1337ARTS

Fall 2009

Project Icarus:
A step-by-step recount of the original $150 balloon launch.

TAKING PICTURES OF SPACE

We always wanted to see what the earth looked like from space.
On September 2, 2009, we launched process with the public because we a camera attached to a balloon into near believe strongly in the Do-In-Yourself space. The capsule soared over 17 miles movement. above ground, snapping beautiful the All components including electronics pictures of the earth and capturing both of our launch are available commercially. curvature of the earth and the The project cost did not exceed 150 blackness of space. After the balloon dollars, making it affordable to the popped, the capsule oated back down general population. We wanted to show to earth with a parachute. We retrieved people that it does not take an advanced projects. In this guide we discuss the logistics the capsule with an onboard GPS phone technical education to do awesome that transmitted the landing location. We were absolutely ecstatic about

the launch success. We posted our of our balloon launch. We included pictures online and created a website information on the design decisions we dedicated to sharing out photos with the made as well as the challenges we world. We also wanted to share the encountered. Caution: Please contact the FAA before launch. Take steps to minimize chances of mid-air collisions.

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9-2-2009

1337ARTSSPACE

Ofcial 1337arts How-we-did-it.

Y O U !
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SPONSORS

Weather Balloon
To accomplish our mission, atypical partyballoonwouldnotwork.We boughtaweatherballoonfrom Kaymont.Theysellmeteorological

around90,000feet,theballoonexpanded solargethatitpops.Theballoonatlaunch spansaround5feetwhileatthe<meofthe burstitwillbearound20feet. Wedecidedhowmuchheliumtopump intotheballoonbyrstperformingsome

weatherballoonsthatarecapable researchoninternet.Wefoundoutthat eachcubicfootofheliumcanliF28g.The ofreachingextremeal<tude. Furtherinforma<oncanbe obtainedfromtheirwebsite, www.kaymont.com.Weused the350gmodel,butwe recommendsomethingbigger. Abiggerballoonallowsfora term,freeliF,isusedtodescribethe dierenceintheamountofliFprovided andtheweightoftheen<recapsule.Each poundoffreeliFwouldmean300F/minof ascentrate.Forexample,ifwehad61cubic feetofheliumliFingaloadof800grams,

higherburstal<tudeaswellasa youwouldhave2poundsoffreeliFand thereforeanascentrateof600feet/min. fasterascent IncreasingthefreeliFandthereforethe

Helium

ascentratewoulddecreasethetotalight <meoftheballoon.Theshorterthetotal ight<me,thelesslikelyourelectronicswill runoutofbaRerypower.Also,theless <meourcapsulespendsintheair,theless distancethewindwillblowourcapsuletoo far.However,themoreheliumweinject intotheballoonmeansthelowerthe burs<ngheight.Ifweputtoomuchhelium intheballoon,theburs<ngheightistoo low.

Heliumoccupiesmorespacethanair intheatmosphereandtherefore providesbuoyancyforce.Likeaboatona lake,theheliumliFstheballoonup. ElementalHydrogen,unlikeHelium,is ammableandexplosiveandthereforenot recommendedforuse.Astheballoonrises intheatmosphere,thepressuredrops.This causestheballoontoslowlyexpand.At

Bursting Height

Ascent Rate

WHERE TO GET HELIUM

Local wielding gas supply company or party store. University/Research Institution. The helium will come in a heavy and cumbersome steel tank that cannot be easily moved. Our 125 cubic feet tank stood 6 feet tall and weighed 100 pounds.

More Helium =>

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Electronics
THE HARSH ENVIRONMENT OF THE UPPER ATMOSPHERE
At 90,000 feet, temperature drops to a frigid -50 degrees C (-58 F). The frigid temperature slows the chemical reaction that powers normal batteries to a standstill. Even though the battery may be brand new, it will act as if it is dead. Air pressure in the upper atmosphere drops to a mere fraction of the level at the ground. Harmful cosmic radiations increase hundredfold. This may have an effect on sensitive electronics. Because of the lack of air molecules, heat transfer between the capsule and its surrounding tends to be poor.

CameraThis will capture the stunning views at 100,000 feet. We chose a standard point-and-shoot camera. We achieved automatic triggering of the camera through a software called CHDK. The majority of canon point-and-shoot cameras are supported. Be sure to visit hRp://mightyhoernsche.de/before making any purchases.

