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National Association of Rocketry
Educator's Newsletter
April 2021
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In this issue:
2021 The American Rocketry Challenge (TARC) is underway
NAR Scholarship Program, Robert L. Cannon Awards, Extracurricular Activity Grant Awards, and the Gleda M. Estes Scholarship
RESOURCES
INSPIRING OTHERS
Space History
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Getting the “Down” Part Right
Launching rockets seems to be mostly about ‘going up’; flying into space, into Earth orbit, to other planets and beyond. Experienced NAR rocketeers know that the ‘going up’ part of their rocket flight is really not that difficult, the real trick is to have a good ‘coming down’ with a fully deployed parachute and landing in an open space of a field. The planetary mission engineers of NASA understand this too and proved their skill with the recent successful landing of Perseverance on Mars. Rockets your students build and fly can emulate the same mission by having a spot flagged in a field to represent Mars and then see how close they can land their parachute models. They must master the going up and the coming down parts. It’s fun, educational and realistic. All it takes is a little perseverance. For a cool video of a model Mars lander flight visit https://www.facebook.com/182522918458853/videos/740309686670753
Aim high!
Vince Huegele
NAR Education Chairman
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2021 The American Rocketry Challenge (TARC) is underway
The American Rocketry Challenge (TARC), like so many other things, is having to adapt to dealing with COVID. To ensure the health and safety of the TARC community, we are making several major changes to this year’s competition.
First, we are extending the deadline for submitting qualification flights from the current deadline of April 5 to a new one of May 17. The Top 100 National Finalists will continue to be selected based on these qualification flight scores.
Second, the National Finals will be held between 12 and 20 June at about eleven regional launch sites across the country, These launch sites will be announced alongside the 100 Finalist teams on May 21. The NAR is already working with the sections that will be the hosts of these. Between June 12 and June 20, each of these designated NAR section launch sites will host one or more Finals flight dates with a couple of rounds of three-hour launch windows that Finalist teams will be able to sign up for online after their selection.
The TARC 2021 Marketing and Presentation Competitions with their cash prizes will continue as planned, but with extended deadlines. Updated information on those competitions, including deadlines, prizes, and ways to compete is posted on the TARC website www.rocketcontest.org. There will also be a 2021 Kerbal Rocketry Challenge event again during the Summer, with more information to come later this month.
The adjusted TARC 2021 competition timeline is as follows:
· May 7: Presentation Competition submission deadline
· May 17: Qualification flight submission deadline
· May 21: Top 100 National Finalists and regional launch sites announced
· May 31: Marketing Competition submission deadline
· June 12 & June 13; June 19 & June 20: 2021 National Finals held at regional launch sites
· June 28: Virtual Awards Ceremony
· Summer 2021: 2nd Annual Kerbal Rocketry Challenge registration opens
Mentors
Please do what you can do SAFELY to support TARC student teams. Many students are still operating in a virtual-learning mode and not physically attending school every day; and; depending on where you live, this may go on for a while longer. Indeed, Tele-mentoring has become the new normal in many areas. TARC still requires eventually flying rockets in person; but, fortunately this is an outdoor activity and COVID-safer than indoor building sessions.
Stay safe,
NAR 4322 L3
TARC Manager
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National Association of Rocketry (NAR) Scholarship Program, Robert L. Cannon Awards, Extracurricular Activity Grant Awards, and the Gleda M. Estes Scholarship
Did you know that if you are a NAR member between the ages of 17 and 22 attending college or a vocational school that you may be eligible to receive a scholarship?
Are you a teacher or educator who uses model rocketry in the classroom? You are welcome to apply for a $500 grant to use in your program.
In 2001, the NAR's scholarship and Robert L. Cannon educational awards were inaugurated. Three NAR members received scholarships and two educators received Cannon awards. Over the years the number of award winners have grown. In 2015, a new program, the NAR Extracurricular Activity Grant (EAG) was initiated to provide up to ten $500 grants for after-school activities, such as rocket clubs, scout, Civil Air Patrol, 4-H, or NAR section programs involving model rocketry. TARC teams are not eligible for these awards. This year we awarded ten $2000 scholarships, six $1000 scholarships, six Cannon $500 grants, and one Extracurricular Activity Grant (EAG).
In 2018, the Estes family announced the Gleda M. Estes Scholarship for the Advancement of Young Women in STEM. High school seniors and college freshmen majoring in STEM fields are eligible to apply for this $3,000 award. Recipients of the Estes Scholarship may not receive a NAR Scholarship in the same year but are welcome to apply for the NAR Scholarship in following years. A separate application is required for the Estes Scholarship: https://www.nar.org/gleda-m-estes-scholarship-3/
The deadline for applying for all of these is June 1st.
