Super-fast science lab

IF SOUTH Africa wants to inspire its children to study mathematics and science, it should consider strapping a rocket to someone's back and blasting him at 1600km/h across a salt pan.

This seems to have worked for the Brits after a team called the Bloodhound Project decided to try to break the current land speed record in Hakskeen Pan in the Northern Cape in June 2014.

The plan is guaranteed to grab the attention of any bored 16-year-old boy. Strap a fighter plane on wheels to fighter pilot Andy Green's back. Use the jet to ignite the biggest rocket ever built in Europe, and see how fast it can go across 20km of desert.

While doing this, attach all kinds of sensors and instruments to both the pilot and the car, and see what you can learn.

Richard Noble, former speed record holder and head of the project, said people from across the world, including 5300 UK schools, are following the team's progress.

"We had a great opportunity as we went to the minister of defence in the UK, hoping to get a jet engine, but he told us he is struggling to recruit jet engineers and scientists because of poor education and engineering in the country," said Noble.

"So we set out the project to inspire children."

With South Africa struggling with maths and science, projects like these might be the answer.

"In South Africa, 150 schools currently follow the programme, but we need a lot more exposure on it," said Noble.

A full-scale model of the car is going on roadshows to schools, where teachers use data from the car to teach pupils how it is built, and how it would work. When the car is finished and starts to run early next year, it will provide 300 data streams - all freely available online - for teachers and children to study.

"Some of the schools in South Africa, including some at Hakskeen Pan, are already building small-scale rocket and balloon cars," said Noble.

The Bloodhound team hopes to fly the car to Upington in September next year, and do test runs up to December, before the rains.

"We hope to do 20 to 30 runs during the time, each faster than the previous one, and hope to go supersonic by the end," he said.