From Iowa to the Stars: NASA Mission Lifts Off Today

After eight years of hard work, a NASA mission with technology developed by the University of Iowa is scheduled to launch into space today. The Corridor Business Journal reports that the TRACERS mission will launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

What is the TRACERS mission? 

The CBJ reports that TRACERS stands for the Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites mission. Yeah, that's a mouthful! The project will study the interactions between the magnetic fields of the sun and Earth, with the goal of learning answers to questions about space weather. The two satellites will blast into space aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, according to the CBJ.

Who Developed the TRACERS Project?

The project was developed by the University of Iowa Department of Physics and Astronomy, and is the largest externally funded research project in school history, totaling over $165 million, according to the CBJ. The two satellites will orbit Earth's poles thousands of times over the course of the one-year mission. They will then re-enter the Earth's atmosphere and burn up.

When Will the TRACERS Mission Launch?

Check the forecast in California because the launch window for the TRACERS project is today between 1:13 and 2:11 pm Central Standard Time.

NASA first funded the TRACERS project in October 2017, according to the CBJ.