2018 Workshop: Developing small rockets

Description: The mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) region is strongly and dynamically coupled to the troposphere and stratosphere below and the ionosphere above via a large number of physical and chemical processes. Accordingly, it an absolutely critical region both for earth sciences and heliophysics and is at the heart of CEDAR science.

In order to understand the large number of important processes in the MLT region, such as turbulence, meteor ablation and mesospheric smoke, aerosol and cluster ion chemistry, plasma instabilities, and photochemistry, we require in situ measurements of basic neutral and ionized quantities and their driving forces. Sounding rockets are the only platform capable of gathering these direct measurements. Ideally, these parameters could be observed with multiple flights, including repeated measurements over a mesoscale spatial domain. Such a measurement approach requires cost-effective vehicles and payloads with the appropriate launch infrastructure.

Although NASA continues to carry out a limited number of sounding rocket investigations of the MLT region with large rockets, there is continued interest in developing a small rocket/payload capability that would enable cost effective and multiple launches into this region for a wide variety of instrument techniques. Accordingly, through its Sounding Rocket Working Group, NASA is soliciting input regarding the requirements that might be used to guide and develop such a new capability. Given that CEDAR scientists are at the forefront of this research, and in particular, given that NSF-funded ground-based measurements and theory and modeling activities are highly germane to the goals of the research that would be addressed with such mesosphere rockets, a CEDAR workshop is organized to discuss and seek community input.

The objectives of the proposed CEDAR workshop on mesospheric rockets include: (1) Present and discuss compelling science questions in mesosphere/lower thermosphere science that can be addressed with small sounding rockets (2) Review past and present system capabilities and new technology developments (3) Solicit experimenter input on necessary volume, mass, apogee, telemetry, launch cadence requirements etc. for existing or future miniaturized instrumentation to study MLT processes (4) Gauge interest of the CEDAR community in developing new cost-effective vehicles, standardized payload modules, and sub-payload deployment systems for MLT ground-based and rocket campaigns

Further information on mesospheric payloads can be found in past findings from the NASA Sounding Rocket Working Group: 

Findings 2017 (pdf)

Findings 2010 (pdf)

New Mesospheric Payload (pdf)