The Eggs Prize 2013

Seckman Middle School 7^th grade science classes are participating in The Eggs Prize again this school year. The Eggs Prize is a contest modeled after the X Prize (which was a cash prize of 10 million dollars awarded to the first private team to build a space vehicle traveling to an altitude of 62 miles with 3 passengers and return them to Earth safely). The Eggs Prize requires students to build and launch a water bottle rocket carrying a raw egg as a payload to an altitude of 30 meters, returning the egg unharmed to Earth. Students worked in teams to build their rockets and then launched them this past week at school! 

 

Recyclable Racers

  Seventh grade science classes build Recyclable Racers every spring to test the laws of physics and experiment with gravity and motion.  Students are asked to build small cars that are gravity powered to race on a ramp. The fastest car built is rewarded!  A perfect balance between design and mass must be struck to win the race.  Here are some photos of some of this year’s designs:

 

 

This years fastest car belongs to Camryn H.

Eggs Prize

Seventh grade students at Seckman Middle School participate in the Eggs Prize every spring as part of a physics and engineering project.

The Eggs Prize is a contest modeled after the X Prize created by the X Prize Foundation. The X Prize was a $10 million dollar cash prize for any team that could build a vehicle capable of traveling to an altitude of 100 km (62 miles) with three passengers and return them safely to Earth. The team had to successfully re-launch the space vehicle two weeks later. The X Prize originated in Saint Louis and was won by Burt Rutan and his team after they built Space Ship One.

For our students, to be an Eggs Prize winner the rocket design team must launch a water rocket carrying a raw egg as a payload to an altitude of at least 30 meters. The egg must survive the flight unharmed. If the flight is successful, the team is to re-launch the same water rocket and raw egg to the required altitude and return the egg safely to Earth within two days of the original flight. Students work in teams to design their rockets in the most aerodynamic fashion. Fins, nose cones, and parachutes are carefully designed and tested and students must also design a container for their passenger, or eggstronaut, that will safeguard the payload. 

SMS Jags in Space

Mr. Reed's advisory and Ms. Lindhurst's advisory began the school year by planning a trip into near-space.  Near-space is above where aircraft fly and below where outer-space begins.  Our "trip" was accomplished with a weather balloon carrying a capsule aloft.  The capsule contained two cameras, one for video, the other for still pictures.  As the craft ascended, the balloon got bigger due to less atmospheric pressure, until it finally burst.  The capsule then parachuted back to earth.  We found it by including a cell phone with GPS tracking in the capsule.  The project was a great success.  Be sure to check out the pictures from 90,000 ft.

Click here to see 900+ pictures from the project or

Click here to see 30 select photos.

Click here to see a short video of the climb.  The video camera only recorded the first hour of flight.