Works Cited and Acknowledgements

Works Cited
"Model Rocket Engine." NASA - Title... Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/rocket/rktengine.html>.
"Flight of a Model Rocket." NASA - Title... Web. 09 Dec. 2011. <http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/rocket/rktflight.html>.

Photograph. Flight of a Model Rocket. Tom Benson. Web. 22 Nov. 2011.      <http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/rocket/rktflight.html>.

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge:

Ms. Reese and Mr. Hamilton, for answering our many questions and continuously helping us throughout our project.

Maria Gelabert for letting us use her iPhone to record our rocket's flight!

                       THANK YOU!

Conclusion

1. Comparing Results

1.    When we did the theory calculations to find our rocket's theoretical maximum height, we used the kinematics and free fall equations that Ms. Reese taught us in our science class. In order to figure out the rocket's actual maximum height, we used the triangulation equation; height=50m/tan(15).  We got the number 15, the degree in which the rocket reached its peak height.

2.     It was important to calculate the theoretical maximum height of the rocket because it gave us a reference point to which we could compare the actual peak height the rocket reached in our launch.  It was also useful because it enabled us to estimate how high our rocket would fly.

         B.    Reflection

1.     (see video)- Parachute did not open as expected

2.        Due to the great results of our rocket launch we can conclude that our fin design was well-made. Our rocket flew straight and high, proficiently completed the task it was designed to execute.

3.     In the rocket's first flight, the parachute failed to open and the rocket came crashed to its doom :(. For the second flight the parachute did open because we tied the string more loosely to ensure that it would work.

4.     We would like to experiment with different fin designs.

Rocket Video!

Maximum Height

Using the equations and formulas that we learned in class, we calculated our rocket's theoretical maximum height. This is the work (click to view larger):

As shown above, we got that the peak height would be 105.401 meters.
Then, we calculated the peak height for the actual flight.

The peak height was 186 meters.

Observations:

The rocket's peak height was kind of close to each other in meters.

Completed (designed) Rocket

This is our completed designed rocket.  Today, we did a pre-launch flight test with Ms. Reese to make sure our rocket is flying okay. After spinning it around vertically a few times and making sure that our rocket self-corrects, we came to the conclusion that it was okay.  We didn't have to add extra clay to the white cone.
We checked our observations with the following questions:
1. Are the fins stable?  
          Yes, they are stable.
2. Will the nose cone come off of the rocket body easily?
          Yes, even though we spray painted our rocket, the nose cone still detached easily.
3. When you pull the nose cone off quickly, does the parachute fall out?
          Yes, the parachute fell out when we pulled the nose cone off quickly.
4. Does your engine holder allow engines to be inserted and removed without damage?
          Yes!

This is a scaled picture of our rocket labeled.