Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics

Last updated

Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics logo.svg

The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) is a research institute at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Founded in 1948, LASP employs 750+ scientists, engineers, and students dedicated to space science research in fields including solar physics, planetary atmospheres, dusty plasmas, geophysics, and space weather. [1] The institute received over $1 billion in research revenue since 2013, predominantly from NASA contracts. LASP employs over 250 students and is the only academic institute to send spacecraft instruments to all 8 planets in the Solar System. LASP has also sent missions to Pluto, the Sun, and multiple planetary moons. [2]

Contents

As of 2025, LASP has a yearly budget exceeding $200 million and manages or supports 26 active space missions. [3] [4]

History

Founded after World War II, the first scientific instruments built at LASP were launched into space using captured German V-2 rockets. In 1963, the University of Colorado received $791,500 from NASA for the construction of a 25,000 square-foot building to study "ultraviolet physics, solar ultraviolet-radiation data from rockets, and the testing of solar-rocket pointing-control mechanisms". [5] LASP maintains a suborbital rocket program through periodic calibration instrument flights from White Sands Missile Range. It was originally named the Upper Air Laboratory, but changed to its current name in 1965. LASP has historical ties to Ball Aerospace Corporation and the Center for Astrophysics and Space Astronomy (CASA).

The University of Colorado receives more NASA funding than any public university in the country, due in large part to LASP programs. Multiple companies have spun-off from research at LASP, including on electron beam dust mitigation for NASA. [6]

Facilities

The LASP Space Technology Research Center (LSTR) on campus at CU Boulder Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics.jpg
The LASP Space Technology Research Center (LSTR) on campus at CU Boulder

LASP has two main facilities located in the University of Colorado Boulder Research Park: the LASP Space Technology Research Center (LSTR) and Space Science (SPSC). Two additional facilities - Astrophysical Research Lab (ARL) and Space Learning Lab (SLL/NPL) - are also part of LASP.

The facilities allow LASP to execute almost every aspect of space missions. Hardware facilities and cleanrooms allow for the construction of single instruments or entire spacecraft. A Mission Operations Center allows for the control of spacecraft data collection, and a large research staff analyzes the data for science research.

As part of the university, LASP has heavy student involvement in every aspect of its operations, including science, hardware design, spacecraft integration, and mission operations. Graduate students regularly lead instrument development under the supervision of professors and scientists at the institute. Notable student-led instruments include the Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter on New Horizons and the Student Nitric Oxide Explorer (SNOE) as part of NASA's Explorers Program.

