By Kendrick Brown

Students built model rockets to see which would go the farthest at the Rocket Launch Competition workshop on Dec. 3 in A. James Clark Hall’s Leidos Lab.

The competition is one of many events hosted by student-led organization Terrapin Works, which aims to “empower the members of the community to reach their highest creative and technical potential by connecting them with cutting edge fabrication equipment, safe spaces and knowledgeable personnel,” according to TerpLink.

Junior engineering majors Aleksey Sanchez and Christian Randolph have created items such as business cards and cutting Testudo kits via Terrapin Works.

When asked why they chose to do a rocket competition in particular, Randolph said, “to have fun, and also kind of help people learn a bit.”

The event had a low turnout, with only senior chemical engineering major Nathan Miller and junior chemical engineering major Lilya Fraigui attending the event. The two of them participated for a special prize of a 3D-printed object of their choice.

The low number of attendees was uncommon, according to Randolph, who said that the upcoming finals season was a reason for the lack of people attending this event.

The first step of the competition was building the rocket. First, participants had to grab colored 3D-printed cylindrical objects to create the body of the rocket. Next, participants designed the nose cone and fins of the rocket. These were created by cutting sheets of cardboard and paper and attaching them to the 3D-printed body of the rocket with duct tape and hot glue.

After finishing both rockets, it was time to see which one launched the farthest.

The launching part of the competition involved putting the participants’ rockets on a launcher that shot at a pressure of less than 20 psi. To win the competition, the rocket had to shoot out and hit a paper target in the room. Whoever could hit the target closest to the bullseye in six launch attempts was the winner.

“It’s not about power but stability,” Sanchez said when it came to shooting the rockets.

Miller launched his rocket first, followed by Fraigui. They continued to launch their rockets until a winner was declared.

Fraigui initially was in the lead after the first two attempts, but after all six attempts, Miller won the competition.

After winning this two-person contest, Miller claimed a 3D-printed fidget spinner as his prize, giving one to Fraigui, his girlfriend.

“I beat my girlfriend, yay,” Miller sarcastically said when asked about how he felt after winning.

Featured Image: The plaque outside the Terrapin Works office on the evening of Dec. 11, 2025. Photo by Anika Stikeleather.