Code 810: Sounding Rockets Program Office
Code 810: Sounding Rockets Program Office
The Sounding
Rockets Program Office (SRPO), located NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Wallops
Flight Facility, provides suborbital launch vehicles, payload development,
and field operations support to NASA and other government agencies. SRPO
works closely with the Sounding
Rocket User Community to provide launch opportunities facilitating
a broad spectrum of science applications.
In support of science, SRPO conducts approximately 20 flights annually from launch sites around the world. Operations are conducted from fixed launch sites such as Wallops Test Range (Virginia), Poker Flat Research Range (Alaska), and White Sands Missile Range (New Mexico) as well as sites such as Andoya Rocket Range (Norway) and Esrange (Sweden).
Launch operations are also conducted from mobile sites set up by the Wallops Test Range. Mobile "campaigns" have been conducted from Australia, Puerto Rico, Brazil, and the Kwajalein Atoll. The mobile capability offered by the Wallops Test Range allows scientists to conduct their science "where it occurs".
NEW! Download Sounding Rockets 2011 Annual Report (4.5 MB PDF)
Mission Planning Lab simulations available online. (Opens in new window.)
Quarterly Newsletter now available for download:
More downloads...
If you wish to receive the Rocket Report Newsletter by email, please send request to
Berit Bland (Berit.H.Bland@nasa.gov).
Department News & Events
41.097, 41.098, 46.002, 46.003, 45.004 UE LARSEN/CLEMSON UNIVERSITY 3-27-2012
Two Terrier-Improved Orions (41.097&41.098), two Terrier-Improved Malemutes (46.002&46.003) and one Terrier-Oriole (45.004) were launched from Wallops Island, VA on March 27, 2012. The scientific objective of the Anomalous TRansport EXperiment (ATREX) is to obtain measurements of the turbulent fluctuations over an extended horizontal range of 550 km. Specifically, it will measure the structure function for the velocity fluctuations over a range of horizontal spatial lags that covers a decade or more. The structure function parameters, including the Hurst or fractal exponent, are critical in distinguishing the different types of turbulent processes. The relative separation velocities as a function of horizontal separation are also an important diagnostic of the dynamics responsible for the anomalous transport. Read More...
36.277 UG BOCK/CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 3-22-2012
36.277 UG Terrier-Black Brant was launched from White Sands Missile Range on March 22, 2012. The purpose of Cosmic Infrared Background Experiment (CIBER) is to investigate the spectral and spatial properties of the extragalactic near-infrared background,and will require acquisition of multiple targets with minimal contamination from terrestrial sources of infrared emission. Read More...
36.273 UE POWELL/CORNELL UNIVERSITY 2-19-2012
36.273 UE Terrier-Black Brant was launched from Poker Flat Research Range, Fairbanks, AK on February 19, 2012. The Magnetosphere-Ionosphere Coupling in the Alfvén resonator (MICA) sounding rocket measured ion temperature and density, electron temperature and density, electron precipitation, ion upflow, convection and ULF electric fields, magnetic fields from which field-aligned current (FAC) can be inferred, and plasma waves. Read More...
12.074 GT HALL/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 1-11-2012
12.074 GT Terrier-Improved Malemute was launched from Wallops Island, VA on January 11, 2012. This mission will provide the second test flight of the Terrier Improved Malemute vehicle configuration. The primary objective is to characterize the performance of this vehicle configuration, to determine the suitability of the Improved Malemute to be used in the Sounding Rocket Program. Read More...
36.274 UH CASH/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 12-10-2011
36.274 UH Terrier-Black Brant was launched from White Sands Missile Range on December 10, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to obtain a high resolution x-ray spectra of the Vela and Puppis supernova remnants. Read More...
36.264 UH MCCAMMON/UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN 11-6-2011
36.264 UH Terrier-Black Brant was launched from White Sands Missile Range on November 6, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to measure the spectrum of the diffuse X-ray emission from the interstellar medium over the energy range 0.07 to 1 keV. Read More...
41.093 UE ROBERTSON/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 10-13-2011
41.093 UE Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from Andoya Rocket Range, Andenes, Norway on October 13, 2011. The purpose of the CHAMPS missions is to provide in situ measurements of the number, density, and size distribution of the aerosol particles (meteor dust) that are the nucleation sites for the icy particles that create noctilucent clouds and polar summer mesospheric radar echoes. Read More...
