Centurion, which will be an ultrahigh-altitude, solar powered vehicle capable of carrying small payloads in it s final form, is one of those three vehicles. This flight region is not well understood, because wind tunnels cannot provide accurate, low-turbulence data for such speeds and altitudes. The Apex test vehicle will be a remotely piloted, highly modified aircraft resembling a conventional sailplane. The firing of a rocket pack under the aircraft will allow the pilot on the ground to command a pull-out from the dive. The Apex will fly horizontally, using instruments on its wings to collect data that will allow aerodynamicists and engineers to compare against existing computer codes.
Manufacturers use such codes to design wings and other parts of high-altitude vehicles.
Key Apex personnel are available for interviews. NTV is designed to provide real-time coverage of Agency activities and missions, as well as resource video to the news media and educational programming to teachers, students and the general public. NTV currently is transmitted on the Spacenet 2 satellite, which is nearing the end of its life cycle. Effective March 15, NTV will be available on GE-2, Transponder 9C at 85 degrees west longitude, vertical polarization, with a frequency of 3880 Mhz, and audio of 6.8 Mhz. The fact sheet describes the objectives of the research program, which uses high-altitude, remotely piloted aircraft to study the technologies necessary for flight at extreme altitudes.