1. Soaring Straws Lab
Question: How does the gravitational potential energy of a straw rocket depend on the elastic potential energy of the rubber band launcher?
Hypothesis: If I stretch the rocket launcher more, then the height that the rocket reaches will…because…

2. Materials: Scissors 3 plastic straws Marker Balance
Empty toilet paper tube
Rubber band
Meter stick
Ruler
Masking tape

3. Procedure: Find the mass of your rocket in grams and record.
Hold the meter stick so that the zero end is even with the top of the launcher.
Practice luanching your rocket and measuring the height to which it rises.
Launch your rocket, using 2 cm of stretch by pulling the bottom of the straws 2 more cm below the bottom of the launcher.
Measure the height, in meters, to which the rocket rises and record.
Repeat steps 4-5 twice more and find the average for all 3 trials.
Repeat steps 4-6, for the 4 cm of stretch trials and the 6 cm of stretch trials.
Find the gravitational potential energy for each amount of stretch and record.

4. Data: 2 4 6 Amount of stretch (cm) Height Trial 1 (m) Trial 2 Trial 3
Avg.
Gravitational potential energy GPE (mJ)
Massx9.8m/s2xheight 2 4 6

5. Copy and answer 1-6. For #2 follow all graphing rules
Copy and answer 1-6. For #2 follow all graphing rules. Check notes if you don’t remember.
Which variable is the manipulated variable? The responding variable?
Graph results. Show gravitational potential energy (GPE) on the y axis and amount of stretch on the x axis. (DON’T COPY)
Which measurement determines the amount of elastic potential energy (EPE)?
Look at the shape of your graph. What conclusion can you make about the relationship between the GPE of the rocket and the EPE of the rubberband?
How do you think the total amount of energy before the rocket was released compares to the total amount of energy after it was released? Account for any losses in energy.