"We're launching tomorrow morning' says Ed.
"Shame I can't make it, I have to be at work" says I.
"At 3 am" says Ed
"Hmmm" says I
Long story short - hopefully a reflight of the HAPS1 A560 tomorrow - at dawn - with recovery in time for me to get back to Leicester in time for work. Ed will fill you in on the rest of the payload. He's an engineer - I'm just a temperamental artist.
Obviously - anyone with half a brain will be fast asleep, so may not be any/many live updates. Possibly live tracking, maybe uStream while we're setting up.
The real problem is the toxicology involved in staying up all night with caffeine based beverages.
(For people just finding this thread...
Movies from the Nova 8 camera
http://vimeo.com/1628664 Ascent Part 1
http://vimeo.com/1628493 Ascent Part 2
http://vimeo.com/1628497 Ascent Part 3
http://vimeo.com/1628414 Descent
Movies from the HAPS-D camera
http://vimeo.com/1628947 Ascent Part 1
http://vimeo.com/1628809 Ascent Part 2
http://vimeo.com/1628810 Ascent Part 3
http://vimeo.com/1626812 Descent
http://vimeo.com/1628991 All of the still images at 6fps from the HAPS-D camera
http://vimeo.com/1629086 All of the still images at 6fps from the Nova 8 camera
Download the MOV from bottom right on these - and you can essentially scrub your way thru all the images at quite a reasonable resolution.
Ohh sunrise images - very cool!
The thought had crossed my mind about how cool dawn images would be. Great to see an attempt going ahead.
Just think you're working on a 24hxx minutes day-sol (or whatever) and you'll be fine
A few details -
The payload is based around a big polystyrene (styrofoam) box, with various layers of space blanket to keep everything inside warm(ish). The payload has been built in the last couple of days built by everyone except me - I have a summer job (ExoMars EDLS with Vorticity Systems - I'm so glad I picked engineering as a career!) whereas the other guys have managed to stay in Cambridge over the summer to work on stuff fulltime.
We'll be flying 4 cameras in total - 2 'premiers' (£5 ebay specials) which we've used since the beginning because they're dirt cheap, but a bit rubbish. However cheapness > quality after we enthusiastically bought expensive cameras once (to return to Jessops after the flight) only to have a pyrotechnic cutdown fail, and so they went somewhere into the North Sea. The Premiers will be on 'sponsor' duties - http://spacefellowship.com/News/?p=6152
We then have the HAPS A560 and our own one. These won't have sponsor logos in the way. Our one will be horizontally mounted and will have a UV filter, Doug is (I think?) mounting his in portrait with a 10 degree downward slope - as he and James Canvin discussed to optimise stitching.
The avionics comes from the 'Badger Board' that Fergus and I designed - http://flickr.com/photos/25036435@N00/2501001643/in/photostream/ and http://flickr.com/photos/25036435@N00/2501001535/in/photostream/
It's an ARM-based microcontroller, with gps, gsm, radio, some sensors (including 3 axis accelerometer, though I can't guarantee we'll have that for tomorrow, but if we do, we'll of course put the data files up), general io to activate cameras and pyro-links and so on.
The all-up weight of the payload will be about 1kg. It'll be hoisted by a 1.5 kg balloon - the balloons are named according to the weight of the latex they're made from. It's a larger balloon than was used on HAPS-1, so it might get a little higher. Our altitude record is 33.281km for reference (not that the gps is good enough for 1m accuracy in altitude). Parachute will be whatever is lying around. I'm about to start construction of a ring-slot parachute, but it's going to be a bit of a pig to make with just mum's sewing machine, and it's sized for the new payload system we're building, so we will probably still have the cork-screwing on the way down that we saw with HAPS-1.
Based on the GFS forecast, we're looking at a flight profile that is roughly like this (open in Google earth): http://www.cuspaceflight.co.uk/nova8_prediction.kml Though that assumes a higher drag descent than will be the case, so the drift during descent should be lower. Note - constant ascent rate. Once we punch through the jetstream we pretty much go straight up.
With luck, you will be able to track it live from here - http://spacenear.us/tracker You'll see there a twitter box for random updates from us in the run-up, and an embedded irc applet. It points to #highaltitude99 on FreeNode (if you prefer your own client), and it will have a bot in it which prints the raw telemetry string every 10 seconds. That just gives the basics - lat long alt, time since last reset, number of gps sats etc. That's what we use to track it down. the room #highaltitude is the main room for general ballooney chit-chat. If you want to have a go at this yourself, that's the place! There's also a uStream live webcam which Doug will sort out I think - it'll probably just be us preparing in the college Bar. If we're in wireless range outside, we'll try and get launch too, though it'll be dark.
