Firefly Alpha Block 2 | INCUS
Firefly Alpha Block 2 • Firefly Alpha
📝 Mission Description
Firefly Alpha Set to Launch NASA's INCUS Mission: Advancing Storm Prediction from Space
On October 31, 2026, Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket is scheduled to lift off from Vandenberg Space Force Base, carrying NASA's Investigation of Convective Updrafts (INCUS) mission. This Earth science endeavor, led by Colorado State University, aims to unravel the mysteries of tropical storms, providing critical data to refine weather and climate models. By deploying three coordinated SmallSats, INCUS will probe the precise timing and location of convective storms, heavy precipitation, and cloud formation—phenomena that drive extreme weather events worldwide.
At the heart of INCUS are its mission objectives: to investigate why convective updrafts form where and when they do, enhancing our ability to predict severe weather. Each of the three satellites is equipped with a high-frequency precipitation radar capable of detecting rapid shifts in cloud depth and intensity. These radars will capture fine-scale details of storm dynamics, such as vertical air motions that fuel thunderstorms. One satellite adds a microwave radiometer, which measures broader atmospheric moisture and temperature patterns, complementing the radars' focused observations. The satellites' innovative formation-flying strategy is key; positioned just minutes apart in orbit, they exploit time-differencing techniques to estimate convective mass transport. This approach, akin to a high-tech relay race, allows scientists to reconstruct three-dimensional storm structures with unprecedented temporal resolution. Payload capabilities extend to real-time data relay, enabling rapid integration into global weather models and potentially improving forecasts for hurricanes, monsoons, and flash floods.
The Firefly Alpha rocket, powering this mission, represents a leap in small-lift launch technology. Designed by Firefly Aerospace, a Texas-based company founded in 2017, Alpha is a two-stage vehicle standing 29 meters tall with a diameter of 1.8 meters. Its first stage employs four Reaver engines, fueled by RP-1 kerosene and liquid oxygen, delivering 736 kN of thrust. The second stage uses a single Lightning engine for precise orbital insertion. With a payload capacity of up to 1,170 kg to low Earth orbit (LEO) and 630 kg to sun-synchronous orbit (SSO), Alpha is optimized for small satellite deployments like INCUS. Technical specs include advanced carbon composite structures for weight reduction and a plug-and-play fairing system that accommodates multiple payloads. Firefly's emphasis on rapid reusability—though Alpha is expendable—hints at evolving designs influenced by industry
ℹ️ Official Details
The Investigation of Convective Updrafts (INCUS) is a NASA Earth science mission led by Colorado State University that will investigate the behavior of tropical storms in order to better represent these storms in weather and climate models. It consists of 3 SmallSats flying in tight coordination to study why convective storms, heavy precipitation, and clouds occur exactly when and where they form.
Each satellite will have a high frequency precipitation radar that observes rapid changes in convective cloud depth and intensities. 1 of the 3 satellites also will carry a microwave radiometer to provide the spatial content of the larger scale weather observed by the radars. By flying so closely together, the satellites will use the slight differences in when they make observations to apply a novel time-differencing approach to estimate the vertical transport of convective mass.