Sky Blade Shuttle A rubber band powered rocket that really flies and lands. email to friend
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Here's a rubber band powered rocket that really flies and lands with great Mission Control performance. The patented X-Lock System allows you to make "targeted" landings, and the blades spin with such incredible thrust that the rocket soars over 30 meters (100 feet). Studying the science of flight may never be as fun. Recommended for children ages 8 and up.

How does it work?

On the countdown 5,4,3, — wind the blades—2,1 release the engine lock (ok, it's just a rubber band twisted tightly) and—liftoff! Your shuttle is airborne. Can you still see it? We landed one of these rockets on the rooftop of a Holiday Inn in Midland, Michigan, and it's still there. "Mission Control—we have a problem." Oh well, back to flight school. Science is perfect, but practice makes it even better.

What does it teach?

The Sky Blade Shuttle provides a great opportunity to teach kids about rocket propulsion as it applies to Newton's Laws of Motion. Newton's First Law states than an object at rest remains at rest until an external force acts upon it, (the spin of the sky blades being the external force). Newton's Third Law states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. So where does the rubber band fit in? Ask Mr. Newton!