LAUREN:'Today's Dengineer is 12-year-old Helena 'from Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland.'
HELENA:Please Dengineers, come and build me an observatory den where I can study the stars and achieve my dreams of becoming an astrophysicist.
MARAL:So Helena, this is the floorplan. It's based on two levels And they're both circular so it does look like the sun and the moon.
HELENA:That's amazing.
JOE:Amazing isn't it?
HELENA:I love it.
MARAL:This is going to be the first rotating den
MARAL:that Dengineers are going to embark on. So do I get the thumbs up?
HELENA:Yep.
JOE:Yep look at that.
MARAL:Yeah? Great.
JOE:'Marals plans have been given the galactic seal of approval by Helena.'
LAUREN:'She's designed the Dengineers' first ever rotating den 'which will give Helena a 360 degree view of the night sky. 'From the top, the structure will look like the early stages 'of a solar eclipse 'and the walls will contain various planets and stars 'to make up Helena's very own solar system.'
MARAL:The biggest job of today is to get the roof on and make sure the whole mechanism works because that is what makes the den the observatory.
JOE:'Whilst the team make some finishing touches to the dome, 'I catch up with Maral to find out how this roof 'is going to give Helena the best possible view of the night sky.'
MARAL:We're not just having a roof that flips open because that's quite dangerous.
JOE:Yeah, yeah.
MARAL:We have engineered a solution for this roof to rotate and it actually then has two flaps that open.
MARAL:So the roof rotates 360 degrees and the two flaps open 90 degrees so she can see as many stars, constellations and planets as possible.
JOE:So what happens, what's all this about?
MARAL:These are what we call little casters. They're just like wheels but they're fixed.
JOE:Why are there wheels facing in different directions? Surely you'd just need these wheels so it can go round in a circle.
MARAL:The wheels on the outside help the roof rotate in one fixed direction and the wheels on the inside assist it to actually stay in position. So have a look. This actually rotates, if I push it the ball doesn't go anywhere.
JOE:Gotcha. As roofs go, it's pretty cool isn't it?
MARAL:Yeah.
LAUREN:'To create our very first rotating roof 'the team have engineered a metal track on which the dome will sit. 'This track has horizontal and vertical casters on it 'to keep the roof securely in position 'whilst allowing it to rotate 360 degrees 'giving Helena and her telescope VIP access to the night sky.'
Presenters Lauren Layfield and Joe Tracini and The Dengineers team help budding astrophysicist Helena from Dumfries and Galloway create an observatory style den.
The structure will have a roof that can rotate 360 degrees to give a full view of the night sky.
They demonstrate how this can be achieved by sitting a domed roof on fixed castors that will allow the roof to rotate smoothly but keep it securely in position.
Teachers Notes
This could be used to introduce the process of design, and as a prompt for class discussion and learning in areas such as initial research, designing and making a structure.
Pupils could come up with their own roof designs that would allow you to view the night sky. What are the advantages and disadvantages of having a rotating roof?
Curriculum Notes
This clip will be relevant for teaching Design and Technology at KS2 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland and 1st and 2nd level in Scotland.
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