My Catapult

The Catapult I've made is from 5 major components which are:

• A Mouse trap
• Duck tape 
• A short plastic spoon (1/2' inch removed from the bottom) 
• Paperclips
• A ping pong paddle holder    

First, I connected the mouse trap to the bottom of the ping pong paddle holder with duck tape to raise my catapult up 3 inches. Second, I ducked taped a short plastic spoon (to keep it from moving while shooting my catapult) to the end of the clamp that swings forward on the mouse trap, to hold a ping pong ball.  Third, I connected with duck tape, a paperclip shaped like a U and wrapped with duck tape to the end of the plastic spoon to give the ball more of a curve and a higher displacement in X when fired.

CATAPULTS

The catapult was first created in 399 BC in Europe during the middle ages, which was not the traditional catapult we see to today, which was not created until 400 BC. There are 3 types of catapults that were created long ago used for warfare. 

1. Ballista
2. Mongonel
3. Trebuchet

• Ballista - the ballista was created by the Greeks and later modified by the Romans, most people say was just a really big crossbow. It is the earliest catapult. It had two wooden arms that are attached by a rope like a bow and arrow would, it was the most accurate out of the 3 but it did not have as must power as the mongonel and trebuchet.
• Mongonel- The mongonel is the common catapult which was created by the Romans. It was a long stick with a bowl attached to the end with the projectile that was launched into the air.
• Trebuchet- The trebuchet was created by the Chines in 300 BC and was a made with a long wooded stick counter balanced by shorter stick that slung a projectile into the air. This type of catapult is the strongest because of it' slingshot effect as i like to call it where the balanced piece of wood is pulled down and shot up. 

The Mangonel:

The Trebuchet:

All my information and pictures are from:  https://sites.google.com/site/physicsofcatapults/home/history-of-catapults