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'Liftoff!': Colorado Students Launch Massive Sport Rocket

FORT CARSON, Colo. (CBS4) — Dozens of students and their mentors launched a 35-foot-tall rocket Saturday morning, just south of Colorado Springs. Students from around Colorado and across the country launched the sport rocket from the Fort Carson Army installation in El Paso County. It appeared to reach an altitude of 5,000 feet above ground level.

The students included about 32 interns from United Launch Alliance, 34 interns from Ball Aerospace and K-12 students from across the state.

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ULA interns designed, built and refurbished the high-power sport rocket dubbed "Future Heavy Super Sport," while interns from Ball Aerospace and mentors worked with K-12 students to build payloads that launch on the rocket. Each team created a unique payload with a specific goal.

ULA rocket launch 3
(credit: United Launch Alliance)

The July 20 launch date was chosen in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.

ULA rocket launch 2
(credit: United Launch Alliance)

According to information provided by ULA and Ball, the students spend eight weeks -- working on their own time -- to design, build and test the rockets and payloads (onboard instruments/experiments that are deployed after launch) with the guidance of mentors from both companies.

Parachutes from Airborne Systems deployed and provided a soft landing for the booster section of the rocket close to the launch pad.

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