ARC 2027 Season Guide: Rules, Key Dates, and What Changed From 2026
The 2027 American Rocketry Challenge in one page: 800-foot target, 37–40 second window, two-egg payload, key deadlines, and every rule change from 2026.
Registration for the 2027 American Rocketry Challenge is open now and closes on December 6, 2026. This page collects the numbers and dates a team needs this season in one place, so you can plan the build instead of hunting through PDFs. The flight task, scoring, and qualification rules below are quoted from the official 2027 rules; the fees, grant deadline, Finals venue, and 2026 comparison come from the ARC FAQ, the how-to-compete page, and the ARC homepage. The 2027 team handbook has the certified motor list. The rules document is the authority; if anything here and the rules ever disagree, the rules win, and AIA can issue revisions mid-season.
If you are new to the competition, read getting started with ARC first. This guide assumes you know what the contest is and want the current-season specifics.
The 2027 flight task
The core task is the same shape as every year: fly a rocket to a target altitude, keep it in the air for a target duration, and bring a raw egg payload back undamaged. The 2027 numbers are:
| Parameter | 2027 requirement |
|---|---|
| Qualification altitude target | 800 feet (244 meters), measured by the onboard altimeter |
| Flight duration window | 37 to 40 seconds, from first motion at liftoff to first touchdown |
| Payload | Two raw hen's eggs, each 55 to 63 grams and up to 45 mm in diameter, fully enclosed and returned without cracks |
| Liftoff mass | No more than 650 grams |
| Minimum length | 650 mm (25.6 inches) in launch configuration, fins included |
| Airframe | At least two different body-tube diameters, including one section at least 2.6 inches (66 mm) in outer diameter and at least 12 inches (300 mm) long; other sections must differ by at least 0.35 inches (9 mm) |
| Propulsion | One stage; commercially made motors of F class or lower from the ARC Certified Motor List; combined total impulse no more than 80 Newton-seconds; all motors ignited on the ground |
| Recovery | Parachute recovery only, with every part of the rocket (except wadding) descending tethered together |
| Altimeter | One approved commercial altimeter (PerfectFlite Pnut or Firefly, or Jolly Logic AltimeterOne or AltimeterTwo), unmodified, inspected by an NAR official before and after the flight |
Scoring is the sum of two penalties, and a lower score is better. The altitude score is the absolute difference in feet between the altimeter reading and the target. The duration score is zero inside the 37–40 second window; outside it, every second (measured to 0.01 s and averaged across two stopwatches) counts four points. A flight at 812 feet lasting 36.50 seconds therefore scores 12 + 2 = 14.
At the National Finals the altitude target is not 800 feet. The rules state it will be a different number between 775 and 825 feet, with different targets for the first and second flights, announced at the safety briefing on the day. The duration window stays at 37–40 seconds. That is why the OpenRocket calibration loop matters so much: a finalist team needs a model it can retune to a new altitude overnight.
What changed from 2026
The rules document opens with its own change list. The items that affect a team's design and organization:
- Altitude and duration targets moved. The 2026 qualification task was 750 feet and 36 to 39 seconds. 2027 is 800 feet and 37 to 40 seconds. Last year's rocket will not hit this year's numbers without rework.
- Two eggs instead of one. The payload requirement doubled. That changes the payload bay length, the mass budget, and the shock loads the eggs see at ejection. Budget for the extra 55 to 63 grams before you pick a motor.
- Diameter requirements were updated. The two-diameter airframe rule above is new wording; read Section 4.3 in full before cutting tubes.
- Adult Team Advisors must be 21 or older. The same age floor now applies to the Adult Representative of a Host School or Host Organization, and those two roles may not be the same person.
- "Sponsoring organization" is now "Host Organization." Host Organizations must be community-serving youth organizations with activities beyond ARC, and Host Schools must be incorporated. Check this early if your team is not school-based.
Season timeline
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| July 15, 2026 | Earliest date a qualification flight can count |
| November 1, 2026 | First-priority deadline for the Northrop Grumman STEM Innovation Grant |
| December 6, 2026, 11:59 PM ET | Registration closes (new teams must have at least three members and the $195 fee paid) |
| Monday, April 5, 2027, 11:59 PM ET | Qualification flights must be completed and scores entered in the online portal |
| April 13, 2027, by 5 PM ET | Top 100 teams notified |
| April 24, 2027 | Finalists confirm attendance and pay the $395 Finals registration |
| Saturday, May 15, 2027 | National Finals at Great Meadow, The Plains, Virginia (rain date May 16) |
The FAQ lists April 4 for qualification flights while the rules and the how-to-compete page give April 5 for score submission. Plan to be done flying before April 4 and treat April 5 as the portal deadline, not a flying day.
Qualification flights: the rules teams trip over
- You need at least two qualified flights and may fly at most three. Your ranking is the sum of your best two.
- Every attempt must be observed in person by an adult NAR member who is not related to any team member or the advisor, and who is not a paid employee of or student at the Host School, or a member of the Host Organization. Find that observer in the fall, not in March. The ARC mentor directory is the official starting point.
- Team membership freezes at your first qualification attempt. Settle the roster before anyone flies.
- The launcher must give the rocket at least six feet of rigid guidance, whether that is a rail or a rod, and any rod must be at least 1/4 inch in diameter. Launch rods are not allowed at the Finals, so practice on a rail if you can.
- Adults may not design, build, or prep the competition rocket. Coaches, including us, review, question, and teach; students do the work.
What this means for your build plan
If your team registers in October, you have roughly 24 weeks before the April deadline. The 12-week preparation overview still applies; the 2027-specific adjustments are:
- Design for 800 feet with two eggs before you choose a motor. Model the full payload mass in OpenRocket, then work through motor selection against the 80 N·s ceiling. Teams that pick a motor first and then discover the egg bay weighs more than planned end up redesigning in February.
- Treat the 37–40 second window as a recovery-system spec. Descent rate is set by parachute size and liftoff mass; read recovery system basics and ground-test ejection with the real two-egg payload bay installed.
- Instrument every test flight. The altimeter is the scoring instrument, so your test flights should use the same unit and mounting you will fly in qualification. The avionics and altimeter guide covers venting and placement.
- Keep a flight log that an observer could audit. Date, motor, mass, altimeter reading, two stopwatch times, weather. It is the record you will use to calibrate the simulation and the evidence you need if a flight is disputed.
Where coaching fits
SEALS Academy coaches ARC teams in Orange County through exactly this cycle: simulation setup with the current-season numbers, design review before the first print, flight-data review after each test, and a qualification plan that leaves margin for a third attempt. If your team wants a second set of eyes on the 2027 design, see the ARC coaching options and tell us your grade range, team size, and where you are in the season.