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Catching them young is just rocket science
Participants of the water rocket competition launch their rockets using a simple launch board
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Participants of the water rocket competition launch their rockets using a simple launch board. (JP/Slamet Susanto)
Laras didn't know much about rocket technology, so it wasn't surprising when the junior high school student from Banguntapan, Bantul, immediately felt ill when she was chosen to represent her school in a water rocket competition.
But Laras' attitude changed when she joined a rocket-making workshop the day before the competition was to be held.
To make water rockets, she discovered, was apparently quite simple and didn't involve a lot of money -- as she had previously thought -- because they are made from secondhand materials, such as used plastic bottles.
"Before this, I didn't understand rockets at all and imagined the project would just give me a headache," Bagyo said, another junior high student.
Laras and Bagyo represent a segment of Indonesia's younger generation who are not interested in and have no prior knowledge of technology -- especially rockets.
This disinterest is not without reason: Under Soeharto's regime, technology was sidelined and not introduced in schools. There was no rocket development fund and the government was busy looking after its personal favorite -- the Archipelago Airplane Industry.
Yet during the 1960s, Indonesia's aerospace technology was considered to be quite advanced in Asia; proof of this can be seen in the success of the Indonesian Rocket University Student Group from Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Yogyakarta, which built and launched three rockets on Aug. 24, 1963.
At that time, neighboring countries, such as India, hadn't yet built rockets. But after Soeharto came to power, Indonesia gradually began to lag behind.
In today's Indonesia, there is still no allocation of funds for the development of this technology, whereas in India, the average annual budget allocation is US$80 million.
"Our younger generation hasn't been introduced to technology. Not knowing diminishes the younger generation's interest in deepening their knowledge," said Murtani November of the publications and promotions department of the National Space and Aviation Agency (LAPAN).
The aim of the water rocket competition is to introduce basic technology to the younger generation, Murtani said. Working together with the regional government, LAPAN held the competition for junior high school students in six regions: Palembang, Jakarta, Solo Raya, Balikpapan, Kutai Tarumanegara and Bandung.
One winner was selected from each region to compete at the national level in Bantul on Nov. 9 and 10.
Aulia Miftahul from 1 Pandak Bantul junior high school was eventually declared the winner and will represent Indonesia at the international level in Hanoi at the end of December.
It is hoped that this early introduction will raise the younger generation's interest in technology.
Making rockets using plastic bottles and water is quite simple but requires care. A bottle is cut and connected to another bottle, the bottom of which is filled with water as the source of blast-off energy.
An newspaper is compacted in the top of the rocket to stabilize its rapid rise. The rocket is then placed in a small wooden launch pad.
To create the energy required to launch the rocket, water underneath is pumped through a special hole to build up enough pressure. When the pressure tap is suddenly opened, pressure is rapidly released and provides the thrust for take-off.
Participants in the competition are required to be accurate in their calculations. The pressure of the thrust and the degree of the launch angle are important to ensure that the rocket lands in a zone that has been determined to be safe.
The competition isn't judged based on the fastest rocket but by its accuracy -- where it lands. The committee divided the landing zone into four sectors; rockets that ended up outside the zone were not awarded a mark.
According to Murtani, although they are simple devices, the water rockets provide an example of applied technology. But from their simplicity, and because at first it seems like a game, it increases the students' imagination.
"At first glance it looks like a game. But this can attract their interest to explore further and perhaps in 20 years or more they will become experts in various fields," Murtani said.
Efforts to introduce such technology began toward the end of 2007 at Pandansimo Beach, Bantul, to keep document the work of the UGM university students who had conducted successful launches in 1963.
"We will support and allocate funds from the regional budget to develop this technology," Bantul Regent Idham Samawi said.
Idham expressed concern over the degeneration of the country, citing inadequate human resources (SDM). He said an indicator of a nation's SDM was related to the knowledge of advanced technology.
"Rocket technology is one symbol of advanced technology," Idham said.
To build relationships and technological knowledge, Idham works together with LAPAN, UGM and the local Bantul administration every year to routinely hold rocket events.
"At the end of November, a water rocket competition at the university student level will be held in Bantul," Idham said.
Besides increasing the younger generation's interest, it is hoped that Indonesia's image in the future will be boosted by its progress in space technology.
"It will be impossible to do this unless we can create interest in the younger generation and introduce this early."
