If you have reached that stage of the summer holidays when you are sat planning schemes of work for the next year, and if you are a secondary science teacher or science lead in primary school, then the following may be of interest: those behind a project to break the land speed record are offering your students the chance to be part of their team. 

What that means in practice is that you and your students could be crunching the data from a vehicle that, if all goes well, will travel at 1,000 mph (1,609 km/h). 

The opportunity is being offered by the Bloodhound Project. It has installed 500 sensors on its supersonic car (SSC) and as the engineers test the vehicle, vast amounts of data are produced. 

While engineers will be using this data to hone and adapt the car to hit ever-faster speeds, the project is also keen to develop the next generation of engineers by making this data available to schools. 

Students will be given a real-time view of how every component in the car is performing, enabling them to see how it works.

“The aviation and space races of the 1960s inspired a wave of young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. Our hope is that Bloodhound will do the same at a time where technical skills are in painfully short supply,” explains Bloodhound Project director Richard Noble. “We want students to feel they are right there with us as we chase 1,000 mph.”

The first important outing for this technology will come in October, when the Bloodhound SSC is scheduled for its first 200 mph road test in Newquay, Cornwall, which both teachers and students will be able to witness from the comfort of their classrooms.

To get involved and find out more, visit: http://www.bloodhoundssc.com/ 

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