# NASA: AWE Mission Page

**Type:** source
**Status:** Useful
**Confidence:** High
**Source Type:** official-page
**URL:** https://science.nasa.gov/mission/awe/
**Archive:** https://web.archive.org/web/20260712085942/https://science.nasa.gov/mission/awe/
**Archived:** 2026-07-12
**Publisher:** NASA
**Raw:** raw/nasa-awe-mission-page/2026-08-11-1fb9b5364ca9.txt
**Retrieved:** 2026-08-12
**Updated:** 2026-08-11

## Summary

NASA's mission page describes the Atmospheric Waves Experiment, its International Space Station vantage point, science objective, launch, and participating institutions.

## Useful Claims

- AWE observes atmospheric gravity waves in airglow to study how lower-atmosphere weather affects the upper atmosphere and space weather.
- The instrument launched to the International Space Station in November 2023.
- The capture links the mission to Utah State University's Space Dynamics Laboratory, but does not state that SDL built the instrument or that USU led the science team; those institutional-role claims require another source.
- Four infrared telescopes map temperature and gravity-wave structure near the mesopause.

## Verbatim

> "Launch Date and Time November 9, 2023, at 8:28 p.m. EST"
> — Mission page, stats

> "The AWE mission flew on the International Space Station. Taking advantage of the space station’s orbit, AWE looked directly down at an atmospheric layer that is located near 54 miles (87 kilometers) in altitude, known as the mesopause. Near the mesopause, where AWE made its measurements, AGWs are revealed by colorful bands of light in our atmosphere known as airglow."
> — Mission page, overview

> "Attached to the International Space Station, this instrument was a wide-field-of-view infrared imager that had four identical telescopes that simultaneously measure the airglow layer and atmospheric background to build a high-quality temperature map of atmospheric gravity waves."
> — Mission page, “How Did AWE Work?”

> "Learn more about AWE with Utah State University's Space Dynamics Laboratory."
> — Mission page, resources

## Reliability Notes

This is NASA's primary mission record and is strong evidence for purpose, hardware, institutional roles, and chronology. It is not evidence that AWE has already improved operational forecasts; that requires later results.

The current capture supports an association with USU SDL but does not establish the more specific builder and science-lead roles.

## Related Pages

- [Atmospheric Waves Experiment](atmospheric-waves-experiment.md) · https://greatutah.work/pages/atmospheric-waves-experiment.md

## Maintainer Notes

- Earlier page copy attributed builder and science-lead roles to USU SDL; this capture establishes association only.