Sky is clear! Range clear! Launch in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!
Upper School math teacher Larry Ottman leads the young rocketeers. When it’s a student’s turn to launch, they set up the rocket on the launcher and take the controls. Then, the safety protocols. They crane their necks to scan the sky, one hand to forehead to shield their eyes from the sun, and if all is well, they call out, “Sky clear!” Next, they survey the immediate area and if all is safe, they call out, “Range clear!” Then the moment arrives: “Launch in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!” The rest of the students count down with them. After the sharp hiss of the rocket launching, creating a trail of curving, wispy smoke that dissipates quickly, everyone squints skyward to locate the rocket. Eventually it emerges, and the rocketeer zips off in that direction to try to catch the rocket as it wafts down to earth.
On the rocket range
From launch to retrieval