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NASA Makes Finding Teaching Materials Easy
Education Materials Finder
NASA's Education Materials Finder will help teachers locate resources
that can be used in the classroom. Users may search by keywords,
grade level, product type and subject. With hundreds of publications and Web sites
indexed, the finder is the best way to locate NASA educational resources.
NASA's Adventures in Rocket Science Educator's Guide
This guide contains 25 activities designed for 4-H Clubs, Boys and Girls Clubs, Boy
Scouts, Girl Scouts, after-school programs, and other informal education venues.
Participants learn about the history and principles of rocketry and NASA's newest
rockets -- Ares I and Ares V. While doing these hands-on activities, participants
also learn about Hero Engines, parachutes and surface area, altitude tracking, and
Newton's Laws Of Motion. Learners can also build four types of rockets and two
types of egg drops. Take a look at the Adventures in Rocket Science Guide!
NASA's Education Materials Finder will help teachers locate resources that can be used in the classroom. Users may search by keywords, grade level, product type and subject. With hundreds of publications and Web sites indexed, the finder is the best way to locate NASA educational resources. (https://www.nasa.gov/education/materials/)
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National Association of Rocketry
Teachers and Youth Group Leaders Resources
The NAR offers Free Resource downloads produced by members who have
helped teachers and youth group leaders like yourself all over the United
States. See if any match what you had in mind for your course!
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Civil Air Patrol (CAP)
Aerospace Library
Dedicated to promoting and sharing Aviation, Air Force, CAP & NASA History, the folks at the Civil Air Patrol have put together a fantastic library of rocketry resources! Check it out! CAP is a partner with NAR and supports TARC with many teams.
Civil Air Patrol (CAP) Promotes and Supports Aerospace Education
CAP rocketry programs (for its own members and the general public) help prepare American citizens to meet the challenges of a sophisticated aerospace society and understand its related issues.
CAP offers national standards-based educational products, including a secondary textbook, Aerospace: The Journey of Flight, and the middle-school-level Aerospace Dimensions. Aerospace Education Members can get classroom materials and lessons plans from CAP.
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Rocketry School Supplies Provided by Donors
As teachers, you know your students' needs best. Donorschoose.org is available to provide an avenue for public school teachers to submit project requests for the specific materials their students need to learn. As their name implies, donors choose which projects to support. Once a project is funded, they deliver the materials directly to the school. In return, teachers submit photos of the project in use and thank-you notes from students, which are then sent to the project's donors.
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American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)
STEM K-12 Outreach
What is Aerospace Engineering? Aerospace engineering is the branch of engineering focused on the design, construction, and testing of aircraft and spacecraft. It is broken into two major overlapping disciplines: aeronautical engineering (for vehicles that stay within Earth's atmosphere) and astronautical engineering (for vehicles that travel beyond Earth's atmosphere). Aerospace engineering applies the fascinating science behind the forces of nature and the physical properties of aircraft, rockets, and spacecraft. Check out these STEM K-12 resources.
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narTcert
NAR will provide "narTcert" to any NAR member who is a professional classroom teacher with or without a science/math background, an educator teaching an after school program, a home school teacher or an informal educator with a youth organization. This means the opportunity is open to anyone who wants to teach rocketry on any level. The educator can be a total beginner or an experienced flyer, but both will have to undergo the certification process to be identified by NAR as being qualified to launch with students. Get started today.
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American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)
High School Student Memberships
The AIAA is excited to announce a new level of membership for high school students. Designed exclusively for students in 6th through 12th grades, the free AIAA High School Membership provides activities, competitions, and scholarships that will promote STEM and STEAM educational programs. Students can become members today at aiaa.org/hs. “We are thrilled to welcome students into AIAA at the earliest stages of their academic journey – during high school. We are committed to helping guide these students along their paths to a rewarding aerospace career,” said Dan Dumbacher, AIAA Executive Director. “These budding aerospace scientists and engineers can gain experience, mentorship, and access to resources to help them succeed. AIAA will serve as their vital lifelong link to reliable resources and growth opportunities.
AIAA’s goal is to promote equality of knowledge and opportunity from the start for all students. We see this membership opportunity as part of our outreach to help build a future aerospace workforce that represents the diversity of perspective and thought needed in the industry. The aerospace industry must embrace diversity of all forms in order to meet the challenges of the future.”
The new AIAA High School Membership complements the free AIAA Educator Associate Membership offered to K-12 teachers, which helps enhance and solidify the impact of teachers on the future of aerospace.
· AIAA Mentor Match. This unique program helps students find, connect, and gain insights on how to succeed in aerospace by matching them with professional members.
· STEM-focused webinars and on-demand content. This content is inspired by students, for students.
· AIAA Engage. This exclusive community platform connects students with peers and provides access to the High School Student Library.
