Welcome to IowaSP
Space Plasma Physics Particles & Imaging Research Group

This is The University of Iowa, Department of Physics & Astronomy, Space Plasma Physics Research Group led by Dr. Louis A. Frank. The research group is situated in Van Allen Hall on The University of Iowa Main Campus in Iowa City, Iowa, USA. Van Allen Hall is named after Dr. James A. Van Allen, a leading pioneer in Space Plasma Physics Research. His instruments were the very first flown in space by US rockets in the early days of the space program, including Explorer 1 which was the United States' first successful orbiting satellite. It made measurements that lead to the discovery of the two highly charged particle, or radiation regions which encircle Earth. These were later named in his honor as the Van Allen Radiation Belts.

Check out the 50th ANNIVERSARY of the Successful Launch of Explorer 1 on 31 January 1958.