Scientists attending the Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference here could barely contain their excitement at the prospect of a new fleet of suborbital launch vehicles providing frequent access to microgravity. "It will make all the difference in the world," said Webster Cash, a professor of astrophysics and planetary sciences at the University of Colorado. For decades, Cash has been developing instruments to map the sky in visible, infrared and X-ray light. It takes him three to four years to design an experiment and win approval to send it to high altitudes on a sounding rocket. The instrument then spends a few minutes in microgravity before crashing to the ground. After evaluating the results and piecing the hardware back together, Cash said he is lucky if he can fly the same experiment or a modified version in a year or two.
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