Rocket Preliminary Design:
The rocket motor we chose is, "The Trident Missile." The reason for this is because we really liked the trust curve, and because it was the rocket engine that we designed. The big T was 3.16 grams. And the little t was 5 seconds.
323 grams is the how much our rocket should weigh. The way we got that number was from dividing our average thrust by 5. Which was, 1615 divided by 5 which got us the 323 grams.
The Planning Stage: In the planning stages, we are going to answer 3 major questions to make sure our rocket works to our liking.
The rocket motor we chose is, "The Trident Missile." The reason for this is because we really liked the trust curve, and because it was the rocket engine that we designed. The big T was 3.16 grams. And the little t was 5 seconds.
323 grams is the how much our rocket should weigh. The way we got that number was from dividing our average thrust by 5. Which was, 1615 divided by 5 which got us the 323 grams.
The Planning Stage: In the planning stages, we are going to answer 3 major questions to make sure our rocket works to our liking.
- What is it going to look like: Gabriel and I have now came up with a design of what we would like our rocket to look like. We both want to put equal amount of work into our rocket, due to this we are going to have to use a lot of team work and communication. Our vision is to make a rocket that is the same diameter as the rocket motor, that weighs 323 grams. The way we got that weight is from dividing our average thrust by 5. Which was, 1615 divided by 5 which got us the 323 grams. That is the optimal weight for our rocket engine which is the "Trident Missile." We both also talked to JP, and he told us to make our fins as light as possible, but not too small.
- Can we put our ideas on paper: What Gabriel and I did, was sketched it onto graph paper with the exact measurements for our rocket. What we did was we used simple shapes, and by time we will change that to make it for our liking. Here is the photo of our rocket design.
3. How are we gonna make this happen: Gabriel and I are going to make this happen by team work, communication and dedication. Today on November 17, I am going to go to my friends house, where his dad builds rockets for a hobby. That is where I am going to get the tube for the main part of the rocket. And also the parachute for the rocket, which is going to be a bit more of a struggle to find, I may have to make it. Gabriel is going to get glue and also the balsa wood for the nose cone. For our fins, we would like to use the balsa wood in the classroom, or buy a sheet of balsa wood. We would like to get our scratch built rocket started by November 18, so we can have it all done by December 1st. The reason why it is going to take us a few weeks, is because of Thanksgiving break in the middle of the section.
How The Rocket Is Going: Gabe and I both worked on the tube together for a day, to get it perfect. We then worked on taking all the imperfections out of the tube, and get it ready for the fins. The rocket is now starting to turn out, we have now been glueing our fins and doing our final steps to the rocket. We have had a hard time finding the perfect nosecone for our rocket, we have gone through trial and error. The first nose cone idea we got was using a 3/4 inch PVC coupler, but we were not liking the way it looked. We have now found a nosecone of another rocket that fits perfectly onto our rocket. Once we are done with that, the rocket will be complete.
Reflection On Building Our Fins: In this project Gabriel and I wanted our rocket to perform in the best way possible. So what we did was we made a day out of it to make the best fins possible. The first thing we did was we found our nosecone and then we put our scratch built engine into the rocket. The reasoning for this, was so we could find our center of mass to calculate the optimal fin design. We were having a hard time with the calculation for our fin design so we found JP Montello in Jesse Wade Robinson room and he did some talking with us and we came up with 3 fins that have 8 inches of surface area. We did not want to have huge fins, so we narrowed it down to 6 fins that have 4 inches of surface area. The final result of the fins was amazing, personally I would use this fin design again.
Photos Through The Process:
How The Rocket Is Going: Gabe and I both worked on the tube together for a day, to get it perfect. We then worked on taking all the imperfections out of the tube, and get it ready for the fins. The rocket is now starting to turn out, we have now been glueing our fins and doing our final steps to the rocket. We have had a hard time finding the perfect nosecone for our rocket, we have gone through trial and error. The first nose cone idea we got was using a 3/4 inch PVC coupler, but we were not liking the way it looked. We have now found a nosecone of another rocket that fits perfectly onto our rocket. Once we are done with that, the rocket will be complete.
