Pupils from Wellington School enjoyed a Space Day as part of their science work.
Year 9 pupils designed and built rockets during the day, tested them and then launched them. The day consisted of four different STEM activities involving the Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Technology, and Mathematics departments.
“Firstly, the pupils looked at rocket fuels – space isn’t very far (if your family car could drive straight upwards, you could be there in an hour) but you are fighting Earth’s gravity, and that requires the sort of power that can only come from a chemical reaction,” commented Wellington School’s Head of Science, Trevor Hill. . “Unfortunately the sort of chemicals used in rockets are almost exactly the same as the sort used in bombs! Both are designed to produce an awful lot of very hot gas in a very short time. The trick is to make it go whoosh rather than bang!”
After a few essential bangs, the pupils entered the Space Academy, which aimed to go through the selection procedure to become an astronaut and to learn about the effects of launching, living and working in space and the effects of re-entry on the body.
Then came an exciting session on Colonising Mars, in which pupils were able to discover just how far away our nearest planet is and the logistics involved with creating a settlement there. Pupils simulated flying to Mars to build a colony in the most cost efficient manner.
Finally came the moment they had all been waiting for – The Launch. “All the rockets made were scored on technical innovation, quality of build, finish and finally the height they reach. The overall winning team won the some real NASA space food, “commented Trevor Hill. “ There was a demonstration of various solid fuel rockets including the launch of the 1/100 scale Saturn 5 rocket powered by three large solid fuel motors!”
Pupils were treated to a visit from strange men in space suits who emerged from the smoke to launch the rockets, which were a huge success…in general!