are the same.

The construction resources page will have more information on scratch vs kit rockets but if you plan on making a kit, its still a good idea to simulate it in Open Rocket. Often the manufacturer will have a model of the rocket already made for you to download but if you don’t find one, there is almost always one that someone else made on the rocketry forum. Just a note that you can open Rocksim files in Open Rocket but normally the internal components will get moved around.