A student team from Anderson 1 & 2 Career & Technology Center in Williamston is among 100 national finalists in the American Rocketry Challenge. The students will compete against other teams at the National Finals, taking place on May 18 in The Plains, Virginia, just outside Washington, DC. In addition to competing for the title of national champion and an all-expense paid trip to the International Rocketry Challenge in July at the Farnborough Air Show in England, teams will be competing for $100,000 in prizes. The top 25 teams will automatically receive invitations to NASA’s Student Launch workshop.
The team is making its first appearance in the National Finals after fielding a team in 2023. The team is advised by James Davis.
This year’s competition featured a record 922 teams and more than 5,000 students from 45 states. For 2024, each team was required to design, build, and launch model rockets that safely carry one large hen egg to an altitude of 820 feet, stay airborne for between 43 and 46 seconds, and return the rocket to the ground safely. The rocket must separate into two parts after apogee—one section of the rocket must contain the egg and altimeter, and the second the rocket motor(s)—and both parts must land with their own parachutes.
Sponsored by the Aerospace Industries Association, the National Association of Rocketry, and more than 20 industry partners, the American Rocketry Challenge is the aerospace and defense industry’s flagship program designed to encourage students to pursue study and careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Now in its 22nd year, the competition has inspired nearly 95,000 middle and high school students to explore education and careers in STEM fields.
