How Does a Rocket Launch Into Space?
Materials in the box
1. One plastic bottle
2. One black straw
3. One white straw
4. One soft, black cylindrical foam piece
5. One hard, black circular foam piece
Materials from your house
1. Sharp pencil
How do I begin?
1. Remove the release paper covering the adhesive on the circular / larger foam piece. You may need to use a knife to slowly pry it open. Ensure that you do not accidentally tear off the adhesive like we did! Stick the adhesive side of the foam over the mouth of the bottle.
2. Insert and twist a sharp pencil through the attached foam. The hole should go through both ends of the foam and into the bottle. The hole has to be small enough to make an airtight seal with the smaller diameter straw.
3. Push the smaller diameter black straw through the hole in the foam until the straw just comes out of the other side of the foam like Figure1 below.
4. Press and roll the piece of cylindrical / softer foam to create the rocket's tip.
5. Insert the rolled foam into the end of the larger diameter clear straw. Insert until just a little bit of the foam sticks out and creates a softer and safer rocket tip like Figure 2.
6. Insert the open end of the smaller diameter straw into the larger diameter straw. There should be a loose fit. If not, then check that the straws are straight and smooth. Adjust or replace as needed to create a loose fit.
7. Aim your straw “rocket” in a safe direction. Final count down (3, 2, 1…) and give the bottle a quick, hard squeeze. Blast off!
What just happened?
Objects at rest stay at rest unless acted upon by an external force (Inertia). The straw rocket stays in place until an unbalanced external force is introduced. When the bottle is squeezed, pressurized air is created in the chamber formed by the two straws. When the force exerted by the pressurized air is greater than the force of gravity acting on the rocket’s mass, then the rocket will move. An upward-angled flight moves up and forward. All Any motion is resisted and slowed by drag (air resistance). At the maximum height, the upward momentum of the rocket is reduced to zero by gravity and drag. The rocket continues forward due to the remaining forward momentum, and finally downward, due to gravity.
Exploring Further
1. What could affect the distance or height of launch?
2. Add a triangular tail to your rocket using cardstock or any stiff paper. Does the tail make a difference? Update us with your conclusions on our Facebook page.
1. One plastic bottle
2. One black straw
3. One white straw
4. One soft, black cylindrical foam piece
5. One hard, black circular foam piece
Materials from your house
1. Sharp pencil
How do I begin?
1. Remove the release paper covering the adhesive on the circular / larger foam piece. You may need to use a knife to slowly pry it open. Ensure that you do not accidentally tear off the adhesive like we did! Stick the adhesive side of the foam over the mouth of the bottle.
2. Insert and twist a sharp pencil through the attached foam. The hole should go through both ends of the foam and into the bottle. The hole has to be small enough to make an airtight seal with the smaller diameter straw.
3. Push the smaller diameter black straw through the hole in the foam until the straw just comes out of the other side of the foam like Figure1 below.
4. Press and roll the piece of cylindrical / softer foam to create the rocket's tip.
5. Insert the rolled foam into the end of the larger diameter clear straw. Insert until just a little bit of the foam sticks out and creates a softer and safer rocket tip like Figure 2.
6. Insert the open end of the smaller diameter straw into the larger diameter straw. There should be a loose fit. If not, then check that the straws are straight and smooth. Adjust or replace as needed to create a loose fit.
7. Aim your straw “rocket” in a safe direction. Final count down (3, 2, 1…) and give the bottle a quick, hard squeeze. Blast off!
What just happened?
Objects at rest stay at rest unless acted upon by an external force (Inertia). The straw rocket stays in place until an unbalanced external force is introduced. When the bottle is squeezed, pressurized air is created in the chamber formed by the two straws. When the force exerted by the pressurized air is greater than the force of gravity acting on the rocket’s mass, then the rocket will move. An upward-angled flight moves up and forward. All Any motion is resisted and slowed by drag (air resistance). At the maximum height, the upward momentum of the rocket is reduced to zero by gravity and drag. The rocket continues forward due to the remaining forward momentum, and finally downward, due to gravity.
Exploring Further
1. What could affect the distance or height of launch?
2. Add a triangular tail to your rocket using cardstock or any stiff paper. Does the tail make a difference? Update us with your conclusions on our Facebook page.