Space Physics
Fairbanks, Alaska—Stargazers, aurora enthusiasts, and more can peruse a variety of products and information, or climb into a portable planetarium to witness a star show at the upcoming Western Alliance Conference of Planetarium Associations Sept. 19-22, 2007. More than 70 planetarium
directors, staff and vendors from the western United States will visit the Interior to show off their wares at the Westmark Hotel, and to take part in a number of tours and lectures at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. 
FAIRBANKS, Alaska—Logging more than 18 hours of flight time in six separate flights, the Geophysical Institute’s unmanned aircraft system completed its first scheduled campaign of the year in the Stewart Creek Impact Area near Eielson Air Force Base June 21 to 24, 2007. During the flights, the UAS collected 30 color images per second of about 43 square miles of terrain. Soon, the images will be pieced together and analyzed by the U.S. Army Alaska Garrison to map wildfire fuels growing in the Stewart Creek Impact Area.
A NASA sounding rocket launched at 11:39 p.m. on Feb. 27, 2007 from Poker Flat Research Range
during a brilliant aurora display above northern Alaska.
An experiment called HEX2 that consisted of four NASA suborbital sounding rockets, launched from Poker Flat Research Range during an aurora display over northern Alaska this morning. Each rocket emitted vapor trails in an experiment to learn more about winds associated with the aurora.
Researchers saw the vapor trails from Poker Flat; about 30 miles north of Fairbanks, and aurora watchers at clear locations throughout northern Alaska should have been able to see them.
This morning, a NASA suborbital sounding rocket launched from Poker Flat Research Range into an aurora display over northern Alaska at 3:45 a.m. Alaska Standard Time, allowing researchers to gather more data about the power source behind pulsating auroras.
This morning, a NASA suborbital sounding rocket launched from Poker Flat Research Range into an aurora display over northern Alaska at 3:45 a.m. Alaska Standard Time, allowing researchers to gather more data about the power source behind pulsating auroras.
Scientists from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the University of New Hampshire have experiments ready on the launch rails at Poker Flat Research Range north of Fairbanks, and another scientist is waiting in New Hampshire to launch an additional experiment from Poker Flat. The experiments are being flown on NASA sounding rockets. NASA is launching 10 of the suborbital rockets from Poker Flat during January and February. Four successful launches occurred in January.
From Poker Flat Research Range north of Fairbanks, four NASA rockets launched into an aurora display over northern Alaska, starting at 3:29 a.m. Alaska Standard Time. Scientists hope to learn more about electrical heating of the thin atmosphere from about 60 to 120 miles above Earth’s surface with the launch of these rockets. The project is called JOULE II.
Five NASA rockets are scheduled to launch from Poker Flat Research Range this month. The launch window opens today, Jan. 10, at 10 p.m. AST, and runs until 4 a.m. AST, each night through Wednesday, Jan. 27. The five rockets will launch in two separate campaigns.
With just a few clicks, aurora watchers can go online and find out when to anticipate aurora activity and where they can see it. The Geophysical Institute Aurora Forecast Web page has undergone a major revamp to include a one-hour forecast, a 28-day forecast and much more, all found at http://www.gedds.alaska.edu/AuroraForecast.