· Design competitions. Students can compete in annual design challenges spanning the aerospace technical fields.
· Online subscription to Aerospace America. Get in-depth insight on the subject matter shaping the aerospace industry with this monthly digital publication.
Discounts to AIAA forums and events. Save on AIAA forums and professional development seminars that provide students with opportunities to network with professional members who will be a lifelong link to the aerospace community.
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National Association of Rocketry
Junior Member Science Fair Contest
NAR Junior members: Have you done a science fair project that involves model rocketry? If so, you can enter your project into the NAR Junior Member Science Fair Contest. Up to six winners will receive free NAR membership renewals including First Class delivery of Sport Rocketry magazine! If you don’t have a science fair project involving model rocketry, start thinking ahead to next year, because the NAR will run this same contest next year. Go to: https://www.nar.org/nar-junior-member-science-fair-contest/ for contest rules and information.
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NASA
Makes Finding Teaching Materials Easy
Looking for something different? Check out NASA's A-Z list of
education opportunities that NASA offers throughout the year.
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS)
Want to Talk to an Astronaut on the International Space Station? Amateur Radio
learn firsthand from astronauts what it is like to work and live in space. These
scheduled contact opportunities are offered to formal and informal education
institutions and organizations, individually or working together. The radio contacts
are approximately 10 minutes in length due to the radio communication window
permitted by the logistics of orbital passes of the ISS. During the contact,
students interact directly with astronauts and cosmonauts during this
communication window using a question and answer format.
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Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFJROTC)
TARC and AFJROTC
Get to know your AFJROTC Unit Commander or their education officer and see how you might work together to promote model rocketry. To find your local unit, look here and the search engine will generate a map with unit locations and contact information. You can also do a simple web search to find the many AFJROTC rocket activities. Alternatively, for more information on AFJROTC, contact AFJROTC Headquarters, 60 West Maxwell Blvd., Maxwell AFB, AL 36112-6501; by phone 1-334-953-7513, or online. AFJROTC is a partner with NAR and supports TARC with many teams.
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4-H
Uses Model Rocketry for Science, Technology, Engineering
and Math (STEM)
Rocketry is one of the most enjoyable projects 4-H has to offer. 4-H
and the National Association of Rocketry have formed a partnership
to help students learn about model rocketry and STEM.
Delaware County and Pennsylvania State University
Delaware County 4-H, for example, provides Rocketry School Enrichment and
After School Enrichment Programs that help students meet Pennsylvania
Academic Standards in science. 4-H project books are available for Delaware
County, Pennsylvania classroom teachers, home school families, and after
school clubs to use with students.
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CAP
Promotes and Supports Aerospace Education
CAP educational programs (for its own members and the general
public) help prepare American citizens to meet the challenges of a
sophisticated aerospace society and understand its related issues. CAP and the national Association of rocketry have formed a partnership to
help students learn about model rocketry and STEM.
National Standards-based Products
CAP offers national standards-based educational products, including a
secondary textbook, Aerospace: The Journey of Flight, and the middle-school-
level Aerospace Dimensions. Aerospace Education Members can get classroom
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Estes
It's spring...the prime time for model rocketry at schools! Estes Educator works
with many educators daily, getting lots of calls and emails from teachers and youth
group leaders who have never built and launched a model rocket but who want to
do that with their students.
Help NASA Find New Planetary Systems -- Become a Disk Detective!
NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer telescope and other observatories. In
this citizen science project, you'll view animated images of disk candidates and
classify them, distinguishing good candidates from galaxies, asteroids and image
artifacts.
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NCASE
Hill Aerospace Museum Expanding Hands-on Education for Northern Utah Students
A new facility at the Hill Aerospace Museum is being used to refine the facility’s vintage aircraft while providing Northern Utah students with some hands-on work experience.
The recently opened aircraft restoration and maintenance facility is located on the northwest side of the base and will be used to take care of the museum’s multimillion dollar aircraft and Air Force artifact collection. The museum has more than 70 aircraft on display in its two indoor galleries and outside air park and features thousands of artifacts depicting the history of aviation and the U.S. Air Force. Located at 7961 Wardleigh Road, admission to the museum is free to the public.
Todd Cromar, of Hill’s 75th Air Base Wing, said in a news release that the museum aircraft are acquired from a variety of different sources and are often in need of significant refurbishment. Much of the aircraft restoration work is dependent on volunteers, Cromar said.
While many of those volunteers have an extensive background in the field, the museum is also enlisting the burgeoning talents of local high school students. “One very exciting piece of our volunteer restoration program is the partner relationships we have with several local academic institutions,” said Brandon Hedges, the museum’s restoration chief. “(It) allows students from the surrounding community to learn and work on real aircraft at our facility.” Indeed, an agreement with the Utah Military Academy allows junior and senior students enrolled in the charter school’s basic airframes structure course to work on restoration projects involving a variety of aircraft.
