NEWS

Probe continues on Wallops rocket failure

Carol Vaughn
cvvaughn@dmg.gannett.com
  • Investigation is ongoing into why a sounding rocket launched from NASA Wallops Flight Facility July 2 crashed 19 seconds into its flight.
  • The failure will not affect the remaining nine sounding rocket missions scheduled in 2014.
  • The latest launch from Wallops was a Terrier-Lynx suborbital rocket successfully launched for a Department of Defense mission on Aug. 23.
  • The Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket that is the subject of the investigation launched July 2 at 4:36 a.m. but crashed into the oceanic hazard zone 19 seconds later.

Investigators are still looking into why a sounding rocket launched from NASA Wallops Flight Facility crashed 19 seconds into its flight.

"We cannot comment on the investigation's findings until it is completed," Wallops spokesman Keith Kohler said.

The July 2 failure will not affect the remaining nine sounding rocket missions scheduled in 2014.

The latest launch from Wallops was a Terrier-Lynx suborbital rocket successfully launched for a Department of Defense mission Aug. 23.

The Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket that is the subject of the investigation was launched July 2 at 4:36 a.m. but crashed into the oceanic hazard zone 19 seconds later.

The mission had been postponed four times before it finally lifted off due to the presence of boats in the Atlantic Ocean hazard zone, where it ultimately impacted.

"Range controllers detected a flight anomaly with the second stage Improved Malemute motor," NASA said in a release.

The rocket flew to an altitude of 27,000 feet and crashed about one nautical mile downrange.

No damage or injuries were reported.

The mission was testing new suborbital rocket technologies, including a deployment system to make vapor clouds to study upper-atmospheric winds.

cvvaughn@dmg.gannett.com

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On Twitter @cvvaughnESN

The incident

Investigation is ongoing into why a sounding rocket launched from NASA Wallops Flight Facility in July crashed 19 seconds into its flight.

The mission was testing new suborbital rocket technologies, including a deployment system to make vapor clouds to study upper-atmospheric winds.