Students Launch Experiments on Sounding Rocket at NASA Wallops in Virginia

Students Launch Experiments on Sounding Rocket at NASA Wallops in Virginia

In this image, students watch a sounding rocket launch at sunrise. A Terrier-Improved Orion sounding rocket carrying students experiments for the RockOn! mission successfully launched from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility Aug. 17, 2023, at 6 a.m. EDT. The launch carried experiments for Cubes in Space, RockOn!, and RockSat-C student programs. The sounding rocket reached an altitude of 73 miles (116.7 kilometers) before descending back down into the Atlantic Ocean via parachute. Teams will review the payload to return the experiments back to the students. NASA's Wallops Flight Facility is a rocket launch site on Wallops Island on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, United States,

NASA's RockOn and RockSat hands-on programs. These programs connect higher education students from across the United States with opportunities to fly their experiments into space on NASA Wallops Flight Facility sounding rockets. RockOn and RockSat started in 2008 and have provided thousands of students and faculty with real-world flight experiences and experimentation.

Learn more about each program:

https://www.nasa.gov/sounding-rockets/rocksat-programs

NASA's Terrier Improved Orion Rocket

The Terrier-Orion rocket system is a two stage spin stabilized rocket system which utilizes a Terrier MK 12 Mod 1 or Mk70 for the first stage and an Improved Orion motor for the second stage. The Terrier motor is 18 inches in diameter and is configured with 2.5 ft2 or 4.8 ft2 fin panels arranged in a cruciform configuration. The Orion motor is 14 inches in diameter and 110 inches long. The vehicle is typically configured with spin motors and the total weight of this configuration, excluding the payload, is approximately 2,900 pounds.

The Terrier-Orion rocket system:

https://sites.wff.nasa.gov/code810/vehicles/Terrier_Imrprove%20Orion.pdf

Image Credit: NASA/Danielle Johnson

Story Credit: Jamie Adkins

Image Date: Aug. 17, 2023

Release Date: Aug. 18, 2023

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