Well, I've finally made time to write my (Erik's) first post on this project, and we still have a lot of work to do! Most of our budget has been spent on a GoPro HD Hero, which will hopefully survive for future missions. We have yet to buy the parachute, balloon, and a canister of helium, but that will probably occur after we manage to properly seal our container.
Now I haven't taken any thermodynamics courses, but I can imagine that one of the biggest challenges, (second to finding the capsule after it is launched) will be properly maintaining a good operating temperature inside the capsule. It is primarily made of styrofoam and tape. Outdoor temperatures will range from 70 to -55 degrees Fahrenheit. Our initial tests of leaving it in the freezer for an hour showed that it cannot retain heat to any degree (pun intended). My initial thought to this will be to apply some of the "Great Stuff" on the inside of the capsule, specifically on the lid where most of the heat was escaping. Additionally, black tape or some sort of glue might be used to keep the heat in.
Another option is to add a hand warmer to our container in order to nullify the heat loss. My only problem with this is the fact that it will be right next to our camera and phone. Unfortunately, GoPro does not have any specifications regarding its camera's operating temperatures other than it "Will automatically shut off if operational temperatures exceed 125 F". That being said, we have a decent amount of work to do before we start drop testing, which one of us will keep you posted on.
Last note: check out these cool links which show Google's involvement in the ballooning world
and
No comments:
Post a Comment