GPS Enabled Phone/ Satellite MessengerThe phone/messenger sent the GPS coordinates of the landing location to a website we had. Please go to www.instamapper.com or www.accutracking.com for more information. Without GPS, it would have been impossible to retrieve the camera and its awesome pictures. We found out in our tests that the battery life of the phone was too short for the predicted ight time of the capsule. We decided to supplement the battery with a Duracell USB charger powered by Lithium AA batteries. Keep in mind that these are specially designed batteries that have the ability to withstand extreme temperature.

Canon Point and Shoot

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Camera Parameters
ShuRerSpeed

ShuRerspeedplayedanimportantrolein thequalityofthepicturesproduced.Bylowering shuRerspeeds,wecantakewellexposed photographsinsubop<malligh<ng.Byraisingthe

CHDK ( Canon Hacking Development Kit)

Snapshot
CHDK is an open-source program that adds extra functionality to certain canon cameras. The adjustable shutter and automatic triggering features allowed our camera to take beautiful pictures of space. Other functionalities include motion detection, bracketing, and remote communication. The firmware does not replace the original firmware on your camera. It resides on the SD card. Download the Kit at http://mighty-hoernsche.de/. Afterwards put the CHDK folder onto the home directory of your SD card. Follow instructions at http:// chdk.wikia.com/wiki/CHDK_for_Dummies.

Write your own scripts or download prewritten ones online.

shuRer,wereducedtheblurthatoccurswhenthe capsuleswaysaroundduringight.Wechosea sunnydaysothatwecantakewellexposedand sharppicturesduringtheight.Weused1/800s shuRerspeedandreceivedexcellentresults.

IntervalLength:
IntervallengthreferstohowoFenthe cameratakesapicture.Makethelengthtoolong
andyoumisssomeincrediblemomentsofthe balloonjourney.Makeittooshortandyourcamera runsoutofmemoryinthemiddleoftheight.We chosetotakeapictureevery5secondswri<ngonan 8Gigabytememorycard.Onourcamera,weturned upthese\ngto7.2MPonFineQuality.Each pictureturnedouttobearound2MB,andwehad plentyleFoverattheendofouright.

PowerSaving:
WewantedtouseasliRlepoweraspossible. TherewasnoneedfortheLCDscreentobeon duringtheight.Flashwouldbeunnecessary onasunnyday.Weadjustedallofthese\ngs sothatminimalpowerwasused.

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Accessories
Items we thought were helpful in the success of our mission but not absolutely required.

Flashing Lights:

Againthisisforretrievalpurposes. Flashinglightswillhelpimmenselyifrecovery happensduringnight.Theposi<veeectisless duringthedaybuts<llnontrivial.However, theground.

Other Considerations
During our planning process, we went through many iterations of the equipment list. We considered shielding our electronics from the cosmic radiation but worried that the shield will impede the cell phone signal upon landing. We thought of putting an Android phone for better GPS tracking services but decided against it because of cost. We tried to solder lithium batteries directly on the cell phone but unfortunately the cell phone only accepted Motorola batteries.

External Antenna:
Wediscoveredthattheexternal baronthecellphone.Wehadnootherwayto testthesignalstrength.Theantennaweplucked outofunusedWirelessrouter.Toobtainthe correctconnector,weusedaU.toRPSMA pigtailconnectorobtainedfromRadioshack.The RPSMAendshouldconnectwithawireless routerantenna.TheU.endshouldbeableto connectwithanexternalconnectorfoundonthe backoftheBoostmobilei290cellphone.

antennaincreasedourrecep<onbyonerecep<on peoplemightmistakethecapsuleforabombon

Lithium Batteries:
NottobeconfusedwithLithiumion rechargeablebaReriesthatarecommonlyused incellphones,LithiumbaRerieslastlongerthan regularbaReries(8xaccordingtoEnergizer).In addi<on,theycanwithstandtheextreme temperaturesoftheupperatmosphere.

Audio Beeper:

Thisaudiobeeperwillallowyouto locatethecapsuleindensefoliage.GPScan typicallynarrowtheloca<onofthecapsuletoa 20feetradius.Itwillsaveyouhoursof<meifthe capsulehappenstolandinthewrongspotbutwill addweighttothecapsule.Weconsideredalarm clocks,smokedetectors,andelectronicshorns. Thebeepershouldbeplacedontheoutsideof thecapsuletomaximizethesoundpropaga<on.

Spray Paint:
Weconsideredspraypain<ngourcapsule blacktoabsorbmoresunlight.Thatwill increasethetemperaturewithinthecapsule. Theheatgeneratedbytheelectronicsshouldbe enough,butpain<ngitdoesnthurt!Becareful tobuyspecialspraypaint.Normalspraypaint disintegratesthestyrofoam.

