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Lesson 2: How Does the Number of Pumps Affect Rocket Flight?

The number of pumps provides the way a water rocket is moved forward. As you add pumps to a water rocket, the pressure inside the rocket increases. In this study, you’ll find out how the number of pumps affects the distance a water rocket flies. It’s time to get pumped up and start your flights.

Here are some definitions to help you in your investigation.

Motion - tells how something changes its position over time

Force - a push or pull on something

Area - a specific part of a surface

Pressure - a force over a given area

Distance - how far something moves

Meters - a unit that measures length or distance moved

Variable - something that can change

Doing the science

  1. Start the Water Rockets Simulation by clicking on the “Simulation” tab.
  2. Make the following selections:

    Angle: 30°

    Fluid Volume: 200 mL

    Pumps: 2

    Fluid Type: Glycerin

    Air: Off

    Wind: Off

  3. Click on the “Launch” button.
  4. Record the flight distance in meters in Table 1.
  5. Click on the “RESET” button.
  6. Repeat steps 2-5 increasing only the number of pumps by 2 until you have completely filled out Table 1. Click on the up arrow below the Pump number one time to increase the number of pumps by two.

Table 1.

Number of Pumps

Flight Distance (m)

2

4

6

8

10

Do You Understand?

  1. What number of pumps produced the longest flight distance along the ground for the rocket?


  2. Make a prediction for the distance flown by the rocket if you would have applied 12 pumps.

    Your predicted distance traveled by the rocket = _________ m



  3. A control variable is a variable that is held constant or that does not change for a given experiment. What is the control variable(s) for this experiment?


  4. What variable(s) did change in your experiment?