Rocketry day 2010
From NortHACKton
This event occurred in the past.
Contents |
Aim
We wanted to launch home-made water rockets and some small solid chemical rockets for several hours on a nice summer afternoon. We also had a tasty barbecue!
To add a bit of spice, we had some competitions with some very very small prizes for the winners:
- Greatest height (water) - Martin
- Most complex - Mat
- Best in show - Richard/Tom
Links
Location
The Racecourse Park, as it's large and has less trees (and less lake) than Abingdon Park.
When
The people have spoken, we ran on the 4th of July, at 2pm. It was very windy. The BBQ started at 4pm.
Water Rockets
A water rocket is usually a plastic bottle filled roughly 1/3 full of water, air is then pumped into the bottle so that when the pressure is released all the water is pushed out the bottom of the rocket and the bottle takes off.
The basic water rocket consists of 2 main parts, the bottle rocket itself and a launcher. In its simplest form the rocket is a coke bottle with some cardboard fins and the launcher is a Schraeder valve inserted into a cork and packed to fit the neck of the bottle.
Pictures:
Videos of this rocket can be found here:
Further information from wikipedia, Bottle Rocket Handbook.
According to the Bottle Rocket Handbook, optimum water volume is 40 to 45%
Also see
Bottle rockets with more of a bang (PyroGuide)
Lessons learned
- Rockets on windy days really don't come back. Or fly off course from the wind and plummet in the ground
- Only had separate meat/veg BBQs by coincidence
- Apogee-measurement via theodolite doesn't work (mine didn't, Martyn's was better)
- We didn't know where the nearest toilets are
Recommendations
- Always have separate meat/veg cooking areas
- Don't fly high rockets in wind
- More rigorously exercise safety, particularly when children are attending
- Know where amenities are
