WPI’s Goddard Cup Competition Commemorates Alumnus Robert Goddard

In Memory of the 'Father of Modern Rocketry,' Annual Water Rocket Competition Will Be Held June 13
Media Contact
June 09, 2009

What:

Worcester Polytechnic Institute’s (WPI) Physics Department will hold the 2nd annual Goddard Cup Competition to honor the "Father of Modern Rocketry," Dr. Robert H. Goddard, who graduated from WPI in 1908. Last year, WPI held a year-long observance of the centennial of Dr. Robert H. Goddard’s graduation. To honor that anniversary, the first water rocket competition was launched.

All schools in Worcester, kindergarten through college, have been invited to send teams of students to the event with each team including a member of their school's faculty as their team leader. Teams will compete for prizes by launching three water rockets at a large ring from a specific distance. The closest rocket wins a trophy for the school, medals for themselves, and their name will be engraved on a plaque that hangs in the Physics Department lounge. Last year, South High School was the winner. This free event is open to the public. Registration is open now through the day of the event. Refreshments and awards will be in the department lounge, Olin Hall, Room 119.

Goddard is one of WPI's best-known and most historically significant alumni.  He was the first to use liquid propellants as rocket fuel, and is credited with the first successful launch of a liquid-fueled rocket -- from Auburn, Mass., on March 16, 1926. See the Water Rocket Competition for more information.

When:

Saturday, June 13, 10 a.m. to noon

Where:

Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Quadrangle, 100 Institute Road, Worcester, Mass.

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