Bottle Rockets (Newton's Laws)

Bottle Rockets (Newton's Laws)

Let's get ready to launch some bottle rockets !!!

For your challenge you will be designing, constructing and testing a water bottle rocket designed to travel down range 150' !!!

Instructions:

Students need two soda bottles of the same size, either 16, 20 or 32 oz.

Altitude Tracker: If you do not have two soda bottles, click on the Altitude Tracker link to complete the Altitude Tracker activity.Check out the video below for additional help.

Bottle Rocket Construction:

• Cut the top off of one of the bottles, this part will serve as a nose cone for your rocket.

ONLY CUT ONE BOTTLE !!!

• • Fasten the nose cone to the bottom of the intact bottle, as shown below:

ONLY CUT ONE BOTTLE !!!

• • Use duct tape to secure the nose cone to the bottom of the intact bottle,

• • Brainstorm fin designs,

• • After choosing a fin design, trace the design on a piece of fin material and cut out. Students can experiment using any number of fins,

• Mark the fin locations on the bottle,

  • Students can 'eyeball' the fin locations on the bottle

  • A more accurate measurement involves wrapping a string or thin piece of paper around the bottle. Cut the string or paper so that it is equal in length to the circumference of the bottle.

  • Launch the following link to see detailed instructions on fin placement: Rocket Fin Designs.

• After marking fin location on the bottle, use a hot glue gun to secure the fins to the bottle rocket

• The next step is to add ballast or weight to the rocket to enable it to push through the air. Without inertia and momentum from extra weight, the rocket will travel like a feather being thrown into the wind. Adding weight gives the rocket the stored energy it needs to overcome the resistance offered by air molecules.

  • Decide how much extra weight to add to your rocket, don't add too much, remember that adding too much weight will reduce your rocket's performance.

  • Decide where to add the extra weight to your rocket, remember that the rocket's center of gravity is important to predicting the stability of your rocket.

  • Launch the following video to learn how ballast, center of gravity and fin placement can improve your rocket's performance: Mr. Clauset's Bottle Rockets

• The last step before launching is to add water to the body tube of your rocket. It is vitally important to add the right amount of water, too much will result in a heavy rocket that will have difficulty leaving the launch pad, too little water will result in less stored energy to propel the rocket skyward. Remember the water acts like a spring, a spring that is too big is difficult to compress, a spring that is too small will not store enough energy to launch the rocket to a high apogee. The following website will give you some information on the optimum amount of water for your bottle rocket: http://www.water-rockets.com

• Next step is to test your rocket. Your rocket must travel 150' down range. Good Luck!