This is our second high altitude attempt with a small payload.
| Flight Parameters | |
|---|---|
| Launch Date/Time | Saturday, 29 October at 7:30am |
| Alternative Date | N/a |
| Launch Site | Wells Aircraft at the Hutchinson Airport (38° 03.8', 97° 51.9'W) in Hutchinson, KS |
| Primary Transmitter / Antenna | PocketTracker running APRS (W0WR-11) on 144.34MHz / Horizontally polarized dipole |
| Backup Transmitter / Antenna | N/a |
| Balloon / Gas | Kaymont 1500gram / 90 cu feet of Helium |
| Estimated Burst Altitude | 120,000' MSL |
| Estimated Ascent Rate | 800' per minute |
| Estimated Descent Rate | Approx. 1500' per minute at touchdown |
| Capsule(s) weight | 14oz |
| Chase Frequencies | 446.52MHz |
| Balloon Finder Telemetry Mode | N/a |
Flight Predictions
| Flight Predictions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date Created (Central Time) | Dist From Launch | Bearing From Launch | Relative Position | Max Speed | Map | Winds |
| 27 Oct 7:30pm |
89mi | 59° (NE) | 8mi NE of Council Grove | 49mph | Map | Winds |
| 29 Oct 5:00pm |
89mi | 63° (NE) | 5mi E of Council Grove | 49mph | Map | Winds |
Flight Results
This was the first flight that has so far been unrecovered, and at this point, we don't expect to get it back. The APRS quite at around 60,000' and we never heard it again. We did have a visual on the balloon shortly before we felt that it should have burst (assuming it didn't become a floater), but we lost visual after needing to relocate.
Initial suspicions are that the PocketTracker got too cold and lost its PLL lock. We think it probably began transmitting again once it hit the ground and warmed up.
We spent about an hour scouring the area that we felt it should have fell into, however Jon wound up puncturing two of his vehicle's tires on a rough fire lane road. After that we decided to cut our losses and limp home.
| Flight Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Launch Date/Time | N/a |
| Launch Site | Wells Aircraft at the Hutchinson Airport (38° 03.8', 97° 51.9'W) in Hutchinson, KS |
| Burst Altitude | Unknown |
| Average Ascent Rate | Unknown |
| Measured Descent Rate | Unknown |
| Touchdown Site | Unknown |
| Touchdown Time | Unknown |
| Recovery Time | Unknown |
| Distance Traveled | Unknown |
| Total Flight Time | Unknown |
Lessons Learned
- The long and short of it, we failed to do extensive testing on such a new and radical capsule/transmitter design.
- There was no backup transmitter of any sorts on this unit.
- Our name/telephone number was an after-thought, and wasn't permanently attached to the capsule. As I recall, it was written on a piece of paper losely attached to the outside of the capsule. I fully expect that the information would have been washed away after the first good rain, if not sooner.