Principles of Flight Part 3: 2L Water Bottle Rocket Reflection

Answer the following questions into your Principles of Flight blog post:

1. How did the height you estimated your rocket would reach compare with the actual
estimated height?
2. What do you think might have caused any differences in the height you achieved?
3. Did your rocket launch straight up? If not, why do you think it veered off course?
4. Do you think that this activity was more rewarding to do alone? Would you have preferred to

do it in groups? Why or why not?
5. Did you adjust your model rocket at all? How? Do you think this helped or hindered
your results?

6. How do you think the rocket would have behaved differently if it were launched in a
weightless atmosphere?
7. What safety measures do you think engineers consider when launching a real rocket?
Consider the location of most launch sites as part of your answer.
8. When engineers are designing a rocket which will carry people in addition to cargo, how
do you think the rocket will change in terms of structural design, functionality, and
features?
9. Do you think rocket designs will change a great deal over the next ten years? How?
10. What tradeoffs do engineers have to make when considering the space/weight of fuel
vs. the weight of cargo?

Principles of Flight Part 2: Paper Rocket Reflection Questions

On your blog, copy/paste these reflection questions and answer them in part 2 of your “Principles of Flight” blog post.

1. Draw a path of trajectory of your rocket
2. Which force is acting on the rocket at the moment of launch? (use arrows to indicate direction)
3. As the rocket was half-way up, which force(s) is/are acting on the rocket? (use arrows)
4. As the rocket begins to veer into another direction, which force is acting on the rocket? Explain why this is happening.
5. Did some rockets work better than others? How does the shape of the nose and fin effect the trajectory of the rocket? Explain in terms of the four forces that act on a rocket ship.