The Kauai Test Facility (KTF) is a rocket launch range in Hawaii operated by Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) for the Department of Energy (DOE). The facilities and personnel support a variety of missions including research and development, operational training, and test and evaluation. SNL conducts launch projects for other organizations or government agencies on a noninterference basis. Beginning in 1961, KTF has a long history of success and experience with a multitude of rocket launch operations and has supported over 400 missions.
KTF provides a high-quality integrated facility for conducting a wide range of test operations. These operations support materials research, components development, advanced reentry-vehicle technologies, water entry-and-recovery systems, missile defense testing, and on-board sensor research-and-development testing. Resources at KTF are available for assembling, testing, and launching instrumented rockets and rocket payloads; receiving, recording, and processing telemetry; and data transfer with remote air- and ship-borne instrumentation platforms.
KTF is a tenant and an integral element of the U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF), the world’s largest test range (underwater, surface, air, and space assets). PMRF complimentary and supplementary capabilities include flight safety, radar tracking, world time reference, telemetry reception, communication, and weather data. Located on the westernmost extension of the Hawaiian island of Kauai, our location offers excellent weather conditions and flight corridors for preparation and flight activities. KTFs assets, collaboration with PMRF, and location provide an ideal and unique option for many U.S. rocket-borne experiments.
