Quad (rocket)

In rocketry, the Armadillo Aerospace Quad vehicle called Pixel is a computer-controlled VTVL rocket that was used in 2006 to compete in the Lunar Lander Challenge.

[1] The quad vehicle design is a pressure fed in blow-down[clarification needed] mode from an initial pressure of 320 psi for level 1 (400 psi level 2).

The vehicle was able to transfer propellant through connecting pipes between opposite tanks by controlling ullage pressures with the thrusters; this helps it balance, minimizing gas use.

[citation needed] The vehicle was fully computer controlled; with guidance from GPS and fiber optic gyros.

The specification for Pixel/Texel for level 1:[citation needed] Engine (XPC-06):[citation needed] On 8 March 2010, Matthew Ross of Armadillo Aerospace confirmed that Pixel had been converted to methane/LOX propellant and sold to NASA as part of the Project M testbed for the Autonomous Landing Hazard Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) LIDAR range finding system under development by Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).