Week 4

Aerospace Engineering: Aeroplane and Rocket

Aerospace engineering is the field that deals with things that fly. It can be broken down into two sub-fields: Aeronautical engineering deals with in-atmosphere flight (drones, planes, missiles), while astronautical engineering deals with flight beyond the atmosphere (rockets, satellites, space probes).

STOMP ROCKET

We started the week with an introduction to rocketry: a stomp rocket. Powered by compressed air, the rocket went surprisingly high.

stomprocket.mp4

FOAM PLANE KIT

We built and modified a plane model that utilized coiled rubber bands to unwind the rubber bands which spun the blades of the plane which would allow it to spin. The unwinding process of the rubber band would allow the plane to fly up because of the blades spinning. We also had to utilize the center of pressure and center of gravity to create the perfect balance

IMG_5192.MOV

DRONE

We programmed a drone to autonomously land on specific colored tiles. We used vibe coding to make a python script.

We used NASA simulations to find the ideal formula for a rocket to get the most height.

379.mp4

AIR QUALITY TESTING

We studied air pollution by collecting data in various locations on campus. We measured air pressure, humidity, and CO2, then vibe vibe coded a script to process the complex raw information to create graphs on Matlab.

Rocket Launch

We capped of our week by launching our rockets. Made of rolled paper with balsa wood fins and a balsa nosecone, our rocket went straight up and was recovered intact on every launch. We calculated the center of gravity and center of pressure to ensure aerodynamic stability.

IMG_8010.MOV

First Launch

WhatsApp Video 2026-07-16 at 10.57.46 AM.mp4

Final Launch

Research Paper:

Design Process of Airplanes, Rockets, and Drones Essay: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PNgfSw7vND8h-RjUOnhk6XNw0wgek6ZBCJWcx4mdNQc/edit?usp=sharing

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