Reflection On Building Our Fins: In this project Gabriel and I wanted our rocket to perform in the best way possible. So what we did was we made a day out of it to make the best fins possible. The first thing we did was we found our nosecone and then we put our scratch built engine into the rocket. The reasoning for this, was so we could find our center of mass to calculate the optimal fin design. We were having a hard time with the calculation for our fin design so we found JP Montello in Jesse Wade Robinson room and he did some talking with us and we came up with 3 fins that have 8 inches of surface area. We did not want to have huge fins, so we narrowed it down to 6 fins that have 4 inches of surface area. The final result of the fins was amazing, personally I would use this fin design again.
Photos Through The Process:
Video Of Launch:
Reflection On The Launch:Our rocket performed absolutely amazing, I really did not imagine it to work as it did. When we got to the launch field, we realized that the launcher batteries went out because Brian Del Gado was using it all morning launching rockets. We then realized that we had a small piece of fuse and a lighter. We finally managed to get the rocket up in the air and the performance was awesome. You can't see it in the video but the parachute deployed, and worked fairly well. The only problem with the rocket was that we did not have any wadding for the discharge. What happened was the flame from the discharge hit the parachute and burned it a bit. The parachute after being burned still worked pretty well, which was amazing. We are now ready to show the rocket for exhibition.
Rocket Project Fall 2015 Reflection
Now that this project is complete, how do you feel about it?
This project was a bit rushed in my opinion, I really wish that we had a few more weeks while we were building our rocket. Although it was a bit rushed, this project really did teach me time management. I really did like our final outcome of our rocket also, due to this it has really turned me onto rockets.
What things stand out?
Some things that really did stand out to me was the team work and dedication that was going on in this classroom with the rocket project. I never have been in a class that I saw so much team work going on. I have to admit, both Gabriel and I worked super well with each other. One thing that we did was we communicated a lot, and that was one thing that was going on with everyone in every single rocket partnership.
What, if any, science or technological things did you learn from doing this project?
In this project, I don't feel like the science aspect was pushed on us enough. Also the technology aspect of this project was either. One thing I used although was my phone to find the best way to connect all 6 fins all level to the rocket. Next time you do this project you may be able to include more science into the project, but all in all it worked out super well.
What is necessary to understand to build a successful rocket?
There is a lot to know to build a scratch built rocket that is successful, and that is one thing that a lot of the class was lacking at first. I did a lot of research on my own on different rocket designs, and I felt like a lot of people were coming to me for ideas which I didn't mind. But I really did feel like a lot of the class didn't really know how to make a rocket. One thing that you could have done is pushed the kit build rockets a lot more before they could make a scratch build, because a lot of kids knew nothing about rockets.
What, if any, metacognitive knowledge did you gain? (what did you learn about yourself as a learner - work habits, work ethic, tendencies, etc.)
In this project I learned a lot about my self as a learner, I really feel like I worked my way to get through this project with an A. While I was working, I really feel like my time management skills improved in just a few days. Also the way I looked at life changed, I didn't imagine myself building a scratch built rocket and a scratch built engine.
How did you collaborate with others in this project? (Who did you work with? What did you contribute? How did you operate as a group or unit?)
I collaborated super well with a lot of people in this project, due to have quite a bit of knowledge in rockets. On this project I worked with Gabriel Malcolm, and we both collaborated super well with each other. While we were doing this project, we split the work in half. I really feel like we both operated super well with each other, I would definitely work with him again on further projects at this school.
If you could do this project again, would you do anything differently?
If I were to do this rocket project again, I would give my self a bit more time while building the scratch built rocket. While I was working with Gabriel on the rocket, it was hard to get the tube from anyone after they were done getting there rocket base done. I really wish there were more materials to get the rocket done because I had to go find stuff at my house in order to get my rocket done in time because there were not any rocket materials in the class.
What advice would you give to the next class of rocketeers?
