Second Annual 'Team America Rocketry Challenge' Announced

Long-awaited applications for the second annual Team America Rocketry Challenge model rocket contest are now available online, for high school and middle school students in the United States.

Sponsored by the Aerospace Industries Association and the National Association for Rocketry, the national model rocket contest will challenge students to design, build, and fly model rockets that carry two raw eggs to 1,250 feet. Teams have until April 5, 2003, to conduct official qualifying flights. The top 100 teams will meet on May 15, 2004, at Great Meadow, The Plains (VA), in a national fly-off to compete for a shared prize pool of over $50,000.

More than 9000 students from every state in the union took part in the last contest, making the Team America Rocketry Challenge the world's largest model rocket contest. The finals, held May 10, were covered by the national media, with students and celebrities such as "Rocket Boys" author Homer Hickam and NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe.

Detailed information, including the prizes, the requirements, the rules, and the application is posted on the website. The registration fee is $75 for teams that entered last year and still have all their entry kit materials, and $200 for all others, which includes the full kit of Handbook of Model Rocketry, computer rocket-design program, and an electronic altimeter.

AIA's co-sponsor for this event is the National Association of Rocketry (NAR), America's largest and oldest association of sport rocket fliers. The NAR has a nationwide network of local clubs with experienced rocketeers to provide advice and make their launch sites available for students' flights. Many adult NAR members can act as mentors and assist individual teams in their local areas.

The Team America organizers are encouraging companies to sponsor teams selected for the finals. AIA and NAR also recommend that teams establish a budget committee which would track the team finances and solicit sponsorships from local businesses in their communities.

FMI: www.rocketcontest.org; www.aia-aerospace.org