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Total Duration:
61 to 90 Minutes
Materials and Resources:
large binder clips (one per launch pad)
fishing line or smooth string
long balloons (if students are allowed to "cluster" the engines) or round balloons (if single engines are preferred)
3 oz paper cup
straight drinking straws
50 small paper clips
sandwich size plastic bag
masking tape
balloon hand pumps
wooden spring-type clothespin (option)
Launch Pad:
Tie fishing line to binder clip or clothespin. If your classroom has a suspended ceiling, use binder clips or clothespins to attach fishing line to the metal frame supporting the ceiling tiles.
Make sure the line is long enough to reach the floor.
The fishing line or string is fed through the straw then taped to the floor or to a weight in order to keep the line tight (you do not want line to sag).
When the balloon is released, the straw will ride up the line.
Video Analysis Extension Activity:
Cell Phone, iPad or video camera
Logger Pro software or video physics app for iPhone or Android
Technology Resources Needed:
Newton in Space Video: In this 'Liftoff to Learning' series video, astronauts (Charles Veach, Gregory Harbaugh, Donald McMonagle, Michael Coats, L. Blaine Hammond, Guion Bluford, Richard Hieb) from the STS-39 Mission use physical experiments and computer animation to explain how weightlessness and gravity affects everything and everyone onboard the Space Shuttle. The physics behind the differences between weight and mass, and the concepts of 'free fall,' are demonstrated along with explanations and experiments of Sir Isaac Newton's three laws of motion.
Background/Preparation:
What Does the Future Hold for Heavy Lift Launch Vehicles? NASA has a new plan for the future of space exploration. The new plan will eventually lead to human exploration of Mars. Many steps will be needed in order to get there. New technologies will have to be developed. NASA is working on a new Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle. The new vehicle will apply many of the ideas NASA has discovered about rockets. It will also use brand new technologies. Engineers are working to figure out the best way to prepare to explore the solar system.
What Comes Next In a few years, space travelers will embark on a wide range of space missions near Earth and farther into the solar system. NASA's new Space Launch System rocket will take them there. A modular, heavy-lift launch vehicle that can be configured in different ways for different missions, the SLS rocket will carry astronauts into orbit, as well as massive payloads destined for distant places. NASA's SLS heavy-lift rocket is being developed alongside many commercial rockets and spacecraft to open the solar system for exploration.
How Rockets Work This section of the Rockets Educator Guide explains Newton's Laws of Motion, which support the basic principles of rocketry.
Applying Newton's Laws: This document focuses on how rockets work, including the rocket engines and their propellants.
1. Provide each team with an identical kit of materials. Tell them that any or all of these materials can be used for their rockets.
2. Review the launching procedure. Explain how the straw guides the rocket up the fishing line or string and that the line must be held snug to the floor for the launch.
Remind the teams that they only get three balloons. They can launch as many times as they want to but should try to improve how many paper clips they can successfully lift.
4. Draw a chart on the board for teams to record their results (e.g., the number of paper clips that reach the ceiling).
Attachments: **Some files will display in a new window. Others will prompt you to download.
Brainstorm Ideas: Each team should submit at least 3 design alternatives. List advantages and disadvantages of each design.
Design Schematic: Have each team draw and label their final design.
Engineering Notebook:
Description: Write a summary of your launch vehicle using correct science and technology terms (e.g., lift, payload, mass, thrust). In your summary be specific: How many balloons did they use?
Create a Free Body Diagram and label all the forces acting on your launch vehicle.
Results: How many paperclips did their rocket carry to the ceiling? How did they attach the paperclips to the balloon? What problems did they encounter? How did they solve those problems? Use Newton's laws of motion to describe the performance of your launch vehicle.
Acceleration:
Challenge students to design a two-stage rocket. The lower balloon “fires” before the upper balloon. The upper balloon carries the payload to the ceiling.
Video Analysis software can be used to determine the velocity and acceleration of the rocket. Students can analyze the data to determine whether the rocket can support a heavier payload.
Intervention:
View the Special Education resources for
instructional guidance in providing modifications and adaptations
for students with significant cognitive disabilities who qualify for the Alabama Alternate Assessment.