The Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility

About CSBF
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The Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility (CSBF), located in Palestine, Texas, is a NASA facility managed by Peraton.   The contract to manage the facility is administered by the Balloon Program Office at Wallops Flight Facility of Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC).

We provide the services of launching large (400 ft. dia), unmanned, high altitude (120,000 ft.), research balloons; tracking, and recovering the scientific experiments suspended beneath them, for NASA centers and universities from all over the world.

NASA/CSBF: The Scientific Ballooning Story

Scientific Balloons Video Gallery

Palestine Operations

Fort Sumner Operations

Antarctica Operations

Wanaka Operations


Antarctica Dec 2025 - Jan 2026
GAPS
PUEO
Hical 1 Hand Launch
Hical 2 Hand Launch

Fort Sumner Sept-Oct 202
Salter Test Flight
BOOP!
HASP
CORSAIR




Balloon Program Chief: Gabriel Garde
CSBF Site Manager: Robert Renko
Website Curator: Michelle Johnson
Last Updated: January 22, 2026
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