The radio is 10mW 434Mhz. 'Why only 1/3rd the power of an LED?', you ask. Well, we are legally limited to that by Ofcom. They are a bit jumpy. That said, we have tracked stuff well out to the North Sea (that fatefull second mission) and it was several hundred kilometres away when we gave up listening and went to the pub. It was still receiving absolutely fine. So, it you're in the UK or Holland/Calais/anywhere around there and are of an amateur radio persuasion, you can listen in. Here are the details: 434.650Mhz, 50 baud, 425 Hz shift reversed ascii-7 RTTY. Callsign 'Badger' if I remember correctly. We can pick it up with a whip from at least 200km away, and if you have a yagi, the only limit will be Line of Site.
I think that's all the basics. Let's hope we get some pics of the sun creeping over the curvature of the earth!
Ed
EDIT: Forgot to say, the actual launch time will be calculated so that it first sees the sun at about 25km (sunrise is earlier up there than on the ground for a given lat/long, obviously).
Godspeed! If this works it could provide awesome images of cloudtops casting long shadows into the distance and we'll have a bit of red color this time, too.
Sorry if my question is not relevant : will a mike be riding along with the camera ?
Anyway, I can see different pro to ride a mike :
1- listen what a sound is like at a martian pressure (actualy we'll have to generate some noise to know).
2- Once I staid for over 1.5 month at the Everest base camp (and heigher ) and I remember the sound (I should say noise) generated by the jet stream so I wonder what it sound like from "inside"
Good luck to you all.
If a balloon bursts in the stratosphere and there's no one there to hear it, does it make a sound?
A sea level, yes.
But judging from all the bits flying around when the video starts just after, and the state of the remnants attached after landing surely it makes some kind of bang at altitude.
Launch is set for 3.30AM. http://spacenear.us/tracker to see what's hapening.
New portrai mode + bit of down-pointing housing made. New script made. Just setting of for Cambridge now
Launch adjusted to 3.45, fill level (and corresponding ascent rate) slightly increased. It doesn't float.
Just arrived - putting uStream of preps going on line now.
Good luck! The last results were absolutely stunning. I just wish I wasn't as busy as I am at the moment and could share in the fun.
She's away - just broken thru 2km and rising. Launch was at about 0402
It's really great following along at http://spacenear.us/tracker/
but there was a moment after it passed 2000m where the altitude read 8m for a while.
Scared the hell out on me!!! Glad to see it's approaching 3000m now.
Past 5000m now and just drifted over Cambridge, about 30km to the NW of the release point.
Edit: Oops! Got the direction wrong. Drifting to the SE of from the release point in Cambridge.
Past 6000!
1, metres
Hey, should I be worried? This thing is hell bent for the Channel. At this rate it will get there by the time it reaches 30,000m. Is there some upper level wind to turn it around? Well, anyway, if it gets to the Channel it might as well go all the way to France. That's not a problem, is it?
It should be okay, once it gets above the jetstream it'll go straight up so that should help with the distance. Also the descent will be a lot quicker.
That said its a risk business flying balloons in the UK - never further then 70miles from the sea apparently...
James
http://www.pegasushabproject.org.uk
Going through 15000 m over Braintree...and it launched from Cambridge...don't know whether it's in the UK or Massachusetts!
This is really a pleasant surprise, seeing the chase car show up on the map. I'm guessing that it's not on the move right now, but waiting to see what direction to head in?
Wow! A sharp hook to the North at 18,800m!
A 180 degree switch in direction in a minute or less!
What Th-- ! It went in a full circle, now headed South again, now West. Wacky!
(At 19,500m)
Edit: At 19,800m, headed North again. Looks like it's going up a spiral staircase!
2 , metres!
How many balloon launches do you think have ever been watched by people in Australia, the U.S. and the U.K. all at the same time?
History in the making I'd bet.
Looks like it's headed nearly straight up now....Nope, heading south again.
OMG! Now we've got the Chase Car in hot pursuit. The tension of this is killing me!
http://spacenear.us/tracker/
Dang! Looks like it came out of its spiral, headed South again at 20,500m.
What altitude do you suppose the chase car will reach?
25000!
Just a little nervous here. I'm looking at the descent slopes of the previous two flights on Google Earth and if this flight were to descend in a similar fashion, there is a large likelihood that it would land in water (somewhere between the locations marked Canvey Island and Foulness Island. I hope I'm wrong.)
Just sayin.
And doooowwwwwnnn she comes... and back up a bit... and back down again.
Caught an updraft on the parachute?
-the other Doug
A long gap in the data....couldn't hold my breath any longer.
Sigh of relief now...4500m and descending.
Looks like a good call on the chase car stake-out location. Its going to fall into their lap!
