sounding rocket
- noun
- /ˈsaʊndɪŋ ˈrɒkɪt/
- Specialized
:
cohete de sondeo
- Graduate students built a sounding rocket designed to investigate atmospheric conditions at various altitudes.
- launch a sounding rocket
Examples
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The scientists used a sounding rocket equipped with instruments to measure temperature changes during the ascent.
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A sounding rocket can reach altitudes that weather balloons cannot, providing valuable scientific information.
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Several sounding rockets were used to gather data during the solar eclipse.
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The researchers launched a sounding rocket to study the chemical composition of the upper atmosphere.
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The sounding rocket launched successfully this morning.
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NASA uses a sounding rocket to gather atmospheric data.
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NASA successfully launched a sounding rocket to collect data about the upper atmosphere.
Synonyms
A rocket launched to do science experiments in space
How High
Surface Forms
Morphology
The MWE is compositionally built from 'sounding' (measurement) + 'rocket' (a rocket), so in principle it denotes a rocket used for measurements. However, the use of 'sounding' in the sense 'to measure (e.g. atmospheric properties)' is specialized and not a common B1 meaning of 'sound/sounding', so learners who only know the everyday senses may not infer the MWE's technical meaning without exposure.
Etymology
The term sounding rocket comes from the old verb sounding, which means 'to measure', and the noun rocket. A sounding rocket is a small rocket that carries instruments up to 'measure' the upper air, so the name now means a research rocket used to take scientific measurements high above the Earth.