The National Association of Rocketry (NAR) is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization dedicated to safety, education, and the advancement of technology in hobby rocketry in the United States and internationally. Founded in 1957, the NAR is the oldest and largest hobby rocketry organization in the world with over 9,000 members and approximately 250 affiliated Sections (clubs) primarily in the United States.

The NAR supports all aspects of safe consumer sport rocket flying, from small model rockets to very large high-power rockets. The NAR is a recognized national authority for safety certification of consumer rocket motors and user certification of high-power rocket fliers in the United States. The NAR is the author of model and high-power rocketry safety codes for the hobby that are recognized and accepted by manufacturers and public safety officials nationwide.

The NAR plays a strong role in the establishment and maintenance of national rocketry safety standards for public safety officials through its participation in the National Fire Protection Association. It functions as the consumer liaison and the voice of its members with hobby manufacturers, national media, local public safety officials, and government regulatory agencies such as the Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, and Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The NAR publishes the bimonthly color magazine Sport Rocketry, the nation’s largest-circulation hobby rocketry magazine, which is available in print and electronically to all NAR members. Additionally, the NAR distributes a monthly Electronic Rocketeer member e-mail newsletter.

The NAR represents the U.S. in the Federation Aeronautique Internationale World Spacemodeling Championships international program. Partnered with the Aerospace Industries Association to build youth interest in aerospace careers, the NAR co-sponsors the world’s largest rocket contest, the American Rocketry Challenge. The American Rocketry Challenge has attracted over 5,000 7th through 12th grade students to enter in teams from across the U.S. each year since 2002. The NAR also operates the annual rocket launch for the NASA Student Launch Program where about 50 high school and university student teams fly large complex high-power rockets and scientific payloads that they have designed and built. The NAR supports other student rocketry programs including the ARLISS Project, which is a collaborative effort between students and faculty at universities (and some high schools) around the world, and high-power rocketry enthusiasts in Northern California, to build, launch, test and recover prototype satellites.