��Ŵ��¼� Space Cowboys rocketry team wins challenge at 2025 International Rocket Engineering Competition

Members of Mississippi State’s Space Cowboys Rocketry Team pose with Helios, a rocket named after the Greek sun god. Helios’ near-30,000 foot flight secured first place in the 2025 International Rocket Engineering Competition’s 30K Commercial Off-The-Shelf solid-motor challenge. (Submitted photo)

STARKVILLE, Miss.—The Mississippi State Space Cowboys rocketry team soared to a first-place victory this month at the 2025 International Rocket Engineering Competition, marking the second time in the last 10 years the team has won a category.

Held in Midland, Texas, the event welcomed more than 143 teams from 22 countries to evaluate their rockets on altitude, engineering design, safety and mission objectives. ��Ŵ��¼� finished sixth place in the overall competition.

In the 30K Commercial Off-The-Shelf solid-motor challenge, the Space Cowboys won with Helios, a 6-inch internal diameter airframe rocket named after the Greek sun god. Standing at 140 inches and weighing roughly 69 pounds, Helios reached 28,639 feet, securing ��Ŵ��¼�’s win over 20 other teams.

“The Space Cowboys are a great example of the scholarly community we have in the Bagley College of Engineering, where students can successfully compete with anyone in the world on projects they’re passionate about,” said David Ford, James Worth Bagley College of Engineering dean. “We’re incredibly proud of them.”

The team’s win was not without challenges. Due to competition weather conditions, the launch angle was adjusted from 4 to 6 degrees, resulting in the rocket falling short of its expected distance. Shreyas Narsipur, ��Ŵ��¼� aerospace engineering assistant professor and Space Cowboys faculty advisor, said the team still was able to secure victory thanks to novel engineering approaches in modeling and designing the rocket.

“These students implemented machine learning for predictions and design, which was amazing,” Narsipur said. “The simulations and manufacturing teams did an excellent job testing and getting it all together. I think they really outscored the other teams in the technical aspects.”

Established in 2006, the Space Cowboys team also claimed IREC in 2015, winning with its rocket Asimov, which reached 22,562 feet. With this year’s nearly 6,000-foot increase, Narsipur said this is only the beginning as the team begins designing its 2026 rocket.

“Since I began advising them in 2022, I encouraged a singular focus: Build one rocket, engineered with precision, stable in flight and repeatable in performance,” he said. “They’ve delivered exactly that—turning persistence into performance and vision into reality via a multidisciplinary effort spanning nearly all engineering domains. From this point forward, it is ad astra et ultra [to the stars and beyond].”

Operated by the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association, the IREC provides students worldwide the opportunity to test their engineering knowledge and experience in rocketry. For more, visit .

To learn more about ��Ŵ��¼�’s Space Cowboys, visit .

The Bagley College of Engineering is online at��and can be found on��,��and��at @msuengineering.

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