the spacecraft race_2014_7c

building a vehicle of lightweight materials,

pushed by the air released from a balloon;

completing worksheets with the results of the

measures and calculations for finding the speed of

the vehicles.

The experimental activity

„The spacecraft race”

had two steps:

In order to build the vehicles,

the teams had to use the

materials:

• polystyrene trays

• flexible straws

• toothpicks

• coloured balloons

• threads

• wires

• polystyrene cylinders for

wheels

• sandpaper

• geometry instruments

• markers.

•The data were

put in the table of

calculations to

determine the

speed of the

vehicle for each of

the five tries were

made.

The vehicle moved on the rocket principle. The air

was suddenly released from the balloon, producing un

impulse which made the vehicle move;

In order to make the vehicle move faster we cut the

unnecessary parts from the polystyrene tray, which made it

heavier. Becoming lighter its speed got higher;

First, we tried to use two balloons, hoping to get

better results, but they were always having different amounts

of air and the vehicle was changing its direction;

The balloon was placed inside the tray because if it

had been put outside the polystyrene tray, the vehicle would

have bent forward and stopped. The straw was directed

towards the ground giving a higher impulse to the vehicle.