Freezing temperatures and windy conditions didn’t stop three students led by instructor Timothy Surine in their efforts to launch a rocket at Highland. The three freshmen are enrolled in the aerospace program at Highland High School. After a blustery 30 minutes outside Wednesday with no successful launches adjustments were made.

While Justin Rossman made those adjustments to the rocket, Paul Garcia and Adrian Rodriguez shared with KCII News what went into preparing the rocket, Garcia said, “Well there’s a lot of things, we had to design the cones. We’ve got three designs, the one that’s on the rocket and two more. We had to make sure we found the measurements for the fins, the cone, and the body.” Rodriguez adds, “We had to cut everything, and then print everything out so everything could fit. And then we had the right measurements and the exact width so we can put in the motor so it doesn’t fall out when it’s flying.” They both see the program as a step towards their dream jobs, hydraulic engineer for Garcia and aerospace engineer for Rodriguez.

The students and Surine went back out to the football field turned launch pad, measured out 100 feet, and counted down before sending the electric charge to the rocket. It then zoomed into the sky before the parachute deployed and fell to the ground nearby. Each student had a successful launch, and using trigonometry they measured how high it went with different weight loads in the rocket. Surine explains the wind pushed the rockets sideways, not allowing them to reach their full potential. Heights reached were 57.7 feet, 72.65 feet, and 78.1 feet. In the spring term, these three Huskies will join with those who took the first section of the program last year and all will continue their aerospace studies at Highland.