3D Rockets

<p>In this project, you will be introduced to aerospace engineering through rocketry. You will create air-powered rockets with 3D-printed nose cones and self-designed fins to carry small payloads.</p>

<p><img height="468" src="/api/storage/uploads/legacy-images/psf9981mdxjt9r5bzo64f8egsiqp/image.png" width="599" /></p>

<p>In this step, you&#39;re on a desert island.</p>

<p>What? We just went from rockets to a desert island? Don&#39;t worry, just stick with me here.</p>

<p>You&#39;re going to be&nbsp;stranded on an island for a year as part of a reality TV show&nbsp;and you can select&nbsp;only 5 things to take with you. You and your group mates have to talk about the top&nbsp;5 things you should take to the desert island.</p>

<p>For each of these items, consider:</p>

<p>1. Why are you bringing this item?</p>

<p>2. What purpose does this item serve? Can it serve multiple purposes?</p>

<p>3. How does this item contribute to the survival of the group?</p>

<p>4. Do you need other items to keep this item functioning? (i.e. do you need to bring fuel if you have a generator?<br />
&nbsp;</p>

<p>After five minutes, share this list with your class!</p>

<p>In this step, you will be introduced&nbsp;to the Engineering Design Process. As part of this, you&nbsp;will cover the fundamentals of rocketry.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="https://www.engr.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/design-process-new.pdf" src="/api/storage/uploads/legacy-images/vx2tt36negf7rys4dmf1bgxwyv6u/NC+EDP.png" style="width: 800px; height: 601px; float: right; margin: 5px;" />To the right is the <strong>Engineering Design Process</strong>. <strong>You first start off by defining your goal.</strong>&nbsp;Your goal in this project is to design a rocket and launch the rocket with a payload. We will get further into the process as the project progresses.</p>

<p>Note, the two important statements at the bottom.</p>

<p>1. <strong>The Engineering Design Process is iterative</strong>. This means that you can repeat these processes again and again to improve on a design. Engineers use lessons learned from past versions of a prototype or product and apply them to future versions.</p>

<p>2. <strong>Failure is always part of the process</strong>. No rocket design is perfect on the first try. Robert Goddard, the granddaddy of modern rocketry, built and tested the first liquid-fueled rockets. Here is a <a href="https://www.intellectualventures.com/buzz/insights/failing-for-success-robert-goddard/">good, short article</a> about his ventures. Goddard was ridiculed for how often his rockets <strong>didn&#39;t </strong>work. Goddard, on the other hand, considered each failure as&nbsp;&ldquo;valuable negative information.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Goddard also famously said to his nay-sayers, &quot;Every vision is a joke until the first man accomplishes it; once realized, it becomes commonplace.&rdquo;</p>

<p>A more modern example is the Falcon 9 rocket.&nbsp;&nbsp;It took the engineers at SpaceX 5 tries before successfully landing a rocket on a boat without exploding, but they did it in the end!</p>

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<p><img alt="https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/beginners-guide-to-aeronautics/four-rocket-forces/" src="/api/storage/uploads/legacy-images/xx1xdqjm2pkdxq3qymcknz8t4vc1/Forces+on+Rocket.png" style="width: 242px; height: 382px; float: left; margin: 5px;" /></p>

<p>To the left, you can see the main forces that affect a rocket in flight. <strong>Thrust </strong>is the force used to propel the rocket. During a conventional rocket launch, either solid or liquid fuel is burned and the expanding gas forced out of the end of the rocket creates thrust. Your rocket will use compressed air as the source of thrust.</p>

<p><strong>Weight </strong>is the mass of the object combined with the gravitational force pulling it back to Earth. The more mass, the more thrust is needed to overcome that force.</p>

<p><strong>Drag </strong>is the air resistance on the rocket. Air molecules have to move out of the way to let objects through. A rocket is moving very fast so it must quickly push those molecules out of the way as it flies. A rocket is designed to be long and slender to decrease drag and increase the effect of the thrust.</p>

<p><strong>Lift </strong>is the smallest component of the forces on a rocket. The lift force is generated on the fins and helps with the control surfaces that help stabilize the rocket.&nbsp;</p>

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