Meteor is a family of Polish sounding rockets series. The Meteor rockets were built between 1963 and 1974.
Meteor was a series of one- and two-stage meteorological rockets using solid fuel, constructed for the research of the upper layers of the atmosphere, wind directions and forces from 18 km to more than 50 km above the Earth's surface. These rockets were designed by Polish engineers of Warsaw Aviation Institute (among them was Professor Jacek Walczewski and engineer Adam Obidziński) and had been produced by WZK-Mielec.
The first launch site of the sounding rockets in Poland was Błędowska Desert, where between 1958 and 1963, rockets of different types had been launched; among others RD and Rasko. During a flight, a biological experiment with earlier trained two white mouses was conducted (the RM-2D rocket achieved the altitude of 1,580 meters).
From 1965 until April 1970, the Meteor-1 rockets had been launched from a "spaceport" located 5 km from Ustka. This programme had been continued to 1974, when rockets were bearing out from the area of experimental center founded there during the years of the Second World War, located on west side of Łeba. Currently, it is preserved in the museum (the starting place with the ramp and the radar bases).
There were 224 flights of "Meteor-1" rocket series (including prototypes). The valuable data both meteorological and connected with rocket techniques were collected and analyzed as the result of these researches.
The "Meteor-1", "Meteor-2H" and "Meteor 2K" (the largest civilian rocket developed in Poland) were single-stage rockets. The "Meteor-3" was a two-stage rocket, developed from "Meteor 1".
| Meteor 1 | Meteor 2H | Meteor 2K | Meteor 3 | |
| maximum altitude | 40 km | 68 km | 100 km | 65 km |
| takeoff thrust | 24 kN | 52 kN | 14 kN | |
| diameter | 12 cm | 35 cm | 35 cm | 12 cm |
| length | 2.5 m | 4.5 m | 4.3 m | 4.3 m |
Meteor rockets had been launched from Łeba and Ustka. Five Meteor rockets missions were conducted around 1970 from Zingst, in East Germany. The programme of flights of Meteor-2 was finished during the same year, when Poland started to participate in Interkosmos research, using the Vertical rockets, which were derived from R-14 missile.
One stage, but two units rocket called "Meteor-1" had the length of 2,470 mm and the initial mass of 32.5 kg. The flight lasted for 80 seconds and reaching at the peak altitude of 36.5 km. The motor ignite for 2–3 seconds and reached the maximum velocity of 1,100 meters per seconds. In 1965, 6 rockets of "Meteor-1" type was launched and after this time: 12 in 1966, 40 in 1967, 45 in 1968, 36 in 1969, 34 in 1970 and 4 in 1971.
The charge of metal dipoles was released by rockets and this material had later been observed on radar screens. It was the base of derivation of winds strength in the stratosphere and winds directions in the same atmospheric layer. After experiments that had been conducted in the years 1965–1966, during "The Year of the Quiet Sun", a cyclic pattern of variation in case of directions of these atmospheric flows was concluded.
The one stage "Meteor-2K" was the most advanced version of the Meteor rocket. On 7 October 1970, the flight took place and reached the altitude of 90 kilometers. This rocket had been used as sounding of the ionosphere, reaching the level of boundary between D and E layers. 10 more flights of this version were realized, when the measurements of temperature were made. The length of rocket frame is 4.5 meters and some are more longer than an English rocket, Petrel (in service since 1968). The "Meteor-2" had not been produced in serial way. The cost of this rocket prototype was eight times higher than for the copy of "Meteor-1". The weight of useful charge, in form of "RAMZES" recovery probe, is 10 kg.
A two-stage rocket called "Meteor-3" was a developed version of "Meteor-1". The range of flight was increased and the rocket gained possibility of launching of few charges of dipoles. It can reach at ceiling altitudes between 67 and 74 kilometers. An idea of version "S" project had been considered, although never realized. This model could be launch from airplane frame, about 5 kilometers above the surface.
"Meteor-4" rocket has ten times more thrust than "Meteor-2". This version could reach above 100 km. According to design, this rocket is longer than 5 meters and had the initial total mass of 407 kg with useful weight of 10 kg. 175 seconds into the flight, it would reach at the altitude of 120 kilometers.
| Number | Date | Launch site | Maximum altitude (kilometres) | Rocket type | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1963 | Leba | 36 | Meteor 1 | Test flight | |
| 2 | April 1965 | Leba | 36 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 3 | June 15, 1965 | Leba | ? | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 4 | June 15, 1965 | Leba | ? | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 5 | June 16, 1965 | Leba | 36 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 6 | April 5, 1967 | Leba | 36 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 7 | April 5, 1967 | Leba | ? | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 8 | May 13, 1967 | Leba | 36 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 9 | 1968 | Leba | 68 | Meteor 2H | Test flight | |
| 10 | 1968? | Leba | 68 | Meteor 2H | Test flight | |
| 11 | October 1968 | Leba | 65 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 12 | 1969? | Leba | 68 | Meteor 2H | Aeronomy mission | |
| 13 | 1969? | Leba | 68 | Meteor 2H | Aeronomy mission | |
| 14 | 1969? | Leba | 68 | Meteor 2H | Aeronomy mission | |
| 15 | October 3, 1969 | Leba | 48 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 16 | October 3, 1969 | Leba | 49 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 17 | October 3, 1969 | Leba | 45 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 18 | 1970? | Leba | 68 | Meteor 2H | Test flight | |
| 19 | July 10, 1970 | Leba | 85 | Meteor 2K | Aeronomy mission | |
| 20 | July 10, 1970 | Leba | 100 | Meteor 2K | Test flight | |
| 21 | August 22, 1970 | Leba | 57 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 22 | September 2, 1970 | Leba | 63 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 23 | September 7, 1970 | Leba | 62 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 24 | September 9, 1970 | Leba | 61 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 25 | October 7, 1970 | Leba | 75 | Meteor 2K | Aeronomy mission | |
| 26 | October 7, 1970 | Leba | 89 | Meteor 2K | Aeronomy mission | |
| 27 | June 11, 1973 | Leba | 22 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 28 | June 12, 1973 | Leba | 23 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 29 | June 14, 1973 | Leba | 40 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 30 | June 15, 1973 | Leba | 22 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 31 | June 15, 1973 | Leba | 40 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 32 | September 15, 1973 | Leba | 36 | Meteor 1 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 33 | September 16, 1973 | Leba | 44 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 34 | September 17, 1973 | Leba | 45 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 35 | September 18, 1973 | Leba | 44 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission | |
| 36 | June 6, 1974 | Leba | 65 | Meteor 3 | Aeronomy mission |