List of Missions

LaunchEnd of MissionInstrument(s)/Experiment(s)MissionStatus
19671967Ultraviolet Photometer (UVP) Mariner 5 Complete
19691970Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) Mariner 6 and 7 Complete
19691975High-Resolution Ultraviolet Spectrometer (HR UVS); Solar Extreme Ultraviolet Monitor (SEUVM) OSO-5 Complete
19711972Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) Mariner 9 Complete
19731978Ultraviolet Nitric-Oxide Experiment (UVNO) [7] Explorer 51 Complete
19751976Ultraviolet Nitric-Oxide Experiment (UVNO) [8] Explorer 54 Complete
19751978High-Resolution Ultraviolet Spectrometer (HR UVS); Solar Extreme Ultraviolet Monitor (SEUVM) OSO-8 Complete
1977— Photopolarimeter Voyager 1 Active
1977— Photopolarimeter Voyager 2 Active
19781992Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) Pioneer Venus Orbiter Complete
19811989Mission operations Solar Mesosphere Explorer Complete
19861986Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) STS-51-L; lost in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster Lost
19892003Extreme Ultraviolet Spectrometer (EUV); Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) Galileo Complete
19912005Solar Stellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment (SOLSTICE) Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite Complete
19961996High-Resolution Mapping Spectrometer (SVET) Mars 96 Lost
19961996Mechanics of Granular Materials (MGM-I) microgravity experiment [9] STS-79 Complete
19962008Toroidal Imaging Mass-Angle Spectrograph (TIMAS) Polar (satellite) Complete
19972017Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS) [10] Cassini-Huygens Complete
19981998Impactor Box Systems (COLLIDE) [11] [12] STS-90 Complete
19981998Mechanics of Granular Materials (MGM-II) microgravity experiment STS-89 Complete
19982003Solar X-ray Photometer (SXP); Auroral Photometer (AP); Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) Student Nitric Oxide Explorer Complete
19992018Mission operations QuikSCAT Complete
20012001Impactor Box Systems (COLLIDE-2) [13] [14] STS-108 Complete
2001—Solar EUV Experiment (SEE) TIMED (Johns Hopkins APL)Active
20032010Mission operations ICESat Complete
20032003Mechanics of Granular Materials (MGM-III) microgravity experiment [15] [16] STS-107; lost in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster Lost
20032020X-ray Ultraviolet Photometer System (XPS); Solar Stellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment (SOLSTICE); Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM); Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM); Mission operations SORCE Complete
20042015Mercury Atmospheric and Surface Composition Spectrometer (MASCS) MESSENGER Complete
2006— Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter (VBSDC) New Horizons Active
20072024Cosmic Dust Experiment (CDE); Cloud Imaging and Particle Size Experiment (CIPS) Explorer 90 Complete
2007—Digital Fields Board (DFB) THEMIS Active
20092018Mission operations [17] Kepler Space Telescope Complete
2010—Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) Solar Dynamics Observatory; NASA Sounding Rocket Program Active
20112011Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) Glory Lost
20122014Relativistic Electron and Proton Telescope integrated little experiment (REPTile) [18] [19] CSSWE (3U SmallSat) Complete
20122019Relativistic Electron Proton Telescope (REPT); Digital Fields Board (DFB) Van Allen Probes Complete
20132014HyperSpectral Imager for Climate Science (HySICS) [20] NASA high-altitude balloons Complete
20132014Lunar Dust Experiment (LDEX) LADEE Complete
20132019Total Solar Irradiance Calibration Transfer Experiment (TCTE) STPSat-3 Complete
2013—Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS); Extreme Ultraviolet Monitor (EUVM); Langmuir Probe (LPW) MAVEN Active
2015—Mission operations Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission Active
2016—Extreme ultraviolet and X-ray Irradiance Sensors (EXIS) GOES-16 Active
2017—Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM); Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM)TSIS-1 on the International Space Station Active
2018—Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk Instrument GOLD Active
2018—Extreme ultraviolet and X-ray Irradiance Sensors (EXIS) GOES-17 Active
2018—Digital Fields Board (DFB) Parker Solar Probe Active
20182022Compact Spectral Irradiance Monitor (CSIM) [21] [22] 6U SmallSat Complete
2020—Emirates Mars Ultraviolet Spectrometer (EMUS); Emirates Exploration Imager (EXI) Emirates Mars Mission Active
2020—Reeldown Aerosol Cloud Humidity and Temperature Sensor (RACHuTS); Fiberoptic Laser Operated Temperature Sensor (FLOATS); LASP Particle Counter (LPC) [23] [24] Strateole-2 (20 CNES high-altitude balloons)Active
2021—Near-ultraviolet (NUV) transmission spectrometer Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment Active
2021—Mission operations IXPE Active
2022—Dual-channel Extreme Ultraviolet Continuum Experiment (DEUCE) NASA Sounding Rocket Program Active
2022—Dual Aperture X-Ray Solar Spectrometer (DAXSS)INSPIRESat-1Active
2022—Extreme ultraviolet and X-ray Irradiance Sensors (EXIS) GOES-18 Active
2022—Suborbital Imaging Spectrograph for Transition region Irradiance from Nearby Exoplanet (SISTINE) NASA Sounding Rocket Program Active
2022—Compact Total Irradiance Monitor (CTIM) [25] 6U SmallSat Active
2023—Occultation Wave Limb Sounder (OWLS)INSPIRESat-3Active
2023—Relativistic Electron and Proton Telescope integrated little experiment (REPTile) Colorado Inner Radiation Belt Experiment Active
2024—Extreme ultraviolet and X-ray Irradiance Sensors (EXIS) GOES-19 Active
2024—Surface Dust Analyzer (SUDA) Europa Clipper Active
September 2025—Interstellar Dust Experiment (IDEX) Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) Planned
October 2025—Ultraviolet telescopeSupernova remnants and Proxies for ReIonization Testbed Experiment (SPRITE) (12U SmallSat)Planned
December 2025—Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM); Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM)Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor–2 (TSIS-2) (SmallSat)Planned
December 2025—Dual Solar Position Sensor (SPS)Sun Coronal Ejection Tracker (SunCET) (6U SmallSat, Johns Hopkins APL)Planned
February 2026—Acute Precipitating Electron Spectrometer (APES); Proton eLectron Advanced Sensor for M-I Coupling (PLASMIC); Ionization Gauge (IG); Cross Track Wind Sensor (CTWS); Rapid Active Plasma Sounder (RAPS)COUSIN Sounding Rocket Planned
2026—3-axis search coil antenna; 2-axis dipole antenna Climatology of Anthropogenic and Natural VLF wave Activity in Space (CANVAS)Planned
2026—AXIS (Atmospheric X-ray Imaging Spectrometer)Atmosphere Effects of Precipitation through Energetic X-rays (AEPEX) (6U SmallSat)Planned
2026—Far ultraviolet integral field spectrograph (IFS)Integral Field Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Experiment (INFUSE) Sounding Rocket Planned
2026—Chromosphere spectrographSolar eruptioN Integral Field Spectrograph (SNIFS) Sounding Rocket Planned
2026—Lunar Surface Electromagnetics Experiment (LuSEE) Artemis II Planned

