A final update on AA4VU-1
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Tim Holman
Mar 24, 2024, 11:58:34 AM3/24/24
to vu...@googlegroups.com, Ellis, Brenda, stacy.d...@vanderbilt.edu
To all,
Unfortunately there has been no signal from AA4VU-1 so far. Every path projection I have run indicates that we should have heard something by now, so I can only conclude that AA4VU-1 was lost somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. This is not the least bit surprising, as many pico-balloon researchers have confirmed that the North Atlantic at 40,000 feet is an unforgiving environment, especially at night. Many balloons are lost in that first 24 hours after launch.
I am hopeful that we will be able to make one more flight before the end of the semester after incorporating some changes to the balloon. We do have access to very high-grade helium (thanks to Prof. Sherrod), which makes all the difference in getting the balloon into the jet stream. A balloon that survives its first night is very likely to last several days.
Tim, WA4LLF
Unfortunately there has been no signal from AA4VU-1 so far. Every path projection I have run indicates that we should have heard something by now, so I can only conclude that AA4VU-1 was lost somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. This is not the least bit surprising, as many pico-balloon researchers have confirmed that the North Atlantic at 40,000 feet is an unforgiving environment, especially at night. Many balloons are lost in that first 24 hours after launch.
I am hopeful that we will be able to make one more flight before the end of the semester after incorporating some changes to the balloon. We do have access to very high-grade helium (thanks to Prof. Sherrod), which makes all the difference in getting the balloon into the jet stream. A balloon that survives its first night is very likely to last several days.
Tim, WA4LLF
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