ACTIVITY: Solid Rocket Boosters

Directions
Complete the following activities using the solid rocket booster information sheet.

Your Mission: 
Your launch team needs the missing information to complete the launch. Find the key terms or numbers and accurately fill in each blank.
1.	Each booster rocket is attached to either side of the ________ ________ (ET) and is ________ feet (________ meters) tall with a diameter of ________ feet (________ meters). Each SRB weighs approximately ________ pounds (________ kilograms) at launch with roughly ________ percent being the weight of the ________ ________ itself.
2.	The solid rocket boosters (________) operate in parallel with the ________ ________ for the first ________ minutes of flight to provide the additional thrust needed for the orbiter to escape the ________ pull of the Earth. At an altitude of approximately ________ km (________ nautical miles), the boosters separate from the ________ tank, descend on parachutes, and land in the ________ Ocean.
3.	In addition to the solid rocket ________, the booster contains the structural, ________ ________ ________, separation, recovery, and ________ and ________ subsystems. 
4.	The two SRBs provide ________ percent of the main ________ needed to lift the Space Shuttle off the launch pad. Each booster has a thrust of approximately ________ pounds (________ kilonewtons) at launch and help lift the Shuttle up to an altitude of about ________ feet, or ________ miles (________ kilometers).
5.	The solid fuel, or ________, is a mixture of ________ ________, ________, and ________ ________.

Your Mission: 
Write these statistics in scientific notation. Don’t forget to label your units. The first one is done for you.

Booster Statistic		Write the number without the place-holding zeros	Place the decimal point after the first digit 	Count the number of places you moved the decimal point	Write the number in scientific notation	
Thrust at lift-off 1,202,000 kg	1202	1.202	1.202000
	1.202 x 106 kg	
Propellant Weight
502,000 kg					
Gross weight 589,700 kg					
Gross weight
1,300,000 lb	
				
Thrust of both boosters 
5,300,000 lb					
Your Mission: 
Label the orbiter parts below.