Journey To Mars

The topic that we chose to cover for our Genius Hour summative project is Rocket Propulsion systems. The material that we have learned in class, more specifically Energy and Fields can be used to furthermore understand the physics behind a rocket’s journey from earth to a moon/planet. In our scenario, we chose to recreate a journey from earth to mars.

Throughout my research so far, I have used my current understanding of physics concepts as a base to learn and understand the physics behind rockets. Having an understanding of Dynamics and Energy has been a great help to understanding how rockets transfer their chemical energy (fuel), into kinetic and potential energy therefore increasing their jerk (increase in acceleration) and height. Understanding fields has also been a great help. To escape the earth’s atmosphere, a rocket must have enough velocity which is dependent on its mass and distance from the earth’s surface, also known as escape velocity.

Also, orbits play a huge factor in keeping a rocket in space. I’ve learned that the farther a rocket is from the earth, the less velocity (parallel to the surface of the earth) is needed to keep it in orbit, therefore saving fuel. I have also learned about the different types of orbits, such as elliptical orbits like the earth rotating around the sun as well as transfer orbits which are used to increase distance from the earth or even change orbits to another moon/planet. Along the way i’ve learned some interesting things about how rockets are able to achieve their exit velocity. Rockets are launched in “stages” to help increase efficiency by balancing the amount of fuel being carried and the mass of the rocket. Once the fuel in a tank has been depleted, the tank has no more use to the rocket, therefore creating unnecessary mass. This mass in part with increased air resistance can hold a rocket back from reaching exit velocity. To combat this effect, rockets release their used payloads which then safely return back to earth.

To do this in a way that is presentable, we will use a program called Kerbal Space Program. This program is essentially a live physics simulator which has a focus on aerospace, which will allow us to test various rocket propulsion systems such as liquid fuel in combination with oxidizers and solid fuel rockets for high thrust and monopropellants for maneuvering in space. We will be showing off the different types of orbits (elliptical and transfer), and different types of rocket propulsion systems (liquid, solid, and monopropellants), as well as the physics that goes on behind all this through our “journey to mars” project.