The NASA super pressure balloon – A path to flight

• Published in: Advances in space research Vol. 44; no. 1; pp. 23 - 38
• Main Author: Cathey, H.M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01.07.2009; Elsevier
• Subjects: Astronomy; Balloon; Earth, ocean, space; Exact sciences and technology; External geophysics; Stratosphere; Super pressure; New Mexico; Sweden; USA, New Mexico; Stratosphere; Balloon; Super pressure; Trade wind; Models; Performance; Space research; Diameter
• ISSN: 0273-1177; 1879-1948
• DOI: 10.1016/j.asr.2009.02.013

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Balloon Program Office has invested significant time and effort in extensive ground testing of model super pressure balloons. The testing path has been developed as an outgrowth of the results of the super pressure balloon test flight in 2006. Summary results of the June 2006 super pressure test flight from Kiruna, Sweden are presented including the balloon performance and “lessons learned”. This balloons flight performance exceeded expectations, but did not fully deploy. The flight was safely terminated by command. The results of this test flight refocused the project’s efforts toward additional ground testing and analysis; a path to flight. A series of small 4 m diameter models were made and tested to further explore the deployment and structural capabilities of the balloons and materials. A series of ∼27 m model balloons were successfully tested indoors. These balloons successfully replicated the cleft seen in the Sweden flight, explored the deployment trade space to help characterize better design approaches, and demonstrated an acceptable fix to the deployment issue. Photogrammetry was employed during these ∼27 m model tests to help characterize both the balloon and gore shape evolution under pressurization. A ∼8.5 m ground model was used to explore the design and materials performance. Results of these tests will be presented. A general overview of some of the other project advancements made related to demonstrating the strain arresting nature of the proposed design, materials and analysis work will also be presented. All of this work has prepared a clear path toward a renewed round of test flights. This paper will give an overview of the development approach pursued for this super pressure balloon development. A description of the balloon design, including the modifications made as a result of the lessons learned, is presented. A short deployment test flight of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s super pressure balloon took place in June 2008. This flight was from Ft. Sumner, New Mexico. Preliminary results of this flight are presented. Future plans for both ground testing and additional test flights are also presented. Goals of the future test flights, which are staged in increments of increasing suspended load and altitude, are presented. This includes the projected balloon volumes, payload capabilities, test flight locations, and proposed flight schedule.