21st Century Security
United Kingdom News
Around 120 pupils from a Bedfordshire primary school became rocket scientists for the day with the help of Lockheed Martin UK.
The children, from Livingstone Primary School in Bedford, designed and decorated water bottle rockets and then watched in amazement as they blasted off more than 30 feet in the air.
The event was the idea of graduate engineers from Lockheed Martin’s Ampthill site as part of the company’s community work to mark British Science Week.
The engineers covered basic aerodynamics and propulsion theory with the children and then helped them apply the science to their own creations.
Year four preparations.
“After we talked about the science of actually launching the rockets the children were very excited to see it in action. It’s one thing to learn the theory behind propulsion and thrust in a classroom but to see it working in real life – especially when something they’ve created is being launched high in the air – delighted them all.”
The rockets were made out of plastic bottles with a small amount of water poured into them. Compressed air was then pumped into the bottles and as the air pressure forced the water out, the rockets soared upwards.
Years four and six watch in amazement as their rockets take off.
“We were really impressed with the standard of work and the discussions the children were having. They were involved in every step, even deciding on how much water should be in the bottles and understanding how that affected the flight".
“We thought the sessions were brilliantly planned and delivered for all our different classes and age groups. The children had a wonderful day being rocket scientists.”
The sessions were given to classes throughout the school, from years one to six.
Year four pupil Keren, 9, said: “Our rocket was so good. We used less water and it went really high. I really enjoyed the whole process, from drawing and designing the rocket, to making it, and then seeing it fly. It was awesome.”