[Space] Why the payload was bouncing around some much.

Greg Stramback grog at piratelabs.com
Mon Feb 8 22:17:37 UTC 2010


how about a small drag-chute?  or will that be as ineffective as adding
fins?

-g-

On Mon, Feb 8, 2010 at 2:09 PM, Michael O <m at dgmo.org> wrote:

> I think it's less the drag on the payload, and more than the balloon is
> dumping turbulent air onto it. So streamlining it won't stop it being bashed
> around by frothing vorticies of air.
>
> The much longer tether is pretty much the only useful think I could think
> of too.
>
> On Mon, Feb 8, 2010 at 1:37 PM, Christie Dudley <longobord at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> What if we made the payload more bullet or torpedo shaped?  If it's being
>> bounced because of drag from the top, it makes sense to reduce that.  I was
>> wondering why they put pointy ends on the EOSS payloads they pictured.  That
>> would explain it.
>>
>> Christie
>> _______
>> "The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom." -- W. Blake.
>>
>> The outer bounds is only the beginning.
>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/genriel/sets/72157623376093724/
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Feb 8, 2010 at 1:25 PM, Jonathan Moore <moore at eds.org> wrote:
>>
>>> Well we should use a much longer tether next time. That would help
>>> with the effects you describe but also with other effects too.
>>>
>>> Also did any one else notice how clearly we were in two different
>>> winds during the flight. If you look at the kml file you can see that
>>> at lower altitudes we went mostly south but at upper mostly west. For
>>> people wanting to steer the balloon it seems that changing altitude
>>> might be a easy way to do it.
>>>
>>> On Mon, Feb 8, 2010 at 1:20 PM, Michael O <m at dgmo.org> wrote:
>>> >
>>> > Some discussion at lunch reminded me to mention my pet theory for why
>>> the
>>> > payload was bouncing around to much.
>>> > I'd originally assume it was wind shear layers, but the video shows it
>>> was
>>> > moving around fairly violently for pretty much all the ascent.
>>> >
>>> > So my new theory is that having a 7ft+ balloon rising at a pretty
>>> decent
>>> > pace leaving a bunch of turbulent air beneath it which the payload is
>>> being
>>> > dragged through.
>>> >
>>> > This makes adding fins or suchlike to the payload a non-starter I
>>> think.
>>> > It'll just make it even more affected by the turbulence.
>>> > So now I'm back to having no idea how to usefully stablize the payload.
>>> >
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>>> >
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>>
>>
>
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