Frequently Asked Questions
2. How long does a flight typically last?
3. How far from your launch site does your payload typically land?
4. Is launching a weather balloon environmentally friendly?
5. How do you know where your payload will land?
6. How do you find your payload after it lands?
7. Why not use a Styrofoam box as my weather balloon payload?
8. I'm an educator who wants to launch one of your kits, but I don't have the necessary funds. Any suggestions?
9. Is the Eagle Flight Computer easy to use?
10. Where do I get helium?
11. I want to launch my own weather balloon. Where do I start?
12. What if my payload lands in a tree?
13. Do I need to insulate my payload from the cold temperatures of the upper atmosphere?
14. What are the recommended lengths of flight line used to tie the payload to the parachute and the parachute to the balloon?
15. What is the shelf life of your weather balloons?
16. What balloon size is right for me?
17. Do you need to wear gloves when handling a weather balloon?
18. What if my question is not in this FAQ list?
Yes, but only if you take the necessary precautions. Never launch a weather balloon in an area with congested air space and always coordinate your launch with the appropriate authorities. In the US that may include filing a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen). For our Canadian customers, it includes contacting Transport Canada and Navigation Canada. This important process informs air traffic controllers and pilots to be on the lookout for a weather balloon when flying in the same airspace as your weather balloon. It also gives them a way of contacting you if they need you to delay your launch or get an update on your weather balloon’s position.
Flights typically last two to three hours. Flight time depends on how much helium you put in your balloon and the size of your parachute. The more helium you use, the faster your balloon will climb. It also means your balloon will burst at a lower altitude. Typical ascent times are one to two hours. A larger parachute will also increase your flight time by reducing your descent rate. Typical descent times are 30 minutes to one hour. To calculate your ascent time for a given size balloon and payload, use our balloon performance calculator.
The biggest factor on how far your payload will travel is the jet stream. There are four of them that constantly circle our globe from West to East at an altitude of roughly 18,000 m ~ 60,000 ft. Jet streams can typically reach speeds of over 120 km/h ~ 75 mph. If one of these jet streams happens to be directly over your launch site, your payload could travel up to 120 km ~ 75 miles. If the jet stream isn’t above your launch site, then your payload could land as little as 30 km ~ 20 miles from your launch site.
Our weather balloons are manufactured from latex, a natural material which is made from tree sap and collected in a manner similar to maple syrup. It rapidly breaks down when exposed to sunlight. One of the biggest impacts to the environment is the carbon footprint created when driving long distances to the recovery site. As a result, many of our clients simply launch StratoTracks which transmit data live in flight without the need for a subscription. These are typically launched to over 90,000 ft on a small 200g balloon which uses very little helium, a valuable non-renewable resource. This approach has minimal impact to the environment while still accomplishing the goals of a mission to the Stratosphere and back. Many of these devices are found by farmers or hunters and simply returned by mail, thus creating almost no carbon footprint.
Twenty-four hours before you launch, look up the weather forecast on ground winds and the jet stream on your favorite weather website. Then, using a simple formula in our Eagle Flight Manual, you should be able to predict your landing site within 15 km ~ 10 miles. Some people like to use online weather balloon flight prediction software. We have found some of these sites to be unreliable and prefer our simple pencil and paper approach. If your payload is predicted to land near a lake, mountain, populated area, etc. just move your launch site.
The SPOT Trace is our fail-proof go-to tracking solution. It doesn’t require a license to operate and performs flawlessly with no need for a heat pack. The only drawback to the SPOT is that it doesn’t work above roughly 18,000 m ~ 60,000 ft. Above this altitude your payload enters what we call “blackout.” When using the SPOT Trace, it is important to remember that it must be facing the sky to uplink its coordinates to the satellite network.
Styrofoam boxes are cheap but they have a major flaw. Styrofoam boxes bounce and land on their side when they hit the ground, thus preventing the GPS tracker from being able to reliably receive and transmit signals to the satellite network overhead. Sometimes you get lucky and your “box” gets suspended upright in a tree or does not roll onto its side (or upside down) when it lands.
