SBIR Phase I: Sub-orbital Ballooning System for Low-cost, Instant, and Long-Duration Mesospheric Access for Research, Testing, and Technology Demonstrations

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是创建一种新的、最先进的、低成本的半自动产品。用于亚轨道运输系统的超高空气球系统。该技术寻求提供常规的亚轨道大气飞行，用于在中间层(260,000英尺)的超低真空中进行有效载荷的环境测试。该技术还寻求将计量有效载荷，如无线电探空仪(测量压力、温度和相对湿度)和雷诺兹探空仪(评估风速和风向、温度、压力和相对湿度)从地面到26万英尺的较长时间内传输。这一能力对于提高空间飞行任务的成功率尤为关键。新的测试能力每年可以为航天工业节省数亿美元的技术故障。长期向大气层上层输送计量有效载荷也可能提高天气预报的准确性。这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目旨在解决阻止气球将有效载荷带到高层大气的众所周知的问题。该项目将开发硬件原型，进行软件开发，并将硬件和软件集成在一起。该团队将进行飞行演示，以确定中间层环境对不断膨胀的飞行运输的影响，并展示长期(小时)向中间层亚轨道高度进行的低成本有效载荷运输。这一奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定任务，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 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase-I project is the creation of a new, state-of-the-art, low-cost, semi-automatic. ultra-high-altitude balloon system for suborbital transportation system. The technology seeks to provide routine sub-orbital atmospheric flights for environmental testing of payloads in the ultra-low vacuum of the Mesosphere (260,000 feet). The technology also seeks to transport metrological payloads, such as radiosondes (that measures pressure, temperature, and relative humidity) and rawinsondes (that evaluate wind speed and direction, temperature, pressure, and relative humidity) at all altitudes from the ground to 260,000 feet for extended periods of time. This capability is especially critical for increasing the success rate of space missions. The new testing capability may save the space industry hundreds of million dollars in technology failures annually. The transportation of metrological payloads to the upper extremes of the atmosphere for extended periods of time may also provide improved accuracy of weather forecasts.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project seeks to solve well-known problems that prevent balloons from taking payloads to the upper atmosphere. This project will develop hardware prototypes, perform software development, and integrate the hardware and software together. The team will perform flight demonstrations to characterize the impact of the Mesospheric environment on the ballooning flight transport and demonstrate the low-cost payload transport to the Mesospheric sub-orbital altitudes for a long duration ( hour).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.