Team Starry Night from Interlake High School in Bellevue, Wash., along with two other Seattle-area teams, had strong showings at the national finals of the 2024 American Rocketry Challenge, which is the world’s largest student rocket-launching challenge. Out of the 100 teams competing at the event in The Plains, Va., Team Starry Night finished 15th, Team RocketTree from Sammamish finished 21st, and Odle Middle School Team 1 from Bellevue finished 25th. Overall, more than 5,000 students from 922 teams across 45 states participated in the competition, which requires students to design, build, and test rockets that meet specific mission parameters set by the contest’s sponsors – the Aerospace Industries Association, the National Association of Rocketry, and other industry partners.
The members of Team Starry Night from Interlake High School include Eesha Jain, Dorah Wang, and Thomas Chang, while Team RocketTree from Smiling Tree in Sammamish comprises Sathvik Nair, Sanaa Menon, Veena Vijay, Vaibhav Narayanan, and Abhiram Nair. Odle Middle School Team 1 includes Henghua Liu, Hengqing Liu, Venba Dinesh, Aashvi Kuchhal, and Monhita Sai Karthik. All the teams had to design rockets capable of carrying a raw egg payload and reaching specific altitudes and flight durations during the competition.
The rockets were required to safely carry a payload of one raw egg with a target flight duration of 43-46 seconds and an altitude of 820 feet. The competition aims to promote interest in aerospace innovation among students and provide them with hands-on experience in designing and testing rockets. Aerospace Industries Association President and CEO Eric Fanning expressed excitement at witnessing the talents and skills of the next generation of aerospace innovators during the event, highlighting the importance of such competitions in nurturing young talent in the field.
In addition to the three mentioned teams, several other Seattle-area teams also participated in the finals, including Newport High School Team 1, Interlake High School Team 2, Odle Middle School Team 2, STEMZ Education, Newport High School Team 2, and Skyline High School. The top 25 finishers at the competition receive an invitation to participate in NASA’s Student Launch initiative, offering them opportunities to further explore rocketry with high-powered rockets and challenging mission parameters. These competitions provide a platform for students to showcase their skills and passion for aerospace, inspiring them to pursue careers in the field and contribute to future innovations within the industry.
