(FOX 5/KUSI) — Keep your eyes on the skies next week — but don’t be alarmed. Southern Californians may notice research aircraft flying unusually low between June 29 and July 2 as part of a large-scale NASA atmospheric study, the agency announced Friday.
NASA’s Student Airborne Research Program (SARP), an eight-week summer internship for top undergraduate STEM students, will conduct low-altitude flights over several areas in California. This includes areas like the Los Angeles Basin, the Salton Sea, and parts of the Central Valley. The aircraft will be collecting vital air quality data using specialized equipment onboard.
Two aircraft will be used in the mission: NASA’s P-3 Orion, a four-engine turboprop flying out of Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, and a King Air B200, operated by Dynamic Aviation and contracted by NASA. Both will fly coordinated yet independent missions at altitudes ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 feet—far below typical commercial airliners.
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Residents may see the planes performing vertical spirals, circling over power plants and landfills, and making low passes along runways to collect air samples close to the surface. As explained by NASA officials, the flights may also include “missed approaches” at local airports—standard aviation maneuvers where aircraft descend as if to land, then climb away without touching down…