sounding rocket

noun

: a rocket used especially to obtain information concerning atmospheric conditions at various altitudes

Examples of sounding rocket in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The sounding rockets released vapor tracers and pressure sensors at different heights across central and northern Alaska during a sudden auroral substorm, which is a sudden, brief, and explosive intensification, or brightening, of an aurora. Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2025 In the 80 years since the war, German industry developed a handful of small sounding rockets, and manufactured upper stages for Ariane rockets. Ars Technica, 23 Mar. 2025 In the early morning hours of January 25, a team of Norwegian and American scientists launched a Black Brant XII four-stage sounding rocket from Norway’s Andoya Rocket Range, a launch site off the country’s northwestern coast. Laura Kiniry, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Jan. 2025 Esrange has been the departure point for numerous suborbital and sounding rocket for nearly 50 years, but the spaceport is being upgraded for orbital satellite launches. Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 28 June 2024 See All Example Sentences for sounding rocket

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1945, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sounding rocket was circa 1945

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Cite this Entry

“Sounding rocket.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sounding%20rocket. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.

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