ISTR from my Essex school days that the highest point in Essex was the top of the Danbury church spire at 365ft ASL -so not a huge error on reported chase car altitude...
Great that we are not going to see a sea landing - looking forward to the pictures!
Rob (now sadly off to work...)
I dunno -- unless she turns again, looks like she's heading to a landing just south of Bicknacre.
-the other Doug
I'm sure it's down and hopefully soon will be in the clutches of it's rightful owners. I suspect the position updates were stopped to help ensure this.
Well - I gave up the chase after the first 40 minute drive south - I couldn't hang around any more with work to get back for.
BUT
Spoke to Ed - they have eyes on the payload on the ground near Bicknacre. He promises a call once they get to it and inspect the result.
I think we probably tried to put too much onto it - hence the rather slow ascent and thus quite a long ride. A little bit worried about the duration of the flight. I cranked up the 'mb/minute' as it were, on the script....but it will have done 3-4 hours on the card.
Just got off the phone from Ed. He's essentially speechless. He didn't know what to say - but 'awesome' and 'amazing' were used more than once.
So net result.... it worked, and beautifully.
They've got to get back to Cambridge (a couple of hours) and then we'll get a few tasters.
Great.
If there is any chance of getting the whole lot online today (set up ftp and then go to bed!) then I have 4-5 hours this evening with nothing currently to do.
Once all the stills are down and the movies are down, I'll sort out something on Vimeo for you to start seing it. There's a LOT of very dark, very blurred frames ( so people who want to download them all just as a matter of stamp-collecting would be wasting their time) - however later on there are some great images - such as this one.
Doug - "The badger icon on the actual PCB is the very same Badger of Badger-Badger-Badger fame as in that picture".
That's an amazing coincidence. I just picked him from a random Google search because he was cute.
Well done to Ed and Doug and everyone who worked on this project. It was incredible to watch as events unfolded.
It'd be kinda nice if we could have Google Maps giving up to the moment movements on the Rovers (although at times there'd be little movement of course!)
I just thought I'd post this desktop wallpaper tribute to Badger for all the team. Thanks for a fascinating day.
Can't wait to see the movies and images.
It could take ages to sort through this lot - so I've just done an iWeb gallery of a bunch of nice stills from the flight.
http://gallery.me.com/djellison/100034
Speechless...
Airbag
Doug,
I am very proud and amazed at the accomplishments UK Balloon Teams this past week... and to see these fabulous pictures is just a thrill.
Monitoring this flight across the globe in real time, pictures in near real time, telemetry for analysis...it is something I could not have dreamed of when I was a boy...or even your age!
You have talked the talk (unmanned space flight) and now you have walked the walk!
You Guys Rock
Incredible and amazing
The images are gorgeous. We can see lights of cities at the ground, under clouds layer while at high altitude sun is rising .
Outstanding imagery, it pretty much met my (high) expectations. Are those full resolution images?
Just got back from a fairly killer motorway journey, and i was pretty tired already. Coffee has fixed me though.
I have wanted to get the sun touching the earth for so, so, so long now. I have had a smile on my face all day. And this is just the raw images, before the extremely talented people here on UMSF have had a chance to work their magic. I cannot wait! Flight computer logs will be put up asap, + conversions to KMLs etc.
Stunningly beautiful!
What's the name of the that star being occulted by the limb?
Cool! You can see jet contrails!
Check out 80% of the way to the horizon in http://gallery.me.com/djellison#100034/IMG_0908&bgcolor=black
-Mike
My new desktop background of the 25th, following the first flight, has just been replaced.
Lovely images, team!
Andy
Videos will be on Vimeo this time. Probably 10 movies. It'll take most of the night for them to appear.
For each camera, two ascent movies (the 20s movie clips run together) and one descent movie, and then one ascent and one descent movie of stills.
I think I see an APOD candidate here.
I'm seeing an National Geographic article. Ask a Nat. Geo. photographer along for next launch to document the proceedings!
Airbag
Balloon Burst at Apogee ( About 32.8km ) seen from the Nova A560 camera
http://vimeo.com/1626665
Now that defiantly went BANG!
This is the http://gallery.me.com/djellison#100034/IMG_9273&bgcolor=black of a new era. Congratulations.
Paolo Amoroso
OK there is a HUGE amount of data to go through, it's still downloading! But here is a 360 degree horizon panorama to keep you going.
http://www.nivnac.co.uk/blog1.php/2008/08/29/haps-d-nova8-360-degree-panorama
http://www.nivnac.co.uk/blog1.php/2008/08/29/haps-d-nova8-360-degree-panorama
Congrats to the team for another amazing flight!
Very inspiring and beautifull pictures. No other words come to my mind.
Not too shabby James.
