Uploaded October 2024 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
A High Altitude Balloon (HAB) was launched from the campus of Compton College by the STEM Club. The balloon carried two separate payload packages. The first package was designed and built by the STEM club's technical mentor Brian and included an APRS transmitter that contains a GPS that transmits the balloon’s position in real-time. It has a video camera pointing up that captures the moment that the balloon bursts. It has an Arduino-based microcontroller with a 10 Degree of Freedom (DOF) sensor, a real-time clock module (to time stamp the data), and a micro SD memory card module to save the data.
The second payload was designed and built by the STEM Club. It also uses an Arduino microcontroller and has several sensors. These include modules for barometric pressure, temperature, a Geiger counter, and an ozone sensor. Again there is a real-time clock module, and a micro SD memory card module to save the data. This payload also has two video cameras, one pointing down and one pointing to the side.
The payloads collect data as the balloon ascends and then the balloon usually bursts when it reaches an altitude of about 100,000 ft. A parachute attached to a tether between the balloon and the sensor packages starts to fill and then slows the payloads' descent. If all works as designed, the sensor packages continue to collect data during the descent and transmit their position to the APRS network where the balloon's progress can be monitored from the internet. Upon landing, the package is designed to continue transmitting its position so the "recovery team" can hopefully retrieve the sensor packages and cameras. Once safely back on campus, the videos from the cameras are reviewed and the data is carefully analyzed.
Music: A Sky Revolution by Digital Juice
A High Altitude Balloon (HAB) was launched from the campus of Compton College by the STEM Club. The balloon carried two separate payload packages. The first package was designed and built by the STEM club's technical mentor Brian and included an APRS transmitter that contains a GPS that transmits the balloon’s position in real-time. It has a video camera pointing up that captures the moment that the balloon bursts. It has an Arduino-based microcontroller with a 10 Degree of Freedom (DOF) sensor, a real-time clock module (to time stamp the data), and a micro SD memory card module to save the data.
The second payload was designed and built by the STEM Club. It also uses an Arduino microcontroller and has several sensors. These include modules for barometric pressure, temperature, a Geiger counter, and an ozone sensor. Again there is a real-time clock module, and a micro SD memory card module to save the data. This payload also has two video cameras, one pointing down and one pointing to the side.
The payloads collect data as the balloon ascends and then the balloon usually bursts when it reaches an altitude of about 100,000 ft. A parachute attached to a tether between the balloon and the sensor packages starts to fill and then slows the payloads' descent. If all works as designed, the sensor packages continue to collect data during the descent and transmit their position to the APRS network where the balloon's progress can be monitored from the internet. Upon landing, the package is designed to continue transmitting its position so the "recovery team" can hopefully retrieve the sensor packages and cameras. Once safely back on campus, the videos from the cameras are reviewed and the data is carefully analyzed.
Music: A Sky Revolution by Digital Juice
