Student Experiments On Board REXUS 4 Launched
Esrange, Sweden (SPX) Nov 04, 2008 The technicians and engineers of the German Aerospace Center announce the successful launch of the REXUS 4 sounding rocket (Rocket-borne EXperiments for University Students). After a three-hour countdown, the two-stage rocket lifted off at 14:30 on Wednesday 22 October 2008 from the Swedish launch site in Esrange near Kiruna. The REXUS programme is an annual sounding rocket programme for students from European universities which aims to provide them with practical experience in the form of a "real" space project. REXUS is a cooperative programme of the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and DLR's Mobile Rocket Base. It is funded by the Swedish National Space Board (SNSB) and DLR. This year, a two-stage REXUS rocket carried five student experiments and one of DLR's own experiments into space, reaching an altitude of 175 kilometres.
Rocket research for Earth and other planets Its payload then plummeted back into the atmosphere upon completion of the experimentation phase, decelerating due to aerodynamic drag and finally landing safely, suspended from a parachute. During the REXUS 4 campaign the so-called Service System developed by EuroLaunch, a joint venture between DLR's Mobile Rocket Base (MoRaBa) and the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC), was used for the first time. The Service System offers standard power supply and data transfer interfaces for five experiments. "This enables us to provide scientists with a standardised platform for the first time, which makes it substantially easier to integrate the experiment modules", said Markus Pinzer, DLR project manager for REXUS 4. "We are quite pleased with the outcomes of our first analysis of the data we obtained", Pinzer added.
DLR's IGAS experiment: Intelligent antennas for sounding rockets These included the three German experiments HISPICO (Highly Integrated S-band transmitter for PICOsatellites), VERTICAL (Verification and Test of the Initiation of CubeSats After Launch) and MIRIAM (Main Inflated Re-entry Into the Atmosphere Mission test for Archimedes), as well as two Swedish experiments: EMSADA (Experimental Multiple Sensors And Data Acquisition) and REWICAS (REXUS WIreless Camera System).
HISPICO and VERTICAL: for use on miniature satellites It tested a special deployment mechanism for the solar panels of a so-called CubeSat (cube-shaped miniature satellite) during the same microgravity phase.
MIRIAM test balloon: a performance test in space The MIRIAM experiment, which was attached to the underside of the nose cone, separated from the main payload at an altitude of about 100 kilometres, after which it started to deploy a balloon envelope. This balloon envelope was then filled with helium gas. In a few years' time, the Mars Society wants to use a similar system to enter the Martian atmosphere in order to conduct measurements in the atmosphere of the red planet. Unfortunately, before it was fully inflated MIRIAM was hit by the payload as it separated from the rocket motor, for reasons that are currently under investigation. The two Swedish experiments EMSADA and REWICAS of the Lulea University of Technology had on-board sensors for measuring pressure, temperature, acceleration, magnetic field and radiation. In addition to this, three cameras on board the rocket recorded images during the flight.
REXUS and BEXUS - a programme for young scientific talent The next selected student teams will already be flying their experiments in March 2009 during the REXUS 5/6 combined campaign. DLR is currently still accepting submissions for its call for proposals for REXUS rocket flights in 2010. The deadline is 17 November 2008. Related Links German Aerospace Center Launch Pad at Space-Travel.com
Russia Starts Preparations To Launch US Telecoms Satellite Moscow (RIA Novosti) Nov 03, 2008 Russian space technicians have started preparations for the launch of a Zenit carrier rocket with a U.S. Telstar telecom satellite on board, Russia's space agency said on Friday. |
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