NASA ASCEND
PHOENIX COLLEGE NEAR SPACE RESEARCH
PHOENIX COLLEGE NEAR SPACE RESEARCH
PHOENIX COLLEGE NEAR SPACE RESEARCH | HIGH-ALTITUDE BALLOONING
The NASA ASCEND program empowers STEM students through hands-on aerospace engineering missions. From sub-orbital telemetry to payload integration, we push the boundaries of undergraduate research. SPRING 2026 Final operations are now active with new media, render builds, and launch updates being published in real time.
A unified command surface for Fall 2026 Final mission media, Unity/Web renders, engineering updates, and live aerospace telemetry broadcasts.
The NASA ASCEND internship program is a high-altitude ballooning project funded by the Arizona/NASA Space Grant. It provides a unique opportunity for undergraduate STEM students to work on hands-on, real-world, NASA-related science & engineering projects.
Engineer and launch scientific payloads up to 100,000 ft. in elevation.
Work with over 100 Arizona STEM college and university students and professionals.
Apply engineering skills in real-world NASA-related projects.
ASCEND teams follow engineering processes—from requirements and subsystem design to flight operations and peer-reviewed reporting—preparing students for internships and aerospace careers.
Scientific payloads designed with revolutionizing design methods, launched, and recovered by ASCEND and ANSR. Translating theoretical aerospace concepts into flight-ready developments.
Our most recent launch. Spring 2026 launch successfully completed. The team profiled stratospheric conditions with the full integrated payload stack, building on Fall 2025 engineering achievements. Payload and data recovered.
Record-breaking mission achieving 101,260 feet with a comprehensive sensor suite and optimized mechanical design. Full avionics stack recovered. Data processed and analyzed.
Mission design reviews, fabrication, and flight readiness checklists.
Live tracking via dual GPS, 1-minute cadence telemetry broadcast.
Data ingestion and peer-reviewed presentation development.
| DATE | ANSR # | PROJECT | ALTITUDE | LOCATION | NOTES |
|---|
KA7NSR-15 • 2026-03-28 • APRS.fi GPS Telemetry • 144 Waypoints • 82,498 ft Peak
The incredible teams that have reached for the stars.
Dr. Eddie Ong · MR. ERNEST VILLICAÑA
Adam · Maxx
Ethan · Garret · Preston · Loukas · Emma · Jose
Stratospheric flight completed. Full payload stack deployed and recovered. Data processed and archived.
Dr. Eddie Ong, Dr. Ernest Villicaña
Nate Okafor
Advanced Atmospheric Profiler & UV Suite
Under the mentorship of Dr. Eddie Ong and Dr. Ernest Villicaña, the legacy teams established the core engineering and software foundations of the PC ASCEND program.
Mechanical Systems
Data & Avionics
Watch our latest missions and learn about the ASCEND program.
An introduction to the NASA ASCEND high-altitude ballooning program at Phoenix College.
Follow ASCEND interns as they share what it's like to design payloads and lead recoveries.
Meet the Fall 2025 ASCEND team and learn about their mission to reach new heights.
Public ASCEND launch coverage featuring prep, ascent, and recovery operations.
Visualizing the Fall 2025 Payload & Research Missions.
Design and build your own CubeSat satellite — courtesy of NASA Space Place.
Join our Phoenix College Team and over 100 Arizona STEM students.
Submit your application to join the next high-altitude mission.
Target: High-Altitude Profiling
Status: Success / Recovered
Data Points: 101,260 (Downsampled)
Key Logic: UV Recovery & Magnetic Flux
// CHANGELOG : ASCEND Avionics v1c — 2026-02-06
// - Pressure reported in Pa (was hPa) — precision upgrade
// - Added magnetic vector collection (BNO055 IMU)
// - Added UV recovery function (AS7331 sensor)
// - Modified DataPoint struct for full sensor fusion
// Balloon vehicle: "Not A UFO"
struct DataPoint {
unsigned long timestamp;
double uvValues[12];
uint32_t pressure; // Pascals (Pa)
float temperature; // °C
float altitude; // meters
float gyroValues[3]; // deg/s
float accelValues[3];// m/s²
float magValues[3]; // µT
};
void logData() {
DataPoint dp;
dp.timestamp = millis();
if (getUVdata()) {
// Multi-spectral UV — AS7331 across 4 sensor nodes
dp.uvValues[0] = UV1A; // UV-A band
dp.uvValues[3] = UV1B; // UV-B band
dp.uvValues[6] = UV1C; // UV-C band
// ... sensors 2–4 mirrored
}
if (bmpWorking) {
dp.pressure = bmp.pressure; // Pa
dp.temperature = bmp.temperature;
dp.altitude = bmp.readAltitude(1013.25);
}
}
Explore research data curated by the Arizona Space Grant Consortium (ASGC). Flight telemetry, atmospheric measurements, and student publications.
Multi-spectral solar and radiation measurements from our payload sensors, including UV-A, UV-B, and UV-C bands.
High-fidelity flight path and systems telemetry for mission planning, including GPS tracks and recovery logs.
Student research outputs that highlight ASCEND discoveries, including symposium posters and mission briefs.