NASA Launches Suborbital Rocket With Student Experiments

NASA successfully launched a NASA Terrier-Improved Orion suborbital sounding rocket carrying student experiments with the RockOn/RockSat-C programs at 6 a.m., today.
More than 200 middle school and university students and instructors participating in Rocket Week at Wallops were on hand to witness the launch.

Through RockOn and RockSat-C students are learning and applying skills required to develop experiments for suborbital rocket flight. In addition, middle school educators through the Wallops Rocket Academy for Teachers (WRATS) are learning about applying rocketry basics in their curriculum.

The payload flew to an altitude of 71.4 miles and descended by parachute into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Wallops. Payload recovery is in progress.

The next launch from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility is a Black Brant IX suborbital sounding rocket currently scheduled between 6 and 10 a.m., July 7.

For more information on NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/wallops