Connect With Other Rocketeers

The Northern Illinois Rocketry Association (NIRA) has been bringing rocket hobbyists together in northeastern Illinois, mainly suburban Chicago, since 1963. Our members participate in regular monthly meetings and club launches plus a variety of special activities throughout the year. We range in age from toddler through elderly, and include beginners, dedicated hobbyists with over 35 years of hobby rocketry experience, and a variety of folks in between. Whatever your sport rocket interests or skill level, you'll find a welcome home at NIRA.

Fly Your Whole Collection

NIRA members build and fly model and high power rockets, competition models, radio controlled rocket gliders, scale models and oddrocs of all sizes, shapes and description. You can see some of the rockets we fly by visiting our gallery and looking at pictures from some of our launch events and meetings.

Pick Up New Ideas

National Association of Rocketry Section #117 Newsletter The Leading Edge Winner of the Rockwell Newsletter Trophy 1982, 1984, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001

NIRA members regularly share their latest discoveries through presentations at club meetings, discussion at after-meeting dinners, email lists, and local, national, and international convocations. Are you looking for answers on how to best apply that special paint? Need some pointers on fiberglass techniques? Want to know how to trim your helicopter rocket? Check out the action at a NIRA event. Ask some questions. You'll get hooked up in no time.

Share Your Ideas

You may have some hobby techniques of your own or other special knowledge that you'd like to share with the club. The floor is always open at NIRA meetings for members to help each other out with tips and tricks.

Additionally, many members attend national conventions like NAR's NARCON. NIRA holds our own annual convention in February, called NIRACon.

Open To Anyone

NIRA welcomes anyone interested in sport rocketry to join us. You may have flown rockets as a kid. You may be discovering rockets for the first time. You may not even own any rockets, but are just interested in the science. We even have members across the country who could never reasonably be able to join us for events, but who wish to receive the newsletter just to stay informed. Do you really need an excuse?

To join our club you can print up and mail in the handy online membership application. For more information you can email us at info@nira-rocketry.org. Or if you prefer you can contact someone on our contacts list to get information on a specific topic. We look forward to seeing you and talking rockets!