Technical and Operational Enablers for Low Cost Balloon Flights Mike Smith, Senior Aerospace Engineer Aerostar International, Inc. Aerospace Products Department Sulphur Springs, TX (903)

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Summary  Brief history & background overview  Capabilities of free flying balloons  Elements of a balloon program  Non-technical elements  Real world examples  Recipe for success

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Genealogy of US Stratospheric Ballooning Winzen Research Air Force ONR NCAR

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Raven Industries: Depth and Diversity

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Aerostar: Full range of capabilities Well established infrastructure Decelerator design and manufacturing Military Decoy Systems Complex 3D shapes: integrated design to shop floor engineering system

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 The Stratospheric Balloon Routinely and reliably used to carry science payloads to altitudes over 100 kft since the late 1940’s.

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Standard Balloon Performance

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Balloon size for 4000 lb payload

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Ground Based Launch Ops Scenarios 5+ Crane Launch – very complex Over 500 lbs 3-5 Rolling Platform or Truck Launch lbs 2 Two person hand launch lbs 1 hand launch 1 to 10 lbs Crew Size Requirements Payload Range

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Rubber Weather Balloons  Relatively inexpensive  Payload up to 10 lbs with typical balloon sizes  Typically ascend to burst, but can be vavled into float  Launched fully inflated – material stretches as gas expands

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Plastic Zero Pressure  $100k  Payload capability to the thousands of pounds  Ascends to float passively by venting through ducts –full ascent rate up to float  Launched partially inflated –balloon inflates as gas expands

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Weather Balloon Launch

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Small Balloon Launch

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Typical Large Balloon Launch

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April lb payload launch in 15 kt wind

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Sea Launch Possibility  Aerostar/Raven has conducted two successful campaigns of shipboard operations in the Eglin Test Range  One of the flight trains was over 500 ft tall.

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Payload Recovery Options Unguided or guided round parachute Precision Airdrop System Fly Back Payload Carrier Vehicle

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Stratospheric Winds  Balloons travel generally west in the summer  Balloons travel generally east in the winter  Winds are light and variable in the spring and fall “turnaround” periods  Winds can be very light in the 65kft to 70 kft layer in the summer (0 to 20 kt)  Winter winds in this layer are generally easterly and light, but can be quite strong for short periods

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Bridging the Gap No Man’s Land (almost) Hand Launch Heavy Equipment lbs 5000 lbs

Balloon Program BalloonsParachutes Basic Telemetry Unit Power Supplies FAA Transponder Redundant Payload Release Devices Telemetry Ground Station Inflation & Launch Equipment Payload Recovery Vehicles Launch Crew Electronics Support Staff Flight Director Weather support FAA Liaison

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Small Balloon Price & Performance cf 9470 cf cf cf cf cf cf cf $358 $339 $600 $1009 $1520

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS)  High Altitude Balloon Mission Management System and wide area telemetry and control network  Developed by Aerostar for all balloon users  Successfully flight tested, flown multiple times without failure

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Benefits  Provide an inexpensive, easy to use, turn-key system for balloon and near space platform users  Customer only needs to develop their payload, does not need to develop a Telemetry System concurrently  Uses license free, non-interference communication spectrum  Ensure that entry-level balloon users are equipped with basic payloads that work reliably  Provide military users with a simple, but capable core for C x ISR platforms

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Specifications  Power: 15 V DC  90 mA average draw  Weight: ~3 lbs  Dimensions: 6.5” x 6.5” x 2.5”  Battery weight varies by mission requirements. Front

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Basic Features  GPS Position  8 channels 5 V 10 bit A/D  Control and status indication of 8 solid state relays  Dedicated relays for transponder on/off and cut- down command  Two RS-232 ports for peripheral devices or external modem such as IRRIDIUM for global communications  Expansion Port for additional A/D, relays, or accessories

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) System Advantages  Up to 100 mile line-of-site telemetry range allows communications between nodes 200 miles apart  Store and forward capability allows even larger operation areas  Text messaging between nodes  Laptop equipped nodes see the locations of all other GPS equipped assets on the network  Ground stations with internet access can overlay weather, air traffic feeds, etc. on the maps using the.NET device driver and Labview, JAVA, Visual Basic, etc.  Nodes with proper rights can monitor and control other nodes’ relays and read A/D channels or serial channels  Ground nodes can access telephone land lines with a small serial modem attached to the RS-232 port  Relatively Inexpensive

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Flight Safety Features  Selectable transmit rate to conserve battery  Selectable internal “Deadman” timer interval for both loss of comms or computer failure  Power bus monitoring and control  Low altitude auto cut-down  Separate backup cut-down timer with dedicated power supply, timer can be reset periodically by the ground station

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Network Features  Each ITS has an individual identifier on the network and can act as a relay to other ITS units  Depending on data rates and update periods, there can be up to 50 individual units on one network  Using the store and forward features of the system, any ground station can track and control assets that are out of line-of-sight of the control center; no other ground based infrastructure is required but all nodes act as relays once deployed into the system  Each network has a 256 bit AES encryption key to prevent crossover

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Operations Concept Chase Vehicle Control Center Two-way communications between balloons and ground assets Chase Vehicle

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Ground Station Mapping Ground Asset Balloon and ground asset positions will appear on all ground station map screens. The position of the ground assets are relayed through the balloons to all properly equipped ground station units. Chase Vehicle Balloon Positions Control Center

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Ground Station Your computer with our control software Transceiver with whip or high gain antenna Optional Inverter to power laptop and transceiver for mobile applications Optional GPS antenna to transmit location of ground unit

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Ground Station Control Panel

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Integrated Telemetry System (ITS) Future Applications Drivers for hand held devices Additional devices for the expansion port Solar power system

Non Technical Issues

Liability

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Liability  Anyone running balloon operations must be protected with liability insurance  This is a major factor affecting the operations of high altitude balloons  Aerostar has liability coverage for its operations  Government based facilities have operations that are protected by the U.S. Government  University operations should consult with their legal departments

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Where to fly?

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Funding Realities  Use of the CSBF is included for officially funded NASA scientists  An independently run operation must include the cost of the balloon and flight operations in their grant proposal  Should funds be set aside for small balloon flights through the NASA Balloon Program?  Can the NSF fund small balloon programs? YES! They have for decades!

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Broad Brush Issues  Currently, the highest TRL for a previously flown balloon instrument is only 4 (in some environments)– the equivalent of a laboratory test.  NASA educational programs are evaluated on “Number of Students Reached”, which drives programs toward web based experiences and traveling road shows.

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Real World Examples  NOAA  University of Wyoming  Near Space Corporation (GSSL)  Scientific Instrumentation LTD – Canada

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007

Low Cost Access to Near Space Boulder CO – April 2007 Recipe for Success  Keep it simple (the devil’s in the details)  Collaborate with other programs  Establish some fixed launch sites  Establish a good relationship with the local FAA  Conduct multi flight campaigns at one location  Avoid using pyrotechnics if possible  Use COTS equipment as much as you can. –Balloons –Parachutes –Telemetry Systems

Thank you!