Lost and Found Sign

Weincludedalostandfoundsignin caseourGPSPhonenever transmiRedtheGPScoordinatesto us.Withthesign,someonewould havefoundourcapsuleaFerlanding andcalledus!Weincluded monetaryrewardtoencouragethe safereturnofourcapsuleandits incrediblepictures.

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CONTAINER DESIGN

Camera Placement
A hole at the bottom gives you pictures of the ground while a hole at the side gives you horizon views. Try your best to make the hole as snug as possible with the camera to improve insulation. Gluing the camera to the hole is optional. On one hand it would increase the insulation but also it might impede the movement of the camera lens.

Disposable Hand-warmers
They provide a source of heat during the ight. WIth the correct insulation, the little heat that is given off by handwarmers raises the temperature inside the capsule to within the operating ranges of the electronics. The chemical process of the hand-warmers actually slows down in the upper atmosphere because of the lack of oxygen, prolonging the effective period of the hand-warmers.

The capsule will insulate the electronics and soften the landing
Weboughtastyrofoamcooler aRachtheparachutetothe atalocalsupermarketthatwas capsuleandropebetweenthe about2x3feetthatcamewith parachuteandtheballoon.We adetachablelid.Itsa<sed putplentyofoldnewspaperfor ourrequirementofa insula<oninthecapsule. lightweightinsula<ng Also,wecrumbledup containerwitha somealuminumfoil We made largesurfacearea. toactasaradar sure to properly WeusedaXacto reector.Pilots insulate the Knifetocutoutthe canseeourcapsule capsule. holesinthe andsteerclearofit. styrofoamcontainer. Wesecuredtheantenna Wecutoutoneholeforthe tothesideoftheoutsideofthe cameralensandoneholefor container.Theantennais theantenna.Weusedzip<es designedtoworkwhenitis andhotgluetoproperlysecure perpendiculartotheground. theelectronicsequipmentto thebox.Weusedzip<esto

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Testing

ElectronicComponentsMakesurethe

electronicsoperateunderlow temperatures.Weputthecameraand notedtheaccuracyofthepointsaswellasthe Testing thephoneinourfreezerwhiletaking frequency.Wemarkedoutthepointswherethere increases chance picturesandtransmi\ngGPS wasnorecep<on.Werepeatedourwalkwithour of success! loca<ons.Wealsoprogrammedthe externalantennainstalledandrecordedthe freezertoitslowesttemperaturetobest improvement.Weobtainedanaverageincreaseoftwo simulatenearspacecondi<ons.Weperformedmul<pletests barswithourantenna.Also,90percentofthespotsthat toverifyourresults.Towarmthecapsuleup,weaRached weremissingduringthersttestappearedinthesecond. handwarmers.Weconsideredpurchasingdry icefortes<ngatevencoldertemperaturebut decidedagainstitontheaccountofcost.

ParachuteWemadesurethattheparachute
wasabletoopenwhendropped.Itisvery importantthattheterminaldescentspeedis slowenoughtopreventdamagetoelectronicsas wellasproperty/peopleontheground.We testedourparachutebypu\ngeggsinsideof ourstyrofoamboxandtossingtheboxoofa5 storybuilding.Wewerenotsa<sedwiththe landingspeedofourboxun<ltheeggsdidnot breakupontheboxsimpact.Toslowdownthe descent,weaddedabiggerparachute.AFerour tests,wecameupwithaparachutethatwas5 feetindiameter.

GPSPhoneWewalkedaroundwiththeGPS
trackingforacouplehours.AFerwards,we

INFO@1337ARTS.COM
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PRE-LAUNCH
FAA REGULATIONS
Remember that there are other ying objects occupying the same airspace. Be sure to take all necessary precautions against a mid-air collision. The airspace above United States is governed by the Federal Aviation Authority. For other countries, please consult the appropriate agency for further rules. Balloon launching is illegal in some countries. Please check before attempting. If you are launching in the US, notify the FAA before launching. The number to post an NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) is 1800-WXBRIEF. Predict the ight of the balloon by using University of Wyomings website and inform the FAA of it. We put aluminum foil in our capsule as a radar reector so that other ying objects can see the balloon. Also, we did not put any hazardous or ammable material on board. The full list of regulations can be obtained from the FAA.

