I-Corps: Sub-orbital Ballooning System (SBS) for Earth and Space Observations, Meteorological Applications, and Scientific Studies

I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发亚轨道气球系统，用于地球和空间观测、气象应用和科学研究。目前，进入该地区的唯一途径是通过火箭，这不允许超过几分钟的进入。拟议的技术可能会消除长时间进入中间层亚轨道区域的障碍，并允许以低于当前亚轨道发射成本50%的成本进行气球有效载荷发射支持。此外，拟议的技术可能会加强中间层的开发，用于科学研究、勘探和安全目的。据估计，拟议的系统可为电信服务提供商节省100万美元/平方千米/年的资本支出和200万美元/平方千米/年的运营费用，使其成本更低，覆盖范围更广，覆盖下一代网络(5G/6G)。此外，拟议的技术可能满足私营部门的遥感和技术演示需要，以及军事通信和持续监视的需要，以及联邦机构、学术界和科学界更好地了解中间层及其对地球的影响的需要，否则使用现有的火箭或高空气球技术是不可行的。这项技术的目标是实现低成本的太空探索，为许多由于技术限制和成本限制而无法进入太空的人打开大门，加速太空探索。i-Corps项目基于开发用于地球和空间观测、气象应用和科学研究的亚轨道气球系统。这项技术利用了气球技术的进步，纳入了以前关于能量和质量转移控制尺寸的研究，以达到整个中间层和空间边缘的更高高度(冯·卡兰线)。人工智能(AI)动力系统旨在感知环境，了解不断膨胀的交通需求，并满足促进气球封套充气或放气的能源需求。这种能力使气球的高度得以提高或降低，而不会使气球破裂。拟议的技术执行精确的高度控制，使进入亚轨道区域的时间更长。这项拟议的技术旨在解决技术差距和市场需求，随后对规模化原型进行概念验证演示。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a sub-orbital ballooning system for Earth and space observations, meteorological applications, and scientific studies. Currently, the only way to access this region is via rocketry, which does not allow more than a few minutes of access. The proposed technology may remove the hurdles in accessing the mesospheric sub-orbital region for a prolonged duration and allow balloon-based payload launch support at a cost less than 50% of the current sub-orbital launch costs. In addition, the proposed technology may intensify the exploitation of mesosphere for scientific research, exploration, and security purposes. It is estimated that the proposed system may save $1M/sq.km/y in capital expenses and $2M/sq.km/y in operational expenses for telecommunication service providers, making them lower-cost with wide coverage for next generation networks (5G/6G). In addition, the proposed technology may fulfill the remote sensing and technology demonstration needs of the private sector and military needs for communication and persistent surveillance, as well as the needs of federal agencies, academia, and the scientific community in better understanding the mesosphere and its effects on the Earth, which otherwise is not feasible using existing technologies of rocketry or high-altitude ballooning. A goal for the technology is to enable low-cost space exploration that will open doors to many who have no access to space today due to technological limitations and cost constraints, accelerating space exploration.This I-Corps project is based on the development of a sub-orbital ballooning system for Earth and space observations, meteorological applications, and scientific studies. The technology leverages advancement in ballooning technology by incorporating previous research on size control by energy and mass transfer to reach higher altitudes throughout the mesosphere and up to the edge of space (von Kármán line). The artificial intelligence (AI) powered system is designed to sense the environment, understand the ballooning transport needs, and fulfil energy demands facilitating the inflation or deflation of the balloon envelop. This capability enables the raising or lowering of the balloon’s altitude without bursting the balloon. The proposed technology performs precise altitude control that enables access to the sub-orbital region for prolonged durations. The proposed technology was designed to address the technology gap and market needs followed by proof-of-concept demonstrations on scaled prototypes.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.