Get the rocket tube before the other kids, because if you don't you will not be able to get your rocket done until the next week or so. That was one thing that happened to us, and it really did set us back by a lot. I fell like if there was a tube for everyone to get there rocket done, the project would have been a lot more successful and a lot less stressful.
Based on your responses above, what advice or suggestions would you give to Andrew to help him design a better rocket project?
Some advice I would have for Andrew for further years of the rocket project is getting the students more involved with making the motors. While doing this last part of the project, I don't feel like I did much work because of the motor being made for us. I really feel like if we were able to make to motors for the rockets, it really would have made the project better and would make us appreciate this project a bit more. I really don't feel like the science behind rockets was involved in the project, and that is one thing that could have made the project a bit better also.
Rocket Project Fall 2015 Reflection
Now that this project is complete, how do you feel about it?
This project was a bit rushed in my opinion, I really wish that we had a few more weeks while we were building our rocket. Although it was a bit rushed, this project really did teach me time management. I really did like our final outcome of our rocket also, due to this it has really turned me onto rockets.
What things stand out?
Some things that really did stand out to me was the team work and dedication that was going on in this classroom with the rocket project. I never have been in a class that I saw so much team work going on. I have to admit, both Gabriel and I worked super well with each other. One thing that we did was we communicated a lot, and that was one thing that was going on with everyone in every single rocket partnership.
What, if any, science or technological things did you learn from doing this project?
In this project, I don't feel like the science aspect was pushed on us enough. Also the technology aspect of this project was either. One thing I used although was my phone to find the best way to connect all 6 fins all level to the rocket. Next time you do this project you may be able to include more science into the project, but all in all it worked out super well.
What is necessary to understand to build a successful rocket?
There is a lot to know to build a scratch built rocket that is successful, and that is one thing that a lot of the class was lacking at first. I did a lot of research on my own on different rocket designs, and I felt like a lot of people were coming to me for ideas which I didn't mind. But I really did feel like a lot of the class didn't really know how to make a rocket. One thing that you could have done is pushed the kit build rockets a lot more before they could make a scratch build, because a lot of kids knew nothing about rockets.
What, if any, metacognitive knowledge did you gain? (what did you learn about yourself as a learner - work habits, work ethic, tendencies, etc.)
In this project I learned a lot about my self as a learner, I really feel like I worked my way to get through this project with an A. While I was working, I really feel like my time management skills improved in just a few days. Also the way I looked at life changed, I didn't imagine myself building a scratch built rocket and a scratch built engine.
How did you collaborate with others in this project? (Who did you work with? What did you contribute? How did you operate as a group or unit?)
I collaborated super well with a lot of people in this project, due to have quite a bit of knowledge in rockets. On this project I worked with Gabriel Malcolm, and we both collaborated super well with each other. While we were doing this project, we split the work in half. I really feel like we both operated super well with each other, I would definitely work with him again on further projects at this school.
If you could do this project again, would you do anything differently?
If I were to do this rocket project again, I would give my self a bit more time while building the scratch built rocket. While I was working with Gabriel on the rocket, it was hard to get the tube from anyone after they were done getting there rocket base done. I really wish there were more materials to get the rocket done because I had to go find stuff at my house in order to get my rocket done in time because there were not any rocket materials in the class.
What advice would you give to the next class of rocketeers?
Get the rocket tube before the other kids, because if you don't you will not be able to get your rocket done until the next week or so. That was one thing that happened to us, and it really did set us back by a lot. I fell like if there was a tube for everyone to get there rocket done, the project would have been a lot more successful and a lot less stressful.
Based on your responses above, what advice or suggestions would you give to Andrew to help him design a better rocket project?
Some advice I would have for Andrew for further years of the rocket project is getting the students more involved with making the motors. While doing this last part of the project, I don't feel like I did much work because of the motor being made for us. I really feel like if we were able to make to motors for the rockets, it really would have made the project better and would make us appreciate this project a bit more. I really don't feel like the science behind rockets was involved in the project, and that is one thing that could have made the project a bit better also.