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Code 810: Sounding Rockets Program Office

The Sounding Rockets Program Office (SRPO), located at 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! Sounding Rockets Annual Report 2012

Quarterly Newsletter now available for download:

Fourth Quarter Rocket Report Newsletter (2.8 MB)

More downloads...

If you wish to receive the Rocket Report Newsletter by email, please send request to
Berit Bland (Berit.H.Bland@nasa.gov).

Sounding Rockets site at NASA.gov. (Opens in new window.)

Mission Planning Lab simulations available online. (Opens in new window.)

Department News & Events

49.001 UE ROWLAND/NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER 2-6-2013

49.001 UE Oriole IV (Talos – Terrier Mk70 – Oriole – Nihka) was launched from Poker Flat Research Range, AK on February 6, 2013. The VISualizing Ion Outflow vie Neutral atom imaging during a Substrom (VISIONS) science objective is to understand: How, when, and where, are ions accelerated to escape velocities in the auroral zone below 1,000 Km following a sub-storm onset. Read More...

41.107 NT WEST/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 1-29-2013

41.107 NT Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from Wallops Island, VA on January 29, 2013. The objective for this mission was to test two different methods for creating the lithium vapor were tested to determine which configuration is best for observing various science phenomena in space. Read More...

36.283 UH GALEAZZI/UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI 12-13-2012

36.283 UH Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on December 13, 2012. The objectives of the Diffuse X-ray Emission from the Local Galaxy (DXL) experiment were to:obtain geometric measurements of the heliospheric Solar Wind Charge Exchange (SWCX) using an existing, large collecting area (1000 cm2 at 1 keV) suborbital instrument, differentiate the foreground SWCX emission from the background LHB emission separately in the ¼ keV and ¾ keV bands, and to obtain geometric information for input to the heliospheric SWCX models that are necessary for interpreting astrophysical observations using large observatories. Read More...

36.260 UG COOK/UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS LOWELL 11-21-2012

36.260 UG Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on November 21, 2012. The primary goal of this project is to image the unique galaxy M101 in three medium ultraviolet bands to probe the dependence of the UV dust extinction features on formation and processing mechanisms. Read More...

36.255 US KRUCKER/UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY 11-2-2012

36.255 US Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on November 2, 2012. The Focusing Optics X-ray Solar Imager (FOXSI) sounding rocket tests the fabrication and function of focusing optics for solar hard X-ray observations in the 5—15 keV energy range. Read More...

12.075 GT BRODELL/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 9-22-2012

12.075 GT Talos-Terrier-Oriole was launched from Wallops Island, VA on September 22, 2012. The primary objective of this mission was to verify performance and dynamic stability of the vehicle stack with an Oriole as the third stage. This mission also provided a test flight for the 20 Mbit MV encoder, Digital Spin System, and Altitude Prediction, Reporting and Accuracy (APRA) Experiment. Read More...

46.004 GO ROSANOVA/NASA WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY 9-21-2012

46.004 GO Terrier Improved Malemute was launched from Wallops Island, VA on September 21, 2012. The mission provided student experimenters from several schools the opportunity to fly a payload, of their design, exposed to the space environment. The design of a payload and vehicle with pre-defined mechanical, power, instrumentation and flight performance capabilities were developed to provide exposure to the space environment for these university student experimenters. Secondarily, this mission will demonstrate the development and operation of a newly designed flotation aide for technology development under the Sounding Rockets Program Office. Read More...

36.263 US JUDGE/UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 7-24-2012

36.263 US Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range on July 24, 2012. The mission objectives of the Degradation Free Spectrometers (DFS) for Solar Physics are to improve our knowledge of solar physics driven spectral variability over all solar cycle time scales through stable, radiometrically accurate spectral irradiance measurements in the highly dynamic EUV/soft X-ray range, demonstrate flight quality, degradation-free solar EUV and soft X-ray flight instruments and to provide well calibrated, significantly improved absolute irradiance measurements for intercalibration with on orbit EUV instrumentation.
Read More...

39.011 NR CHEATWOOD/NASA LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER 7-23-2012

39.011 NR Black Brant XI was launched from Wallops Island, VA on July 23, 2012. The mission objectives for this third Inflatable Reentry Vehicle Experiment (IRVE-3) are to 1) execute a flight-test that demonstrates inflation and survivability at a relevant dynamic pressure, 2) assess the performance of the vehicle from a thermal, and structural dynamics perspective, and 3) validate the analysis and design techniques used in the development of the Reentry Vehicle (RV); all at higher heating loads than previous IRVE missions.
Read More...

36.272 NS CIRTAIN/NASA MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER 7-11-2012

36.272 NS Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on July 11, 2012. The primary objective of this mission is to capture a high resolution image of the solar corona. This improved spatial resolution (0.1 arcsecond) image will allow study of the solar coronas Active Region Fine Structure (Strands), Structure of the transition region, unresolved active region corona, and Magnetic topologies in the corona.
Read More...

36.284 NS CIRTAIN/NASA MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER 7-5-2012

36.284 NS Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on July 5, 2012. The purpose of the Solar Ultraviolet Magnetograph Investigation (SUMI) experiment is to detect and interpret the full stokes profile in the Upper Chromosphere and Transition Region. SUMI will measure the spectra of Mg II and C IV at several different polarization angles and use the variation in the measured spectral intensity to infer the magnetic field strength and direction. Using this data, a connection can be found between the magnetic fields and dynamic events found in these regions. The investigation will also coordinate imaging and spectroscopic observations with Hinode/SOT-EIS.
Read More...

36.286 UE WOODS/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO 6-23-2012

36.286 UE Black Brant IX was launched from White Sands Missile Range, NM on June 23, 2012. The purpose of the EUV Variability Experiment (EVE) is to provide underflight calibrations for solar EUV imagers aborad Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), SOHO, GOES, PRoba1 and Hinode satellites. Read More...

41.101 UO KOEHLER/UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO/SPACE GRANT 6-21-2012

41.101 UO Terrier-Improved Orion was launched from Wallops Island, VA on June 21, 2012.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...

41.097, 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

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

41.084 UE CONDE/UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA 2-9-10

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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