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It Doesn't Take a Rocket Scientist

CSEF · 2004 Aerodynamics/ Hydrodynamics

Emily J. Biagini-Lee · Valencia Elementary School, Aptos

Overview

Objectives/Goals I wanted to see how weight, length and fin size affected the flight distance of home-made rockets. My hypothesis was that the medium body lenghth, with the medium fin and tip weight would fly the farthest. Methods/Materials I built three body lengths out of cardstock, and three sizes of fins for each body, also out of cardstock. I attached one of three weights to the tip using pennies. The rockets were each launched using a store-bought launcher, in random order, 5 times each. Results The small rocket body with the small fin size and the least amount of weight yielded the best results. The small rockets averaged 70 feet. The medium-sized rocket with the medium fin size and the medium weight averaged 60 feet. The large-sized rockets with the large fin size and the heavy weight averaged 40 feet. Conclusions/Discussion I found that the smallest rocket, fin sizes, and tip-weight tended to fly the farthest. This is not what I predicted. I think NASA can use this information to build rockets that fly farther.

Summary statement

This project determines whether and how three variables affect the distance that a rocket will launch - body length, fin size, and tip weight.

Help received

While I launched the rockets, my neighbor and parents helped to measure their landing, since sometimes they bounced forward or backward. My family helped tape some of my rockets.

Competition history

  • CSEF 2004 Aerodynamics/ Hydrodynamics · Entry J0102

Resources

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Source: California Science & Engineering Fair public projects

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