Bottle Rocket

Rocket Launch Blog

Questions: 

1. How much of an affect does the angle have upon launching a rocket?
2. When a rocket is launched, will weight at the top have a major impact?
3. What purpose do the fins have on a rocket?

The project was able to answer two of the three posed questions. The angle at which a rocket is launched affects the rocket in multiple ways. The arch at which an rocket flies is heavily decreased when launched at 35 degrees opposed to 45 degrees. The purpose of fins on a rocket allows it to have some stability while mid flight.

Making of the Rocket.

All of the equipment that was used is in the picture above. I used a CD, red duck tape, sand (plastic bag), two 2 liter bottles, styrofoam ball and super glue.

The CD was used on the rocket as a part of fin. I had cut it into three equal as can be pieces and attached to the main two liter bottle. I attached them with red tape and super glue.It was pretty difficult but after two attempts or so I finally got it.

Next, I purchased a styrofoam in the shape of a ball. This would be the container I use to protect the egg from the initial impact once it landed and hit the ground.

 I then cut the ball in half and used a spoon to hollow out the center in order for the egg to fit snug inside the styrofoam ball. I did not use any adhesive to connect the two.

 Once the ball was properly in place, I used the sand and had filled about half of the incomplete two liter bottle. I not only used the sand as a weight but I had also used it to absorb some of the impact when it landed.

 These are the two two liter bottles I had used. One is cut in half as to attach it to the bottom of the rocket where my egg would later be stored.

This is the final product after the egg, tape, disks, and super glue are used.

Physics of Rocket:

In the diagram above, we can see a very basic example of a bottle rocket similar to the one used in the project. The rocket propulsion is powered by the expelled water and the pressurized air. I designed my rocket in a way that upon launch, it would not be so heavily affected by wind. In order to do so, I had put some weight in the front of the rocket, hence the sand. I also attached fins to my rocket in order to add some stability to it during flight.

Protecting the All Mighty Egg:

Protecting the egg was one of my most important tasks. I knew that could get past the 30 meter mark, I however was worried that the egg would break. I had used the styrofoam ball because I felt that it added a huge amount of protection against the impact of the fall. The sand was also a huge impact absorb-er. It was placed in the front of the rocket to absorb as much of the impact as possible. The final result was only a small dent on the styrofoam ball itself while the egg survived and was later used as part of an omelet of success.

The End Result:

In the end, my rocket flew a total distance of 47 meters. It was farther than expected but I had cleared a good 17 meters. The egg had survived without any damage. I launched my rocket at an angle of 35 degrees with a total of 700 milliliters inside. I felt that at a lower angle, my rocket would clear the minimum distance and would be closer to the ground resulting in a softer impact. I felt that my plan had gone swimmingly and no problems had occurred.

Reflection:

Through this whole project, I learned that keeping an egg safe requires you to use shock absorbent material. Such as styrofoam, cotton balls, sand, any sort of soft and squishy material. Also, to never launch a rocket if the wind is strong because it will affect your rocket and its distance sometimes.