ADS, the competition organiser of UKROC 2023 has put together two-part webinar series with part one outlining exactly what UKROC 2023 is all about.
What is UKROC 2023?
UKROC is the UK’s largest youth rocketry competition and is designed to inspire young people to consider the fascinating careers available in the aviation, aerospace, defence, and space sectors.
Structured around the STEAM subjects (science, technology, engineering, arts, and maths), the competition provides a useful extension to what young people are already learning while engaging them in an exciting hands-on way.
The core rules for the 2023 competition include:
- Team members must be aged between 11-18 to compete.
- The minimum team size is three people, and the maximum size is six people from a single school or non-profit organisation.
- There is no limit on the number of teams a school or non-profit organisation can enter. For example, in past competitions a school has entered five teams to compete.
- The competition is free to enter, but teams must cover the build and material costs of their rocket which ADS estimates to be around £300.00.
- Teams must also cover their travel to regional and national final venues.
UKROC 2023 Mission
Teams must, design, build and launch a model rocket with a fragile payload which in 2023 is a raw egg, representing the astronaut.
The rocket must reach a set altitude (850 feet) within a specific total flight duration (42-45 seconds) and the payload must return to ground without any cracks or damage.
Overall event scores are calculated on how close each teams’ rocket gets to set altitude within the specific flight duration.
Full details of the rules and 2023 competition are available on the UKROC website.
Competition structure
The deadline for 2023 competition registrations is 24 February 2023, once teams are registered, ADS encourages you to begin the planning and build process asap during the darker winter months.
- Regional Events
In April 2023, a series of regional events will take place across the UK, where teams attend, undertake qualification flights and the top scoring teams in the region win places in the national final.
- National Final
The national final takes place in May 2023, at the British Model Flying Association. The top scoring teams from each region go head-to-head in a battle to be crowned National Champions. During the national final, teams launch their model rockets and present their logbook and learnings to the expert panel of judges.
Following the launches and presentations, scores are added together, and the top three scoring teams complete final flights. Then, the 2023 National Champions will be crowned!
- International Final – Paris Airshow
The 2023 National Champions win an all-expenses paid trip to Paris Airshow 2023, and will compete against teams from the US, France, and Japan as part of the International Rocketry Challenge final.
Help and support
Every year, ADS is joined by a team of expert rocketeers who give up their time and knowledge to ensure the UKROC competition is delivered safely and follows rocketry guidelines.
Our expert rocketeers also provide teams with invaluable help and technical support during the design, build, and launch process and their contact details can be found on the UKROC website.
In addition to the website, UKROC has its own Instagram and Facebook account which you can follow to keep up to date with all the latest blast offs.
Interested?
So, you think you’ve got what it takes to be our next UKROC National Champion – excellent! To get you fully immersed in the competition we suggest doing the next three things:
- Register ahead of the competition deadline
- Sign-up to our next webinar which will share how to build a rocket
- Read the Q&A with 2022 National Champions, Team Traffic Cone which has lots of useful hints and tips.
Find out more on UKROC.com
