Watch Live Tonight! NASA Rocket Launch to Create Glowing Clouds @ 9:04 pm ET
Update for June 13, 7 a.m. ET: Launch Tonight
NASA will try again to launch a Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket tonight, June 13, at 9:04 p.m. EDT (0104 GMT) after a series of delays due to cloudy weather and stray boats offshore. NASA's webcast begins at 8:30 p.m. EDT (0030 GMT). The launch may also be visible to observers along the U.S. East Coast from New York to North Carolina, and as far inland as Charlottesville, Virginia, NASA officials have said. You can also watch the liftoff, which will take place from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, at the Wallops Ustream site: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nasa-tv-wallops.
The rocket will launch to test a canister deployment system designed to eject ampoules containing gas that can create glowing artificial clouds in the night sky. Clear weather is vital for mission scientists in order to record the cloud deployment using ground-based cameras at the launch site - NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia, and in Duck, North Carolina. The mission has launch opportunities each night this week through June 18.
If you live near the Wallops Island area in Virginia and would like to watch the sounding rocket launch in person, NASA's Wallops Flight Facility Visitors Center will open to the public at 8 p.m. EDT. Because the launch is weather dependent, local spectactors and online viewers can recieve the latest updates from NASA via the Wallops center Facebook and Twitter sites.
Editor's note: If you capture an amazing image of the sounding rocket launch or the colorful artificial clouds that you would like to share with Space.com and its news partners for a story or photo gallery, send photos and comments to: spacephotos@space.com.
Artificial clouds should be visible shortly after 9 p.m. EDT on June 11 from New York to North Carolina if a NASA sounding rocket launches on time from the agency's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.
Credit: NASA"The window for a NASA Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket launch to test a new ampoule ejection system designed to support studies of the ionosphere and aurora opens June 11 and runs through June 18. Lift-off for a June 11 launch is scheduled between 9:04 and 9:19 p.m. EDT.
"NASA has two ground stations — at Wallops and Duck, N.C. — to view blue-green and red artificial clouds that will be produced as part of the test. Clear skies are required at one of the two ground stations for this test.
"The multi-canister ampoule ejection system flying on this mission will allow scientists to gather information over a much larger area than previously able. Canisters will deploy between 4 and 5.5 minutes after launch releasing blue-green and red vapor to form artificial clouds. These clouds, or vapor tracers, allow scientists on the ground to visually track particle motions in space.
"The clouds may be visible along the mid-Atlantic coastline from New York to North Carolina.
"The NASA Visitor Center at Wallops will open at 8 p.m. on launch day for viewing the flight.
"Live coverage of the mission is scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m. on the Wallops Ustream site. Launch updates also are available via the Wallops Facebook and Twitter sites."