The impossible was accomplished today in Indianapolis. Homer Hickam and the Rocket Boys won first place at the National Science Fair. Homer Hickam, son of the town mine’s superintendent John Hickam, would follow his father's legacy down in the mines. Homer, however, had other plans. The day the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, Homer was inspired to launch a rocket. With the help of his friends Quentin Wilson, Roy Lee Cooke, and Sherman O’Dell, they defied the odds and overcame multiple obstacles to reach Homer’s dream of being a rock scientist. “I always knew I wasn’t meant to end up in the mines. And watching Sputnik go up in the sky, I knew I wanted to make rockets like that,” says Homer Hickam. Homer started making rockets and trying to launch …show more content…
He always believed that Homer would follow in his footsteps and work there as well since he was not particularly good enough in sports to get a scholarship. In the beginning, John viewed Homer’s rockets as a hobby, for amusement. But as Homer started to get more involved, John became concerned that he had lost his boy to science. Months before the science fair, John told Homer “Reality is calling, you can’t pay the bills with dreams.” Homer was saddened that his father did not take rocket-making seriously, but that did not stop him from making them. It was not until John was injured in a mining accident that Homer made the hard decision to work in the mines. He did this to support his family, but he could tell it made his dad proud. So it was a hard decision to get back to launching rockets when John healed because Homer knew that he never had John’s support. John Hickam realized shortly after that Homer was capable of accomplishing great things. He arrived at his final rocket launch for the first time ever. This gave Homer great confidence and reassurance that his father believed in him. “The support of my father not only helped me win the fair, but it also felt good to know one of my heroes believed in me,” said Homer regarding his
During the late 1950’s the space race began. This was a race to see who could achieve the most space firsts, between the USA and Russia. Sonny, O’Dell, Sherman, Roy Lee and Quentin live in Coalwood, West Virginia.The space race inspired these boys, who decide to call themselves the Rocket Boys, to make their own rockets. The BCMA (Big Creek Missile Agency) was born when Sonny called a meeting with his friends in his room and discussed how he wanted to build rockets. With the help from the a man at the town’s machine shop, Mr.Bykovski, the BCMA built its first rocket, called Auk I. The rocket was named after an extinct bird that was unable to fly. Auk I was equipped with a wooden bullet shaped nose cone, an aluminum tubing body, fins, and a soldered washer at the bottom. The boys mixed together black powder and postage stamp glue to act as fuel for their rocket. The rocket flew up 6ft, and then fell back down. The rocket boys later found out that the reason their rocket stopped flying was because the solder melted. The BCMA was happy with the result from the rocket, because it was their first ever rocket to fly.
Tom Wolfe writes in the book “The Right Stuff” about early jet pilots that demonstrated extreme bravery, and behaviorisms that enabled them to be part of a furtive group of individuals. It has been said that these men usually assemble in groups among themselves in a way that solicited the men to be a part of a privileged membership. It is these pilots with proven courage, and abilities that will go forward testing the next barrier: space. These tried and tested men have willingly placed themselves in danger day in and day out, yearning for the spot up the ladder to the top of the pyramid. It was not just a job for these pilots to break the sound barrier and beyond, but rather an obsession to become the next man at the top.
October Sky is set in the small mining town of Coalwood, West Virginia during the 1950s, the time of the space race between America and Russia. The film tracks Homer Hickam, a young boy interested in creating and building rockets. Homer eventually gets a group of three friends from school to help him create a rocket. Unfortunately, Homer faces a lot of challenges including trouble getting the right materials for the rocket and he faces pushback from his father who disapproves of his dream of building a rocket and winning the science fair. However, there is also a group of people in the town of Coalwood that support him and help him out.
In the movie October Sky produced by Larry Franco, Homer Hickam faces many sacrifices to pursue his dream. Homer lives in a small town, he spends his time with his friends Roy Lee, Odell and a later friend, Quinton. Homer lives in a home where he’s expected to work in the coal mining industry after his dad, but he has bigger plans, as big as rocket science, literally. Homer was inspired by mrs. Reiley his science teacher to build a rocket with his friends while making big choices along the way.
