A 4 day STEM Rocketry Program is underway at SMS. Mr. Tom Zachman is the lead instructor and has provided all 7/8 th grade students with a Quest Astra III model rocket they built together in class. On day 1, Mr. Zachman introduced the students to the history of rocketry and aerospace science. Students also learned about the physics of rocketry as it applies to sport/model rockets and how NASA and SpaceX launch rockets are extremely similar. Day 2 covered Newton’s 3 laws of motion, balanced and unbalanced forces and calculating force and magnitude of change in motion.
Day 3 and 4 are upcoming and dependent on the weather. Launch day is scheduled for Monday, November 7th as long as the weather permits. On launch day, students will form timing teams, altitude tracking teams, and distance to pad teams. Students will record launch pad rod angle, wind velocity, and direction, time of flight, and landing distance from the launch pad for each rocket. All students will launch their individual rockets. The winning student/rocket will win a new “Patriot Rocket” and 2 additional motors.
All 7th and 8th grade students are also invited to become a member of the Ripley Ohio Association of Rocketry (ROAR) and the National Association of Rocketry. Details will be provided on the final day of the program.
