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SCIENCE KIDS’ CLUB PRESENTS…
Rocket Racer 2008!
EVENT DATE: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2008 – 12:00 — Multi-purpose Room
(We are limited in time. Bring your lunch and racer.... Calmly line up, sit down, and while waiting to sign in, eat. Make sure that you leave NO mess or you will not be invited to the next challenge.)
We need volunteer parents to help record information, help with crowd control, & measure distances. Please contact Caryl Brewbaker: cbrewbaker@mpcsd.org if you can lend a hand. SKC can’t be done without parent help at the event. It’s easy and fun, so I hope to hear from you! I will need about 6 parents (educated guess as this paper goes to print)
The Challenge:
* To construct a rocket (balloon) propelled vehicle.
* To discover ways of increasing the distance the rocket racer travels.
* To design a vehicle that will travel within the designated “track” boundaries.
Please don’t try to find some unique way around the rules. Create a vehicle in the “spirit” of the event.
* You can work with other students when you design and build your Rocket Racer, but each person who wants to participate must have their own “Racer” to enter.
* One Racer per contestant.
* Power is exclusively from balloon (no additional rubber band engines, etc.)
* Your Racer must stay within the first 10 feet of the 90º-track area. If your racer leaves the track area, we will measure distance from the starting point to the point at which it left the track.
* Contestants will blow up their balloon within a pre-measured “loop.” “Round balloons” (not long balloons) will be blown up to fit inside a ring with a diameter of 12 inches. This is to help lend consistency to the amount of power the competing “engines” (balloons) have. A balloon does not need to be blown up to the full 12 inches.
* Challenge leader will not blow up balloons for contestants, but parents or friends may help with this part of the competition if necessary. No other help is allowed once the competition begins. Repairs and “tweaks” must be accomplished by contestants.
* Racers may be made out of any material: Styrofoam, plastic, wood, cardboard, etc.
* Materials such as glue, tape, string, pencils, precious garbage, and pins may be used.
* No toys or pre-made body parts from toys or model kits may be used except for the wheel and/or axle, and these must be attached to a unique base.
* You may use any racer size or shape that works, and may add any kind of “ballast”, fin, or ?? to help improve racer’s efficiency.
* Only one balloon per race may be used. A fresh balloon may be used for each try at the competition, but must be attached by contestant.
* Racer cannot be a “flier” (such as a glider through the air).
* Racer must be self starting (no push starts).
* If time permits, each participant will have 2 chances to “go the distance.” Participants may modify their racer between turns.
* The winner is the person whose racer goes the farthest distance from the starting point, without leaving the “track.” We will NOT average the scores of the two runs.
* Distance will be measured from front of front wheel (start and finish)
In A Nutshell:
Students construct a balloon-powered rocket racer from materials such as Styrofoam, cardboard, plastic bottles, pins, tape, straight and/or flexible straws, pencils, and glue. No pre-made materials (think toy cars, etc.) may be used except for wheels and axles. Body design must be made from scratch. Vehicles will be tested along a measured track on the floor. The track will fan out at 90 degrees. If your racer leaves the track area, we will measure the distance from the starting point to where it left the track.
The Schedule:
Wednesday, February 6 – Rocket Racer Competition (Multi, Noon)
Thursday, February 7 - Rocket Racer Wrap-up Meeting (treats & ribbons!)
Some Things To Think About:
The Rocket Racer is a simple way to observe Newton’s Third Law of Motion. “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”
While it is possible to demonstrate Newton’s Law with just a balloon, constructing a rocket racer provides students with the opportunity to put the action/reaction force into practical use. In this case, the payload of the balloon rocket is the racer. Wheels (although not required) can reduce friction with the floor to help racers move. Because of individual variations, student made rocket racers will travel different distances, and possibly travel in unplanned directions. Through experimentation and practice, modifications to the original racer can correct undesirable traits and improve efficiency.
Awards For Rocket Racer Competition
1st through 6th Place Ribbons
(What he looked like in 1689) Newton... A cool dude! He took the world we take for granted, and put it into thoughts and words that we can understand.
Newton’s First Law of Motion: law of inertia “An object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.” -- Isaac Newton.
This law is sometimes called the Law of Inertia. It says that if something is not moving, it will not start moving by itself. It also says that it will not stop or change direction unless something pushes against it.
Newton’s Second Law of Motion: law of acceleration “The acceleration of an object as produced by a net force is directly proportional to the magnitude of the net force, in the same direction as the net force, and inversely proportional to the mass of the object.” -- Isaac Newton.
This law basically explains the amount of acceleration that is needed for a ball (or any other object) to move, is directly proportionate to how heavy it is. The heavier the object, the more force it takes to get it to move.
Newton’s Third Law of Motion: law of reciprocal actions “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” -- Isaac Newton.
Newton’s Third Law of Motion says that when something is pushed in one direction, there is always a resistance of the same size in the opposite direction.
Skaters' size and weight affect amount of movement created (notice that they are pressing forward, but moving backwards)
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