How Rockets Push

Momentum, not air

An interactive lesson with 6 steps, about 5 minutes: you predict, drag and solve, with instant feedback on every answer. It runs in your browser and needs JavaScript.

What you’ll learn

• Rockets push by throwing mass backwards: conservation of momentum.
• Thrust $F = \dot m\, v_e$.
• Faster exhaust means more push per kilogram of propellant.

Steps

1. Pushing on nothing
2. Thrust
3. A big engine
4. Thrust-to-weight
5. Enough to climb
6. Lift-off