BURLINGTON SCHOOL NEWS: Senior physics class builds hovercraft
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February 22, 2019
Burlington seniors Gavin McCullough and Brenner Clark measure the force needed to move the hovercraft.
The seniors this year are in physics class with Mrs. Newlin. They have recently been learning about the coefficient of friction and its impact on objects.
They built a hovercraft using plywood, plastic sheeting and two sheep blowers. They started by cutting a circular piece of the plywood out and wrapped the plastic sheeting around it and sealed it with tape. Then, circular holes were cut into the plastic sheeting to allow air to move through it and exert force onto the ground. The sheep blowers sat on top of the plywood and pushed air through two holes in the wood through to the bottom and inflated the plastic sheeting.
The experiment was to determine the coefficient of friction with the hovercraft on, and also with it off. They determined it was about the same amount of force that was needed to move a hockey puck on ice.
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