Rockets STEM From Youth Across The United States In National Rocketry Challenge

Students from High, Intermediate, and Middle schools, the Civil Air Patrol, Boy Scouts and other youth organizations have had their hands in Science Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) activities for several years.

This year, 101 final and 25 alternate teams have been selected from state competitions around the country for The American Rocketry Challenge (TARC), with some schools fielding anywhere from one to three teams. The TARC final will be held in Virginia on 14th May 2022. The TARC winner receives $20,000 and all-expenses paid to London in the United Kingdom to compete in the International Rocketry Challenge against others from around the world.

The American Rocket Challenge is an aerospace design and engineering event geared towards teams from the United States secondary school system, specifically grades 6 to 12, and is run by the National Association of Rocketry (NAR) as well as the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA). Competitors can seek support and sponsorship from schools or non-profit youth organizations, excluding NAR for obvious reasons. Some organizations that have and continue to lend support include the scouts, 4-H, the Civil Air Patrol, and others. To learn more about these organizations, TARC, or how to get youth involved, see the links in the FMI section below.

For those who look upwards, the recent publicity surrounding the commercial enterprise launches such as Inspiration4, Space-X, Artemis, Axiom, and others have and will undoubtedly continue to stir interest and inspiration for current and future TARC participants. Those preferring the aquatic side of things may find solace in Underwater Robotics.

While this arena has not garnered as much commercial attention, the uptick in UAVs and drones could bleed over to the marine world where similar opportunities exist for STEM, camaraderie, personal growth and development.

If you're experiencing flashbacks or déjà vu for the underdog, it might be because you've probably seen a couple of movies based on true stories; Spare Parts and Underwater Dreams. Both featured ‘remotely operated vehicles' (ROV) with scrappy teams demonstrating resourcefulness and rising above the general expectations. Who doesn’t love a feel-good story?

FMI: https://rocketcontest.org, https://www.nar.org, https://gocivilairpatrol.com, https://materovcomperition.org