Rocket Launches Propel Physics Learning

Upper School Physics students became familiar with the scientific concepts of force, velocity, acceleration, impulse, momentum, energy and more in their annual Rocket Launch lab.

In preparation for launch day, students worked in groups to design and construct model rockets. They then completed conceptual analysis and theoretical calculations on the physics-related characteristics of their future rocket launch, using the known mass measurements and thrust profile of the rocket engines.

As part of this work, students described the energy profile of their rocket during its stages of flight, speaking to chemical potential energy in its engine; gravitational potential energy; kinetic energy; and thermal energy of the rocket plus the surrounding environment at each phase. They also predicted a range of values for their rocket using physics equations for comparison with actual data following their launches.

On launch day, students put the final touches on their rockets in the classroom, loading engines and folding parachutes with eat-resistant paper inside the rocket body while leaving enough room to include their altimeters before heading outside to the mid-point of the turf field. Each student group took its turn performing a final safety check and activating a digital altimeter/accelerometer before inserting it into the rocket’s body, lowering the rocket onto the launch pad and hooking up its engine to the ignition controller. Students yelled out a countdown before each rocket’s ascent into the sky, to the delight of the younger students who watched their older peers’ scientific discovery from the sidelines.

Students retrieved their rockets following launch and used the data collected by the altimeter/accelerometer to finish the lab report and fuel a discussion on the difference between the theoretical calculations and the values measured by the sensor aboard each rocket.

Click here for photos from the launch.