About ISRO Recent Events ISRO Centres Programmes Decade Plan Space Science International Sponsored Research Space Services Commercial Training Facilities Resources Contact Us   ISRO Launches Sounding Rockets to Study Leonid Meteor Showers ISRO has launched two Rohini Sounding Rockets on November 18 and 20, 1999, from ISRO's Sriharikota Range to study the effects of Leonid Meteor Showers through which the earth passed around 7.30 am IST on November 18, 1999. The RH-300 Mark II Rockets carried 76 kg of payloads including Langmuir probe, electric field probe and radio frequency mass spectrometer for measurement of ionospheric characteristics at altitudes above 135 km. All the instruments have worked well and provided scientific data on the ionospheric parameters and particles in the meteoroid track. The payloads also included a special boom deployment systems and nose cone ection system. The first rocket was launched around the peak of the meteoroid showers at 7.25 am (IST) on November 18, 1999. The second was launched at 7.05 am IST this morning (November 20, 1999) to obtain a reference data on ionospheric parameters in the absence of the effect of the Leonid Showers. Simultaneously, measurements on these parameters have also been taken using the National Mesosphere-Stratosphere-Troposphere radar at Gadanki near Tirupati and from observations stations at Thiruvananthapruam and Sriharikota as well as from the facilities at Osmania University at Hyderabad. The data obtained from the rocket experiment as well as other ground based systems are being analysed by scientists at Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad. The data from the experiments are expected to throw more light on the interaction between the meteoroid showers and the ionosphere. It may be noted that ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, has operationalised a series of sounding rockets that are used for various scientific and technological experiments. RH-300 Mark-II rockets that were launched this morning and on November 1, 1999 are capable of carrying 50 to 80 kg payloads to altitudes of 100 to 150 km.