March 1, 2011 was the second day of water bottle rocket launches. Unfortunately, Ian was still out sick, so I had to make adjustments by myself. The modifications to the rocket that were used today were two fins made out of construction paper placed in the mid section of the bottle. I found that these fins weren’t effective because after the bottle was launched, it mostly spiraled in the air. One possible reason for this is because the fins were too high, making them less aerodynamic than if they had been lower. The material also affects the flight. I think that if I had used a heavier material such as cardboard, it would’ve given the bottle more mass, hopefully making it fly straighter or at least higher as I have seen in other groups. The plan that I have for the next launch is to use two bottles instead of 1 and create a nose cone using one of the bottles rather than making my own because the plastic bottle cone will be sturdier. Then, I plan to make fins using protective sheets. Lastly, a parachute needs to be incorporated in the design and hopefully, will allow the bottle to remain in the air for a minimum of three seconds.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Second Day Launch: March 1, 2011
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Great job on your summary and video. Having fins lower on your rocket will be good as well as attaching them to you rocket better. Duct ape will work well.
ReplyDeleteGreat video documentation and please don't kill Ian. If you do, you'll have to finish the project alone.
Here's a tip for the fins: laminate them! :)
ReplyDeleteWe used poster board and then laminated it. The lamination helped to make it sturdy and water resistant. Also, 3 fins might be more stable in flight.
Hope this helps, good job, and your vid is hilarious!