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Quiz about Rocket Science for Kids
Quiz about Rocket Science for Kids

Rocket Science for Kids! Trivia Quiz


People often say "it's not rocket science" when something is simple, implying rocket science is hard. Let me show you that rocket science isn't "rocket science" at all - it's easier than you think!

A multiple-choice quiz by Rowena8482. Estimated time: 4 mins.
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Author
Rowena8482
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
314,132
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
7 / 10
Plays
1508
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 84 (1/10), Guest 117 (3/10), Guest 130 (0/10).
Question 1 of 10
1. Rocket science has a 'proper' name too - what is it? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Although the maths involved in actual rocket science can be very complicated, the basic principles are stated in three equations called the Laws of Motion devised by a very famous scientist, way back in the 17th century.
Who is this scientist who wrote "Principia Mathematica"?
Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. For a rocket to leave the gravitational pull of the Earth, it needs to reach a very special speed.
Once it reaches this speed, the gravity of the Earth can no longer pull it back, and it can "boldly go" off into space.
What term is used to describe this special speed?
Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. A great big rocket weighing 10,000 kilos will need to go much faster than a little tiny rocket weighing just 1 kilo, in order to take off from the Earth's surface and get into space.


Question 5 of 10
5. Gravity is one force which is very important when doing the calculations needed for rocket science, but there are other forces which must also be considered.
Which of these forces, which acts to slow down the rocket, can be described as "an inefficiency requiring expense of additional energy during launch"?
Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. In 1977, two identical space probes were launched, which are now the farthest away from Earth that man made objects have ever gone.
What are they called?
Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Suppose you are here on Earth, and you have a mass of 25 kilos (about 55lbs).
If you were to go to the Moon, what would your mass be there, in kilos?
Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Geostationary orbits are used for communications satellites, and were first suggested by a man called Arthur Clarke, in a paper published in 1945.
What was Mr. Clarke's profession?
Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. A very famous name in the history of rocket science was the man who launched the first ever liquid fuelled rocket, way back in 1926.
He was born in Massachusetts in 1882, and became a Research Fellow at Princeton in 1912.
Who was he?
Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Another very famous rocket scientist was called Wernher von Braun. He designed the rockets which were used during the Apollo space program, to boost the Lunar Modules towards the Moon.
What were these rockets called?
Hint





Most Recent Scores
Oct 15 2024 : Guest 84: 1/10
Oct 06 2024 : Guest 117: 3/10
Oct 01 2024 : Guest 130: 0/10
Sep 11 2024 : Guest 50: 5/10
Sep 08 2024 : Guest 174: 10/10
Sep 05 2024 : Guest 82: 8/10

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Rocket science has a 'proper' name too - what is it?

Answer: Astronautics

As aeronautics is the science of regular atmospheric flight, astronautics is the science of space and rocket flight.
It is a branch of a discipline called aerospace engineering, which means it deals with machines that are made to leave the Earth's atmosphere and go out into space.
2. Although the maths involved in actual rocket science can be very complicated, the basic principles are stated in three equations called the Laws of Motion devised by a very famous scientist, way back in the 17th century. Who is this scientist who wrote "Principia Mathematica"?

Answer: Isaac Newton

Isaac Newton first published his "Principia Mathematica" in July 1687.
It is the math laid out in Newton's three Laws of Motion, coupled with his Universal Law of Gravitation that is fundamental to all rocket science and space flight.
3. For a rocket to leave the gravitational pull of the Earth, it needs to reach a very special speed. Once it reaches this speed, the gravity of the Earth can no longer pull it back, and it can "boldly go" off into space. What term is used to describe this special speed?

Answer: Escape Velocity

The existence of escape velocity is because of a rule (or law) of physics called the Law of Conservation of Energy.
The escape velocity for the planet Earth is approximately 34 times the speed of sound, or 11.2 kilometres per second.
If a rocket is traveling slower than this speed, when the boost cuts off, the Earth's gravity will 'catch' it, and it will fall back to the ground.
Rockets can leave Earth without reaching escape velocity directly from their launch, by placing them into a lower orbit and then boosting again to a higher one. The escape velocity is not the speed needed to leave the planet, but the speed needed to overcome the force of gravity pulling the rocket back.
If a rocket managed to achieve escape velocity whilst still at low altitude, it would probably burn up in the atmosphere like a meteorite. This is why rockets boost in stages rather than using a 'gun like' arrangement to just shoot them straight out into space.
4. A great big rocket weighing 10,000 kilos will need to go much faster than a little tiny rocket weighing just 1 kilo, in order to take off from the Earth's surface and get into space.

