Unionville High School Student Kush Aggarwal Named Top 300 Junior Innovator

This Fall, The Society for Science has celebrated Unionville High School freshman Kush Aggarwal as a Top 300 Junior Innovator!  

His research project, entitled “Ionic Thrusters: Propelling Our Future”, was one of five selected to first participate in the Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU) Science Fair, Delaware Valley Science Fair and later the Thermo Fisher Junior Innovators Challenge (JIC).

Students in the top 10% of their local science fair can enter the Thermo Fisher JIC. Aggarwal and other Top 300 Junior Innovators each received a $125 award from the Department of Defense (DoD) Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), a prize package and gifts, including a Wolfram Mathematica subscription. From this group, 30 finalists are also selected to compete for over $100,000 in other awards.

Aggarwal’s project started as an eighth-grade science assignment inspired by an interest in physics and space travel. He learned that it takes a significant amount of time to reach the Moon and Mars – and wanted to see if there was a way to change that. 

After seeing a picture of rockets and noticing that the openings where the fire comes out weren’t all the same size, Aggarwal explained “I made a small-scale model to see how changing the length of those openings would change the rocket’s push.” He concluded from the model’s results that his hypothesis—shorter lengths increase the rocket's push—was correct.

Aggarwal shared his gratitude for former teachers Mrs. Wetzel, Mr. Marabella and Mrs. Knauer, who contributed to the project.

“Kush has a great mind for science and I expect he will continue to inspire others, contribute to society and succeed in his passions. Mary Jo Knaur, retired Charles F. Patton Middle School Gifted Teacher and Science Fair Coordinator commented. “The accomplishments in his studies are only the stepping stones of his future.”

Aggarwal plans to compete in the fair circuit again. He reflected that the experience “made me realize that I can make an impact and go far in making an impact.”