See also

References

  1. ↑ Jeremy, Eggers (August 5, 2024). "NASA, LASP Sign Agreement To Advance Space Weather Research, Modeling - NASA". nasa.gov. NASA Wallops Flight Facility. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
  2. ↑ "University of Colorado Boulder FY 2023-2024 Operating Budget" (PDF). University of Colorado. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
  3. ↑ Dean, Cameron (June 27, 2025). "Colorado university expecting cuts to its space program and partnerships with NASA". www.kktv.com. KKTV (Colorado Springs). Retrieved September 3, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Current Missions". Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  5. ↑ "Atmospheric and Space Physics Lab". Physics Today. 16 (8): 67. August 1, 1963. doi:10.1063/1.3051085.
  6. ↑ "CU Boulder LASP researchers earn NASA prize to fund space dust technology". The Denver Post. August 3, 2025. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Press Kit - Atmosphere Explorer D" (PDF). NASA. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  8. ↑ Cravens, T. E.; Gerard, J.-C.; Lecompte, M.; Stewart, A. I.; Rusch, D. W. (October 1, 1985). "The global distribution of nitric oxide in the thermosphere as determined by the Atmosphere Explorer D satellite". Journal of Geophysical Research.
  9. ↑ Alshibli, Khalid A.; Costes, Nicholas C.; Porter, Ronald F. (August 5, 1996). "Mechanics of Granular Materials (MGM)". SPIE Proceedings Series. NASA. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVIS) - NASA Science". NASA. August 21, 2018. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  11. ↑ Colwell, Joshua E. (May 5, 1999). "COLLIDE: Collisions into Dust Experiment". ntrs.nasa.gov. NASA Glenn Research Center. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  12. ↑ "COLLIDE". The Stephen W. Hawking Center for Microgravity Research and Education. University of Central Florida.
  13. ↑ "COLLIDE". The Stephen W. Hawking Center for Microgravity Research and Education. University of Central Florida.
  14. ↑ E., Colwell, Joshua (November 15, 2002). "COLLIDE-2: Collisions Into Dust Experiment-2". NASA Glenn Research Center. Retrieved September 4, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ↑ Wayman, Erin. "Quirkiest Space Shuttle Science". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  16. ↑ Sture, Stein; Alshibi, Khalid; Guynes, Buddy (December 16, 2002). "Mechanics of Granular Materials-3 (MGM-3)". STS 107 Shuttle Press Kit: Providing 24/7 Space Science Research. NASA.
  17. ↑ "NASA's Kepler planet-hunting mission, controlled by CU-Boulder students, to continue". CU Connections. April 11, 2012. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  18. ↑ Palo, Scott; Li, Xinlin; Gerhardt, David; Turner, Drew; Hoxie, V.; Kohnert, Rick; Batiste, Susan (2010). "The Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment : A CubeSat for Space Physics". 38th COSPAR Scientific Assembly. Harvard University. p. 8. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  19. ↑ "CU Students to Build Tiny Spacecraft to Observe 'Space Weather' Environment". Space News. December 29, 2009. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  20. ↑ "Reflected Solar Instrument – CLARREO Pathfinder". NASA. March 27, 2024. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  21. ↑ "Compact Spectral Irradiance Monitor". NIST. October 8, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Home". CSIM. University of Colorado (LASP).
  23. ↑ "Ballons | CNES". cnes.fr (in French). Centre national d'études spatiales. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  24. ↑ "STRATEOLE-2 US – Long-duration balloon flights at the tropical tropopause" . Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  25. ↑ "CTIM". NASA Earth Science and Technology Office. NASA.

40°00′31″N105°14′51″W / 40.00865°N 105.24746°W / 40.00865; -105.24746

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.