41.094 UE ROBERTSON/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 10-11-2011
41.094 UE Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from Andoya Rocket Range, Andenes, Norway on October 11, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to provide in situ measurements of the number, density, charge, and mass distribution of meteoritic smoke particles (MSPs) as a function of altitude. Read More...
36.225 UG CHAKRABARTI/BOSTON UNIVERSITY 10-8-2011
36.225 UG Terrier-Black Brant was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on October 8, 2011. The mission contains a newly designed and fabricated payload. The Planet Imaging Concept Test bed Using a Rocket Experiment (PICTURE) will mature the technology needed to obtain the first direct image of a Jupiter-like planet around a Sun-like star. PICTURE will observe the debris disk around Epsilon Eridani (ε Eri b). Read More...
12.076 GT BRODELL/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 9-8-2011
12.076 GT Terrier Mk12 was launched from Wallops Island, VA on September 8, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to verify the design modifications made to the MK12 Terrier motor to compensate for grain shrinkage issues that occur due to aging.
Read More...
41.092 UO ROSANOVA/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 7-21-2011
41.092 UO Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from Wallops Island, VA on July 21, 2011. The primary objective of this mission is to develop and launch the first RockSat-X, which will provide expanded opportunities for RockOn participant and other schools with experiment bays exposed to the space environment. The secondary objective is to provide a flight demonstration of a floatation aid technology option for the Sounding Rocket Program.
Read More...
21.141 and 41.091 UE PFAFF/NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER 7-10-2011
21.141 and 41.091 UE Black Brant and Terrier-Improved Orion were launched from Wallops Island, VA on July 10, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to explore, for the first time, the ion-neutral coupling, wind shears, and electrodynamics of the mid-latitude lower ionosphere during the daytime. In particular, it will determine the cause of intense daytime irregularities that are consistently observed in the mid-latitude, ionosphere during the summer. Read More...
41.095 UO KOEHLER/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO/SPACE GRANT 6-23-2011
41.095 UO Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from Wallops Island, VA on June 23, 2011.The primary objective of the RockSat/RockOn mission is to provide university undergraduate level students and instructors with a space flight opportunity that involves minimal cost, minimal time investment, minimal complexity, and minimal impact on the NASA Sounding Rocket Program (NSRP).
Read More...
41.096 GT HALL/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 6-10-2011
41.096 GT Terrier-Improved Orions was launched from Wallops Island, VA on June 10 2011.The primary objective of this mission is to flight test SMART payload technologies designed and built by GSFC for the ORS program. The secondary objectives are to provide a flight demonstration of the GSFC/Space Cube flight processor and to provide a test flight opportunity for NSROC components.
Read More...
36.278 GT BRODELL/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 4-27-2011
36.278 GT Black Brant IX was launched from Poker Flat Research Range, AK on April 27, 2011.The primary objective of this mission is to conduct a test flight of a recently manufactured Black Brant motor that was cast using a new mixing process. Read More...
36.275 UE WOODS/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 3-23-11
36.275 UE Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on March 23, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to provide the second underflight calibration for the EUV Variability Experiment (EVE) aboard the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) satellite. Read More...
36.256 UE
BAILEY/VIRGINIA TECH 2-5-11
36.256 UE Black Brant IX was launched from Poker Flat Research Range, Alaska on Feburay 5, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to measure the concentration of nitric oxide in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere in the nighttime polar region. Read More...
36.257 UG
GREEN/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 1-28-11
36.257 UG Black Brant IX was launched from Poker Flat Research Range, Alaska on January 28, 2011. The purpose of this mission is to search for young stars in nearby galaxies. FIRE imaged a spectral region unexplored astronomically. The imaging band of FIRE(~900‐1100 Å) will help fill the current wavelength imaging observation hole existing from~620 Å to the GALEX band near 1350 Å. Read More...
40.026 UE
LESSARD/UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE 12-12-10
40.026 UE Black Brant XII was launched from Andoya Rocket Range, Norway on December 12, 2010. The purpose of the Rocket Experiment for Neutral Upwelling (RENU) mission is to investigate netural upwelling in the cusp. Read More...
41.087 NT
HEYNE/JPL 12-6-10
41.087 NT Terrier-Orion was launched from White Sands, NM on December 6, 2010. The purpose of this mission is to advance Terrain-Relative Navigation (TRN) technology by collecting a set of correlated ground imagery, inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), and Global Position System (GPS) data during a sounding rocket flight and performing postflight data analysis. Read More...
