The Mission:
High Altitude Balloon Fun
The Date:
Saturday, July 12th • 9:30 a.m. Launch
The Goal:
A high-altitude balloon (HAB) exploratory excursion – and a space walk by The Kinze Man – at approximately 105,000 feet above sea level.
The Location:
Kinze Manufacturing, Williamsburg, IA
(Staging by the Williamsburg H.S. Robotics Team will start at 8:00 AM)
The Weather Forecast:
Light northerly winds, less than 30% chance of showers.
It’s a go! Williamsburg High School students are ready to launch their first-ever mission to the edge of space this Saturday.
The Vehicle:
A high-altitude balloon with a capsule that allows them to explore “Near Space”. The launch will take place 9:30 A.M at Kinze in Williamsburg, IA.
How does it all work? You simply build a payload with a lot of sensors, get a camera or two to take pictures, include a GPS with transmitters for locating and tracking, fill a balloon with helium or hydrogen and release!
“Sounds easy, but high-altitude ballooning (HAB) takes a lot of time, learning and technical skills,” says Dustan Hahn, a senior design engineer at Kinze Manufacturing. (Kinze is sponsoring and underwriting the event.) “It’s a pretty comprehensive project and a great learning opportunity for young, inquisitive minds, because it allows these kids to test their abilities to plan, design and construct electronics while learning about radio theory and the functionality of GPS modules. Plus, these students will have an opportunity to put it all to the test at altitudes up to 20 miles, temperatures that approach -60 degrees C, in an environment with less then 1% oxygen.”
The Williamsburg H.S. Robotics Team designed and built their own high-altitude balloon capsule, which is projected to reach an altitude of 105,000 feet above sea level (three times higher than an airliner, near the edge of outer space). The team was directed by Kevin Wilkinson, a Williamsburg High School teacher, along with Hahn and Joe Schutte, a Kinze Test Engineer.
What’s in the playload? On-board electronics (including 2 cameras), 1 GPS satellite transponder, a GPS tracker, temperature-pressure sensors, a recording device and, of course, the “near space-walking” Kinze Man. The total package, which weighs roughly 3 pounds, will spend several hours reaching its target, before it returns to earth by parachute. The 5-ft diameter launch balloon – at lift off – will ultimately expand to 20 feet in diameter before it bursts. The payload will then land 30 to 100 miles away, depending on wind conditions. And that’s when the fun begins.
After the capsule is launched, students will also be responsible for (1) projecting the balloon trajectory based on balloon size, weight and weather conditions, (2) tracking the balloon and retrieving the capsule, (3) organizing photos, video, GPS mapping and (4) working with Kinze to document, publicize and celebrate the event.
(Photo below is what we expect to see at maximum altitude.)
Stay tuned to our blog next week where we will share photos of the launch!