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PigglyMSP / PicoCHU [M6]
Status: Failed
Mission Profile
High altitude (meteorological) balloon flight with 3 payloads. One Raspberry Pi, one custom pico PCB and tardigrades. Antenna has been reverted back to the stubby with dish due to poor performance from the co-linear dipole.
Mission Objectives
Primary
- Successful launch and recovery of the pico using a high altitude balloon
- Test new antenna of RPi with stabilising disk
- Test new payload shape
- Receive telemetry from Pico at over 10km
Secondary
- To advance our ability to design, manufacture and fly hardware
- To provide useful data and experience for future balloon flights and other missions; e.g. telemetry, tracking
- To provide reference and publicity material for outreach activity
- To record biological payloads before and after flight
- Test wide angle camera with standalone battery
- Revieve LoRa transmission from Pico
Flight Plan
Intended profile, for actual profile see Mission Outcome.
| Callsign | Piggly | PicoCHU |
|---|
| Launch | |
|---|---|
| Date | 15/10/2017 |
| Location | Hanging Gate Inn, Macclesfield |
| Landing | |
| Duration | 2h 0m |
| Location | Leeds |
Payloads
HAB Package EP-02
| Core | Tx Radio |
|---|---|
| GPS | |
| Raspberry Pi | |
| Power Unit (c/w Batteries) | |
| Environmental Sensors | None |
| Performance Sensors | Unknown |
| Additional Equipment | Camera [standalone] drawing power from separate cells |
| Tardigrade container with Tardigrades |
Pico Package Pico-EP-M1
| Core | Pico PCB |
|---|---|
| Battery |
388g hab payload 35g pico
0g parachute
Tracking & Communication
Direct tracking will be achieved using Tracking Kit TK-M2. This will be used for tracking on launch and landing.
Indirect flight tracking will be achieved using HAB community online resources.
We also be using LoRa to communicate with the Pico, this currently is being tracked by our own equipment, which is another PicoPCB.
Example payload string : “$$MSPpi1,347,19:41:58,53.48425,-2.23625,00037,0,0,11,33.1,0.0,0.000*0A83”
Technical Details
Build Details
Preparation Details
Test Details
Mission Data
Raw flight data was posted
Mission Outcome
Summary The mission was regarded as a failure. We did not achieve our objectives and we lost the pico payload. The balloon was released during windy conditions. There was consensus that it was safe enough to launch despite protests. The balloon traced a large sideways path and it eventually got caught in a telephone line. The line was cut and the balloon was let go with the pico. The main hab payload was left on the telephone line and was collected later by a BT engineer.
Discussion We agreed to make sure that we do not launch if the conditions are windy, even with some light wind.
Raw flight info is here : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1diL6jqYJw-MLjQJ2-cVOZjFpsxpJ9mp94mTbWooxoSk/edit?usp=sharing