41.082 NP BULL/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 9-21-10
41.082 NP Terrier-Orion was launched from Wallops Island, VA on September 21, 2010. The mission, Suborbital Technology Experiment Carrier (SubTEC) III, was designed to demonstrate multiple technologies, improve sounding rocket capabilities, and support range development initiatives. Read More...
36.219 US HASSLER/SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE 8-23-10
36.219 US Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on August 23, 2010.The purpose of this mission is to observe and analyze dynamics and heating of the solar chromosphere and corona. Read More...
12.073 GT HALL/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 8-4-10
12.073 GT Black Brant X was launched from Wallops Island, VA on August 4, 2010. This flight was a demonstration of the new production Nihka motor and ignition system in a dynamic environment representative of a nominal altitude. Read More...
36.213 NS DAVIS/NASA MARSHALLSPACE FLIGHT CENTER 7-30-10
36.213 NS Terrier-Black Brant was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on July 30, 2010. The primary objective of the Solar Ultraviolet Magnetograph Investigation (SUMI) experiment is to test the technologies that have been developed for making magnetic field measurements in the upper chromosphere/lower transition region. Read More...
36.265 UG BOCK/CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 7-11-10
36.265 UG Terrier-Black Brant was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on July 11, 2010. The purpose of this mission is to conduct a pioneering search for IRB anisotropies and is specifically designed to measure fluctuations at wavelengths and spatial scales where a putative first-light galaxy signal can be best detected and discriminated from foregrounds. Read More...
41.088 UO KOEHLER/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 6-24-10
41.088 UO Terrier-Orion was launched from Wallops Island, VA on June 24, 2010. This mission was the third flight of the hands-on, university level rocket flight workshop known as “RockOn” which is the collaborative efforts of Colorado
Space Grant Consortium (COSGC), the Virginia Space Grant Consortium
(VSGC), and Wallops Flight Facility. Read More...
36.270 UG GREEN/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 5-21-10
36.270 UG Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on May 21, 2010. The purpose of this mission is to sample the interface at the local cavity wall and determine whether the gas at the interface is flowing into the cavity or away from it. Read More...
36.258 UE WOODS/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 5-3-10
36.258 UE Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on May 3, 2010. The purpose of this mission is to provide a calibration underflight for the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) satellite. Read More...
12.067 GT HALL NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 3-27-10
12.067 GT Terrier-Improved Malemute was launched from Wallops Flight Facility, VA on March 27, 2010. The purpose of this mission was to test flight the Improved Malemute vehicle. Two student CubeSats also were flown on this mission. Read More...
NASA hosts RockOn! 2010 University Rocket Science Workshop
NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia is hosting the RockOn! 2010 workshop June 19-24 in partnership with the Colorado and Virginia Space Grant Consortia. Registrations for the 2010 workshop are being accepted through March 22. Read More...
40.025 UE LABELLE/DARTMOUTH COLLEGE 2-15-10
40.025 UE Black Brant XII was launched from Poker Flat Research Range, Alaska on February 15, 2010. The purpose of the Correlation of High Frequency and Auroral Roar Measurements (CHARM) II mission is answer several outstanding questions about the physics of high frequency waves in the Earth's aurora.
Read More...
41.084 UE CONDE/UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA 2-9-10
41.084 UE Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from Poker Flat Research Range, Alaska on February 9, 2010.The purpose of this mission is to develop a new technique for measuring wide spread wind gradients from a single rocket. Read More...
41.086 UE ERDMAN/EMBRY-RIDDLE UNIVERSITY 12-17-09
41.086 UE Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from White Sands Missile Range on December 17, 2009.The purpose of this mission is to measure with high resolution the individual mesospheric OH emission profiles for spectrally isolated transitions. Read More...
12.068 GT HALL/HICKMAN/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 12-16-09
A M26/MLRS vehicle was launched from Wallops Flight Facility, VA on December 16, 2009. The purpose of this mission is to evaluate the performance of new vehicle configuration under development. Read More...
36.252 UH CASH/UNVIERSITY OF COLORADO 11-13-09
A Black Brant IX sounding rocket was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM, on November 13, 2009. The scientific goal of this mission is to obtain x-ray spectral diagnostics of a nearby extended supernova remnant, the Cygnus Loop. Read More...
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Code 810
- NASA Official: Phil Eberspeaker
- Curator: Berit Bland
- Web Support: Brandon Wright
- Last Updated: April 10, 2012