Two NASA research rockets launched from Andøya Space on November 10, 2024, to study energy transfer between the lower and upper atmosphere.
– The main scientific objective for VortEx 2 is to study how winds and energy from the lower parts of the atmosphere affect the upper parts, says Thomas Gansmoe, Director Sounding Rockets & Engineering Services at Andøya Space Sub-Orbital. – The focus of the experiment is to figure out how gravity waves interact with each other, and how these interactions form vortices.
The two research rockets in the mission launched two minutes apart, and the first lift-off occurred Nov 10, at 21:36:00 UTC, reaching a apogee of 358 kilometers, while the second launch vehicle reached 144 kilometers.
– The first vehicle carried with it 16 canisters of trimethyl aluminum (TMA) which was released into the atmosphere, creating glowing clouds, says Gansmoe. – These clouds was then tracked from four ground-based observation sites. The purpose was to visualize atmosphere turbulence and the formation of vortices.
– I would like to thank our launch customer NASA Goddard for an excellent cooperation, and congratulate on a highly successful mission, Gansmoe finishes.