Answer: false

Perhaps surprisingly, both rockets need to go at the same speed in order to escape the Earth's gravity.
The escape velocity for two rockets, launched from the same spot on the Earth's surface, is exactly the same, regardless of how much they each weigh!
What will change is the amount of energy needed to get them there. A big rocket needs much more energy in terms of thrust, or power, to get into space, than a small one needs.
5. Gravity is one force which is very important when doing the calculations needed for rocket science, but there are other forces which must also be considered. Which of these forces, which acts to slow down the rocket, can be described as "an inefficiency requiring expense of additional energy during launch"?

Answer: Atmospheric drag

The atmospheric drag is the friction force exerted on a rocket by the Earth's atmosphere as the rocket travels through it. Extra energy is needed during the boost in order to overcome the drag and get the rocket out into space.
As the rocket moves higher, the atmosphere gets thinner and the atmospheric drag on the rocket gets smaller.
6. In 1977, two identical space probes were launched, which are now the farthest away from Earth that man made objects have ever gone. What are they called?

Answer: Voyager 1 and 2

Voyager 1 and 2 visited Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune, and Uranus on their way out of our Solar System.
They will continue on their journey through space for many more years, only stopping if an accident befalls them.
They reached a region of space known as the heliosheath early in 2009, and are heading for the heliopause; the heliopause marks the extreme limits of our Sun's gravitational field, and is thus classed as the end of our solar system.
On board the Voyager probes is a "Golden record" - this has recordings of voices, music, sounds, and pictures from Earth, just in case the probes are ever found by alien life forms somewhere out in space.
The message with the golden record says "This is a present from a small, distant world, a token of our sounds, our science, our images, our music, our thoughts and our feelings. We are attempting to survive our time so we may live into yours." which was said by President Carter of the USA.
7. Suppose you are here on Earth, and you have a mass of 25 kilos (about 55lbs). If you were to go to the Moon, what would your mass be there, in kilos?

Answer: 25 kilos

Your mass on the Moon, or anywhere else in the Universe for that matter, will be exactly the same as it is here on Earth.
Lots of people get confused with the difference between mass (measured in kilos or pounds etc) and weight, which is a force, measured in Newtons (symbol N).
The "standard gravity" on the surface of the Earth is a constant of 9.81 metres per second (m/s). What this means is that weight is equal to mass multiplied by 9.81 - our 25 kilo mass actually weighs 25 X 9.81 so 245.25 Newtons.
Mass is the "amount of stuff" in an object and is the same on the Moon as on Earth, but the gravity of the Moon is approximately one sixth of that of Earth. This is because the Moon is much smaller than Earth.
On the Moon, our 25 kilo mass will weigh 25 X 1.64 = 40.96 Newtons.
If you are prepared to risk your pocket money for the rest of your life, explain this to your Mum next time she's getting weighed, and point out that she actually weighs 9.81 times as much as the reading on the scales. Wear running shoes! :-D
8. Geostationary orbits are used for communications satellites, and were first suggested by a man called Arthur Clarke, in a paper published in 1945. What was Mr. Clarke's profession?

Answer: Science Fiction Writer

A geostationary orbit is a special orbit where a satellite orbits above the equator, at the same speed as the Earth rotates. To an observer on the ground, the satellite seems to "hang there" above the same point on the ground, and not move at all.
Arthur C. Clarke is most famous for his science fiction books which include "2001: A Space Odyssey", published in 1968, and made into a film by Stanley Kubrik, also in 1968.
It was Clarke's paper "Extra-Terrestrial Relays - Can Rocket Stations Give Worldwide Radio Coverage?" (published in "Wireless World" magazine in 1945), which first brought the idea of the geostationary orbit to the attention of the general public. These orbits are even sometimes called "Clarke Orbits", and there are more than 110 satellites in geostationary Earth orbit in the western hemisphere alone.
9. A very famous name in the history of rocket science was the man who launched the first ever liquid fuelled rocket, way back in 1926. He was born in Massachusetts in 1882, and became a Research Fellow at Princeton in 1912. Who was he?

Answer: Robert Goddard

Although Robert Goddard is mainly remembered for his pioneering work on rockets, he also invented the bazooka gun, at the end of World War I.
In the 1930s he moved to New Mexico and set up his rocketry research facility near a little town named Roswell...
10. Another very famous rocket scientist was called Wernher von Braun. He designed the rockets which were used during the Apollo space program, to boost the Lunar Modules towards the Moon. What were these rockets called?

Answer: Saturn V

The Saturn V rockets were the biggest and most powerful rockets ever launched. They were designed to boost the actual "spaceship" part of the Lunar Module up into space. Each one was made up of three separate stages, and by firing one after the other, they boosted the Lunar Module in stages, going higher each time, until it was finally free of the Earth's atmosphere and on its way to the Moon. After they had fired they were jettisoned (dumped) and either fell back to Earth or went into orbit. At least two Saturn V stages from the Apollo missions are still out in space, and are tracked by NASA as Near Earth Objects.
Source: Author Rowena8482

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor NatalieW before going online.
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