Make a Paper Rocket
3...2...1...Blastoff! This paper rocket is based on actual NASA schematics, and will really fly. With a few simple materials and a little handiwork, you’ll be able to blast of into infinity and beyond in no time!
Contents
Steps
Making the Rocket Body
- Draw a 5x5 inch square. This will be as the body for your rocket. It's best to use regular 8x11 computer printer paper.
- Start at the left side of your paper and make a dot at the 5 inch mark.
- Next, measure 5 inches from the top of the paper and make a mark there.
- Draw lines to connect these points and form a square in the top left corner.
- Cut out your square. Take your time, there’s no rush. You want your rocket body to be sleek and clean, so try to cut true to the lines you drew.
- Make a cylinder out of the square. You’ll need a pencil and some Scotch tape for this next part.
- Place the corner of your square at the tip of the pencil with the rest of the paper pointing towards the eraser.
- Wrap the paper tightly around the pencil. You want to make this as tightly wrapped as possible. Keep rolling until you use all the paper to make a small, tight cylinder around the pencil.
- Carefully wiggle the pencil out of the cylinder while holding the paper so that it stays rolled.
- Gently use the thumb and forefinger of you other hand to push down on the top and bottom of the cylinder to make sure it’s even.
- Tape around the seams in three different places (top, middle, bottom) to make sure the cylinder stays rolled. Now you’ve got a body for your rocket!
Making the Nose Cone
- Draw a circle on your paper. You’ll use this to form the rocket’s nose cone. A streamline and pointy nose cone will really increase your paper rocket's aerodynamics.
- Place your plastic cup on a clean area of the paper, bottom side down.
- Trace around the bottom to make a perfect circle.
- Make a small dot in the center of the circle.
- Draw a small triangle with the tip ending at the circle. It should look like a slice of pie that is about 1/8th the size of the circle.
- Cut out the entire circle. Go slow and steady and try to keep it as a perfectly round circle.
- Make a cone out of the circle. These next steps will help you turn your circle into a cone.
- Cut out the triangle piece. Now your circle will look like Pacman.
- Fold down the right and left flaps to form a cone. It will look kind of like a teepee or a party hat.
- Hold it on the top and bottom with two hand and twirl it around in your finger to turn it into a pointy cone.
- Use tape to seal the cone. One piece should be enough to hold the seams in place and keep your cone tight, like a dunce cap or ice cream cone.
- Attach your cone the body. Now that you have both the rocket body and nose cone, it’s time to put them together.
- Put the cone on one of the rocket ends and tape them together.
- It’s okay if the cone is a little bigger than the body, just make sure you mold it tightly around the cylinder and tightly seal it with tape.
- You can test the seal by blowing into the open end of the cylinder. If some air leaks out, use more tape to seal it up.
Making the Wings
- Drawing a pair of 2x1 inch triangles. To draw a triangle, all you have to do is draw a 2 inch vertical with your ruler, and then a 1 inch horizontal line from it’s base, and connect the opposite ends with a diagonal line.
- Cut out the triangles. You might want to use a smaller pair of scissors for this part.
- Tape one your triangles to the cylinder body. Putting wings on your rocket will make it more aerodynamic and able to cut through the air better, fly faster, and go further.
- You want the shortest part of your triangle to be at the base of the cylinder, with the tall vertical part running up the cylinder’s body.
- The diagonal part of the triangle (also called the hypotenuse) should look like a fin extending from the body of your rocket.
- Repeat for the second triangle. Tape your second wing in the same way, directly across from your first wing.
Flying the Rocket
- Insert the straw. Take your plastic drinking straw and insert it into the open end of your rocket.
- Aim. Be careful not to point your rocket at any body, and especially not anyone’s face. Instead, make a target and aim for that. Make a Target
- Blow. Take a deep breath in and exhale quickly and forcefully through the straw.
- Blastoff! Watch as your homemade paper rocket blasts through the air.
Tips
- Tightly seal all your seams with tape. You don’t want any air leaking out. Tight seals will keep all the air inside the rocket and make it fly better.
- Have your tape pre-cut into strips and waiting for you on the edge of your table. This will make it easier to tape your rocket pieces while having your hands free to cut and roll the paper.
- Make your cone really pointy. This will increase it’s aerodynamics.
- Experiment by changing the wing size, shape, and number to see how these affect your rocket’s flight.
Warnings
- Be careful not to aim the rocket towards anyone because the rocket could poke out an eye.
Things You'll Need
- Regular 8x11 paper. You can use regular white computer printing paper, or color paper if you want a fancier rocket. Do not use cardstock or construction paper -- they are not as easy to roll or bend.
- Scotch tape.
- A thin drinking straw.
- Scissors. If you doing this activity with kids, consider using safety scissors.
- A ruler.
- A small plastic drinking cup, like the kind typically used at kid's parties.
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