How Do Rockets Reach Space?

🕐 5 min 5 sec 👦 Ages 9–12 🌍 English
Join Owlo and Koko as they explore how rockets launch into space using fun experiments and science principles!
Understand rocket launch basics Learn about Newton's Third Law Explore cause and effect in science
📖 Story Script
                    Koko:
                    Owlo, you have to see this! I found a picture of a rocket launch in the library magazine. The flames at the bottom are enormous!
                
                    Owlo:
                    Ah, you found the science monthly. That photograph is from a real launch last year. Quite a sight, isn't it?
                
                    Koko:
                    It looks so powerful. But I don't understand how something that heavy can even get off the ground, let alone reach space.
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is exactly the right question to ask. Let's head to the science lab. I have something there that will help explain this perfectly.
                
                    Koko:
                    Okay, I'm here. What are we doing with all these balloons and that big poster of a rocket?
                
                    Owlo:
                    We are going to understand rockets using something you already know. Blow up this balloon, then let it go without tying it.
                
                    Koko:
                    It's flying all over the room! It went that way because the air shot out the other way.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Exactly. That is the core idea behind how rockets work. It is called Newton's Third Law. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
                
                    Koko:
                    So the rocket pushes gas downward, and the gas pushes the rocket upward? That's actually kind of brilliant.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Precisely. The rocket burns fuel to create hot, fast-moving gas. That gas blasts out the bottom, and the rocket shoots upward.
                
                    Koko:
                    But wait, there's no air in space. How does the fire even burn up there?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Wonderful observation. Rockets carry their own oxygen along with their fuel. They don't need air from outside at all.
                
                    Koko:
                    So they bring everything they need with them. Like packing a lunchbox, but for fire.
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is a surprisingly accurate comparison, Koko. Now, here's the next challenge. Earth's gravity is pulling the rocket down the whole time.
                
                    Koko:
                    So the rocket has to be strong enough to fight gravity the entire way up?
                
                    Owlo:
                    It does. And to do that, rockets need an enormous amount of fuel. That fuel is actually most of the rocket's weight at launch.
                
                    Koko:
                    Most of the weight is just fuel? Then what happens to all those big fuel tanks once they're empty?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Great thinking. Most rockets are built in stages. Each stage holds fuel, and when a stage runs out, it separates and falls away.
                
                    Koko:
                    So the rocket gets lighter as it goes up. That helps it go faster and use less energy to keep climbing.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Exactly right. Shedding that weight is crucial. Without staging, a rocket simply could not carry enough fuel to reach orbit.
                
                    Koko:
                    What does orbit actually mean? I hear that word a lot but I'm not totally sure.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Orbit is when an object moves fast enough sideways that it keeps falling around Earth, rather than falling straight down onto it.
                
                    Koko:
                    Wait, so astronauts in orbit are actually falling the whole time? They're just also moving sideways fast enough to miss the Earth?
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is a perfect description. You need to be moving at roughly 28,000 kilometers per hour to stay in low Earth orbit.
                
                    Koko:
                    28,000 kilometers per hour. I can't even imagine that speed. My brain is a little overwhelmed right now.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Let's put it this way. At that speed, you could travel all the way around Earth in about 90 minutes.
                
                    Koko:
                    That's faster than my school day. Okay, so rockets fight gravity, burn fuel in stages, and then reach orbit. Is that the whole story?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Almost. There is one more important piece. The nose of the rocket, called the payload fairing, protects the spacecraft inside from heat and pressure.
                
                    Koko:
                    So the rocket is basically a delivery system. It gets the spacecraft to space, and then the spacecraft does the actual mission.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Well said. The rocket is the launcher. The spacecraft is the explorer. They each have a very specific job.
                
                    Koko:
                    This is so much more complicated than I thought. And so much cooler, honestly.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Space travel is one of the greatest achievements in all of science. It took thousands of engineers and scientists working together for decades.
                
                    Koko:
                    Okay Owlo, I think I've got it. Can I try to put it all together?
                
                    Koko:
                    So, rockets reach space by burning fuel to push hot gas downward, which pushes the rocket upward. That's Newton's Third Law.
                
                    Koko:
                    They carry their own oxygen so they can burn fuel even in space. They drop empty fuel stages to get lighter as they go.
                
                    Koko:
                    And to stay in orbit, they have to go sideways super fast, about 28,000 kilometers per hour, so they keep falling around Earth instead of onto it.
                
                    Koko:
                    Next I want to find out how astronauts actually live up there, and maybe how we might one day go to Mars!
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is an outstanding summary, Koko. The engineers who design rockets would be impressed. Now let's go find that Mars book in the library.