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Update: 01-324

Randolph High School top team in first Student Launch reusable rocket competition

Editor’s Note:  The rockets reached the following altitudes: Randolph High School, 6,110 feet; Johnson High, 3,270 feet; and Sparkman, 1,651 feet. The payload – a fertilized chicken egg – was successfully retrieved by Randolph and Johnson High.

Huntsville’s Randolph High School took the top award in a close contest among three area high schools to build and launch a reusable rocket. The contest was the first competition in the Student Launch Initiative, an educational program sponsored by Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

The three schools launched 8-foot tall rockets they designed and built to heights of more than one mile at a Redstone Arsenal test site Saturday morning, Oct. 6, culminating a year-long project for the students.

Sparkman High School placed second and Johnson High School placed third in the competition. Johnson -- the only school that chose to take on both the development of a science payload, or cargo, and the design and building of a launch vehicle – also takes home first place for its payload.

The winning teams will also participate in Space Camp and Aviation Challenge activities sponsored by the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala. Each team will receive a trophy.

The team awards were based on results from design and presentation phases modeled after NASA’s Flight Readiness Reviews.  A panel of NASA scientists and engineers heard students’ presentations.

The goal of the Student Launch Initiative is to get students in high schools and universities excited about and more directly involved in science, math and engineering. The project is modeled after a similar and highly successful program at Fredericksburg High School in Fredericksburg, Texas. Two university teams participating in the Marshall Center program will launch rockets in December.

 NASA uses its unique resources, whenever possible, to support educational excellence, since education is a key element in NASA’s overall mission.  The space agency participates in education outreach programs through its field centers around the country.