Editing Sounding rocket (section)

== Design ==
[[File:SoundingRocketSamplePayload-02.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Sample payloads for sounding rockets]]
The basic elements of a modern sounding rocket are a [[solid-fuel rocket]] motor and a science [[Payload (air and space craft)|payload]].<ref name=what/> In certain sounding rockets the payload may even be nothing more than a smoke trail as in the [[Nike Smoke]] which is used to determine wind directions and strengths more accurately than may be determined by [[weather balloons]]. Or a sounding rocket such as the [[Nike-Apache]] may deposit sodium clouds to observe very high altitude winds. Larger, higher altitude rockets have multiple [[rocket staging|stages]] to increase altitude and/or payload capability. The [[freefall]] part of the flight is an [[elliptic orbit|elliptic trajectory]] with vertical [[Semi-major axis|major axis]] allowing the payload to appear to hover near its [[apogee]].<ref name=overview/> The average flight time is less than 30 minutes; usually between five and 20 minutes.<ref name=overview/> The rocket consumes its fuel on the [[First stage (rocketry)|first stage]] of the rising part of the flight, then often separates and falls away, leaving the payload to complete the arc, sometimes descending under a drag source such as a small balloon or a [[parachute]].<ref name=what/>

Sounding rockets have utilized balloons, airplanes and artillery as "first stages." Project Farside<ref name=Farside>{{cite web |title=Farside |url=http://www.astronautix.com/f/farside.html |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Astronautix |publisher=Mark Wade |access-date=21 September 2024 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_lau/farside.htm |title=Farside |last=Krebs |first=Gunter |date= |website=Gunter’s Space Page |publisher=Gunter Krebs |access-date=22 September 2024 |quote=}}</ref> utilized a Rockoon<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-06-01 |title=Rockoons: Rocket and Balloon Experiments |url=https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/rockoons-rocket-and-balloon-experiments |access-date=2025-05-21 |website=airandspace.si.edu |language=en}}</ref> composed of a 106,188-m3 (3,750-ft3) balloon, lifting a four stage rocket composed of 4 Recruit rockets as the first stage with 1 Recruit as the second stage, with 4 Arrow II motors composing the third stage and finally a single Arrow II as the fourth stage. [[Sparoair]], air launched from Navy F4D and F-4 fighters were examples of air launched sounding rockets. There were also examples of artillery launched sounding rockets including [[Project HARP]]'s 5", 7", and 15" guns, sometimes having additional Martlet rocket stages.<ref>''BRL Memorandum Report No. 1825''</ref>