By Thea Botezan
Robinson High School’s Team Andromeda rocket team, supported by EAA Chapter 175 in Tampa, Florida, competed against more than 700 rocket teams from around the country in an attempt to win a trip to the national launch finals in May 2018. The team is composed of six students from Robinson High School’s MacDill Aeronautical Academy, which is taught by Jeff Kaloostian, EAA 792153 and past EAA Chapter 175 president, and one of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Gaetz Aerospace Institute adjunct professors.
Though the team didn’t win, it worked diligently to develop a rocket that met the challenging Team America Rocket Competition guidelines. The rocket had to peak at an altitude of 800 feet and fly within the time of 41-43 seconds exactly. The rocket was also required to carry two raw hen’s eggs that had to make it back to Earth without a crack.
The members of Team Andromeda are a diverse group of young people with a shared passion for STEM. Jessica Clavell, 10th grade, is the captain of the team and hopes to become a pilot or an astronaut. Sydney Raber, EAA 1244112, also in 10th grade, is the head of development on the rocket’s simulation software, and she, too, hopes to be an astronaut. Emma Fernandez, 9th grade, hopes to pursue a career with NASA or Boeing, as she has always been interested in aerospace. Emma Todd, 9th grade, is the launch operator and builder for the team, and wants a career with NASA or elsewhere in the space field. Thea Botezan, team co-captain, 11th grade, hopes to attend ERAU to study space operations, join the U.S. Air Force, and become a fighter pilot, then astronaut. Jadon “The Guy” Walters, 11th grade, is a builder and wants to be a commercial pilot or engineer.
The team’s qualifying launches went well, but the combined score of 145 (the lower the score, the better) was not low enough to break into the top 100. The team plans on regrouping and winning next year.