NJ Boy scouts win first prize in international rocketry competition
A rocketry team form Boy Scout Troop 74 in New Jersey has garnered first prize in the International Rocketry Challenge held this week at the Paris Air Show in France.
The team competed against top student rocketeers from across the globe. This year, the United Kingdom placed second, followed by France in third, and Japan in fourth.
The “Troop 74 Rocketeers” won the opportunity to represent the United States by securing the title of National Champion at the 23rd annual American Rocketry Challenge National Finals in May. The team bested a record-breaking 1,001 middle and high school teams who participated in the design, build, and launch competition.
This year marked the first time teammates Chase, Makayo (Mak), and Thomas qualified for the National Finals. Their precision in designing, building, and launching a model rocket was unmatched by any other team in the country.
This contest, which has been growing steadily in recent years, suggests a robust next generation of rocket engineers is on the way. And it also appears they will have plenty of job opportunities for their talent.
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A rocketry team form Boy Scout Troop 74 in New Jersey has garnered first prize in the International Rocketry Challenge held this week at the Paris Air Show in France.
The team competed against top student rocketeers from across the globe. This year, the United Kingdom placed second, followed by France in third, and Japan in fourth.
The “Troop 74 Rocketeers” won the opportunity to represent the United States by securing the title of National Champion at the 23rd annual American Rocketry Challenge National Finals in May. The team bested a record-breaking 1,001 middle and high school teams who participated in the design, build, and launch competition.
This year marked the first time teammates Chase, Makayo (Mak), and Thomas qualified for the National Finals. Their precision in designing, building, and launching a model rocket was unmatched by any other team in the country.
This contest, which has been growing steadily in recent years, suggests a robust next generation of rocket engineers is on the way. And it also appears they will have plenty of job opportunities for their talent.
Readers!
My annual February birthday fund-raising drive for Behind the Black is now over. Thank you to everyone who donated or subscribed. While not a record-setter, the donations were more than sufficient and slightly above average.
As I have said many times before, I can’t express what it means to me to get such support, especially as no one is required to pay anything to read my work. Thank you all again!
For those readers who like my work here at Behind the Black and haven't contributed so far, please consider donating or subscribing. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
I love these kinds of competitions–especially where kids try to drop eggs without breaking them.
For years, the idea is that eggs are stronger lengthwise….but that might only be true for constant loads. Squeeze, and it is tough to break along its axis –but put in an egg holder, and deliver a sharp hit–it breaks.
From the May 8, 2025 phys,org
“Eggs less likely to crack when dropped side-on, research reveals.”
At first I didn’t believe it–I guess with wider surface area…it is a bit like a leaf spring.
Robert Zimmerman,
I think you meant “engineers” rather than “engines” in that penultimate sentence.
Dick Eagleson: Yup. Now fixed. Thank you.