Texus 43 was successfully launched 11 May 2006 at 08.12 (UT). The TEXUS project is a sounding rocket program with the primary aim to investigate the properties and behaviour of materials, chemicals and biological substances in a microgravity environment. The TEXUS program gives around six minutes of microgravity. There are five investigators from three different institutes that will contribute to the TEXUS 43 mission. The TEXUS programme started in 1977 and is carried out at the Esrange Space Center jointly by DLR, EADS Astrium and the Swedish Space Corporation. The campaign is funded by ESA (European Space Agency).

The VSB-30 V03 sounding rocket will be used to launch the TEXUS 43 payload (407 kg) to around 248 km altitude. Participating organisations ESA, project management EADS-ST, campaign management and experiment modules SSC Esrange Space Center, countdown and safety management DLR MORABA, campaign operations and vehicle assembly Kayser-Threde, service system, payload integration and recovery The experiments on board Texus 43 Module Experiment Investigator TEM SEN 4 Laminar diffusion flames representative of fires in micro gravity P. Joulain LCD Poitiers TEM 06-5RO2 Determination of physiological parameters in the gravitaxis of Euglena gracilis D. P. Häder M. Lebert P. Richter Uni of Erlangen TEM 06-RO1 Cytosceletal mechanism of grasvisensing in Chara M. Braun Uni of Bonn TV-Module TV 3 TV 6 Contact persons: Mr. Mikael Viertotak, Project manager, SSC Esrange Space Center Mr. Wolfgang Herfs, Project manager, ESA Mr. Andreas Schütte, Project manager, EADS-Space Transportation Mr. Peter Turner, Project manager, DLR

VSB-30 with payload