Near Space Launch
Island Labs has successfully launched a balloon 29km up and took incredible pictures. Torrent up soon. GO TEAM GO!
What
The members of Island Labs will assemble a balloon and instrument package, travel to a “safe” inland area, plot an estimated flight path for a several-hour flight, and attempt to track and recover the flight vehicle after landing.
How
By following the model/notes from MIT's Icarus project.
| Item | Weight | Cost | Got | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sounding Balloon (Kaymont) | 800g | $40 | X | Bill, 800g |
| Helium | $100 (+$150 deposit) | X | John T | |
| Parachute | 10g | $55 | John T | |
| Motorola i290 Prepaid Cellphone (Boost) | 90g, 3oz | $30 | X | John A |
| Styrofoam Beer Cooler | 15g | $0 | X | Bill |
| Duct Tape | 10g | $0 | X | Office |
| Zip Ties | 5g | $0 | ||
| Canon A560 with 4GB SD card | 165g, 5.9 oz | $60 | X | Bill |
| Insulation material- newspaper | 5g | $0 | X | Not used |
| Duracell USB phone charger powered by AA batteries | 20g 1oz | $10 | X | Bill |
| Instant Hand warmer | 5g | $3 | X | Bill |
| 4 Ultimate Lithium AA batteries | 15g * 4 = 60 g, 2 oz | $10 | ||
| Radar Reflector (aluminum foil) | 0g | $0 | X | Not Used |
| Closed cell foam packing supplies | unknown | $0 | X | Stony Brook trash |
| Total | approx. 1300g | ~$310 | ||
Island labs members will provide the cost of fuel for travel to the launch and recovery sites, as well as service plans required for the tracking of the vehicle.
Plan
1) Assemble, setup in-flight software, and activate service plans for vechicle tracking.
2) research/pick launch location based on recent weather, and wind direction.
3) pre-position “chase” vehicles (cars) in predicted landing areas.
4) Launch the balloon.
5) Track Balloon travel.
6) Locate / recover instrument package.
7) Retrieve/Publish flight-data (images recorded during flight)
Why
For the experience of building a vehicle that can reach the upper atmosphere.
To see (and be able to show) what the edge of space looks like.
To provide independant confirmation of the MIT/Icarus launch “protocols”.
To put a StonyBrook “space program” on the map, and make contributions to the amateur exploration of space.
To test/prove a StonyBrook balloon/vehicle as a platform for other potential instrument packages.
To show SB students what heights can be attained when you set your mind to it.
Because it's really cool.
Results
Flight 1: March 03, 2010
- Total flight distance: 77.8 miles
- Average speed: 35mph
- Maximum speed: 63mph
- Total flight time: 2 hours, 12 minutes
- Distance between predicted and actual landing: ~5 miles
