BalloonSats launch into perfect blue Saturday sky

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (Nov. 4, 2013) - On the way to 100,000 feet altitude! UAH BalloonSat teams S.L.A.T. and Mission Ohm-Possible launched into a cobalt sky Saturday morning from the parking lot near the NSSTC building high bay, while team Free Fall experienced power problems and launched Sunday.

S.L.A.T. and Mission Ohm-Possible were successful in payload recovery. One payload was found 8 miles northwest of Lafayette, Ga., in a field under power lines, and the other 17 miles northwest of Summerville, Ga., in a tall tree. The first to launch, Team S.L.A.T, reached an altitude of approximately 97,000, feet at which time the balloon burst. The second launch, Team Mission Ohm-Possible, reached a peak altitude of about 87,000 feet. S.L.A.T. used solar panels to measure output and battery charging. Mission Ohm-Possible used solar panels to power an LED display of the UAH logo that was recorded in flight by video camera.

Team Free Fall's attempt at a sub-payload release at high altitude to measure micro gravity was not recovered. The balloon reached an altitude over 113,000 feet. The last reported position, at about 14,000 feet on the way down, was not sufficient to find the payload. The team is planning further recovery action.

Assisting during the weekend were Jason Winningham, Bill Brown, Don Robinson, Shane Wilson, Wes Cantrell, Geoff Suiter, Nancy Pospelov, Buddy Kimsey and Dr. Charles Corsetti.

Supporting the BalloonSat program are the Alabama Space Grant Consortium, Director Dr. John Gregory, Campus Director Dr. Gerald Karr, Dr. Michael Newchurch and his staff in the Atmospheric Science Department, Dr. Corsetti of Electrical & Computer Engineering, computer systems engineer Jason Winningham and many amateur radio operators.

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