HESTO is pleased to announce the selection of three 2025 Pathfinder projects:
- “Miniaturized Double Langmuir Probe onboard the Resolute Rocket Expedition” led by Dr. Robert Clayton of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (22-HTIDS22-0018)
- “Assistance Magnetometer on the Resolute Rocket Rideshare” led by Dr. Mark Moldwin of the University of Michigan (23-HTIDS23-0001)
- “Maturing the Miniature Winds Meter through Rideshare on a Pair of Sounding Rockets” by Dr. James Clemmons of University of New Hampshire (21-HTIDS-21-0012)
The first two projects will rideshare on Dr. Glyn Collinson’s (NASA GSFC) Resolute Sounding Rocket, which is a dual sounding rocket mission planned for launch from Andøya, Norway in 2027. The Resolute mission science goal is to determine how heavy ions are lofted from the ionosphere to the boundary with the magnetosphere. Resolute plans to fly three primary instruments in addition to a FIELDS package, which includes a magnetometer, Langmuir probe, and electric field probes. The two Pathfinder instruments will enhance the science outcomes of Resolute, in addition to providing an opportunity to test these new technologies in space for the first time. Dr. Clayton’s miniaturized Langmuir probe will provide measurements complimentary to the existing Langmuir probe, which will enable his team to compare and confirm the measurement from the new instrument with an existing, established one. Dr. Moldwin’s magnetometer will be used to enhance the measurements of the existing magnetometer by characterizing the magnetic field background generated by the sounding rocket.
Dr. Clemmons’ Pathfinder instrument will rideshare on the Dynamo3 sounding rocket mission led by Dr. Robert Pfaff (NASA GSFC), which is scheduled to launch in July 2026 from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility. The goal of the Dynamo3 mission is to understand the dynamo currents, fields, and winds in the lower E-region and how they relate to the currents, fields, and winds in the upper atmosphere. Dr. Clemmons will provide his Miniature Winds Meter (MWM) to each of the two planned sounding rockets to provide complementary observations of the in situ thermospheric density, winds, and temperature measurements.
Although unlikely, additional selections for this 2025 Pathfinder opportunity may be announced.