Right now, the students are working on the “nose art” of a B-29 Superfortress. The World War II-era planes were used to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and are the only aircraft ever to use nuclear weapons in combat. Cromar said students from the Davis Applied Technology College are also working on the museum’s current F-117 Nighthawk, fabricating replacement parts for the plane.
The museum also offers paid annual college internships and six of those come from the restoration department. Aaron Clark, Hill Aerospace Museum director, said the outfit is looking to expand its educational offerings to local students.
“We now hope to partner with more neighboring high schools and colleges to develop an in-house airframe maintenance program to educate and inspire the airmen of tomorrow,” Clark said.
Interactive community educational opportunities have been a focus at the museum in recent years. In 2019, the museum and the Aerospace Heritage Foundation of Utah turned a Vietnam War-era C-130 Hercules airplane into a classroom for science, technology, engineering and math students. The museum’s Lt. Gen. Marc C. Reynolds Aerospace Center for Education offers students a STEM Summer Passport program providing a 12-week crash course in subjects like electricity, chemistry, astronomy, weather, magnetics, flight and more.
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Space History:
April 1, 1945: The U.S. Army fired the first of 17 Jet Propulsion Laboratory Private F rockets at Hueco Range at Fort Bliss, Texas as part of its historic Ordnance/CIT ballistic rocket program.
April 4, 1960: Frank D. Drake initiated Project Ozma using the 85-foot Howard E.
Tatel Radio Telescope at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory at Green Bank,
W. Va. It was the first systematic attempt to detect artificial radio signal patterns
from nearby stars. After 150 hours of listening, the project returned no evidence.
However, Project Ozma was the precursor for many more, increasingly sophisticated searches which continue today.
April 6, 1965: The United States launched Intelsat I, the first commercial
communications satellite, into geostationary orbit. Also called "Early Bird," the
satellite provided the first scheduled transoceanic television service and was
operational for 3.5 years.
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April 11-17, 1970: NASA launched Apollo 13 via a Saturn-V rocket. About 56 hours into the flight, an oxygen tank in the Apollo service module exploded and damaged several of the systems, including life support. People throughout the world watched, waited and hoped as NASA personnel on the ground and the Apollo crew worked together to find a way safely home. Astronauts Jim Lovell, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert used the lunar module as a lifeboat before returning to the control module for reentry. After a dramatic period of innovative recalculation at Mission Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Houston, Texas, the crew returned safely six days later.
April 26, 1980: The U.S. Department of Defense launched the NavStar 6
navigation satellite via Atlas F rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
The NavStar Global Positioning System (GPS) is a radio-positioning system of satellites providing navigation and timing information to military and civilian users
across the globe.
April 29, 1985: NASA launched the space shuttle Challenger (STS-51B) from
Kennedy Space Center, Fla. It was the first operational flight for the Spacelab
orbital laboratory series developed by the European Space Agency (ESA). The
orbiter made its first crosswind landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California at
the end of this mission.
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April 24, 1990: NASA launched the Hubble Space Telescope on space shuttle Discovery (STS-31). Soon after launch, controllers found the telescope was flawed by a mirror defect only 1/25th the width of a strand of human hair. Scientists found a way to work around it using computer enhancement, and engineers planned a shuttle repair mission to fully correct it. Hubble has made many important astronomical discoveries, including generating images of galaxy M87 and providing evidence of a potentially massive black hole.
April 3, 1995: NASA launched the MicroLab 1 mini-satellite on a Pegasus rocket
carried aloft by an L-1011 aircraft flying out of Vandenberg Air Force Base in
California. The mini-satellite carried meteorological experiments designed to track
lightning and to provide detailed temperature and moisture profiles across the
globe. Data from this mini-satellite has shown more than 1.2 billion lightning
flashes occur around the world every year, with more lightning strikes occurring
over land masses than over the oceans.
April 4, 2000: Russia launched Soyuz TM-30 from The Baikonur Cosmodrome in
Kazakhstan on the last Soyuz mission to the 14 year-old Mir space station.
Cosmonauts Zalyotin and Kaleri reactivated the uninhabited station and used two
Progress spacecraft to raise the station's orbit. Prior to this mission, Mir's orbital
plane was only around 120 degrees away from the International Space Station,
making transport between the two stations impossible.
April 15, 2005: Russia launched Soyuz-TMA 6 from The Baikonur Cosmodrome in
Kazakhstan carrying the Expedition 10 crew to the International Space Station.
The crew included three astronauts; Sergei Krikalev (Russian), John Phillips
(American) and Robert Vittori (Italian.) During the mission, Krikalev broke the
record for total time in space.
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