NASA Sounding Rocket to Launch Student Experiments
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NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia is scheduled to launch a sounding rocket carrying student-developed experiments for the agency’s RockSatX and RockOn programs Wednesday, June 24, between 5:30 and 9:30 a.m. EDT, with a backup day on Thursday, June 25.
Students watch as their experiments launch aboard a sounding rocket for the RockSat-X program from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility Aug. 11, 2022, at 6:09 p.m. EDT. The Terrier-Improved Malemute rocket carried the experiments to an altitude of 99 miles before descending via a parachute and landing in the Atlantic Ocean.NASA Wallops/Terry Zaperach
The RockSat and RockOn programs provide technical training and hands-on experiences that prepare and equip students to enter the United States aerospace industry. For the first time, NASA will combine both the RockSat and RockOn missions into one rocket, which will carry experiments developed by nearly 250 participants from 38 university and community college teams.
“The challenge was finding ways to fit as many experiments onto one sounding rocket as we could,” said Victoria Stoffel, workforce development lead at NASA Wallops. “The Sounding Rocket Program Office team found creative ways to fit nearly 50 experiments into one rocket. We are grateful to the Wallops teams for making this happen for the students to get the most from this experience.”
The RockOn teams work together to build their experiment onsite, getting hands-on experience putting together a circuit board from scratch and launching it into space. The more advanced RockSat program teams design and build their experiments, going through design reviews modeled on larger NASA missions. Each team can experience what it’s like working on a real NASA mission, from development to launch.
The RockSat student experiments range from taking measurements of weather and radiation in Earth’s upper atmosphere to testing technologies, such as heat shields, space-debris tracking, and robotic servicing, that could help future NASA missions.
The Terrier-Improved Malemute suborbital sounding rocket, which will carry the experiments, is expected to reach an altitude of about 100 miles before descending by parachute into the Atlantic Ocean to be recovered. The launch may be visible in the Chesapeake Bay region.
A launch visibility map for a Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket launching from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.NASA
The Wallops Visitor Center’s launch viewing area will open June 24 at 4:30 a.m. for viewing. A livestream will begin approximately 10 minutes before launch on the Wallops YouTube channel. Launch updates also are available via the facility’s Facebook page.
For more information about NASA’s Sounding Rocket Program, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/soundingrockets
By Jamie AdkinsNASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia
List of RockSat Teams
Capital Tech University, Maryland
Clemson University, South Carolina
College of the Canyons, California
Colorado Space Grant Consortium
University of Colorado Boulder
Escuela de Troquelería y Herramentaje, Puerto Rico
New Jersey Institute of Technology
Northwest Nazarene University, Idaho
Rockets of the Rockies, Colorado
Red Rocks Community College
Arapahoe Community College
Temple University, Pennsylvania
Tidewater Community College, Virginia
University of Alabama Huntsville
University of Delaware
University of Hartford, Connecticut
University of Hawaii Community Colleges
University of Kentucky
University of Nebraska Lincoln
University of Puerto Rico
University of Virginia
Virginia Tech
West Virginia Space Flight Design Challenge
Blue Ridge Community College
West Virginia Wesleyan College
West Virginia University
West Virginia State University
Marshall University
List of RockOn Teams
University of Delaware
Wilmington University, Delaware
Chief Dull Knife College, Montana
Grambling State University, Louisiana
College of the Canyons, California
Eastern Shore Community College, Virginia
Salisbury University, Maryland
Capitol Technology University, Maryland
College of the Desert, California
Flathead Valley Community College, Montana
Delgado Community College, Louisiana
Des Moines Area Community College, Iowa
Langston University, Oklahoma
University of Kentucky
Saginaw Valley State University, Michigan
Morgan State University, Maryland
Pennsylvania State Harrisburg
Middlesex College, New Jersey
University of Colorado
Wor-Wic Community College, Maryland
Tidewater Community College, Virginia
Montana Technological University
University of Hartford, Connecticut
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
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Last Updated
Jun 22, 2026
EditorJamie AdkinsContactAbbey Interranteabbey.a.interrante@nasa.gov
Related TermsWallops Flight FacilitySounding Rockets
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