(OVERLAND PARK, KAN.) – Congressman Dennis Moore (Third District -- Kansas) encourages high school and middle school students to participate in the Team America Rocketry Challenge. The competition, which pits teams from across the nation against each other, is sponsored annually by the Aerospace Industries Association to commemorate the anniversary of powered flight.

“As a member of the Science Committee, I encourage students to take advantage of this unique opportunity to utilize skills in math, science and technology by taking part in the Rocketry Challenge,” said Moore. “The students in the Third District are among the brightest in the nation, and I believe they are up to the challenge of winning this competition.”

Teams will compete for a prize pool of over $50,000 by designing, building, and launching a model rocket carrying two raw eggs to a predetermined altitude. The winner will be based on the team whose rocket comes closest to that altitude, while functioning safely and returning the two eggs uncracked. Judges will select 100 teams to compete in the final competition in Northern Virginia. The educators of the top 25 teams will be awarded a trip to an advanced NASA rocketry workshop.

For questions or assistance in starting a team, contact Jill deVries in Moore’s Overland Park office at (913) 383-2013 or email at jdevries@mail.house.gov. More information about the challenge is available at www.rocketcontest.org or the AIA website at www.aia-aerospace.org.