Researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) will share advances in SmallSat missions, scientific instrumentation, and space environment monitoring at HELIOTECH 2026, NASA’s Heliophysics Technology Symposium, taking place Aug. 31 through Sept. 4 at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland.
The symposium brings together scientists, engineers, technologists, and mission leaders from across the heliophysics community to foster collaboration and accelerate the development of technologies that will enable future discoveries and missions. This year’s theme, “Orbital Flight: SmallSats, Explorers and More,” highlights the growing importance of innovative spacecraft and instrumentation in advancing our understanding of the Sun and its effects throughout the solar system.
LASP’s contributions reflect the institution’s leadership in developing mission concepts and technologies that expand scientific capabilities while reducing cost, size, and risk. Researchers will present findings from active and completed missions, along with new instruments and technologies being developed for future heliophysics and planetary exploration. Together, the presentations demonstrate LASP’s broad expertise in mission development, instrument design, and technological innovation that is helping to shape the next generation of heliophysics research.
LASP presentations at HELIOTECH 2026
Mon., Aug. 31
Lauren Blum
Updates from Geostationary Transfer Orbit Satellite (GTOSat): Progress and Challenges for SmallSat Rideshares to GTO
Tues., Sept. 1
Ed Thiemann
First Spectra and Performance Characterization of a Spaceborne Vacuum Ultraviolet Fourier Transform Spectrometer
Zoltan Sternovsky
Debris and Meteoroid ENvironment Sensor (DENTS): An In-situ Sensor for Detection and Characterization of Small Debris Particles at Low Earth Orbit
Thurs., Sept. 3
Aimee Merkel
DYNamics Atmosphere GLObal-Connection (DYNAGLO) CubeSat Mission
Richard Eastes
AtmOCube: Atmospheric Oxygen CubeSat Mission for Mesosphere Lower Thermosphere Wave Dynamics
Aimee Merkel
Dynamic Atmosphere-Ionosphere Explorer (DAPHNE) Mission
Xinlin Li
Achievements and Lessons Learned from Colorado Inner Radiation Belt Experiment (CIRBE) Mission
Fri., Sept. 4
Xinlin Li
Building on Proven Heritage: Miniaturized Energetic Particle Instruments for Future NASA Heliophysics and Exploration Missions
Maria Usanova
MiniMag: A Broadband Magneto-Optical Magnetometer for Future Heliophysics and Planetary Missions
Founded a decade before NASA, the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder (LASP) is revolutionizing human understanding of the cosmos. LASP is deeply committed to inspiring and educating the next generation of space explorers. From the first exploratory rocket measurements of Earth’s upper atmosphere to trailblazing observations of every planet in the solar system, LASP continues to build on its remarkable history with a nearly $1 billion portfolio of new research and engineering programs.
