Balloon Operations
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration Balloon Program Office is responsible for launching 10 to 16 balloons each year in support of scientific investigation and technology maturation.
Flight Operations
The Balloon Program Office supports worldwide operations.
The NASA Balloon Program supports an on-going flight manifest of approximately 10 to 16 flights per year supporting 18 to 25 different science teams.
Customers include Astrophysics, Heliophysics, Planetary, Earth Science, and other NASA and non-NASA customers.
Balloon Program operations and sustaining engineering is implemented via the NASA Balloon Operations Contract (NBOC) based out of the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility in Palestine, TX.
Balloon Launch Locations
The NASA balloon program launches worldwide!
There are a number of factors that determine the selection of balloon launch locations. Among those are mission duration, need for flights over low-population areas for safety reasons, the science to be collected during the mission, cost, wind speed and direction, and many more.
Location Specifications and Capabilities
How to Fly With Us
The Balloon Program Office supports missions in all stages of development.
The steps from mission ideation to launch can be daunting. The Balloon Program Office is here to smooth the road and provide guidance for new and returning Principle Investigators.
We support technology development as well as scientific achievement.
Engineering and Test Services
The NASA Balloon Research and Development Lab boasts over 30 years of experience in materials testing and balloon payload environmental testing.
The Goddard Space Flight Center Engineering and Technology Directorate (ETD) along with the Balloon Program Office (BPO) can support end-to-end mission services from payload requirements development through environmental testing and shipment to the launch site.
The BPO also supports a materials testing facility that is uniquely suited to testing and analysis of viscoelastic materials.