The Web. 26 Feb. 2014. The "Sputnik". Explorers & Discoverers of the World! Gale, Michael J., 1993.
For years, the Soviets led the space race, hoisting larger payloads than the U.S., including the first animal and man in space. All of this occurred during one of the most distrustful and competitive periods of the Cold War. The launch of Sputnik in 1957 shook the United States to its roots. October Sky captures Homer's view of the launch of Sputnik and how one kid will overcome all adversities to achieve his dreams, even if he has to convince his dad that he can become more than a coal miner. We will also focus in on how amazed Homer is on rocket launches, character development and how this movie departed from its purpose by adding an unnecessary plot development.
Second, a science fair was held and only two were competing. One was George Melvil’s The Flying Machine: A System of Low-Resistance Pulleys, and Whit Austin’s Laser Cannon with Tracker. George’s project wasn’t even given a peep from the judges and that when he was trying to get their attention, Susan Singer-Wright, chair of the county commission, said to him that the fair already had a winner.
rockets and understanding science. He knew that he didn't belong to Coalwood and that he could do something great in his life. The people believed in him after they realized he wasn't giving up. Let the inspirations keep inspiring.
The Space Race is remarkably similar to that of the arms race because of the parallel between the creation of the atomic bomb and the goal of reaching the moon. The United States’ bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki effectively established its place as the technologically superior nation; however, major milestones in space achieved early by the Soviets damaged America’s reputation. In 1957, Soviet scientists shocked the world by successfully launching the Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, beyond the Kármán Line (the boundary of space). This amazing breakthrough “rattled American self-confidence. It cast doubts on America’s vaunted scientific superiority and raised some sobering military questions.” This blow to national pride along with the fear that the Soviets could potentially launch ICBMs from space led to “Rocket fever”. The sudden wave of nationalism and the desire to build a space program worthier to that of the Soviet Union led to the...
His early life was average for most children of the time. He grade were above average, and he enjoyed reading. At the age of 16, he quit school. His father moved to a farm near Mooresville, but John disliked the rural lifestyle. He spent the next 3 years hanging around the nearby cities.
He spent his childhood in Rye, New York, as he was one out of ten children. John’s father was a successful trader of furs, wheat, timber, and other commodities. His mother decided to homeschool him until he was the age of eight, and then his
Imagine living in the 1950s, when the very first spacecraft is sent into space, you would be extremely fascinated. That's exactly the way Homer Hickam felt in the movie October Sky, the movie was based on a true story and was directed/created by Joe Johnson. In the movie Homer was so fascinated by Sputnik that he wanted to create a rocket himself, he went through a lot of struggles trying to get people to appreciate him and his work but he did earn the appreciation over time. He first gained the trust, approval from his friends.
All of us most probably wish and strive to work towards a certain dream, goal, or utter accomplishment. When so is done, we experience satisfaction and happiness. Ups and downs are bound to be encountered throughout our journey, however, once we reach our goals, immense awards shower the hard work which has lead us to our dreams. In Joe Johnson's "October Sky", just is shown with a dynamic and shifting emotional environment with suspense and exitement, as part of the film adaption of the award winning memoir "Rocket Boys" (also known as October Sky) by Homer Hickam, Jr. Based on a true story, this biographical motion picture follows Homer Hickam, Jr, a coal miner's son who was inspired by the launch of Sputnik in
Launius, Roger D. "Sputnik and the Origins of the Space Age." 1997. NASA. Accessed 2 Apr. 2003. < a href="http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/sputnik/sputorig.html>
Space travel was born from the flames of war – or in this case, the refrigerators of war. The Soviet Union and the United States were ready to show up each other in the fields of science and engineering, and with the recent advent of rocketry, it was evident that space was the next goal. Russia held the first few victories: including the first man-made satellite and the first man in space. Following these defeats, America picked itself up, and defeated the Russians on the race to the moon.