Get your students involved. Have them talk to friends, family, co-workers, people at church, clubs, and businesses. If everyone contributes a few dollars, your students will be able to afford the necessary hardware. Be creative in your advertising campaign and do not get discouraged if contributions start out small. The more excited you students are about starting their own space program, the more people will be willing to contribute.
Just insert the micro SD card and add batteries. Once you recover your payload, remove the micro SD card and slide it into your SD card adapter. Download the file into Microsoft Excel and you’re ready to plot temperature, pressure, altitude, wind speed, flight path, etc. The Eagle Flight Computer comes with a manual that will guide you through the steps if you’re not familiar with using Microsoft Excel.
Most party supply stores such as Party City or iParty carry helium bottles. To learn more read our Helium Tutorial.
Our tutorials are a great place to start.
The safest thing to do in this situation is to have a certified tree climber retrieve your payload. Their fee is typically $50. Once on site, they can have your payload on the ground in less than 20 minutes. To find the local tree climber, call the nearest fire department. They work with tree climbers on a regular basis. Sometimes tree climbers offer to get your payload down for free. If they do, be sure to give them a good tip and thank them.
In most cases insulation is not necessary. Cold temperatures do reduce the effectiveness of most batteries. A battery is simply a chemical reaction that produces electricity. As with most chemical reactions, the reaction rate slows as temperatures drop. A battery that has the capacity to power your electronics at room temperature could be inadequate at below freezing temperatures. The best solution to this problem is to only use batteries that are rated for cold temperatures. For this reason, High Altitude Science only recommends using Energizer Ultimate Lithium batteries to power your flight computer and satellite tracker.
We recommend using two identical 5 m / 15 ft lengths of stratospheric flight line. One length is tied between the balloon and the apex of the parachute. The other length is tied between the parachute risers and ball bearing swivel on the payload harness. The total distance between the balloon and payload is therefore 10 m / 30 ft with the parachute suspended in tension halfway between the balloon and payload. Once the balloon bursts, the tension on the parachute apex is released allowing the parachute to flare open. This is a fail-proof setup for eliminating parachute tangles which will allow your payload to return safely to earth.
We recommend that our weather balloons are used within one year of your purchase. However, our customers have used our weather balloons after three years of storage with no noticeable degradation in performance. It is very important that you store your weather balloon in its original packaging at room temperature in a dry, dark place. Our weather balloons are made from latex which will slowly degrade in light, especially direct sunlight.
For your first launch we recommend starting with a smaller balloon size such as our 350 g or 600 g weather balloons as they are easier to inflate and tie off. They also require less helium to inflate which reduces the cost of your first mission. For more experienced flyers, our larger size balloons such as our 1200 g or 1500 g weather balloons are a great option. Given the same size payload, our 1500 g weather balloon will burst at a higher altitude than our 350 g weather balloon. To estimate how high our balloons will fly with a given size payload, take a look at our Weather Balloon Performance Calculator tutorial. It will also help you calculate how much helium you need.
A common misconception is that a larger balloon will carry your payload further from the launch site as it will fly higher and thus longer and further. This is rarely the case since there is typically very little wind in the Stratosphere. Once the balloon climbs past the jet stream, it travels at a much slower speed. In some cases, there may even be a light wind above the jet stream that blows in the opposite direction, which may bring your payload closer to the launch site.
There's a popular theory that natural oils on your hands will contaminate the balloon. We've launched missions with and without gloves. We have never noticed a difference in balloon performance in either case. Working with gloves is awkward and uncomfortable, but it also looks more professional. If you're launching a balloon for a client or in front of a lot of spectators, wear the gloves. If it's just you and a small research team and you don't believe the "oily hands" theory, keep them off.
To learn more, read our online tutorials. If you still can’t find an answer to your question, go to our Contact Us page to send us a message.