Theweathershouldbecompletelysunnywith minimalwind.Ifitisnotbrightenough,thenthepictures willbeunderdeveloped.Minimalwinddecreasesthe chanceofblurringandalsoreducestheprepara<on neededtolaunchaballoon.Eventheslightestwindgust canknocktheballoonoutofyourhandduringlling. BesuretoNo<fytheFAAatleast24hoursbefore launch.Technicallyballoonsunderfourpoundsare unregulated.Butno<fyingtheFAAdecreasesyourchance

Weather

ofyingintorestrictedairspace.Besurenottolaunch nearmilitaryinstalla<onsstayatleast100milesaway. Siteshouldberela<velyatwithnoobstaclessuch astreesorlightspolesthatcouldsnagtheballoonaFer launch.Besurethattheeldisapublicspaceandnot trespassonotherpeoplesproperty. Giventhelaunchloca<on,predictedmaximum al<tude,and<meoflaunch,thewebsitegivesageneral ideaofthelandingloca<on.VisithRp:// weather.uwyo.edu/polar/balloon_traj.html.

Suitable Launch Site

FAA notice

Balloon Trajectory Prediction

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RETRIEVAL
BoostMobile phone Motorola i290 with GPS and Web Functionality
Since this is a cellphone, the capsule must land in an area of cell phone coverage. Make sure to attempt transmitting only when the cell phone is on the ground. It is against FCC regulations to operate a cell phone in the air. The instructions for the downloading the programs can either be found at www.accutracking.com or www.instamapper.com. We tested the cell phone by walking around to observe the timing of the GPS signals. We did not increase the cache size to its full setting, and as a result some of our ight path is lost. Also, to increase our chance of nding the capsule, we turned on cell tower location transmission. This feature allows the phone to send off the location of its cell tower if a GPS location cannot be xed. For the plan, we chose the web add-on option with the pay-and-go plan. With this selection, our cost was only 35 cents per day because we did not make any calls nor send text messages.

SPOT Satellite Messenger/Tracker

If we had a more generous budget, we would have chosen the SPOT satellite messenger. Since the device communicates through satellites, it can operate almost anywhere. The messenger will automatically send GPS location updates every ten minutes. The device stops transmitting above 60,000 feet, and does not restart until around 15,000 feet during the descent. This device increases the reliability and the success rate of a near-space balloon launch.

Different Types of GPS coordinates:

There are multiple ways of displaying a given location on a map. Be sure to verify the units on your GPS systems before proceeding. The three different formats: (Degrees, Minutes, Seconds), (Decimal, Degrees), and (GPS Coordinates). Forgetting to account for units can mean a difference of miles! There are online converters that can transform between different units.

GPS TRACKING SOFTWARE

ACCUTRACKING

INSTAMAPPER

$5.99 a month with one month free trial

Free, same functionality as Accutracking

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OLIVER YEH
The Dreamer. Motto: Live as if there is no tomorrow.
AtMIT,Imadeanameformyselfcomingupwithawesome butridiculousideas.Lastsummer,IbikedacrossCanadawithmy friendThomasMoulia(MIT10).Alongtheway,wehikedaround Banna<onalparkandwitnessedsomeofthemostamazingviews intheworld.Wesleptatgolfcourses,abandonedhouses,church lawns,andcarnivalbooths. Lastspring,ThomasandIdecidedtobuildaraFoutof PolandSpringboRles,andweraFedacrosstheCharlesRiverwith ourhomemadecontrap<on.ThisspringIwantedtoseewhatBoston lookedlikefromtheair.Itetheredaballoonandacamerawith shinglinetotheground.AFerge\ngsomebeau<fulpictures,I wantedtogohigher!

JUSTIN LEE
The Meticulous. Motto: Lets prepare for tomorrow
IamarstyeargraduatestudentinMITsDepartmentof MechanicalEngineering(focusinvolumeholography).For undergraduateworkatMIT,Istudiedphysicsandbiology. Inmyfree<me,Iliketobuildthingsandblogaboutcancer science&anthropology.Ihopetosomedayhelpdevelopmedical technologiestoaidcancerpreven<on,diagnosis,andtreatment. Forthisproject,IwentalongwithOliverononeofhislower levellaunchesintheSpring,andheexpressedhisdesiretogoeven highertotake"spacepictures."Overthesummer,weteamedupand didalotofbackgroundresearchintowhatwerethedicul<esofsuch ataskandwhatweneededtohave/doinordertomaximizeour chancesforsuccess.Itwastrulyagreatexperience.

Why Did We Do it?

Because we wanted to see what the Earth looked like from near-space.

Three Things Oliver Does For Fun

Biking Tumbling (Gymnastics) Brain puzzles

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Celebrities Justin Hopes to Meet:

Jessica Alba Caitlin Kinney

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