Since the start of the school year, Onteora High School’s Rocket Club has been working towards competing in the nationals in their challenging activity. The school’s team of eight STEM-focused students has risen to the top in both regional and state competitions.
The group will be bused down the morning of May 18 to Washington, DC, where they will have a congressional breakfast and then a tour at a Boeing facility. On Friday night, all teams will be briefed on what is to come on Saturday, competition day. This will include a reiteration of the strict rules created by the sponsors — NASA and companies in the aerospace industry.
The rockets must be within a specific range of height and weight, and must complete each flight without breaking the egg that they carry in the rocket’s payload. A second engine in each rocket separates the two parts of the rocket in midair. The rocket must come down in two separate pieces, each with its parachute.
The half with the egg payload must come down within a tight time range of 41 to 44 seconds.
The competition will be structured into two rounds. In the first, the rocket must go 850 feet in the air. In the second round, which includes only the top 48 competitors, the top height reached must be 25 feet higher or lower than the first round’s, determined by a coin flip at the briefing Friday night. This will force the competitors to alter the weight of the rocket in real time, demonstrating their rocket’s accuracy.
The competition will be held at Great Meadow in The Plains in Virginia, a far cry from Onteora’s usual launch site, the reclaimed landfill at the highway facility in Woodstock.
The school Rocket Club’s presence among the group of 101 top teams in the nation is a point of pride for the high school. Wish them luck on their journey to bring home the championship title!
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