A Beginner's Guide to Aerospace: How to Be a Rocket Scientist!

Have you ever wondered how rockets and spacecraft work? In this 12-session course, meeting once a week, students will learn about a wide variety of aerospace, astrophysics and rocket science concepts including Kepler's Laws, Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation, centrifugal force, centripetal force, momentum, orbital mechanics, rocket design and new advances in space travel. 

During the course, a variety of activities will bring aerospace concepts to life, including physics simulations, drawing activities, educational presentations, discussions and visualizations. Printable Homework Review Handouts will be provided after each class to summarize and reinforce learning. 

With the teacher's guidance, students will learn about the following topics over 12 sessions:

Class 1 - Where Space Begins, Kepler's Laws & Planetary Orbits
Class 2 - Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation, Universal Gravitational Constant, Centripetal Force, Momentum
Class 3 - All About Orbits & Orbital Mechanics
Class 4 - Anatomy of a Rocket
Class 5 - Rocket Equation Made Easy
Class 6 -  Clustering & Multistaging Rockets
Class 7 - Rocket Engine Systems and Nozzles Explained
Class 8 - Rocket Propulsion; How are we getting to the moon
Class 9 - Solid Rocket Motors basics & details
Class 10 - Liquid Rocket Engine Types 
Class 11 - New space plane Dream Chaser Tenacity; Cryogenic fuels
Class 12 - New advances and engines for interplanetary & interstellar flight

The course content will build from week to week, so if a class is missed, it is recommended to watch the Class Recordings which are automatically posted to the Classroom 1-2 hours after the live meeting is held. 

Teacher Expertise: This course is taught by Quantum Physics for Kids instructor Prof. Mark Baraket (M.S. Astrophysics UC Berkeley), an experienced aerospace & aeronautics educator.