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Very Low-Flying NASA Planes To Circle Over VA This Week
Virginians shouldn't be alarmed when they see very low-flying planes circling over power plants and cities this week, NASA says.
Virginians should not be alarmed if they see very low-flying airplanes above the Richmond and Hampton areas this week, NASA officials warned, as the agency launches the planes as part of a research project.
Through Wednesday, July 2, NASA planes will fly as low as 1,000 feet above power plants, landfills and urban areas. That’s barely taller than some skyscrapers and much lower than a commercial jet, which has a cruising altitude of 30,000 feet.
The planes will execute specialized maneuvers, circle power plants, landfills, and urban areas, and conduct low-altitude flybys along airport runways to collect air samples near the surface, NASA said.
Find out what's happening in Across Virginiafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The low altitude flights began June 22 in Mid-Atlantic states. Flights are planned over Baltimore, Philadelphia, and some Virginia cities, including Richmond.
Flights will be conducted between June 22 and Thursday, June 26, near the Virginia cities of Hampton, Hopewell, and Richmond, and over Baltimore.
Find out what's happening in Across Virginiafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The flights are being conducted as part of NASA’s Student Airborne Research Program, an eight-week summer internship that provides undergraduate students with hands-on experience in every aspect of a scientific campaign.
The flights will involve the agency’s Airborne Science Program’s P-3 Orion aircraft (N426NA) and a King Air B200 aircraft (N46L). The P-3, operated out of NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, is a four-engine turboprop aircraft outfitted with a six-instrument science payload.
Students will assist in the operation of the instruments on board the planes to collect atmospheric data that will offer information about air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions, NASA said.
“Despite SARP being a learning experience for both the students and mentors alike, our P-3 is being flown and performing maneuvers in some of most complex and restricted airspace in the country,” Brian Bernth, chief of flight operations at NASA Wallops. “Tight coordination and crew resource management is needed to ensure that these flights are executed with precision but also safely.”
More information about SARP is available on NASA's website.
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