NCKU students fulfill space dream with the launch of sounding balloons - Noodls
Tainan, Taiwan, January 14, 2014
As the National Cheng Kung University Institute of Space and Plasma Sciences (NCKU ISPS) Associate Professor Dr. Ping-Chih Chen and his students applauded the launch of their two sounding balloons with warm laughter and smile, the event signified the completion of their one semester long effort of attempting to fulfill their space dream.
Both balloons were tasked to complete three missions; aerial photography, measuring background radiation at different altitudes using Geiger Counter, and testing the possibility of having sounding balloons for long periods in the sky.
Instructed by NCKU ISPS Associate Professor Dr. Chen, the "Instrument Development on Astrophysics and Space Science" course takes students on a journey through space, practical experimental design of sounding balloons as well as the production and design of instruments.
After one semester of learning, Dr. Chen and his students collected results through the launch of sounding balloons at the plaza in front of NCKU Main Library. Dr. Chen acknowledged students' hard work and the presence of NCKU ISPS professors as a successful space exploration program.
The two sounding balloons, which were launched at different times, were tasked with different missions. The first one, which was launched at 9 am, consists of a parachute, explosive cutter, electronic systems, self-made scientific space exploration instrument and so on.
The instruments, including a modified camera, an electronic thermometer, a Global Positioning System (GPS) and an electronic telemetry system, were set by students to take one photograph every three seconds.
This balloon rose to an altitude of 5000 meters, moved along the air flow which students predicted to be east bound, and finally landed on the west region of the Central Mountain Range of Taiwan 30 minutes later. Another group of students was simultaneously present at somewhere near the predicted landing ground to collect the findings taken by the balloon, where the whole collection process ended at 11 am.
This balloon trip has brought back 600 aerial photographs using NCKU Department of Earth Science Professor Dr. Cheng-Chien Liu's self-developed automatic satellite image processing system which was integrated into the balloon. The most beautiful and stunning aerial photographs of the region between Tainan City and mountainous area were taken in only split seconds.
Launched one hour later than the first balloon and estimated to reach and stay at an altitude of 25 kilometers for more than 10 hours, the second balloon was attached with a Geiger Counter to measure background radiation at different altitudes and collect huge amount of high altitude data and information.
Simultaneously, the buoyancy of the balloon was controlled using the pressure valve to test the possibility of sounding balloons staying at high altitudes for long periods. All the data collected via these two balloons are currently studied and analyzed.
Apart from introducing the knowledge on the development of instruments in space and astrophysics, Dr. Chen's class also required students to develop a set of scientific instruments in accordance with the standards of space mission within one semester in order to fulfill the course objective of creating a sounding balloon which moves into the stratosphere to carry out space experiment.
While students formed their own groups to design and create the sounding balloon experiment subsystem, the course also integrated the rocket and satellite payload development project to offer the necessary background knowledge on the design simulation, correction and environmental testing of the instruments under the project. Students were required to complete and launch a small-sized space payload as well as collect experimental results within one semester.
"Compared with rockets and man-made satellites, sounding balloons are safer, cheaper, have higher mobility and shorter duty cycle," revealed Dr. Chen who further explained that sounding balloons can carry instruments weighing between 1 kg and 2 kilograms to an altitude of 20 to 25 kilometers for an experiment lasting between 1 and 2 hours, and are recyclable.
Dr. Peng added, "Using sounding balloons with payload is a fast, low cost approach to achieve high altitude testing of instrument performance, and in which is applicable for the development of cutting-edge micro-space scientific instruments."
In addition, sounding balloons are also relatively cheaper and have the ability to take photographs of a wider range of ground images compared with unmanned aircraft used for disaster prevention, thus can be developed for disaster prevention purposes in the future.
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As the National Cheng Kung University Institute of Space and Plasma Sciences (NCKU ISPS) Associate Professor Dr. Ping-Chih Chen and his students applauded the launch of their two sounding balloons with warm laughter and smile, the event signified the completion of their one semester long effort of attempting to fulfill their space dream.
Both balloons were tasked to complete three missions; aerial photography, measuring background radiation at different altitudes using Geiger Counter, and testing the possibility of having sounding balloons for long periods in the sky.
Instructed by NCKU ISPS Associate Professor Dr. Chen, the "Instrument Development on Astrophysics and Space Science" course takes students on a journey through space, practical experimental design of sounding balloons as well as the production and design of instruments.
After one semester of learning, Dr. Chen and his students collected results through the launch of sounding balloons at the plaza in front of NCKU Main Library. Dr. Chen acknowledged students' hard work and the presence of NCKU ISPS professors as a successful space exploration program.
The two sounding balloons, which were launched at different times, were tasked with different missions. The first one, which was launched at 9 am, consists of a parachute, explosive cutter, electronic systems, self-made scientific space exploration instrument and so on.
The instruments, including a modified camera, an electronic thermometer, a Global Positioning System (GPS) and an electronic telemetry system, were set by students to take one photograph every three seconds.
This balloon rose to an altitude of 5000 meters, moved along the air flow which students predicted to be east bound, and finally landed on the west region of the Central Mountain Range of Taiwan 30 minutes later. Another group of students was simultaneously present at somewhere near the predicted landing ground to collect the findings taken by the balloon, where the whole collection process ended at 11 am.
This balloon trip has brought back 600 aerial photographs using NCKU Department of Earth Science Professor Dr. Cheng-Chien Liu's self-developed automatic satellite image processing system which was integrated into the balloon. The most beautiful and stunning aerial photographs of the region between Tainan City and mountainous area were taken in only split seconds.
Launched one hour later than the first balloon and estimated to reach and stay at an altitude of 25 kilometers for more than 10 hours, the second balloon was attached with a Geiger Counter to measure background radiation at different altitudes and collect huge amount of high altitude data and information.
Simultaneously, the buoyancy of the balloon was controlled using the pressure valve to test the possibility of sounding balloons staying at high altitudes for long periods. All the data collected via these two balloons are currently studied and analyzed.
Apart from introducing the knowledge on the development of instruments in space and astrophysics, Dr. Chen's class also required students to develop a set of scientific instruments in accordance with the standards of space mission within one semester in order to fulfill the course objective of creating a sounding balloon which moves into the stratosphere to carry out space experiment.
While students formed their own groups to design and create the sounding balloon experiment subsystem, the course also integrated the rocket and satellite payload development project to offer the necessary background knowledge on the design simulation, correction and environmental testing of the instruments under the project. Students were required to complete and launch a small-sized space payload as well as collect experimental results within one semester.
"Compared with rockets and man-made satellites, sounding balloons are safer, cheaper, have higher mobility and shorter duty cycle," revealed Dr. Chen who further explained that sounding balloons can carry instruments weighing between 1 kg and 2 kilograms to an altitude of 20 to 25 kilometers for an experiment lasting between 1 and 2 hours, and are recyclable.
Dr. Peng added, "Using sounding balloons with payload is a fast, low cost approach to achieve high altitude testing of instrument performance, and in which is applicable for the development of cutting-edge micro-space scientific instruments."
In addition, sounding balloons are also relatively cheaper and have the ability to take photographs of a wider range of ground images compared with unmanned aircraft used for disaster prevention, thus can be developed for disaster prevention purposes in the future.
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