Week 12 Ascend Project Last Day

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Ascend Project Team Sky High







This week, I decided to focus on the weather balloon project. Above is the video (I am not sure if the video works, so I included images) of our HD Run Cam from our payload. We had a 4k camera facing the horizon and an HD pointing up at the balloon. However, the 4k camera shut off 8 minutes after recording; the total flight time was 2 hours. Fortunately, despite pointing up at the balloon the entire time, the payload flipped upside down for about 6 seconds which allowed for amazing footage of the horizon. Alongside the cameras, we had a pressure sensor, two temperature sensors, and an accelerometer.

We had our pressure data. The first few minutes, the pressure remained constant because we switched to flight data recording mode but stood around ensuring everything was good before launching. The pressure starts to decrease right at launch. This is due to the air molecules not being as tight as alongside there being less gravitational force as you increase in altitude. At close to 80 minutes, the balloon pops, so the pressure starts to increase again. When the payload lands, the pressure remains constant. The spike at the end is when we found the payload and moved it around. Alongside the pressure sensor we had two temperature sensors.
We had two temperature sensors: an external and an internal one. Initially, both sensors read around 68 degrees Fahrenheit with the inside temperature being warmer due to the insulation from the foam board shielding it; this trend continues throughout with both sensors having the same shape with the inside sensor remaining warmer. The temperature begins to increase at around 50 minutes and decrease at around 80 minutes simply because temperature at different layers works like that. In the Troposphere the temperature decreases, and in the Stratosphere the temperature increases (planetary.org 1). Our balloon never reached past the Stratosphere. At around 80 minutes, the balloon popped, so the temperature began to decrease again. Once it gets back into the troposphere, the temperature begins to rise before landing. The temperature remains steady until we pick it up and move it around. Alongside the temperature sensor we had the accelerometer.
We had the accelerometer. The accelerometer did not have numerous of interesting data similar to the temperature sensor and pressure sensor. In fact, the accelerometer's purpose is to clearly see when the balloon pops, the payload lands, and when we pick it up. In addition to the acceleration, found the velocity. On excel, we found a trendline for the acceleration of a 6th degree polynomial and integrated it to get a general equation for the velocity. Initially, you see the acceleration change before remaining constant. Since acceleration is the change in velocity, several minutes after launch, the balloon reaches terminal velocity, so the acceleration remains constant. At the top, the balloon is at its slowest. The pop causes a sudden change in velocity which in turn causes a sudden change in acceleration until it starts to adjust and fall at terminal velocity causing the acceleration to remain constant. The sudden spike at the end is when the payload landed and when we picked it up.
Of course, to power our flight data recorder (AKA circuit board) we need a battery. The graph above displays the voltage of the battery. Theoretically the battery should display a voltage that curves downward as the circuit board uses power. However, when the balloon pops, a sudden spike up occurs which makes little sense. Intuitively, one would think that the sudden spike was caused by the pop, which it might have in some way, but the temperature, acceleration, or pressure should not have an effect in the battery; the chemistry of the battery does not work this way. This semester's group is the first group to use 4K cameras, so that leaves a possibility of the 4K cameras being the reason for any unknowns. My team is still stumped as to why the voltage experienced a small spike which we would need to look further into.
Overall, I enjoyed this semester's project. This project allowed for hands on experience as well as teamwork communication experience. I also learned how to approach certain problems by hearing the suggestions and the way the professors reacted to certain issues that arise. I learned how to work as a team: communicate, no finger pointing, time management, and speaking up when you do not agree with the team's decisions are certain things. I would recommend this class for anyone majoring in engineering.

Sources:
Earth’s temperature by altitude. (n.d.). The Planetary Society. Retrieved December 10, 2022, from https://www.planetary.org/space-images/earths-temperature-by-altitude

Atmospheric Pressure vs. Elevation above Sea Level. (n.d.). Www.engineeringtoolbox.com. https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/air-altitude-pressure-d_462.html#:~:text=The%20air%20pressure%20at%20altitude%2010000%20m%20can






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