The Gregorian calendar is on the precipice of a new year, meaning it’s time for people to stay up until midnight, watch the ball drop, and, most importantly, declare their ambitious resolutions. While I don’t have any resolutions, per say, I do have a to-do list, filled with projects I need to start/finish.

Nero

Having now test-flown (/crashed) four iterations of my 3-channel radio-controlled (RC) plane, I am confident that I am nearing the optimal aircraft design: streamlined, lightweight, and powerful.

The current plane in production is Nero, an aircraft that will be practically identical to Claudius, deviating only by its reinforced wings. Had my schedule not gotten in the way, this plane would have been finished by now.

Below is the fuselage of Nero. The wings (and thus the entire aircraft) should be complete in the next few weeks.

RC Planes After Nero

The long-term goal of my RC hobby is to build a plane capable of maintaining flight for at least 10 seconds. My fourth model, Claudius, would have likely achieved this had the controls of my transmitter not been reversed. (FYI: Claudius nosedived into the ground immediately due to its elevator servo going down instead of up.)

Once this goal is achieved, I plan to purchase a decent 3D printer, with my specific choice being (as everything in this hobby) optimized for affordability. The motive for such a steep investment is to build lighter and faster planes of increasing complexity by means of printing more and more of the plane hardware. After learning some computer-aided design, I should be able to gradually work my way up to an entirely 3D-printed plane.

Drones

I only have a vague idea on this bullet point, so I can’t elaborate very much. All I can say is that I plan to start building drones sometime in the new year.

From the (little) research I’ve done regarding these unmanned aerial vehicles, it seems that building drones is even harder than building RC planes. Prepare for some interesting blogs!

Model Rocketry

As I have discussed previously, I am trying to launch a model rocket but have been delayed by the lack of a launch site.

In the new year, I plan to secure one, purchase a model rocket, and fly it. From there, I will start building my own with the assistance of the aforementioned 3D printer and try to achieve some worthy milestone. I have yet to figure out what this milestone will be, but flying up to a certain altitude will likely be it.

Refer to my last blog if more details are desired.

Mastering Calculus and Physics

Earlier in 2025, I released a blog discussing the fundamental simplicity of calculus. From that post, you probably inferred (correctly!) that I really like math.

From the intellectual struggle to the beauty of the concepts, mathematics intrigues me. For those reasons, I doubt I’ll ever stop learning math. In the new year, I will continue scaling the rungs of the academic ladder, with AP Calculus and AP Physics now consuming most of my time.

In addition to those classes, I plan to start learning mathematical astronomy and basic astrodynamics, subjects that I have been delayed in pursuing because of college preparation.

College

Oh yeah, I’ll also be doing that.

In conclusion…

Happy New Year’s, and may your projects continue nominally!

Ad caelum! Ad astra!