Ten Howard Middle School rocketry team members along with their teachers Susan Leeds and Jason Seickel have qualified to compete in the Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC) national finals. Howard’s team is among 100 participating teams elevating to the national competition from among 669 rocketry teams that competed.
Howard is the only middle school team from Florida traveling to the national competition. Students were challenged to design and build a rocket that will climb 825 feet and stay aloft for between 40 and 45 seconds using a streamer as a recovery device. A streamer is used in place of a parachute. The national finals will be held in The Plains, Virginia on May 15, 2010.
Winning teams at the national level can earn a share of $60,000 in prize money. The number one team travels to the International Airshow in Farnsworth, England to compete against winning teams from the United Kingdom and France.
The Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), NASA, the U.S. Department of Defense, the American Association of Physic Teachers, and AIA member companies sponsor the rocket challenges.
