Mike Wall wrote:NASA to light up East Coast with rocket barrage
NASA will launch five rockets in five minutes Wednesday, March 14, to study fast-moving winds at the edge
of space -- and many skywatchers along the United States' mid-Atlantic coast will be able to watch the show.
The unmanned rocket barrage, which is slated to blast off late Wednesday from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility
in Virginia, forms the core of the agency's Anomalous Transport Rocket Experiment, or ATREX. The five suborbital
rockets will release chemical tracers between 50 to 90 miles (80 to 145 kilometers) up to track high-altitude winds,
which can zip around the planet at more than 300 mph (483 kph).
These tracers will create milky-white clouds that should be visible to folks on the ground
from parts of South Carolina up through New Jersey, researchers said.
"They occur in the middle of the night, and they glow,"
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The $4 million ATREX mission will launch five sounding rockets over the Atlantic Ocean within a span
of five minutes and 20 seconds. While the rockets' trajectories are different, they'll all release their tracer
— a chemical called trimethyl aluminum...
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The rockets being used for the mission are two Terrier-Improved Malemutes, two Terrier-Improved Orions
and one Terrier-Oriole. All will fall harmlessly into the Atlantic after they release the trimethyl aluminum.
The chemical poses no threat to the environment or human health, researchers said.
foxnews.com/scitech
MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEET
Rohm and Haas Company
1. CHEMICAL PRODUCT AND COMPANY INFORMATION
TRIMETHYLALUMINUM OPTOGRADE™
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2. COMPOSITION/INFORMATION ON INGREDIENTS
This product is considered hazardous under the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200).
N o C AS REG NO W EIGHT (%)
1 Trimethylaluminum (CH3)3 Al ......................... 75-24-1 100
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3. HAZARDS IDENTIFICATION
Emergency Overview
EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE. CATCHES FIRE IF EXPOSED TO AIR. CAUSES SEVERE DIGESTIVE TRACT
BURNS. CAUSES EYE BURNS. CAUSES SKIN BURNS. DECOMPOSITION PRODUCTS MAY CAUSE
EYE, NOSE AND RESPIRATORY TRACT IRRITATION. See sections 3, 5, & 6.
Primary Routes Of Exposure
Eye. Skin. Inhalation (breathing).
Eye Contact
Causes burns.
Skin Contact
Causes burns.
Inhalation (Breathing)
Decomposition products can irritate the eyes, nose, and respiratory tract.
mfc.engr.arizona.edu/safety
Target Organs/Chronic Effects
Lungs and respiratory system. Eyes. Skin.
Conditions Aggravated By Exposure
Exposure to this product is not expected to contribute,
worsen or aggravate any pre-existing medical conditions.
How comforting...