All the descent movies from the HAPS-D side - http://vimeo.com/1626812
and the Nova 8 side - http://vimeo.com/1628414
The three Nova ascent vids are done and up. Just got to make the three HAPS-D ascent movies before switching to stills.
That instrument package could of course land anywhere and could potentially cause damage and/or injury; did you have to take out special insurance? One could for instance imagine the package hitting the windshield of a car at motorway speeds; that would not be good. Not to be a downer, but just wondering...
Airbag
Doug,
Congratulations on a great flight.
(off-topic) I was struck by the pictures of Balloon EARS Oct. 7 in your MobileMe gallery. Is it a balloon mission with a rocket first stage? I couldn't find any discussion.
TTT
(Also curious about best track07, but that's really off topic)
That earlier Balloon was testing Ed et.al.'s plans for a balloon gondola that can fly itself home again. The rocket launched were seperate - just happening at the same venue. BUT - at some point, the CU Spaceflight guys intend to combine high power rocketry and high altitude ballooning
And TRAC was 'The Race Against Cancer' - a friend of mine was a co-organiser so I helped out on the weekend of the event to get things moving. It was quite a few racing drivers from GP2 and below, all racing for free, with the money raised by spectators etc going to Cancer Research UK - http://www.theraceagainstcancer.co.uk/
Movies from the Nova 8 camera
http://vimeo.com/1628664 Ascent Part 1
http://vimeo.com/1628493 Ascent Part 2
http://vimeo.com/1628497 Ascent Part 3
http://vimeo.com/1628414 Descent
Movies from the HAPS-D camera
http://vimeo.com/1628947 Ascent Part 1
http://vimeo.com/1628809 Ascent Part 2
http://vimeo.com/1628810 Ascent Part 3
http://vimeo.com/1626812 Descent
http://vimeo.com/1628991 All of the still images at 6fps from the HAPS-D camera
http://vimeo.com/1629086 All of the still images at 6fps from the Nova 8 camera
Download the MOV from bottom right on these - and you can essentially scrub your way thru all the images at quite a reasonable resolution.
It's one of the smaller cameras, every time it gets a picture it beeps.
Some of the vimeo stuff is still encoding - give it an hour or so
IMO it's next to impossible to match up a largely homogeneous cloud deck after it's been given 20-30 mins to change its appearance. So this has a heavy dose of guesswork and fudging.
http://www.nivnac.co.uk/blog1.php/2008/08/29/haps-d-nova8-360-degree-panorama-v2
James
I'm creating a thumbnail interface to the images from the HAPS camera, http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~jacobn/2008/08/haps-d/HAPSD/. This might make it easier to spot the gems without having to download ginormous images.
It's fetching on the fly and rate-limited in an attempt not to lock everyone out and trash Doug's hosting -- so it'll take a while to finish (currently it's mostly furniture ).
(Doug, hope that's OK.)
The ascent movies show a white dot in the eastern part of the horizon where the Sun is rising, and the photos show a white trail. Is it the Moon? It apparently is where it was supposed to be.
Paolo Amoroso
Yes, I believe it is the moon.
Yes that's a camera artifact.
There are one or two non blurred moon shots, like the amazing one that doug has in his gallery (top centre).
http://gallery.me.com/djellison#100034/IMG_9273&bgcolor=black
NExt time out - I'm dropping to the next size down on the camera, but turning the compression down from 2 to 1 ( 4 being the highest compression )
Doug
Whilst I understand the issue of "stamp collectors" downloading everything and taking bandwidth from those who are going to do something useful with the images, JTN's index page does offer a different, and I think very interesting, perspective on this really exciting mission.
Scrolling down the page of thumbnails give a fascinating narrative of the whole mission, from set-up to landfall, in a way that selected images do not. In a strange way it is a little reminiscent of http://www.tenbyten.org.
It also enabled me to find one or two images of pre-dawn contrails against the pre-dawn sky. I suppose not surprising given that a major airway runs across the south of Essex from the VOR at Clacton towards Heathrow - albeit at a rather lower altitude - but a nice catch all the same.
Really well done to all involved -can't wait to the next flight!
Rob
Doug,
Yes, understand the frustration of wasted SD space. Clearly, some sort of switch on the outside of the flight package to turn the camera on at the last minute before launch would add complexity and a pretty obvious -and likely- failure mode.
What size are the camera image files with a lens cap in place? Obviously a JPEG of a completely black image should be smaller. Trouble is if the camera cranks up the gain and produces a noisy frame under these circumstances -then it makes for a larger file size! If the file size *was* significantly smaller with the lens capped you could attach a "remove before flight" banner to the lens cap (as with pitot tube covers on planes) to ensure that it was remove before flight and save yourself some memory.
What size SD care are you using?
Rob
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