Rockets Lecture Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers building, launching, and living on rockets and within spacecraft based on The Schools' Observatory lecture materials.

Rockets

Machines powered by a rocket engine used to help power people and things into space.

Rocket Engine

An engine that works by burning fuel to produce hot gas, which comes out of the bottom to push the rocket upwards.

Spaceships (Spacecraft)

The storage portion of the vehicle located at the top of a rocket where people, equipment, or robots sit for travel.

Gravity-Free Environment

The state once a spacecraft is in space where everything floats around.

Splashdown

The process where a spacecraft returns to Earth by falling through the atmosphere, opening a parachute, and landing in the ocean.

Structure

The main body of the rocket, typically a long cylinder with a pointy top and fins on the bottom, which contains all other parts.

Propulsion System

The rocket engine area where fuel is stored, mixed, and set alight.

Guidance System

A system near the top of the rocket that monitors its direction and allows people on the ground to change course using onboard computers.

Payload

Located at the pointy top (nose cone) of the rocket, this contains everything specifically intended to make it to space.

Ariane 5

A large rocket used most often by Europe.

Proton-M

A large rocket used most often by Russia.

Falcon-9

A large rocket used most often by the US.

Long March

A large rocket used most often by China.

Proxima Centauri

The next closest star to Earth after the Sun, located over $40 \text{ trillion km}$ away.

Speed of Light

A speed of approximately $300,000 \text{ km each second}$ ($300,000\,km/s$).

Apollo Missions Speed

A realistic speed for a human spacecraft calculated at about $40,000\,km/h$.

Physical Effects of Lack of Gravity

Bodily changes including muscle weakening, calcium leaving the bones, and changes to blood flow and eye pressure.

Astronaut Training Requirements

Typically requires a degree in science or engineering, approximately $3 \text{ years}$ of training, and the ability to speak both English and Russian.

CAPCOM

A specific job in Mission Control where the individual speaks directly to the astronauts.

Flight Director

The leader of the Mission Control team who ensures everything is okay with the mission.

Sound in Space

Non-existent because there is no medium, such as air, for sound to travel through.

SpaceX Technology

Advanced technology that makes it possible to launch a rocket and then re-land and reuse it.