Brentwood pupils attempted to break a world record bottle rocket challenge last week.

The Brentwood School pupils took part in the challenge as part of its annual Science Day.

Year 7 pupils launched 86 rockets in one hour in an attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the most bottle rockets launched.

Pupils learnt about the power of air and water pressure to enable them to propel as many bottle rockets into the air as possible.

Brentwood Councillors, Linda Golding, Sheila Murphy and Cheralyn Lewis were present to witness the challenge, which was part of a project to celebrate the NASA-UCLan (University of Central Lancashire) Hi-C mission, which aims to observe the outer atmosphere of the sun.

The Science Day also included lots of activities including dramatic explosions, woodlice racing and an attempt to build the tallest stable structure.

The children also heard about the discovery of the Higgs Boson particle, which is responsible for giving objects mass.

Headteacher Ian Davies said about the day: “The world record attempt was exhilarating and we are pleased to be a part of such a fantastic experience on the same day of the discovery of the Higgs boson.”

The pupils were also treated to a portable planetarium ‘Astrodome’ show.

Science teacher Nicola Heelam said: “It was great to see the pupils enjoying such a wonderful show. It is important to use practical lessons such as this to illustrate what they learn in the classroom.”